PNNL

Abstract

Over the past two years, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Richland Operations Office (RL) has formulated a focused, outcomes-based vision for accelerated cleanup of the Hanford Site (1). The primary elements of this vision are to: 1) accelerate restoration of the Columbia River Corridor and 2) transition the Central Plateau to long-term waste management, thereby shrinking the footprint of active site cleanup and operations. A third element of the vision is to "Prepare for the Future". This includes nurturing the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, a key element of the foundation for Hanford's future; leveraging DOE's assets; and working with the community to understand their vision and reflect it as appropriate in the execution of the Hanford 2012 vision. The purpose of these three outcomes is to provide a near-term focus, aimed at achieving definitive end points over the next decade, while not precluding any long-term end-state associated with the completion of the Environmental Management (EM) mission at Hanford.