Hanford Cleanup Hobbled by Bureaucratic Uncertainty Despite Critical Progress

The Hanford Nuclear Reservation, once the backbone of America’s plutonium production for the Cold War arsenal, now faces a pivotal moment in its ongoing cleanup effort. The recent state approval to proceed with the vitrification of radioactive waste marks a major milestone. But this progress is overshadowed by troubling signs of federal indecision and mismanagement that jeopardize our nation’s security and environmental future. Will Bureaucratic Failures Undermine America’s Greatest Nuclear Cleanup? For decades, Hanford has been a symbol of Cold War prowess — producing the plutonium for the first atomic bombs that ended World War II and sustained deterrence against...