"The Department of Energy on Wednesday put forward a long-term plan to extract and ship low-level radioactive waste from leaking tanks at Washington state's Hanford Nuclear Reservation to a dump in New Mexico."
"The announcement came two weeks after Washington Governor Jay Inslee publicly announced that six waste tanks were leaking at the World War Two-era nuclear weapons site, and coincided with a visit by the governor to Hanford.
The plan faces several regulatory hurdles and may require New Mexico to agree to accept the waste.
The Department of Energy (DoE) said on Wednesday its 'preferred alternative' is to retrieve up to 3.1 million gallons (11.7 million liters) of radioactive waste sludge in up to 20 of Hanford's 177 tanks, stabilize it and truck it to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico, for disposal."
Eric M. Johnson reports for Reuters March 7, 2013.
SEE ALSO:
"Feds Look To Ship Wash. Radioactive Waste To NM" (AP)
"Hanford Contractor To Pay More Than $18.5 Million" (AP)
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