在美国能源部在华盛顿州的Hanford Waste泄漏地下储罐中，数百万加仑的放射性和化学废物销毁了数十年和在毒物变成惰性玻璃之前的固体，并在现场垃圾填埋场中处置了经过处理的废物，或者可能会发送一些数量，可能会发送到异地处置设施。

Pumping of waste into the site’s $130-million Tank-Side Cesium Removal System, which began late last month, is a key step before an estimated 56 million gallons of waste generated in one-time production of nuclear weapons at Hanford, are immobilized in the site’s multi-billion-dollarvitrification plant，正在建设20年，set to come on line到2023年底，根据州和联邦秩序。

在Bechtel National Inc.的指导下，该项目团队有望在接下来的几周内开始加热该工厂的第一个融化。

"For the first time we can say we have begun pretreating and conditioning tank waste," says John Eschenberg, president and CEO of DOE site contractor Washington River Protection Solutions, headed by Amentum and Atkins. It is responsible for preparing delivery of the waste stored in Hanford tanks to the vitrification plant. "We are on a journey to treat one million gallons by the end of this calendar year," he said,

Eschenberg说，该系统使用过滤和在南卡罗来纳州Doe的Savannah河现场和田纳西州的Oak Ridge实验室测试的离子交换系统去除剖宫产和固体。它旨在每分钟治疗约5加仑或每天7,200加仑。

The system has so far treated more than 90,000 gallons.

设计作为一个五年的发展ration project, the system is expected to treat and stage one million gallons of waste by the time the vitrification plant is on line. DOE site manager Brian Vance says its viability will then be assessed for future use.

Over the course of five years, officials estimate they will expend roughly 150 ion exchange columns—at a cost of $1 million per column—and spend up to $200 million in total to operate the facility.

"We see this as a great project to ... learn from and develop a way ahead that we think is affordable and achievable,” Vance says. “We are leaving a lot open, but it creates some opportunities for us in the future."

WRP使用从Savannah河系统中学到的工程课程，与分包商Avantech，Atkins Nucured LLC，Fowler General Construction Inc.和Apollo Mechanical Contractors Inc.一起设计和建立预处理系统。它是在南卡罗来纳州哥伦比亚市制造的，在华盛顿州里奇兰市的最终组装异地，然后在汉福德的坦克农场区安装，距离玻璃化厂不到四分之一英里。WRP说，该项目提前完成了预算。

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is set to visit Hanford, for the first time, later this month.

The tahk waste treatment effort comes as a new DOE report projects that completing cleanup of the entire Hanford nuclear complex will cost an estimated $300 billion to $640 billion, a cost range reduction since the analysis was last done in 2019, says theTri-City Herald.Doe的报告说，但是总计低端估算中的超过2亿美元将用于清空坦克废物，对待和处置它们。