The Area: A Journey through the Hanford Nuclear Reservation

A recent graduate from Utah State University (Cameron Salony) accepts a job with the Department of Energy at Hanford and soon finds that his new workplace is a former site of plutonium production during WWII and the Cold War, but today is part of the world‟s largest environmental cleanup. However, he soon realizes that the history runs even deeper at Hanford as he meets with members of local tribes whose ancestors inhabited the region thousands of years before settlers began moving into the area in the 1860s. Eventually the government would take the land from both the Native Americans and the settlers for war purposes in the 1940s. Today some of the best-educated scientists and engineers in the country are working together to clean up what remains after 45 years of plutonium production in an effort to restore the land. Join Cameron as he explores the history and issues of Hanford as he interviews local tribal members, a citizen advisory board member, former and current workers, Hanford management, regulators and more.

[@Baistegenx]

Well, they sure didn't address how horrible the waste contamination of the whole area is.

[@FenTheFur]

I really found this informational. I lived in Richland for a while and heard a lot about Hanford. I met a lot of people that worked there and even a guy that helped develop the method to turn the nuclear waste into a glass like substance for easy clean up if the need arises. One thing I do want to mention though is my grandfather had worked there for a period of time when he was in the military so I found this particularly interesting. Thanks for sharing this on the internet.

[@cliffcampbell8827]

"The river has cleaned itself." Okay, where did that stuff go? It went downstream to the ocean. Where did it go from there? How are the buildings contaminated? How is the soil and ground water contaminated? "Turning it into glass for long term storage." Okay, what does that mean? Where is all that glass going to be stored? If atomic energy production is so great, how come the waste is so difficult to deal with? How come the waste will be around for centuries to come? Is there a way to recycle the waste?

[@FunHomAmbo]

The person who made this video was way too interested in making something flashy, when they should have focused more on making it informative or interesting. It's just pornography for editors.

[@dinosimotas]

I thought the same exact thing. The music was odd, the funky filters being applied. Too much. I would categorize this as an indie file.

[@ericprater4017]

Every year I take the Hanford tour of the site that documents the cleanup process and a tour of the B Reactor. Fascinating and COMPLEX cleanup, lots of pollution, lots of abuse, billions of dollars spent and to more to go. The Glassification process has a long way to go before it is feasible. Eric Prater

[@HanfordSite]

This channel is hosted by the DOE cleanup office that doesn't manage waste tanks. That channel is ORPHanford. Our office manages building demolition, waste site remediation, groundwater remediation and site services. For information on the cost of Hanford cleanup going forward, go to hanford.gov and look for the lifecycle report on the rotating slide on the landing page.

[@HanfordSite]

This KZbin channel is managed by the Dept of Energy Hanford office that manages cleanup of facilities, waste sites, and groundwater, not the underground tanks. The KZbin channel for the office that manages the tanks, the Office of River Protection is ORPHanford. We would recommend going to hanford.gov for more information on the Hanford Site.

[@Medicinnov8r]

This should be called, "The Beginning Of The End Of Humanity"

[@-user_error-558]

I like how he did this whole thing with absolutely zero mention of the still very active nuclear energy plant still up & running today. (I live 22 minutes from the eastern edge of hanford)

[@daleneparole1502]

Who is Kevin Blanch- utah ?

[@albertthesecond210]

The Energy NW Facility isn't part of the DOE Operations

[@martinkobimbo8090]

Really brave of you to live that close to all those nuclear liquids

[@KyleInOklahoma]

I enjoyed dis-I lv history-I hope Cameron is still workin away here an enjoyin his work...Tnx 4 d upload

[@briank06261973]

Just makes me wonder how much of that leaked radioactive waste is seeping into the ground water, or even the Columbia River itself. I live in Kennewick, WA near the Hanford reservation, and that is a scary thought.

[@johntauxe4423]

Back in the day, some of the waste management designs intended to drive the waste into the subsurface. That was their best available technology at the time. Sure, some rad is leaking into the Columbia, but it is a big river, and in the end, the amount leaked is very small. You exposures are much smaller than if you lived in, say, Denver Colorado.

[@WASasquatch]

Great video! Been on a Nuclear/Radiation kick all day. Always been astounded by such a force.

[@HanfordSite]

Contaminated groundwater from past operations is entering the river at low levels in a few locations along the river. We're working to contain the contamination, which is quickly diluted by the large volume of flow in the river. No cities downstream are reporting any contaminant levels of concern from Hanford. You might want to visit the Washington Dept. of Ecology website for more information.

[@TrevorStruthers]

I lived about 35 miles downwind from the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. No cancer yet, but I am young and not downriver.

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

***** And that "Gift of radiation" keeps giving. Surveys have shown increased incidences of medical maladies, just coincidences??? NO HELL NO ! ! !

[@accountnumber90]

My dad got transferred up there to work on the VIT Plant, but even though we only lived there around 10 years, both my parents ended up getting cancer and my mom actually passed away from brain cancer this year. I remember a TON of people in our church that would end up with it. The government says that it's safe, but it's clearly not.

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

Downwinders, people who live downwind from Hanford have for many many years suffered with way more than the average in weird deseases, especially cancer, and the Gov't was known to release radioactive material into the air.....what a shame for the area....

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

accountnumber90 "NICE" if you like 100+ deg heat and wind and sand and sage brush rattlesnakes, jack rabbits and coyotes only thing positive is the Mighty Columbia River.....been there done that....

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

My Grandfather lived worked there a couple years during construction...Dad worked on the Number 1 reactor building during construction...they did not tell them what they were building...top secret military project.....

[@TDurden527]

This film does not give justice to the horrible contamination that exists around Hanford. I lived in Washington for 50 years and the contamination from the leaking radioactive tanks is a huge problem. Think about it . . . 50,000,000 gallons of highly radioactive liquid. We and our children will be paying for Hanford for hundreds of years.

[@orangejjay]

So glad this is the top comment.

[@ChaosMagnet]

A good friend of mine lived downwind of the Hanford site when she was a kid. She died a few years ago from oesophageal cancer at the early age of 68. Way too young.

[@Justaguywithtruth]

Great Info from the past to learn for the future

[@pleisterman8660]

They 'clean it up'. What does that mean? That it is dumped in some other place. You cannot clean up radioactive material. The Colombia river cleaned itself? As long as you don't disturb the riverbed it's no problem.

[@ericprater4017]

One of the things that we need is a National Repository for waste, Go Yucca Mountain!

[@KieraCameron514]

Eric Prater We need to reprocess and recycle the used fuel.

[@ioanlightoller4934]

We certainly need a secure, safe repository. I know that WIPP does have some real negatives, but Yucca Mountain seems to be doable. WIPP has been shown not to be impervious, there is water seeping through the salt. From what I've been able to gather, Yucca mountain is a safe, dry, reasonably stable geological repository. People are going to have to realize that we have to get this waste secured. This affects all of us. Hopefully we can secure sites like Yucca Mountain around the country so that transportation time is shortened and more than one state has responsibility for the waste. After all, the waste wasn't made in just one state.

[@daleneparole1502]

What is FUKUSHlMA

[@jamesvignali6074]

Great site. Fractured basalt capable of producing wells that will pump 1,000 gallons per minute with one foot of draw down. Close proximity to major watershed, the Columbia Watershed. Tricities metropolitan area close by.

[@anonobot3333]

haha i love the old clips mixed in with present.

[@dharmadogpictures]

I highly recommend updating info on this youtube page in regards to the most recent news of 6 tanks leaking nuclear waste into the ground. This is going to change this region for years to come and will become uninhabitable for many in the future. For those who want to educate themselves on Hanford I would recommend this website search kim stringfellow, hanford project

[@lactophobia]

Great video! thx from germany.

[@HanfordSite]

FYI, annual reports have been produced for the Hanford Site for many years that show results of environmental sampling on and around the Hanford Site (air, soil, plants, animals, water....msa.hanford.gov/page.cfm/EnviroReports), and annual reports on groundwater monitoring have also been produced for many years: www.hanford.gov/page.cfm/SoilGroundwaterAnnualReports.

[@brianrutherfield9233]

All done in house? I’m sure those numbers are right on point

[@Dinkledorpher]

The waste treatment plant is still not operational.

[@torputube]

"First production reactor!" said like it's a good thing. : (

[@TDurden527]

I'd guess that this comment will be edited out, and shame on you. I lived in Washington for over 50 years, and the Hanford site is way worse than this video reflects. There has been many, many leaks from the waste tanks that are extremely, I mean, extremely radioactive. Furthermore, there have been many many instances of covering this up by the very people that are posting this video, and I say to you bunch, shame on you. This site, Hanford will not be healed for centuries if ever because of the half life of the wastes and you know it. Where is that in your video. Shame on you.

[@halconsalvaje]

Little Tazz I have heard there Is a 20 by 20 ft hole at this site must yesterday, a lot of disinformation, how much waste is leaking and why is this hole there? apparently they closed this facility and nobody can get out,

[@abnrmlmind]

Why did they need to poison this video with crappy music... silence is fine

[@Terabit3]

My grandfather actually worked at Hanford during the 1950's

[@MrShobar]

Michele Gerber appears to know her way around.

[@tjsells9288]

I was just watching a new channel do a report on hanford about how they where sending works into dangerous places without PPe..

[@DisabilityAustralia]

Left me flat, could have been really interesting but I guess it is just a piece to get some basic profile.

[@richardkelltoolmaker]

interesting and a subject that fascinates me, but please the electronic music overlay is profoundly irritating.

[@garyharrington5300]

No one has said what was the cost to humanity for this terrible thing?

[@7paco730]

grandma left in charge of the old reactor taking matt damon on a tour

[@SteffiReitsch]

Hey DOE Hanford, are you people are going to be around to monitor and take care of this ghastly devils brew for the next tens of thousands of years? DO YOU THINK SO? Just get your check, retire and pass the buck on to the next generation and the next and the next and the next....and the next civilization and the next civilization

[@cometrider2000]

PLEASE TELL ME THAT AT + T-9:14 THAT THESE AIRCRAFT ARE NOT U.S.NAVY SBD'S

[@caitmlp]

It hurts my ears when people - especially those who have worked at the site - say "nuke-yular". It's NUCLEAR!! "NU-CLEAR." OY!!

[@mwhitelaw8569]

such a sad ongoing story that outlive the vast majority of humanity. here's to the sixth world....good luck we left it a mess

[@andygerman285]

I grew up there. This guy should have studied the history of Hanford before making this film. I think he mentioned that the B reactor was named as a homage to the Alamo? Also, the contamination of the Columbia accounted for many illnesses of my generation and the workers. That aside, I am proud to have this in my history.

[@JaceInman]

is there anyway someone can link me to that 50s cartoon? please message me!

[@puncheex2]

...and of course that assumes everyone is trying to be honest in communication in the first place; if there is prevarication, or believes the other side is prevaricating, that adds a whole 'nother layer.

[@DigitalAgeInstitute]

Besides the flashy and editing effect stuff which ought to have been omitted - it contains valuable information, and I concur with the reporter / interviewer - that lots of people are putting in dedication to get this work done. The comments from others here below are valuable read. For instance Little Tazz, who reports that the contamination is indeed still serious and that the radioactive pollution is extremely dangerous. If you turn down the volume, such that you do not get distracted by all the "jitter" from the voices and what they want us to believe - we see lots of very questionable practices. Try to use the arrow-keys and replay sections which you question, and you will be surprised to see lots of not-so-good ways of dealing with the radioactive and contaminated materials.

[@sd31263]

End what, exactly? The cleanup?

[@ZS6JMP]

Cool documentary, however the background music is fc ing annoying.

[@jamielacourse7578]

Why can't people just enjoy the document?

[@hollygolightly8048]

I agree. But. Now that we have the Internet and comment sections on every website, everyone is an expert and has an opinion.

[@daleneparole1502]

Because nucIear is your Demise.

[@1954vette]

They recruited my Mother from Texas to work there during the war.

[@jamesvignali6074]

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 called for the President of the United States of America to recommend a high level nuclear waste disposal site by what year: A. 2020 B. 2017 C. 1887 D. 2001?

[@SteveWright-oy8ky]

RECOMEND ??? And Congress just votes it down, time after time ! Plenty of money for making WAR and all the WEAPONS to destroy, ..... but when it comes to cleanup, forget it, put it off, cancel it , ignore it, etc ! Now it has been turned into a multi- life long job without an end in sight , costing TRILLIONS !

[@BunnyR13]

the small scale reactors didnt produce anything........ except waste.

[@garyweaver9222]

Good video. Good example of children paying for the sins of their fathers, though

[@beatsheat]

Nuclear energy is a blessing. Human failing makes it a nightmare sometimes.

[@bogdanpaper]

Tenick it's made by the humans, that means it will fail, you know nuclear energy is a hell of a way to boil water...chernobyl should of been the end of nuclear energy

[@stetsonator]

Yes you are right!

[@carl-cx9uh]

but still can not get rid of any nuke waste.

[@dakunssd]

Chances are it would just fall back out of orbit. Also, how many spacecraft do you think it might take? Look up what it costs to put a kg of payload into orbit. No one has the means to do that.

[@googleiscensorship34]

And what do they do with all that waste? Make it vanish into deep-space?

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

ALL that nuclear waste is stored on site ! ! !! in leaking tanks...There are hundreds of millions of gallon of the stuff all over the reservation. Hanford is the MOST contaminated site in the WORLD, and the Gov't is spending billions and billions of dollars to try and clean it up. Originally the waste was either dumped on the ground or pumped back to the Columbia River. Put in "Hanford site" here on You tube and be astonished, also Google it and be prepared to be shocked ! ! !

[@PaulGreenwald]

Wilbur Finnigan Soon the most contaminated site on earth will be the Pacific Ocean

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

Paul Batchalor They say none of the Hanford leakage has reached the Columbia River yet or the aquafer but i don't believe them....and add to that the Fuchishima spill that is still dumping radio active water into the Pacific and we will have a radio active Pacific Ocean, and I believe we already do....nothing is ever said about the levels in the Pacific....wonder why ???

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

The clean up is supposed to fuse the radioactive material in glass and bury it away from the river yet still on the Nuke reservation, combining with glass will keep it in one place. we'll see...

[@Entropy106]

Are you ok now?

[@4skinner666]

yucca mountain, nv probably.

[@jamesvignali6074]

Nevada Test Site. Remote from human population. Arid climate with little or no groundwater generation. No chance of surface water contamination. Welded volcanic tuff, natures ceramic.

[@sdgv420215]

what can be done with that glass?

[@johntauxe4423]

The plan is to send it to a geologic repository. Ostensibly Yucca Mountain or something like it that we have yet to develop.

[@litestuf]

I've always felt strange about people who claim to ''Return to their roots and practice their old way of life''. I'd like to be 20 again but the world keeps turning and if we don't embrace the present and the future we are lying to ourselves and our families. In Canada we now have a prime minister who apologizes to every tribe and ancient people for everything that was done to them which is impossible, consequently, Canada turns over 10% of GNP to tribes all over Canada. We must wake up and move on. Just my 0.02$ worth.

[@HanfordSite]

The spokespeople are referring to different things. The EPA spokesperson is referring to the number of sites and the extent of groundwater contamination. The Ecology spokesperson is referring to the total area of the surface facilities/sites (i.e., the combined area of the buildings, waste sites).

[@MultipleObjectSelector]

However, it is very interesting

[@Muonium1]

It's not worth fighting this anymore. I was talking to a nuclear physicist the other day who said nook-you-lur. It's acceptance as an alternate translation is too widespread to reverse now. Just the way language works.

[@HanfordSite]

Jacelnman, try a search on "Dupus Boomer." I was able to find the cartoons posted on the web.

[@3030219]

Atomic city

[@turboslag]

Just further confirmation of the REAL cost and perpetual legacy of nuclear fission used for energy and weapon production. And we still haven't learned the lesson and continue to indulge in this toxic futility!

[@bunstinkerton7942]

That is exactly right. Why are we still using this technology?

[@puncheex2]

Well, that's a problem. When someone takes the time to get oriented in depth about the issues and the technology and approaches to remediation, then it is possible to express the problems and caveats in a meaningful way. When you're talking to tourists who aren't really into the reasons or technology, then communication gets vague and wandering. It's like trying to convey useful information thru these YT 500 char blurbs; you can be general with no depth or knowledgeable about a small amount.

[@sd31263]

End what "madness"? The cleanup?

[@MultipleObjectSelector]

So does the ultra-fake "old film" effect

[@hojoinhisarcher]

😊

[@8sun52]

Larry Bogart quit the pro nuclear PR gig in the mid '60s to start the Citizens Council; an anti-nuclear power organization. He realized after a close study of nuclear power, how dangerous, expensive, and inefficient (considering the saftey and disposal issues) nuclear power plants are. Unfortunately there wasn't enough wide scale momentum world wide to halt further nuclear power plant construction and have new ones decommissioned. It was reckless and poor judgment of the highest order to go nuclear when 1) no one had any closely researched and verifiable plan on how to store the waste and 2) it's an insanely dagerous way to run steam generators. Would any parent leave their five year old child home alone with matches and unlocked cabinets full of house cleaning fluids? Humans are amazing at science and engineering but in most cases are absolutely awful at understanding how to truly utilize it in the most efficient and best way for the betterment of humankind; and thwarting the attempts of sinister people that only seek to profit from it for long term financial gains and power. Now we're totally screwed. Fukushima, the Hanford plant...and so on.

