The Eastern Washington Chapter of the Academy of Certified Hazardous Material Managers honored achievements in the Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon and Western Idaho area at its annual banquet Thursday in Richland.

The Hanford C Tank Farm Waste Retrieval Team of Washington River Protection Solutions received the Department of Energy Office of River Protection Manager's Award For Exemplary Service. The award was given for innovation, regulatory compliance, execution, management and waste minimization while emptying three underground tanks of high level radioactive waste.

The Environmental Permit Transitions Team of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and DOE's Pacific Northwest Site Office received an Excellence in Hazardous Materials Management Award for accomplishments involving complex environmental air and nuclear permitting at multiple sites, multiple federal agencies and the Washington State Department of Health. The award was sponsored by CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co.

An Excellence in Hazardous Materials Management Award was given to the Waste Encapsulation and Storage Facility's Capsule Alignment Team for reducing risk in the storage of cesium and strontium.

The award was sponsored by Washington River Protection Solutions.

The CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Co. Comprehensive Environmental Management Involvement Team received a Special Achievement Award for demonstrating whole-company involvement in a new environmental management system. The system received certification as an International Organization for Standardization 14001 system. About 50 employees were involved in planning and more than 2,800 employees were involved in waste minimization activities. The award was sponsored by the Eastern Washington Chapter.