June 23, 2015

Washington AG Criticizes DOE Proposed Hanford Cleanup Delays

By ExchangeMonitor

Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson leveled criticism on Monday at the Department of Energy for its recent attempt to delay the cleanup of tank waste at the Hanford site. Washington filed a motion late last week to strike further proposed delays by the DOE in the consent decree, which establishes the cleanup milestones at the site. DOE has proposed to push back removal of the last nine remaining waste single and double shell tanks from Hanford until 2022 due to problems with worker safety surrounding the tank waste. “I will hold the Department of Energy accountable to its commitments to protect worker safety and meet agreed-upon timelines for the Hanford cleanup,” Ferguson said in a statement. “The danger these tanks represent is well documented. Energy should not use its responsibility to protect workers — a duty it has always had — as a reason to let critical deadlines to clean up Hanford slip further into the distant future.”

The consent decree has been the subject of back and forth between the state and DOE for some time. Currently, there is pending litigation between the two, as well as with the state of Oregon, over missed cleanup milestones at the site. In an effort to modify the consent decree, an Eastern Washington District U.S. Court judge has agreed to intervene in the litigation, and will consider proposals by all three litigants in the case to modify a better agreement. Washington estimates that DOE will miss at least 14 of the 16 consent decree deadlines, which are still pending. DOE, though, has said unforeseen technical and safety problems are the cause of the delays. DOE declined to comment yesterday on the state’s latest motion.

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