YAKIMA – In an abrupt reversal, the federal government has agreed to begin assessing the damage to natural resources caused by plutonium production at the Hanford nuclear reservation, the nation’s most contaminated nuclear site.
Such assessments typically cost millions of dollars and often serve as a precursor to paying monetary damages.
In 2002, the Yakama Nation sued the U.S. Department of Energy, which manages Hanford cleanup, seeking restoration of soil, water, plant and animal life that may have been injured by radioactive waste and other hazardous substances. The Nez Perce and Umatilla tribes later joined the lawsuit, as did the states of Washington and Oregon.
The Energy Department fought back, arguing it was too soon to determine whether there were injuries to the environment or whether reparations should be paid.
But the department said Tuesday it would begin assessing those damages in collaboration with two other federal agencies, the states and the Indian tribes.
“The only change was how much we’re willing to do when,” Keith Klein, manager of the Energy Department’s Richland operations office, told The Associated Press. “We’re willing to do more, sooner, now, because we believe we’ve found ways to do it that won’t impact our cleanup obligations and schedules or add unduly to the taxpayer cost.”
Among other things, the Yakamas have alleged that contamination of the nearby Columbia River has contributed to declining Northwest salmon populations in the past 50 years.
A federal judge ordered the two sides into mediation in 2004 to try to resolve the dispute. At that time, Washington and Oregon tried to join the talks, but the Energy Department refused.
The two states and the additional tribes then joined the lawsuit to compel the federal government to perform the review.
Klein said the department’s new stance was not a result of the litigation.
The Yakamas have estimated a full review of natural resource damages could cost as much as $100 million.
Tribal officials said they were cautiously optimistic about the announcement.
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