Hanford Site

Tour Information

Registration for the 2013 Hanford Site Public Tours will open
at 6:00 PM PST on Monday, March 4, 2013

Hanford Site Public Tours are planned on the following dates:

April 9, 10, 11
May 7, 8, 9, 21*, 22*, and 23*
June 4, 5, 6, 18* and 19*
July 30* and 31*
August 1*, 13*, 14*, 15*, 27*, 28*, and 29*
September 10, 11, 12

Dates noted with an asterisk (*) have tours beginning at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. All other dates have tours beginning at 8:00 a.m. only.

Tour participants must be United States citizens and at least 18 years of age. All tour slots are filled on a first-come, first-served basis through an online registration system. There is no cost to participate in the tours.

All tours begin and end at the B Reactor Tour Headquarters, 2000 Logston Blvd., Richland.

Participants are guided through the Hanford Site and provided an overview of Hanford's role in the nation's defense effort during World War II and the Cold War, as well as information on today's environmental cleanup mission.

The tour route includes:

Hanford's 300 Area where uranium was fabricated into fuel rods.
The nine nuclear reactors in the 100 Area located along the Columbia River where the fuel rods were irradiated to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons.
The original Hanford and White Bluffs town sites.

Visitors also will have a guided walking tour of the historic B Reactor, the world's first full-scale plutonium production reactor.

Additionally, the tour includes briefings on several Hanford facilities supporting today's cleanup mission:

Hanford's Cold Test Facility, a scaled version of one of Hanford's 177 underground nuclear waste storage tanks.
Hanford's Plutonium Finishing Plant (PFP), which operated from 1949 to 1989, and represented the final step in the plutonium production effort at Hanford. Workers are now undertaking the monumental challenge of dismantling the PFP complex with the goal of tearing it down by 2016.
The Waste Treatment Plant, the world's largest facility for turning chemical and radioactive waste into a stable glass form suitable for safe, long-term storage.
The Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility, an 18-million-ton capacity landfill where Hanford's low-level radioactive, hazardous, and mixed waste are disposed.

Additional information regarding the Hanford Site can be found at http://www.hanford.gov/page.cfm/AboutUS

For questions on participation in the Hanford Site Public Tours, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions, or send an email to HanfordPublicTours@rl.gov.

Tour Point of Contact	Karen Sinclair, Mission Support Alliance (509) 376-2151
Registration	Begins at 6:00 PM PST on Monday, March 4, 2013. Visitors will be registered on a first-come, first-served basis only through the online web registration system.
Age	Must be at least 18 years of age.
Identification	Driver's license, military ID, passport or state ID card, with photo.
Citizenship	Must be a United States citizen.
Clothing	Clothing must be appropriate for an industrial environment. Anyone not dressed appropriately will not be allowed on the tour. Closed-toed shoes are MANDATORY. Sandals, flip-flops, thongs, open toe/open heel and high heel shoes are prohibited. Skirts, dresses and sleeveless shirts are not allowed. Long pants are encouraged and highly recommended.
Prohibited Articles	See Tour Restrictions.
Clearance/Badges	Visitor badges are required and will be issued to all visitors the day of the tour. Government issued photo identification (driver's license, military ID, passport or state ID card) is required for each tour participant, and must be presented prior to visitors receiving their badges. Name(s) provided on the online tour registration must match exactly the name(s) shown on photo ID.

Note: Hanford Site Public tours are subject to immediate cancellation any time security conditions for the Hanford Site change, or in the event of other security or safety concerns. MSA also reserves the right to reschedule or cancel a tour at any time due to unanticipated circumstances.

In the unlikely event of an emergency or other unforeseeable situation, the tour bus may be required to remain on the Hanford Site for longer than scheduled, or the tour may be immediately terminated. Tour participants should be prepared for delays, or an earlier than normal return time.