33 Hanford Workers Evaluated for Toxic Vapor Exposure in 5 Days

Elevated Radiation Detected near Second Failing Tank at Hanford Nuclear Site: Report

“Six more Hanford workers reported smelling odors in the AP tank farm where officials collected samples Tuesday. Washington River Protection Solutions says crews transported one worker to Kadlec for further evaluation. Doctors treated and released the employee,” said a report.

On April 26, Hanford Challenge stated that a “second high-level nuclear waste [double-shell] tank at the Hanford nuclear site may have failed.”

Elevated Radiation Indicator of Second Double-Shell Tank Failure at Hanford Nuclear Site: Plutonium, Cesium-137 Levels Detected in AY-101 Outer Shell

The group, citing sources inside Hanford, says that above-background levels of Cesium-137, plutonium and a high-beta emitter (likely Strontium-90) all radioactive by-products commonly found in Hanford tanks, were recently measured outside of the primary liner in Tank AY-101, one of the first of the 28 double-shelled tanks built at Hanford about 40 years ago.  Those measurements were confirmed to a high degree of certainty, according to Hanford sources.  Read more…

“There is litigation the Attorney General has filed to make sure that the federal government is observant to protect these workers. Very important,” said Gov. Inslee.

Three years ago…

6 Hanford Tanks Leaking Nuclear Waste: WA Gov

Posted by feww on February 23, 2013

Leaking tanks hold “two-thirds of the nation’s high-level nuclear waste”

Six Hanford underground tanks holding a brew of radioactive and toxic waste at the most contaminated nuclear site in the U.S. are leaking, says Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.

“None of these tanks would be acceptable for use today. They are all beyond their design life. None of them should be in service,” said Tom Carpenter of Hanford Challenge, a Hanford watchdog group. “And yet, they’re holding two-thirds of the nation’s high-level nuclear waste.”

Handford Site sits on 586-square-miles of shrub-steppe desert in southeastern Washington State, bordering the Columbia River. Six underground tanks are leaking radioactive waste. Hanford’s 177 tanks hold two-thirds of America’s high-level nuclear waste. Image source: United States Department of Energy

This aerial photo shows the Plutonium Finishing Plant complex. A red “X” has been placed on facilities that workers are demolishing. The plutonium vault complex consists of five ancillary structures and a larger building (2736-ZB) that once stored plutonium produced at Hanford during the Cold War for the U.S. nuclear weapons program. Source: US Dept of Energy

The tanks, built in the the 1940s with intended life span of 20 years, hold at least 53 million gallons (200 million liters) of highly radioactive waste, the leftover from plutonium production used in nuclear weapons.

State officials announced last week that one of Hanford’s 177 tanks was leaking up to 300 gallons a year, posing a risk to groundwater and rivers.

Gov Inslee said he had received the “very disturbing news” during meetings Friday that in fact six tanks are leaking.

Uncapped fuel stored underwater in K-East Basin. Source: US Dept of Energy

The authorities say they haven’t yet detected higher radioactivity levels at nearby monitoring wells.

Hanford, home to several tribes of Native Americans and a small agricultural community in the state of Washington,  was depopulated in 1943 along with the town of White Bluffs to make room for the nuclear production facility known as the Hanford Site.

Washington Declares Statewide Drought Emergency

Glacier lilies blooming on Olympic Peninsula, instead of 200cm of snow

Gov. Inslee declared a statewide drought emergency for Washington on Friday. Snowpack is at historic lows, rivers are dwindling and irrigation districts are forced to cut off water to farmers. 

Snowpack in the mountains has dropped to less than 16 percent of normal levels statewide.

On May 1, the Natural Resources Conservation Service found 11 snow sites in Washington that are snow free for the first time ever. Of the 98 snow sites the Conservation Service measured in Washington, 66 of them are currently snow free.

