Hanford job numbers projected to top out in 2010

RICHLAND – The Department of Energy is predicting that employment at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation will peak in fiscal 2010 at about 10,800 employees and then begin a decline toward 2,100 workers by 2050, when most environmental cleanup work is completed.

The projections were requested by the Tri-City Development Council to help entities such as schools, utilities and counties with long-term planning, said Gary Petersen, TRIDEC vice president of Hanford programs.

For most communities in the nation, the closure of a plant or other complex such as a military base that’s a major employer happens suddenly and the jobs disappear quickly, Petersen said. The Tri-Cities have the advantage of being able to look ahead and prepare for the loss of Hanford employment, he said.

The work force projections are the Department of Energy’s best estimates, based on current work planning and other information. But plans for Hanford cleanup, particularly first-of-a-kind and technically challenging work, and the amount of money Congress appropriates annually are prone to change.

When the estimates for the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland are added to Hanford estimates, total employment in the fiscal year that ended in September was about 14,700, increasing to a projected high of 15,000 in fiscal 2010. After 2011, a larger drop in employment is expected, largely because nearly $2 billion in federal economic stimulus money for Hanford cleanup will have been spent. The combined labor projection for the national lab and Hanford in 2012 is about 13,200 workers.

The national lab in Richland should remain an important stabilizing influence to the local economy, Petersen said. If the lab follows current trends, it should continue to grow at a steady pace. Only 7 percent of the lab’s research is tied to Hanford.