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“The Impact” – Emergency at Hanford Nuclear Reservation

Mike McClanahan profile by Mike McClanahan

This week on “The Impact”

There is regulatory fallout from an emergency at a massive nuclear waste site in Washington.

A tunnel containing highly radioactive waste collapses at Hanford Nuclear Reservation prompting a lock down over fears of a possible release.  Fortunately, no atmospheric contamination is detected by exterior monitors, according to state and federal workers.  The Washington Department of Ecology files legal action in response to the matter. Ecology Director Maia Bellon says the failing infrastructure at Hanford underscores the need to prioritize funding for one of the largest and most complicated nuclear waste clean-up projects in the nation.

                 “It’s very disconcerting to think of an event like this going to the next level which this one didn’t, but actually having radioactive waste such as dust, folks breathing in that stuff would be very problematic, make people very sick, and could be a catastrophic event. So luckily that didn’t happen here.” – Maia Bellon, Director, Washington Department of Ecology.

 

Later in this episode, former Seattle Seahawks receiver Ricardo Lockette appears at a massive fundraising effort coordinated by state employees.  Lockette offers praise and a pep talk has high praise for the state workers involved in the Combined Fund Drive which raises millions of dollars each year for different charities.

“We don’t have an excuse; we don’t have an excuse- let’s be great.” – Ricardo Lockette.

In this show we also highlight what you need to know about a new distracted driving law that takes effect in the state of Washington this summer.

Click here to watch this episode of “The Impact.”