[@sandyrock44]

Not fake, that's for sure.

[@puncheex2]

I believe they are trying, in general, to move contamination away from the river and its high water table to land fill areas on the plateau, far from the river and water, to where it can just decay in peace, underground. Presumably they are trying to keep it as concentrated as possible in doing that.

[@johntauxe4423]

Yes, that's about right.

[@MrSigDan]

Listen. Everyone complaining about how terrible the contamination is should remember a few things. First you need to realize they did try to prevent contamination back in the day, but the place sat and rotted for a very long time. The facility employed tons and tons of people who made a great living and it's the reason some of the current towns you live in are even there. It was also a very important part of our advancement as a country. America is cleaning it up. Continued-

[@SteveWright-oy8ky]

NO, ..... there was never any attempt to prevent or do cleanup ! The physicists, engineers and chemists all wanted to design and build into the many sites, filtering and containment systems to prevent widespread contamination. BUT, ... the Govt. and the military didn't want to spend the money on it, ... only on making more plutonium and being further wreckless in spreading contamination without any regard for the future of the people or the resources ! The budget for cleanup will far out strip the price of the bomb itself, many times over !

[@vistacruiser70s]

We won WW2 because of it. Or did we? Looks like we are getting our own payback. It sucks.

[@jamesvignali6074]

1987 is the correct answer. Thirty years later.............Mr. President can we have you attention?

[@dscott130]

I love this history. This plant was 100% necessary.

[@ronaldschultenover8137]

Nuclear energy was a bad idea

[@kennethprocak5176]

Facility wasn’t for energy.

[@Northwestbeard]

This will be Americas Chernobyl. It will be a blighted dead zone. End this madness now...

[@johntauxe4423]

1) This is nothing like Chernobyl. 2) Chernobyl is not a dead zone by any measure. 3) What madness are you referring to -- the cleanup effort?

[@kennethprocak5176]

What madness should they end? Trying to control and contain the environmental impact of the site? No one is saying the waste will be gone. But don’t discredit efforts to contain it. Something is more than nothing.

[@300roadblockx]

What is up with this video? I don't need all the music and odd publishing effects. There is a lot of information and without some music and publishing work the information can become bland but through the whole thing? Come on man!

[@thebossman550]

why don't we just send that stuff into space. yeah it would be immensely expensive but its a lot better than keeping it here on earth

[@johntauxe4423]

Two reasons: 1) that would be extremely expensive, and 2) we do not have sufficiently reliable payload delivery systems (read: rockets) to make it sufficiently safe. One exploding rocket carrying this stuff would ruin somebody's day.

[@janedoe6181]

John Tauxe It would ruin a lot of people's day!! lol

[@cyberfrank-bx2nv]

building these was a mistake, hiding the truth was as bad if not worst. thousands of innocent people died in agony innocently drinking, eating and breathing radiation. the real cost of this is unbearable, thousands of years radiation. the only comfort we can find is that some solution is applied, maybe the best example of democracy versus communism if it has anything to do with it, as it s really not nearly as well handled there, it s way worst. the truth is that the radiated debris are just buried for a solution in the future, the glass process does nt stop the reaction, it just contains it more, although not a 100%. america was rich, all the money it could have used to insure the future went into weapons. hitler must be laughing in his grave, he put us all into a 1000 years hell of fear! the 3rd reich is responsible for this mess, all the fears led to this nightmare. we can only hope that we will find a way to neutralize the radiation some day, and have the chance to reflect on the foolishness of developing such power that we do not control.

[@faainspector9699]

Yes america ......your manifest destiny was all worth it , every little bit..

[@Polar1440]

Looks to me more like clean AT than clean UP of course the billions of dollars hauled away would qualify as clean up LOL

[@user-xr9kc3xw3u]

Not more STUPIDNOISE

[@orangejjay]

Propaganda in the best way. Thanks for posting this!

[@rossrossa7596]

muh dad worked as an NDT metallurgist at the Hanford Super Fund site back in the day....fun fact!☢️🧫🧪☢️