Probe sought in lapses at Hanford waste plant

YAKIMA -- About 1,800 sections of pipe for a massive waste-treatment plant at the nation's most contaminated nuclear site were not subjected to required quality inspections, and a U.S. senator has called for a full explanation by the government agency overseeing the project.

None of the pipe was permanently installed in the Hanford nuclear reservation plant under construction in south-central Washington. Bechtel National, the company hired to build it, also said its workers identified the problem themselves and are taking steps to prevent a recurrence.

The controversy involving procurement of construction materials for the so-called vitrification plant isn't new. The plant is being built to encase millions of gallons of radioactive and toxic waste, the remnants of Cold War-era plutonium production for the nation's nuclear-weapons arsenal, in glasslike logs for permanent disposal underground.

Last fall, the U.S. Department of Energy fined Bechtel $165,000, in part for failing to ensure that vendor-supplied equipment met safety specifications.

The failure to adequately inspect pipe sections was not part of that fine, although inconsistencies with pipe inspections were first noticed in 2006.

In a letter to Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., requested an explanation of the cause of the problems and assurance that steps are being taken to address inadequate construction management.

The Energy Department did not immediately comment.

Drew Slaton, Bechtel's communications manager, said none of the pipe in question was permanently installed in the building, and most were drain pipes that will not carry waste or be subject to high pressure or high temperatures.

Slaton also said Bechtel's system for catching potential problems identified the error.