Northwest delegation urges Congress to restore Hanford cleanup funding

[struggle4progress]

YAKIMA (AP) — U.S. representatives from Washington and Oregon on Friday urged Congress to restore full funding for cleanup of the highly contaminated Hanford nuclear reservation.

For 40 years, Hanford made plutonium for the nation’s nuclear weapons arsenal, beginning with the top-secret Manhattan Project to build an atomic bomb during World War II. Cleanup costs at the nation’s most contaminated nuclear site are expected to total $50 billion to $60 billion by the time the work is completed in 2035.

The fiscal 2005 budget marked the peak year for cleanup funding at about $2.1 billion. Under the 2006 budget proposed by President Bush, the allocation would fall more than $260 million to about $1.8 billion.

The cutbacks go too far, said a letter to House budget writers signed by all 14 representatives from Washington and Oregon. Full funding is critical to sustain the cleanup momentum and keep a skilled work force on the job, they wrote. <snip>

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