Conservation Habitat Assessment and Mitigation Prioritization for the Hanford Site: Proposed Methodology

Technical Report · Wed Aug 01 04:00:00 EDT 2018

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2588771· OSTI ID:2588771

Hall, Sonia A. ^[1]; Wilde, Justin ^[2]; Lindsey, Cole ^[2]

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1. SAH Ecologia LLC, Wenatchee, WA (United States)
2. Mission Support Alliance, LLC, Hanford, WA (United States)

The central Hanford Site extends over 312 mi² in south-central Washington State, with State Route 240 providing the main boundary to the south and west and the Columbia River bounding it on the north and east. The Hanford Site is within the largest remaining area of contiguous native shrub-steppe and grasslands in Washington State. It also contains some of the most extensive dune systems in the region and is home to hundreds of plant and wildlife species. The natural resources on the Hanford Site are of notable value, both locally and regionally. This area has been home to several Native American Tribes. Remnants, artifacts, and burial sites associated with historical Tribal activity are found throughout the Hanford Site, highlighting that this area is also culturally significant and important to the Tribes today. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) currently manages the Hanford Site. In 1989 DOE entered into the Tri-Party Agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Washington State Department of Ecology. Since then DOE has invested in cleanup of the Hanford Site to address the nuclear waste and pollution remaining from the nuclear reactors constructed to produce plutonium during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project and the Cold War Era. As described on DOE’s website (https://www.energy.gov/em/hanford-site), “after more than two decades of cleanup, considerable progress has been made at Hanford, reducing the risk the site poses to the health and safety of workers, the public, and the environment.”

• Research Organization: Mission Support Alliance, LLC, Hanford, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM)
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-09RL14728
• OSTI ID: 2588771
• Report Number(s): HNF--62388-REV.0
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES