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Breadcrumb

  1. Research
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  3. Environmental Management

Environmental
Management

Providing technical solutions
for nuclear waste processing
and environmental remediation

The 560-acre Hanford site is a contiguous shrub-steppe ecosystem featuring the longest free-flowing stretch of the Columbia River. The Hanford Reach became the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s first national monument in 2000.

Photo courtesy of the Washington State Department of Ecology

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The Manhattan Project and subsequent Cold War brought about the most technically complex environmental challenge in the world: the Hanford site.

PNNL has helped to advance the Hanford environmental management mission since the 1960s. Our historical knowledge and continued stewardship of unique scientific and technical expertise are foundational to the cleanup of legacy waste. PNNL’s efforts are in support of the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (DOE-EM) mission, through multiple DOE offices and contractors. 

Legacy waste is one of DOE’s most technologically challenging programs. Cleanup efforts cover over a million acres across 16 sites in 11 states and include 1.7 trillion gallons of contaminated groundwater, 90 million gallons of radioactive waste safely stored in 230 tanks, and an estimated 40 million cubic meters of contaminated soil and debris.

The laboratory helped develop the waste treatment processes at Hanford, Savannah River, and West Valley, and provided the technical foundations for remediation across the DOE-EM complex to protect human and environmental health.

PNNL is called on to solve these complex environmental challenges via scientific expertise, technical defensibility, systems integration (which supports tank waste processing), environmental remediation, and site stewardship. Our expertise in key areas–tank waste chemistry, fluid dynamics and scaling, waste forms, nature and extent of contamination, remedial systems engineering, safety bases, and decision support–provides a critical foundation that advances the DOE-EM mission.

 

Recent News

APRIL 16, 2021
Web Feature

Protecting Special Places through Tribal Relations

Read
TribalEngagement
APRIL 16, 2021
Staff Accomplishment

Pearce Takes Reins of IDREAM Research as New Director

Read
Carolyn Pearce was named the IDREAM EFRC Director in March 2021
MARCH 22, 2021
Web Feature

Environmental Justice Fueled by Social Science, Engagement

Read
An illustration shows different colored hands united over an image of the earth
SEE MORE RELATED NEWS

Related Capabilities

Environmental Subsurface Science
Nuclear & Radiochemistry
Earth Systems Science & Engineering
Decision Science & Analysis
Chemical & Molecular Science
Advanced Computer Science, Visualization, & Data
SEE ADDITIONAL CAPABILITIES

Facilities

Radiochemical Processing Laboratory Wasteform Development Laboratory Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory 318 Building Materials Science and Technology Building

Related Divisions

Earth Systems Science Division
Nuclear Sciences Division

Related Links

Job Opportunities at PNNLPNNL-Hanford Online Environmental Information Exchange (PHOENIX)Publications and ReportsPNNL's Environmental Policy

Brochures

File

PNNL Environmental Management FY20 Year In Review

File

PNNL Environmental Management overview brochure 2021.pdf

Contacts

Tom Brouns
Manager, Environmental Management sector; Director, RemPlex
tom.brouns@pnnl.gov
509-372-6265
David Peeler
Deputy Sector Manager, Environmental Management
david.peeler@pnnl.gov
509-372-6225

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Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is managed and operated by Battelle for the Department of Energy
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