HANFORD, WA The Energy Department and Tank Farms Contractor, Washington River Protection Solutions, joined ranks with the state Ecology Department to break ground on a new waste pre-treatment system.

Its a critical component of turning legacy waste now stored in underground tanks into glass.

The groundbreaking marks a year and a half of design and fabrication work.

Were out here today to break ground on the line that will bring the waste from the new tank-side cesium and removal facility over to the waste treatment plant for treatment and its a big deal because this is the missing link for really getting waste treatment started at Hanford. Which has been a priority for the State of Washington for a very long time, said Alex Smith, Washington Department of Ecology Nuclear Waste program manager.

The system helps strain solids and remove radioactive cesium from the tank waste.

Its then stored in a tank until it can be sent through underground pipes to the low-activity waste facility, where it will be heated to 2,100 Degrees Fahrenheit, mixed with glass-forming materials and poured into stainless steel containers for disposal.

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