The US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Hanford Field Office in coordination with the Washington State Department of Ecology, is advancing a permit improvement that could enable the Waste Treatment Plant at the Hanford Site to process up to 20% more tank waste. This will reduce costs, increase operational flexibility, and enable continued tank retrievals.
For every gallon of Hanford tank waste solidified in glass, between one and three gallons of less hazardous secondary waste is created as a byproduct of the glass-making process. The permit change will enable a shift from solidifying a portion of the less hazardous secondary material in glass to solidifying it in grout locally and shipping it out of Washington state for commercial disposal.
Building on the highly successful 2,000-gallon Test Bed Initiative, this will maximise throughput of the Waste Treatment Plant, improve operational flexibility, and expedite cleanup while maintaining safety and regulatory compliance. This will enable Hanford to avoid operational challenges and keep the Waste Treatment Plant melters focused on their primary mission – turning tank waste into glass.
“Advancing this permit modification reflects our commitment to teamwork, responsible stewardship of taxpayer investments and a practical approach to cleanup,” said Ray Geimer, Hanford Field Office Manager. “By creating a more efficient pathway for managing secondary waste produced as a byproduct of the glass-making process, we can keep treatment operations moving and expedite the cleanup mission.” He added: “This is a common-sense step that supports both efficiency and safety. It gives the site additional flexibility while continuing to meet regulatory requirements and protecting workers, the public and the environment.”
DOE says that, by enabling an additional disposal pathway for secondary waste produced as a byproduct of the glass-making process, Hanford can shorten cleanup timelines, reduce costs to the American taxpayer, and sustain progress on tank waste retrieval and treatment – all while keeping community safety and environmental protection as core priorities.
The Hanford Site was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project, Hanford’s primary mission was to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons. It produced the plutonium used in the “Trinity” test (the world’s first nuclear explosion) and the “Fat Man” bomb dropped on Nagasaki. During the Cold War, operations expanded to nine nuclear reactors, producing the vast majority of the plutonium for the United States’ nuclear arsenal.
Decades of production left the site as the most radioactively contaminated location in the Western Hemisphere, with 56 million gallons of radioactive waste stored in 177 underground tanks. Since production ended in 1989, the site’s mission has shifted entirely to environmental clean-up. In October 2025, the Waste Treatment and Immobilisation Plant began turning low-activity radioactive waste into stable glass logs for the first time. In February 2026, workers began moving highly radioactive caesium and strontium capsules from underwater pools to safer dry storage.
Demolition of major Cold War structures continues. The 175-foot-tall K West Reactor exhaust stack was successfully toppled in February 2026. While several reactors have been “cocooned” (sealed in concrete) for long-term safety, total clean-up is estimated to take decades more, potentially into the 2060s or beyond. Congress recently approved a $3.2bn budget for fiscal year 2026 – the largest in the site’s history. However, regulators note this remains billions short of what is required for full, on-schedule cleanup. Parts of the site are now preserved as the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, where the public can take guided tours of the historic B Reactor.
The DOE Hanford Field Office is responsible for the safe and efficient retrieval, treatment and disposal of the 56 million gallons of chemical and radioactive waste stored in Hanford’s underground and for all remaining Hanford clean-up tasks. Hanford Site work is conducted by a federal and contractor workforce of approximately 13,000 personnel.
Hanford Site workers recently completed two important upgrades to an underground waste-storage tank, advancing safe and efficient management of radioactive waste. Crews with contractor Hanford Tank Waste Operations & Closure (H2C) installed a new transfer pump in AP-104, a double-shell tank key to Hanford’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste programme. The tank is vital for moving waste from older single-shell tanks and staging materials for treatment at the nearby Tank-Side Caesium Removal System before the material is converted into glass for long term storage.
Workers first removed the ageing pump, which had become less reliable and could have affected future waste transfers. The new equipment will help ensure waste moves safely and efficiently as cleanup continues.
“This new pump upgrade is another step forward in protecting our workers, community and environment,” said Bibek Tamang, Programme Manager for the Hanford Field Office. “Reliable, safe waste transfers are critical as we continue to treat Hanford’s tank waste.”
Carol Johnson, H2C President, noted: “Not only do these upgrades help us get work done faster, but they also dramatically reduce exposure to radiation – from levels usually seen in this kind of work to nearly negligible. It’s a big win for safety and progress on Hanford’s cleanup mission.”
