Trump’s budget breaks the promise to clean up Hanford site | Editorial
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Administration proposes $400M cut to Hanford cleanup, reducing FY2027 funding.
- Cuts would delay deactivation and demolition, prolonging risks near Columbia River.
- Congress must act to uphold Tri-Party Agreement and meet legal cleanup deadlines.
The Trump administration proposes cutting about $400 million from Hanford’s cleanup budget. That is not merely shortsighted policy but also a breach of the promise that the nation made to the region.
The Department of Energy’s fiscal year 2027 budget request would slash Hanford funding from a record $3.3 billion to about $2.9 billion. That is less than half of what the state Department of Ecology estimates is required to meet the government’s obligations.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., was right to call that a “slap in the face to the Tri-Cities.” She has fought for years to secure funding for Hanford, pushing against reluctant Democratic and Republican administrations.
During his Senate confirmation hearings last year, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, a former fossil fuel executive, hardly inspired confidence that Hanford cleanup would be a priority for the administration. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., pressed him to publicly acknowledge and support the Tri-Party Agreement, but he equivocated and dodged her questions.
White House budgets are not binding. Congress is responsible for writing the actual budget. But the president’s proposal serves as an important policy document. It highlights what the administration does and does not care about. With this cut, the Trump administration makes clear that it does not care about the Tri-Cities and the legacy of toxic waste at Hanford.
The federal government came to the Tri-Cities more than 80 years ago with a secret project to win World War II. It commandeered farmland and built the Hanford site. The site continued producing material for nuclear weapons for decades. The toxic legacy of that work remains there and will require decades more to clean up. All the while, the risk of a radioactive leak hangs over the Columbia River and communities downstream.
Under the administration’s budget proposal, the Department of Energy would put on hold the cleanup of the highly radioactive spill beneath the 324 Building and finishing cleanup at the K West Reactor to allow it to be put into safe, long-term storage. The 324 Building is particularly troubling. The spill of cesium and strontium beneath is so radioactively hot it would be lethal on direct contact within two minutes. It is just 1,000 feet from the Columbia River
Those delays would prolong the cleanup process, likely missing deadlines, costing more and leaving dangers in place longer than necessary.
The Tri-Party Agreement, signed in 1989 by the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Washington state Department of Ecology, created a legally binding framework for cleaning up the 177 underground tanks holding 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical waste. A federal consent decree further requires the High Level Waste Facility at the Hanford vitrification plant to begin treating the most dangerous waste by 2033.
None of that is optional. Those are binding agreements and orders. The White House should withdraw its $400 million cut. If anything, it ought to be providing even more funding so that the federal government makes good on its legal and moral obligations to the Tri-Cities as quickly and safely as possible.
If the White House does not change its mind, Congress must ensure that the Hanford cleanup continues on pace. Once again, Washington’s congressional delegation, especially Murray, will have to advocate for doing the right thing.
The Hanford funding, if enacted, would be only the most recent harm inflicted on Eastern Washington by President Donald Trump.
The federal immigration crackdown has created a labor crisis for the region’s agricultural and construction industries. Trump’s unconstitutional tariffs and his reckless war in Iran have driven up costs for goods and energy. Communities fray and families pay more for less.
Gasoline prices have spiked, and that affects not just people driving to work but also the cost of delivering goods and services. Policy decisions made in Washington, D.C., have a real impact on people and communities here.
The people of the Tri-Cities have been patient partners in a cleanup that will span generations. They deserve a partner in Washington, D.C., that keeps its word and continues to fund the work at Hanford.