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Environment, Energy and Transportation Program

Environmental Management of Federal Facilities Web Page

Updated May 2005

Program Overview

Environmental Management of Federal Facilities and the States

Nuclear weapons production began in the early 1940s generating numerous forms of waste.  While the true nature of the waste being created was not known, much of it was stored inappropriately on-site at the Department of Energy facilities.

In 1989, the Department of Energy created the Office of Environmental Management to mitigate the risks and hazards posed by the legacy of nuclear weapons production and research. While the United States maintains a nuclear weapons production mission, the nation has embarked on new missions as well. One of the most ambitious and far ranging of these missions is dealing with the environmental legacy of the Cold War.

Similar to most industrial and manufacturing operations, the nuclear complex generated waste, pollution and contamination, yet in many cases, the problems are unique. There are unprecedented amounts of contaminated waste, water, and soil as well as a number of contaminated structures that will remain radioactive for thousands of years.

More than a quarter of the states play host to, or are in close proximity of, a DOE facility. These facilities include the national laboratories, weapons production facilities and waste disposal facilities such as the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).

Many of the department's environmental cleanup projects are conducted with input from, and in cooperation with the host states. One example of this is the Tri-Party Agreement established between the State of Washington Department of Ecology, the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The comprehensive cleanup and compliance agreement reflects a concerted goal of achieving full regulatory compliance and remediation, with enforceable milestones, in an aggressive manner.

Legislators and other state officials can exercise oversight of nuclear waste cleanup by participating in development of interagency agreements and becoming active in a variety of working groups and advisory bodies.  Several types of assistance are available from NCSL, such as the Legislative Outreach Program and other sources listed on this website, to help legislators become knowledgeable about the issues and to serve their constituents more effectively.

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