Senate approval of a new federal spending bill means Hanford is likely to receive $146.5 million more for cleanup projects this year than was proposed by the Bush administration.
The 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Bill approved Tuesday also includes money for other Mid-Columbia projects planned by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Kadlec Medical Center, Ben Franklin Transit, the Port of Benton and Hanford's historic B Reactor.
"This is a big victory for the Tri-Cities at a critical time," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., in a statement. "With area unemployment rates surging, this bill will help get Tri-Cities residents back to work by investing federal funds in projects in their own backyards."
The bill, already approved by the House, is expected to be signed into law by President Obama. Murray, as a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, worked to get money for Hanford projects, and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., also supported the bill.
The bill replaces a continuing resolution that continued funding for many federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, at fiscal 2008 levels after fiscal 2009 started Oct. 1 without budgets approved. It is separate from the stimulus bill signed by Obama in February.
The Hanford budget for fiscal 2009 would be just shy of $2 billion. The largest portion of the increase over the Bush administration proposal is almost $67 million to conclude cleanup along the Columbia River by 2015.
It also includes $31.5 million more for work at the Hanford tank farms, where 53 million gallons of radioactive waste is stored underground.
In addition, almost $13 million more would be spent to clean up and protect ground water; $9 million for cleanup of the Plutonium Finishing Plant and $22.5 million for solid waste clean up in central Hanford, including digging up waste contaminated with plutonium that was temporarily buried until the nation had a national repository open in New Mexico.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's project to build a new Physical Sciences Facility and continue using some older buildings in southern Hanford would receive $71 million through DOE to be combined with $25 million from the Department of Homeland Security.
Other Mid-Columbia money includes:
-- $2.185 million to extend Steptoe Street on the border between Kennewick and south Richland.
-- $1.758 million to expand the Ben Franklin Transit maintenance building.
-- $190,000 to work on a public access road to Hanford's historic B Reactor from the Vernita bridge area.
-- $809,000 to expand services for children, including an expanded neonatal intensive care unit at Kadlec in Richland.
-- $951,000 for a Port of Benton demonstration project to turn agriculture waste into thermal and electrical energy.
* Annette Cary: 509-582-1533; acary@tricityherald.com
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Hanford stimulus spending called a success
Hanford stimulus spending called a success
Not since environmental cleanup began at Hanford has the nuclear reservation had a period where it could point to as much work completed as in the last 30 months.
As the Department of Energy wraps up most spending of its $1.96 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money, Hanford regulators and the state of Oregon, which keeps a close eye on Hanford, are calling the program a success.
Within a day of receiving its first Recovery Act money in spring 2009, Department of Energy contractors were hiring to ramp up cleanup.
Governor's budget proposal includes grants for Hanford interests
Governor's budget proposal includes grants for Hanford interests
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire has included enough money for grants in her proposed supplemental budget to cover the cost of all but one grant to Hanford interest groups.
Five public participation grants for Hanford-related use already had been awarded to four agencies to be spent over two years starting July 1, 2011. The grants were among $2.5 million in public participation money awarded to 40 organizations by the state Department of Ecology statewide for the 2011-13 biennium.
But as it looked for ways to trim its budget up to 15 percent, the Department of Ecology had proposed cutting public participation money already authorized from $2.5 million to $361,454.
Hanford regulators will postpone some cleanup deadlines
Hanford regulators will postpone some cleanup deadlines
Hanford regulators have agreed to let some interim environmental cleanup deadlines slide at the nuclear reservation to focus on the highest priority work, given the realities of the federal budget.
The changes are expected to allow work to continue to demolish the Plutonium Finishing Plant, which the Department of Energy heard during public comments should be a priority.
The new plan also retains the focus on completing cleanup along the Columbia River by 2015 and cleaning up contaminated ground water beneath Hanford.
Hanford to remain budget steady; PNNL's might dip
Hanford to remain budget steady; PNNL's might dip
Hanford can expect reasonably level funding for the foreseeable future, said Matt McCormick, manager of the Department of Energy Richland Operations Office.
However, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory could face a possible decrease in federal money for its research programs in the near term, which could require some small-scale layoffs.
McCormick and Roger Snyder, manager of the DOE Pacific Northwest Site Office, discussed federal budget issues at the Tri-Cities Regional Economic Outlook forum Wednesday in Kennewick.
Community copes with 2,000 Hanford layoffs
Community copes with 2,000 Hanford layoffs
Editor's note: Hanford started this year with 12,000 workers and nine months later about 2,000 positions have been cut. Herald reporters and photographers take a closer look at what this means to Tri-Citians and our economy with a daily series of stories that begins today.
The day after the last of almost 2,000 workers were told they were losing their jobs at Hanford, Twigs Bistro and Martini Bar opened at the Columbia Center mall in Kennewick.
Business has been excellent, said general manager Will Willingham. Customers have been filling its 267 seats, with waits of up to 30 minutes on some nights.
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