[CPEO-MEF] RADIATION: "Unexpected contamination reported in Hanford [WA] cleanup"

[Lenny Siegel]

Unexpected contamination reported in Hanford cleanup

By Hal Bernton 
Seattle Times (WA)
May 20, 2019

A difficult cleanup of a Hanford research laboratory near Richland and the Columbia River suffered setbacks this spring as some contamination was not the type expected, spread farther than anticipated and was found on a worker’s personal clothing, according to incident reports published by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.

The contamination of the contract worker’s clothes involved strontium, and was detected March 28 as he left a radiological area of the shuttered research laboratory known as the 324 Building.

The source of the strontium, which was removed from the clothing with a piece of tape, was not identified. The incident triggered a stop-work order April 1, which was lifted April 4 when no additional contamination was detected, according to the federal Energy Department, which manages the Hanford site in South Central Washington.

…

For the entire article, see
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/setbacks-this-spring-at-a-difficult-hanford-clean-up-site-close-by-richland-and-the-columbia-river/

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Lenny Siegel
Executive Director
Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
P.O. Box 998, Mountain View, CA 94042
Voice/Fax: 650/961-8918 
<lsiegel at cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org