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The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is in the process of rescinding or revising guidance and policies posted on this webpage in accordance with Executive Order 14151 Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing, and Executive Order 14168 Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government. In the interim, any previously issued diversity, equity, inclusion, or gender-related guidance on this webpage should be considered rescinded that is inconsistent with these Executive Orders.

Home Radioactive Waste Waste Incidental to Reprocessing Disposal Process WIR Locations

NON-NDAA Waste Incidental to Reprocessing (WIR) at the Hanford Site (HANF) in Washington – Waste Management Area-C (WMA-C) Tank Farm (TF)

HANF WMA-C TF in Richland, Washington

Artist’s rendering of internal layout of the Hanford Site (HANF) in Richland, WA – Waste Management Area-C (WMA-C) Tank Farm (TF)

Operator: U.S. Department of Energy
Docket Number: PROJ0736
Tank Description: Various
Waste Volume: 2.0x108 litres (5.3x107 gallons)

For WIR not covered under the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 (i.e., non-NDAA WIR), the role of the NRC is: if requested by the DOE through an Interagency Agreement (i.e., the DOE funds the NRC), then the DOE will consult with the NRC and the NRC will provide a technical review evaluating the DOE documents describing how the DOE proposes to close the tank farms at the Hanford Site (HANF).

In accordance with the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (Tri Party Agreement) and State-approved closure plans, tanks in those HANF tank farms will be closed in coordination with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the State of Washington Department of Ecology. Note that the NRC is not a party to the Tri Party Agreement.

HANF, occupying approximately 1,518 square kilometers (km2) (586 square miles (mi2)) along the Columbia River near Richland, Washington, is a former federal government plutonium production complex. The cleanup of HANF involves more than 2.0x108 litres (5.3x107 gallons) of radioactive and chemically hazardous waste in 177 underground storage tanks, with approximately 750K cubic meters (m3) (25 million cubic feet (ft3)) of buried or stored solid waste, spent nuclear fuel, and plutonium in various forms. The DOE Office of River Protection has the mission to retrieve and treat the Hanford Site’s tank waste and close its tank farms to protect the Columbia River.

Major Non-NDAA WIR Consultation Documents For The HANF WMA-C TF:

Document Date ADAMS Accession No.
Non-NDAA WIR Consultation Documents
NRC Technical Evaluation Report for Draft WIR Evaluation for Closure of WMA C 05/11/2020 ML20128J832 (TER) and
ML20122A219 (letter)
DOE WMA-C TF Performance Assessment 09/30/2016 ML18099A131 and
ML18099A136
DOE Draft WIR Evaluation for WMA-C TF 06/04/2018 ML18156A450

Current NRC Project Manager: Maurice Heath, 301-415-3137, Maurice.Heath@nrc.gov

Page Last Reviewed/Updated Monday, June 27, 2022