New complaint filed about Hanford waste plant

KENNEWICK — Another complaint has been filed claiming a contractor at the nation’s most contaminated nuclear site interfered with an investigation into the design and safety of a massive plant under construction to treat nuclear waste.

The Energy Department is investigating the complaint. The agency oversees cleanup at the Hanford nuclear reservation in south-central Washington.

The complaint is the latest in a string of whistleblower claims related to the design and safety of the plant.

Energy Department managers sent letters Friday to the project’s contractors asserting again that “no interference” is acceptable. The letters also told them to provide the review team unfettered and timely access to information and staff.

The letters come a day after the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board conducted a public hearing about the plant.

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