Qualla: Hanford Site

Hanford Site: Introduction

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit DJ Cane, CC BY-SA 4.0. In 1943, the U.S. government secretly acquired 586 square miles of Washington desert and evicted its residents. The Manhattan Project needed a remote site to produce plutonium for atomic weapons. The Hanford Site became the world's first industrial-scale nuclear reactor complex, producing the plutonium for the Trinity test and the bomb that destroyed Nagasaki. For four decades, Hanford continued producing nuclear materials for the Cold War arsenal, operating nine reactors and processing millions of gallons of radioactive waste. When production ended in 1987, the bill came due. Hanford had released radioactive contamination into the air, water, and soil. The cleanup - still ongoing - is the largest environmental remediation project in history, expected to cost hundreds of billions of dollars and take decades more. Hanford made the atomic age possible; it also created a poisoned landscape that may never be fully clean.

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Image: DJ Cane | CC BY-SA 4.0

Hanford Site: The Manhattan Project

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Lianguanlun, CC BY 4.0. The Hanford Site was chosen for plutonium production in 1943: remote, sparsely populated, with abundant water from the Columbia River for cooling and hydroelectric power from Grand Coulee and Bonneville Dams. The government evicted residents of the towns of Hanford and White Bluf...

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Image: Lianguanlun | CC BY 4.0

Hanford Site: The Cold War

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Jonathunder, Public domain. After World War II, Hanford expanded to meet Cold War demands. Nine reactors eventually operated along the Columbia River. The N Reactor, completed in 1963, was the last and largest, producing both plutonium and electricity. The site employed 50,000 people at its peak, many of th...

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Image: Jonathunder | Public domain

Hanford Site: The Contamination

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. Producing plutonium generated enormous amounts of radioactive waste. In the rush of wartime production and the secrecy of the Cold War, Hanford released contamination with little concern for consequences. Radioactive gases were vented into the air. Cooling water, containing radio...

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Image: Public domain

Hanford Site: The Cleanup

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit USFWS - Pacific Region, Public domain. The cleanup of Hanford began in 1989 and may not end until 2070 or later. The site contains 56 million gallons of radioactive waste in 177 underground tanks, a third of which have leaked or are suspected of leaking. Over 500 buildings require decontamination and demolition. Groun...

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Image: USFWS - Pacific Region | Public domain

Hanford Site: Visiting Hanford

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. The B Reactor, the world's first production-scale nuclear reactor, is open for tours operated by the Department of Energy and National Park Service. Tours are free but must be booked well in advance and require security screening. The reactor interior, control room, and surroundi...

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Image: Public domain