In April, 78 percent of streams statewide were running “below or much below normal,” with some already at historic lows, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

“We’re really starting to feel the pain from this snowpack drought,” Inslee said. “Impacts are already severe in several areas of the state. Difficult decisions are being made about what crops get priority water and how best to save fish.”

Crop loss resulting from the drought is projected at $1.2 billion this year, said the Washington Department of Agriculture.

• To protect crops in the state’s most productive agricultural region — the Yakima Basin—irrigation districts are turning off water for weeks at a time to try to extend water supplies longer into the summer.

• In the Walla Walla region, water is being shifted from creek to creek to keep water flowing for steelhead, Chinook and bull trout. Fish are even being hauled farther upstream to cooler water.

• On the Olympic Peninsula, instead of 80 inches of snow now, flowers like glacier lilies are blooming.

• The Department of Natural Resources expects more early-season and higher-elevation wildfires amid the continuing drought..

Notable quotes…

“We’re really starting to feel the pain from this snowpack drought. Impacts are already severe in several areas of the state. Difficult decisions are being made about what crops get priority water and how best to save fish.” Gov. Inslee

“This drought is unlike any we’ve ever experienced. Rain amounts have been normal but snow has been scarce. And we’re watching what little snow we have quickly disappear.” Washington Department of Ecology Director Maia Bellon

State of Emergency Declared on March 13, 2015

Inslee declared a drought emergency for three Washington regions on March 13, 2015 when statewide snowpack  averaged 27 percent of normal. The proclamation was for the Olympic Peninsula, on the east side of the central Cascade Mountains including Yakima and Wenatchee, and the Walla Walla region, which are vital to apple and wine production, said the governor’s office.

 

 

Drought Emergency Declared in Oregon

Oregon counties facing dry conditions and low snowpack

Gov. Brown has declared a drought emergency in Malheur and Lake counties due to dry conditions, low snowpack, and lack of precipitation, said her office in a statement.

“Projected forecasts for Malheur and Lake counties look bleak, meaning these rural communities will continue to experience severe drought conditions,”said Brown. “In addition to creating an increased wildfire risk, this drought presents hardships to crops, agriculture, communities, recreation, and wildlife, all of which rely on Oregon’s water resources. I will continue working with federal, state, and local partners to help Oregonians in this part of the state through this challenging situation.”

“Projected forecasts for Malheur and Lake counties look bleak, meaning these rural communities will continue to experience severe drought conditions,” she said.

“In addition to creating an increased wildfire risk, this drought presents hardships to crops, agriculture, communities, recreation, and wildlife, all of which rely on Oregon’s water resources. I will continue working with federal, state, and local partners to help Oregonians in this part of the state through this challenging situation.”

Executive Order on Drought Emergency: http://www.oregon.gov/gov/Documents/executive_orders/eo_15-02.pdf

Drought Emergency in Washington State

Brown’s Executive Order on Drought Emergency follows Washington state Governor Inslee’s drought emergency declaration for three key regions across the state last week.

Inslee declared a drought emergency for the Olympic Peninsula, and the east side of the central Cascade Mountains including Yakima and Wenatchee, as well as the Walla Walla region.

“We can’t wait any longer, we have to prepare now for drought conditions that are in store for much of the state. Snowpack is at record lows, and we have farms, vital agricultural regions, communities and fish that are going to need our support.”

Snowpack is only 7 percent of normal in the Olympic Mountains. It ranges from 8 to 45 percent of normal across the Cascades, and 67 percent of normal in the Walla Walla region.

With snowpack statewide averaging only 27 percent of normal, 34 of the state’s 62 watersheds are expected to receive less than normal water supplies.

Suspending Research on Seismicity in Washington State

• CJ Members
• Public Notice

FIRE-EARTH Science Team has resolved to suspend its research on geophysical activity in the state of Washington until further notice.

