SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown said she is against federal plans to potentially ship hazardous waste through the city.
The hazardous waste comes from the Hanford Nuclear Site on the Columbia River. Mayor Brown said The Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Action and the State of Washington plan to transport the nuclear waste through the city on its way to Texas and Utah.
EPA said the Hanford site was first created in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project. It produced plutonium for nuclear weapons until 1987. This led to over 2,000 contaminated soil sites, almost 200 square miles of contaminated groundwater and millions of gallons of radioactive waste stored in underground tanks.
The city said if the initial transport of 2,000 gallons of waste is successful, the agencies plan to transport millions more through the city by rail or truck.
Plans to transport the waste through Spokane started after partners in Oregon raised concerns over the risk this would pose to communities where the waste traveled.