College students crunch Hanford groundwater contaminant numbers

By Erika Holmes, Community Outreach & Environmental Education, Nuclear Waste Program





Over the last three months, Ecology's Nuclear Waste Program teamed up with statistics teacher Linda Rogers and her two classes at Columbia Basin College to analyze Hanford groundwater data. At Hanford, about 72 square miles of groundwater are contaminated above drinking water standards. One of Ecology’s

Ecology Ponders Hanford Tank Farm Closure

By Jeff Lyon, Nuclear Waste Program
I have some questions as Ecology’s Tank Systems, Operations, and Closure Project Manager:

How long should we wait to close the 149 single-shell tanks (SSTs) at Hanford?
What are the risks to humans and the environment if we wait?
If we wait for more money or better cleanup technologies (we may never get either), what should we do about the current soil

WSU students create a buzz about Hanford among Tri-City youth

By Erika Holmes, Community Outreach & Environmental Education Specialist, Nuclear Waste ProgramWorking with Jeff Holmes (my husband), an English instructor at the Tri-Cities branch of Washington State University (WSU), we tasked his 48 technical communication students with the goal of reaching high school and college students about the Hanford nuclear site cleanup. Usually when students are given

Old Hanford misconceptions come home to roost again

By Suzanne Dahl, Tank Waste Treatment manager, Nuclear Waste ProgramNothing is as frustrating as watching history repeat itself negatively.A July 10th Tri-City Herald article highlighted the findings from a recent federal advisory board’s report on tank waste treatment. The report recommends delaying a decision about additional low-activity waste treatment for another 3 to 5 years. Hanford’s