Striking production workers at the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Kansas City Plant are raising questions about the safety of the plant’s aging Bannister Federal Complex home after a pipe burst last week at the facility. With tension between the union and plant contractor Honeywell Federal Manufacturing and Technologies increasing, union officials say water and sludge from the burst pipe covered one third of the facility, damaging walls and floors and raising questions about whether the Honeywell-operated plant has enough remaining employees to meet environmental and safety standards. Approximately 860 International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Local 778 workers have been on strike since Oct. 10.
Honeywell, however, downplayed the incident, saying in a statement there was a “limited release of water” from the broken water pipe that was quickly cleaned up. “The pipe break had no impact on the facility, employees or the surrounding environment,” Honeywell said. “Safety and security are top priorities for all Honeywell facilities. KCP meets all safety regulations and we take great pride in its long running safety record.”
Claude Harris, the Directing Business Representative for Local 778, called on the Department of Energy’s Office of Health, Safety and Security, the NNSA, the Environmental Protection Agency, the General Services Administration, and Missouri’s Division of Environmental Quality, to investigate the impact of the broken water pipe. “Is the Kansas City community being put at risk?” Harris said in a statement on the union’s website. “Who is monitoring the waste stream? What toxins are being used and who is handling the disposal? We have concerns with how Honeywell is controlling release of toxins and air flow from the plant in to the community.”
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