 

Severe Drought Destroys Crops in Washington State

EXTREME WEATHER & CLIMATIC HAZARDS
RISING TEMPERATURES
SEVERE DROUGHT
CROP DISASTERS
SCENARIOS 900, 555, 444, 111, 101, 03, 02
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Crop Disaster Declared for 9 Counties in Washington

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated a total of nine counties in Washington state as crop disaster areas due to severe drought.

The crop disaster designations are for Yakima, Benton, King, Klickitat, Pierce, Grant, Kittitas, Lewis and Skamania counties.

Crop Disasters 2014

Beginning January 10, 2014 USDA has declared at least 2,255 separate crop disasters across 33 states. Most of those designations are due to the drought.

Those states are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina Texas, Utah and Washington, Wyoming. [FIRE-EARTH has documented all of the above listings. See blog content.]

Notes:
i. USDA trigger point for a countywide disaster declaration is 30 percent crop loss on at least one crop.

ii. The total number of counties designated as agricultural disaster areas includes both primary and contiguous disaster areas.

iii. Counties may have been designated crop disaster areas more than once due to multiple disasters.

iv. The U.S. has a total of 3,143 counties and county-equivalents.

v. The disaster designations posted above were approved by USDA on August 20, 2014.

Crop Disaster Links

• Crop Disasters Declared in Three States August 15, 2014
• Crop Disasters Declared in 7 States August 7, 2014
• Federal Disasters
• Drought
• Agricultural Disasters Index

Important Announcement: State of Washington

Stay Tuned for Important Announcements on Washington State

Starting 2014, FIRE-EARTH Blog will release important announcements concerning the state of Washington.

Stay Tuned!

6 Hanford Tanks Leaking Nuclear Waste: WA Gov

Leaking tanks hold “two-thirds of the nation’s high-level nuclear waste”

Six Hanford underground tanks holding a brew of radioactive and toxic waste at the most contaminated nuclear site in the U.S. are leaking, says Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.

“None of these tanks would be acceptable for use today. They are all beyond their design life. None of them should be in service,” said Tom Carpenter of Hanford Challenge, a Hanford watchdog group. “And yet, they’re holding two-thirds of the nation’s high-level nuclear waste.”

Handford Site sits on 586-square-miles of shrub-steppe desert in southeastern Washington State, bordering the Columbia River. Six underground tanks are leaking radioactive waste. Hanford’s 177 tanks hold two-thirds of America’s high-level nuclear waste. Image source: United States Department of Energy

This aerial photo shows the Plutonium Finishing Plant complex. A red “X” has been placed on facilities that workers are demolishing. The plutonium vault complex consists of five ancillary structures and a larger building (2736-ZB) that once stored plutonium produced at Hanford during the Cold War for the U.S. nuclear weapons program. Source: US Dept of Energy

The tanks, built in the the 1940s with intended life span of 20 years, hold at least 53 million gallons (200 million liters) of highly radioactive waste, the leftover from plutonium production used in nuclear weapons.

State officials announced last week that one of Hanford’s 177 tanks was leaking up to 300 gallons a year, posing a risk to groundwater and rivers.

Gov Inslee said he had received the “very disturbing news” during meetings Friday that in fact six tanks are leaking.

Uncapped fuel stored underwater in K-East Basin. Source: US Dept of Energy

The authorities say they haven’t yet detected higher radioactivity levels at nearby monitoring wells.

Hanford, home to several tribes of Native Americans and a small agricultural community in the state of Washington,  was depopulated in 1943 along with the town of White Bluffs to make room for the nuclear production facility known as the Hanford Site.

Related Links

• FIRE-EARTH Nuclear Alerts

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February 23, 2013 – DISASTER CALENDAR SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,113 Days Left 

Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.

• SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,113 Days Left to ‘Worst Day’ in the brief Human  History
• The countdown began on May 15, 2011 …

GLOBAL WARNINGS

• WARNING: Human impact 2.85 x Earth’s diminishing carrying capacity
• WARNING: RAPID PLANETARY DECLINE IN PROGRESS!
• Europe: The First Phase of Collapse Has Started 
• United States: The First Phase of Collapse Has Begun

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• The Fate of Energy Dinosaurs
• Mass Die-offs

Wildfires Force State of Emergency in Eastern Washington

DISASTER CALENDAR SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,277 Days Left

[September 16, 2012] Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016. 

• SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,277 Days Left to the ‘Worst Day’ in Human History

• Symbolic countdown to the ‘worst day’ in human history began on May 15, 2011...

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Global Disasters/ Significant Events

• Washington, USA. Gov. Gregoire has declared a State of Emergency for all counties east of the Cascades on due to destructive wildfires.
  • “This is one of the worst fire situations that I can recall during my time as governor.  Firefighters have done a tremendous job to keep people safe, and keep the number of homes lost to a minimum. But they need more resources – especially as we expect weather conditions to remain less than favorable.” Gregoire said.
  • Multiple fires “currently threaten over 500 homes, resulting in numerous evacuations,” she added.
  • The Wenatchee Complex includes over 50 lightning-caused fires burning in Chelan County.

• Alaska. “An unseasonable storm of considerable size and strength is affecting the southern mainland this weekend with strong winds and heavy rains. The low is near the Alaska Peninsula moving towards Bristol Bay.” NWS reported.

• Utah. Washington County has declared a state of emergency after flash floods damaged Santa Clara, Ivins and St. George, reports said.

• Idaho. Up to a million acres are being consumed by wildfires across Idaho.  The largest blazes include:
  • Mustang Complex: 315,000 acres
  • Trinity Ridge Fire
  • Sheep Fire
  • Mcguire Complex
  • Halstead
  • Porcupine Complex
  • Powell Sbw Complex

• Portugal.  In the first 8 months this year,  16,168 forest fires consumed 73,055 hectares of forest, up 81 percent from 2011, said a report.
  • “One single giant blaze at Tavira, in the Algarve, which broke out on 18 July, ravaged 21,347 hectares of forest – some 29 percent of the total for all of Portugal from January and August.”

• Okinawa.  NEWS BLACKOUT IN EFFECT CONCERNING THE EXTENT OF DAMAGE CAUSED BY TYPHOON SANBA

Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background

• The First Wave of World’s Collapsing Cities
• Back to the Primordial Future
• The Fate of Energy Dinosaurs
• Mass Die-offs

• 2010 Disasters [Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters
• 2011 Disaster Calendar
• 2012 Disaster Calendar

GLOBAL WARNING

• WARNING: Human impact 2.85 x Earth’s diminishing carrying capacity
• WARNING: RAPID DECLINE IN PROGRESS!

Second ice storm in 3 days pummels NE U.S.

Ice storms pummel much of the northern and northeastern United States

Two winter storms in three days hit the U.S. northeast causing havoc across the region.  In the West, parts of Washington state were hit with heavy snow storms. As much as 10 inches of snow fell, causing  power outages  and traffic congestion.

Not so fast! Bags being returned from canceled flights jam the baggage claim area at a crowded Sea-Tac Airport [Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Washington, United States.] Numerous flights were canceled after heavy snow moved through the area. Leaving the airport is difficult as surface transportation is also being disrupted because of snow (December 21, 2008). Photo: Karen Ducey/Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Image may be subject to copyright.

Heavy snows and strong winds forced the closure of Snoqualmie Pass, east of Seattle on highway I-90. Conditions there were “just a complete whiteout blizzard” on the pass, Washington State Patrol trooper Dan McDonald told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper. “I’ve never seen anything like this. The side winds are probably easy 70 mph. They’re taking us off the road.”

Up to 30 cm of snow is expected in areas west of Boston, leading to long delays and cancellations at regional airports throughout New England. In New Hampshire up to 20,000 customers were without power, while in Massachusetts power outages affected about 6,000 households and businesses.

Related News Links:

• Four more inches of snow expected
• Winter storms hit western, eastern U.S.