Polluted weapons factory begins locking up nuclear waste in glass: After years of delay and political wrangling, DOE's Hanford site opens vitrification plant.

The article focuses on the recent opening of a vitrification facility at the Hanford Site, a former nuclear weapons site in eastern Washington, which aims to convert hazardous radioactive waste into inert glass. This development marks a significant milestone in the long-delayed cleanup efforts, which have faced numerous technical and financial challenges over nearly two decades. The facility, which has already cost over $10 billion, is expected to process about 90% of the 325 million liters of liquid waste generated from plutonium production, although it will not address all types of waste, particularly a challenging sludge. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is under pressure to meet legal deadlines for waste treatment, and the project is part of a broader cleanup initiative projected to cost between $200 billion and $350 billion. [Extracted from the article]