Registration Available for 2019 Hanford Tours

The public tour program focuses on environmental cleanup and gives participants with a look at key projects that support the ongoing cleanup of the Richland, Wash., site.

The U.S. Department of Energy began accepting online registrations March 19 for the 2019 Hanford cleanup tour program at www.hanford.gov. The public tour program focuses on environmental cleanup and gives participants with a look at key projects that support the ongoing cleanup of the Richland, Wash., site. The tours are free and include briefings on these Hanford facilities:

  • Hanford's Cold Test Facility, a scaled version of one of Hanford's 177 underground nuclear waste storage tanks
  • 200 West Pump and Treat facility, a groundwater treatment system using several technologies to remove chemical, radioactive, and organic contaminants before returning treated water to the ground through a network of wells
  • Sludge Removal Project, where workers are removing highly radioactive material from the 105 KW Reactor Basin and storing it at the center of the site
  • Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, which when complete will be the world's largest facility for immobilizing millions of gallons of liquid radioactive waste in glass suitable for safe, permanent disposal, according to DOE
  • PUREX Tunnels, where workers have stabilized two underground tunnels to ensure worker safety and protection of the environment

Tour participants must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. A government-issued photo ID is required for each tour participant and must be presented when arriving for the tour. All seats are filled on a first-come-first-served basis through online registration at https://www.hanford.gov/c.cfm/publicTours. Tours begin at 8 a.m. on the following days and last about four hours:

  • April 17, 23, and 25
  • May 1, 7, 9, and 16
  • June 19, 25, and 27
  • July 17, 23, 25, and 31
  • August 6, 8, 14, 20, 22, and 28

The tours will begin and end at the Mission Support Alliance office building at 2490 Garlick Blvd. in Richland.