Good Day World!
What I'm about to share may come as a surprise to you.
America has an underground Chernobyl just waiting to happen.
Backround:
Seventy years ago, the Hanford Site produced plutonium for America's nuclear arsenal. Today, it's run by the Department of Energy (DOE) through its contractor, Washington River Protection Solutions.
The contractor is managing a $110 billion cleanup of 56 million gallons of chemical and nuclear waste, stored in 177 underground tanks — a task that's expected to last the next 50 years.
Here's what's happening today:
The DOE knows they have a problem with worker's health issues after conducting 20 studies in 24 years, but they're not doing anything about it!
Just two years ago, a report found toxins in the air "far exceeding occupational limits" and a "causal link" between vapor exposure and lung and brain damage.
The DOE has also said that the site "cannot effectively control" dangers and gives workers "no warning."
Contract Workers were repeatedly lied to about the dangers of working at Handford and warned they would lose their jobs if they insisted upon safety equipment.
Some Washington state officials are now intervening, including Lt. Gov. Cyrus Habib, who has pledged to investigate and called the federal government's response "an absolute scandal."
Washington River Protection Solutions, the contractor that runs Hanford for the DOE, recently agreed with workers' unions to provide oxygen masks to all workers.
Experts told NBC News that the masks can help — but that they can also be withdrawn by the government at any time. They also say it doesn't solve the broader safety problems underscored by 24 years of DOE studies about the risks of working at Hanford.
It's no wonder why so many Americans believe their government is corrupt. This Rasmussen Report update shows that 81% of Americans think our government is crooked.
Related: Leak Worsens In Massive Handford Tank Holding Nuclear Waste
Time for me to walk on down the road...
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