Washington state officials focus on Hanford cleanup budget

RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) — Washington state officials say finding adequate money to complete the Hanford cleanup is the key to completing the work, which is already 25 years behind schedule.

The Tri-City Herald reports that during budget discussion at the Washington Department of Ecology, state officials talked about strategies for getting more money from the federal government for the Hanford project.

State officials note that Hanford is not the only cleanup site that is being inadequately supported. Since planning for all the nuclear cleanup sites have some shared goals, lack of money can put them all behind schedule.

Hanford has 20,000 containers of waste waiting to be treated and disposed of either at Hanford or New Mexico, depending on what they contain.