The U.S. Department of Energy has announced it is expanding the Hanford site facility that only weeks ago faced a potential layoff of many of its workers due to withheld funding. 

Workers are preparing to build another cell – called a “super cell” because it is twice the size of others – at the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility, or ERDF, according to a release. It will add about 2.8 million cubic yards of disposal capacity, enough to support cleanup activities at the site through 2040. 

For context, a standard dump truck holds about 10 cubic yards so 280,000 dump truck loads would equal 2.8 million cubic yards. 

“ERDF has been a cornerstone of our waste disposal strategy for nearly 30 years, and expansion of the facility is critical to provide for uninterrupted, efficient and safe disposal in support of our ongoing cleanup mission for years to come,” said Brian Harkins, acting manager for the Hanford Field Office, in a statement. 

More than 19 million tons of waste have been disposed of at the 107-acre facility located in on Hanford’s central plateau since it opened in 1996. It accepts low-level radioactive and hazardous chemical waste from cleanup operations, such as facility demolition material. 

During a Senate committee hearing at the end of May, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, said ERDF staff were at risk of being laid off by the subcontractor employing them after DOE had failed to release the funds needed to keep them employed. 

The subcontractor, who has not been identified, previously worked under a $1 million contract for the 2024 fiscal year. But its FY 2025 contract called for $25 million as its staff ramp up the scope of work. Energy did release the funding to the subcontractor after the hearing, Murray’s staff confirmed to the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. 

However, the White House has since proposed $34 million in spending reductions at the site compared to its FY 2024 budget.