Update: WA, NW leaders react to ‘historic achievement decades in the making’ at Hanford site

Washington state and local leaders praised Wednesday’s historic launch of the radioactive waste treatment plant, or vitrification plant, at Hanford near Richland.

Washington state

Gov. Bob Ferguson: “It’s difficult to overstate how important this milestone is in the Hanford cleanup effort. Thousands of Washingtonians worked for decades to bring us to this moment. They deserve recognition for this achievement. A month ago, the U.S. Secretary of Energy said behind closed doors that the federal government would back away from its obligation to bring this plant online. The united voices of workers, businesses and elected leaders made a difference. We made history today.”

Casey Sixkiller, director of the state Department of Ecology: “It’s pretty incredible to see this first-of-its-kind plant come online. Transforming this waste into glass offers the best protection for the environment and communities across the Pacific Northwest. It was a Herculean effort to make this a reality, and I’m so proud of my team for all their work.”

Dennis Worsham, state secretary of health, on Department of Health radioactive air emissions licenses for the vitrification plant: “These licenses affirm our ongoing commitment to protecting the health and safety of Washington communities. As we move forward, we’ll continue to hold this work to the highest standards and partner closely with agencies and local leaders to ensure the cleanup is completed safely and responsibly for future generations.”

Tri-City Economic Development Council

David Reeploeg, vice president for TRIDEC federal programs: “The beginning of tank waste vitrification is a tremendous milestone for the Hanford Site and the Tri-Cities. For the first time ever, a campaign is now underway to significantly reduce the total amount of waste in Hanford’s tanks — a historic achievement decades in the making. Congratulations to the Department of Energy, Bechtel, WTCC, H2C, and the thousands of highly-skilled workers, engineers, and leaders whose dedication made this possible. We’re also deeply grateful to our congressional champions — especially Senator Patty Murray, Senator Maria Cantwell, Congressman Dan Newhouse, and former Congressman Doc Hastings — for their leadership and unwavering support of Hanford cleanup.”

Energy Communities Alliance

Mayor Brent Gerry, Energy Communities Alliance chairman and mayor of West Richland: “I congratulate DOE and the many people and companies that had a hand in this first of kind engineering accomplishment in our community that will take liquid radioactive waste, turn it into glass.”

Seth Kirshenberg, Executive Director of Energy Communities Alliance: “I congratulate the DOE Environmental Management Program and the leaders that have moved forward with the program. This program now works based on strong management and oversight and partnerships with the world class contractors and workers that designed and built the facility. This proves we can build difficult projects with annual appropriations that are engineering models for other programs.”

Oregon state

Maxwell Woods, Oregon Department of Energy Nuclear Safety and Energy Security assistant director: “The start-up of vitrification at Hanford is truly a historic moment for the site and for our country. The facility will begin treating some of the most dangerous and difficult-to-manage waste at the Hanford site, and will significantly reduce the risk to the Columbia River and Oregon’s environment and people.”

Oregon said it has a tremendous stake in ensuring the safe and timely cleanup of Hanford. Hanford sits on the Columbia River, just 35 miles from Oregon’s border. From Hanford, the Columbia flows through prime Oregon farmlands and fisheries. Radioactive and chemical contamination poses a potential long-term threat to these important resources. Accordingly, the Oregon Department of Energy’s primary role is to ensure cleanup decisions are protective of the river.

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

“This is really a historic breakthrough. After decades of effort, we are officially turning nuclear waste into glass at Hanford. This is a monumental achievement that belongs to quite literally generations of Hanford workers. When it comes to Hanford, you can’t cut corners—and that’s part of why I’ve always fought to secure the federal resources needed to move this cleanup forward. I’ll always fight to support the Hanford cleanup and the workers who power this mission. The federal government has a moral and legal obligation to follow through on the Hanford cleanup—and I’ll never let any President forget it. This is just the start, and we’ve still got a ways to go before we’re anywhere near done, but today’s success is worth celebrating—let’s make glass!”

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.

“After decades of design, engineering, and construction, Hanford workers are finally starting to immobilize millions of gallons of toxic nuclear waste in glass. This is an incredible technical and logistical accomplishment for the Hanford workforce and the Tri-Cities community that has dedicated decades to making the vitrification plant a reality.”

Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash.

“Today is a historic milestone in the Hanford cleanup over two decades in the making. Congratulations to everyone at Hanford who has worked to bring the DFLAW project online and for your unwavering commitment to the cleanup mission. I have been a proud ally to Hanford through my role on the House Appropriations Committee, and I will continue working to make sure the federal government plays its part in supporting the cleanup effort.”

DOE Hanford

Hanford Site Manager Ray Geimer: “I appreciate the hard work and determination of the entire Hanford team to deliver on this legal commitment. This achievement enables us to shift focus to safely operating the plant and to progressing solutions for the Hanford tank waste mission in its entirety.”

Bechtel

Dena Volovar, president of Bechtel’s Nuclear, Security & Environmental business: “It reflects decades of teamwork, innovation, and partnership with our customer to solve one of the nation’s most complex environmental challenges—safely and permanently. Together with the Department of Energy, the state of Washington, our labor partners, local suppliers, subcontractors, and world-class scientific experts, we’ve turned vitrification into a reality at Hanford. It’s an important step forward in protecting the Columbia River, surrounding communities, and future generations.”

This story was originally published October 15, 2025 at 12:45 PM.