The Hanford site, a 580-square-mile section of semi-arid desert in southeast Washington, was established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project to produce plutonium for national defense. Hanford produced nearly two-thirds of the plutonium used in the US nuclear weapons stockpile, including materials for the Trinity Test and atomic bombs used to help end World War II. Watch the video below to learn more about the Hanford site.
Hanford News
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Workers are preparing to begin construction on a new disposal cell at the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility (ERDF), an engineered landfill at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in southeastern Washington.June 18, 2025
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Just six months into 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management has racked up significant cleanup accomplishments across the country, with more progress on the horizon, senior EM federal and contractor executives said here last week. June 17, 2025.June 17, 2025
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Workers at the Hanford Site have nearly completed excavation at a former waste site near the Columbia River. June 17, 2025.June 17, 2025
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Hanford crews are preparing for the site’s first-ever transfer of radioactive waste from one of its large underground tanks to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant. June 17, 2025.June 17, 2025
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By installing the last piece of pipe, Hanford Site workers have completed the final connection between underground tanks storing radioactive waste and the waste treatment plant that will begin solidifying it in glass later this year. June 10, 2025June 10, 2025
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A new method has received state approval for use at the Hanford Site's 222-S Laboratory, improving how experts analyze tank waste and providing more precise data to support safe, efficient cleanup. June 10, 2025June 10, 2025
Brian Harkins is the acting manager of the DOE Hanford Field Office. In this capacity, Harkins is responsible for an overall annual budget of $3 billion, and oversight of the contractors and more than 13,000 employees involved in cleanup of the 580-square-mile Hanford site. In his role as manager, Vance is responsible for the safe and environmentally acceptable cleanup of the site, including groundwater remediation; hazardous waste and facilities decontamination and disposal operations; treatment and disposal of radioactive chemical liquid waste; and the design, construction and commissioning of the world’s largest complex of nuclear vitrification facilities, the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant.
High-Level Budget Information
| Office | FY22 Enacted (in the millions) | FY23 Request (in the millions) | FY23 Enacted (in the millions) | FY23 Request (in the millions) | FY24 Enacted (in the millions) | FY25 Requested (in the millions) |
| Office of River Protection | $1,645 | $1,604 | $1,730 | $1,975 | $1,890 | $2,001 |
| Richland Operations Office | $1,052 | $917 | $1,114 | $1,025 | $1,146 | $1,107 |
For more information on the Office of Environmental Management's budget process and performance check out the Budget & Performance page.