The Department of Energy and its construction manager for the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) said Tuesday the facility has now vitrified 100,000 gallons of liquid tank waste into a solid glass form.
“Each gallon of immobilized waste brings us closer to a cleaner, safer environment and revitalized community,” Brian Hartman, WTP project director and senior vice president with Bechtel National, which designed and built the plant.
DOE’s Office of Environmental Management announced the milestone in a Tuesday press release.
The WTP hit the 100,000-gallon mark on Saturday May 16, according to Bechtel.
The plant started solidifying some of the less radioactive waste at Hanford in October. By the end of 2025, the WTP had solidified 40,000 gallons into glass form.
“Treating 100,000 gallons is more than just a number; it represents our commitment to protecting the Columbia River and Tri-Cities community for future generations,” Mat Irwin, Hanford Field Office assistant manager for tank waste operations, said in the release.
Hanford has 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical waste resulting from plutonium production during World War II and the Cold War and stored in old underground tanks a few miles from the Columbia River, according to DOE. Some of the tanks have leaked previously.