Hanford TRU facility could start operation in 2033

A center for processing and storing transuranic waste could start up at the Hanford Site in 2033, Department of Energy and Washington state officials said during a public meeting last week.

DOE and Washington state Department of Ecology managers on May 7 summarized plans to build and run a proposed Contact-Handled Waste Processing Treatment and Storage Area during a public meeting that was webcast. The facility would be constructed at Hanford’s Central Waste Complex in the 200 West Area of the nuclear cleanup site.

According to the briefing slides presented by DOE’s Gary Pyles and Ecology’s Debra Alexander, a permit application will be submitted this summer. Final project design is expected in 2029 with construction to start in 2029 and operations in 2033.

The primary role of the Contact-Handled Waste Processing Treatment and Storage site will be preparing and certifying transuranic and mixed-transuranic waste for ultimate shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico.

Hanford last shipped transuranic waste to WIPP in 2011. Hanford has been working closely with DOE’s Carlsbad Field Office in New Mexico on the plans, Pyles said during the meeting.

A National Environmental Policy Act screening finished in November 2024, concluded that the project would not cause significant environmental or cultural impacts.

Building the facility within the Central Waste Complex footprint requires a Resource Conservation and Recovery permit modification from the state, according to the presentation. DOE sent Ecology a notice of intent in October 2024.

A link to a recording of the meeting is available here.