Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) takes worker safety very seriously.

We are committed to transparency related to the issues raised by the Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council (HAMTC) on chemical vapors in Hanford’s tank farms.  In addition to sampling data, frequently asked questions and background information, a detailed response to the safety issues raised by HAMTC can be found in WRPS’ response letter posted on July 7, 2016.

Stopping work is not only a right, it is the responsibility of all WRPS workers who feel there is a safety issue. We are honoring the HAMTC Stop Work order issued today regarding use of supplied-air respiratory protection within any tank farm boundary, and we are following our procedure for working with HAMTC to resolve this Stop Work issue.

While we are continuing our evaluation of the feasibility of implementing the HAMTC “demand” relating to supplied air use, we believe our current activities and future actions are aligned with and will address concerns related to worker safety.

As part of our continuing commitment to worker safety and transparency, we are looking forward to the visit on July 25 by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) / National Institute of Safety and Health (NIOSH) to provide us with their views regarding worker safety and health at Hanford’s tank farms.

We are committed to maintaining a strong working partnership with HAMTC.  Our hope is that, together with HAMTC, we can continue to improve our safety performance well beyond existing industry and regulatory standards.