WA HB2634

Washington's commercial radioactive waste disposal facility at Hanford is an unlined landfill releasing chemical and radioactive contamination into soil and groundwater that flows to the Columbia River, affecting treaty rights of the Yakama Nation and Umatilla tribes.

Department of Ecology must conduct new contamination investigations and propose a remediation plan by July 1, 2029, using tribal exposure scenarios developed with affected federally recognized tribes to determine health risks.

No permits for new nuclear reactors may be issued until the investigation, remediation plan, and environmental impact statement are completed and finalized; municipal entities cannot issue bonds for new reactor development until these conditions are met.

Generators of radioactive waste from commercial nuclear reactors must pay additional fees beyond the current $6.50 per cubic foot to fully fund investigation, remediation, and cleanup costs, with fees deposited in the model toxics control operating account.

Waste from new commercial nuclear reactors not currently operating cannot be disposed at the Hanford facility until remediation is complete or an alternative lined disposal facility opens in another Northwest interstate compact member state.