I have blogged about injury to workers at Hanford as a result of exposure to vapors from nuclear waste storage tanks. During this spring and summer, forty two workers have received medical evaluation because they may have been exposed to toxic fumes vented from the Hanford waste tanks. There have been other incidents of such exposure in the past. Unfortunately the changes that were made to deal with the problem have fallen short of protecting the workers. While the Hanford authorities played down the injuries and said that everyone recovered and returned to work, some of the exposed workers claim that they have permanent injuries. Now the Hanford Tank Vapor Assessment Team (HTVA) has been dispatched from the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) to look into the situation.
Over the next few days, the Team will take tours, attend briefings, review procedures, observe work at the tank farm, meet with the Chemical Vapors Solutions Team and meet with focus groups of tank farm workers. The plan is for the HTVA Team to return to Hanford in mid-August, issue an interim report at the end of September and issue a final report before January. Member of the Team have to sign a non-disclosure agreement. No information from the Team's investigations is expected before mid-August.
The Hanford tank farm is managed by Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS). WRPS has asked SRNL to conduct this independent investigation with the participation of nationally recognized experts. It is hoped that the HTVA will make recommendations that will protect workers in the future from exposure to these toxic fumes.
This whole situation is an example of a repeating pattern at Hanford. We are assured that there is safety culture at Hanford to protect the workers from harm. Then something happens that injures workers. Meetings are held, reports are issued and changes may be made. Simultaneously, the Hanford authorities issue press releasing assuring the public and the workers that the problems were minor and have been quickly and comprehensively addressed. Time goes by and more workers are injured. And the whole cycle repeats.
Hanford is one of the most radioactively contaminated areas on Earth. Decades of nuclear weapons development took place with scant concern for safety of the workers or integrity of the environment. With over a trillion dollars spent on weapons development, now the federal government has to work hard to come up with a billion dollars for cleaning up the mess that they made. With radioactive releases into the atmosphere and groundwater, Hanford remains a serious threat to the people living in the area.
I have attended a number of public hearings held by Hanford authorities regarding the clean up. They show up with glossy brochures about the great work they are doing. They are always confident that this time they really know how to deal with the problems encountered in the clean up. On the other hand, they are hard pressed to give satisfactory answers to non-profit groups who have been studying the contamination and clean up plans. The U.S. Department of Energy has been repeatedly caught lying and breaking the law at Hanford. I have little confidence in their integrity and competence.
