Wrap up of Gov. Inslee’s week

||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE |||

Inslee visits Hanford to highlight need for adequate federal cleanup funding

Karthik Subramanian, Chief Engineer at Hanford, discusses the waste retrieval process from inside a sample waste tank at Hanford’s Cold Test Facility. Hanford has 177 underground tanks like this that are holding more than 56 million gallons of chemical and nuclear waste. The tanks were designed to be used for 20-30 years, but many of the tanks are more than 50 years old. At least two tanks are known to be leaking.

On Thursday, Gov. Jay Inslee joined Washington State Department of Ecology Director Laura Watson and Ecology Nuclear Waste Program Manager David Bowen for a tour of Hanford.

The state of Washington and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, oversee the U.S. Department of Energy’s cleanup of the Hanford Site, which created more than two-thirds of the nation’s plutonium stockpile and left behind the most contaminated nuclear site in America.

Current federal budget proposals underfund the cleanup effort by hundreds of millions of dollars. The underfunding will result in further delays to cleanup efforts and risk additional leaking of waste to the Columbia River and surrounding communities and Tribes. Inslee and Ecology are urging the federal government to fully fund cleanup of Hanford.

Read more about the nuclear waste cleanup from the Associated Press.

While in Richland, Inslee also attended the grand opening event of the new Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave (LIGO) Exploration Center.

The new Exploration Center, which was supported in part with state funding, will offer families and students an awe-inspiring science education experience. Information about the center and plans for when the public will be able to visit is available from LIGO.

“LIGO is one of our state and national treasures, forging the way in modern astronomy detecting gravitational waves, distortions in space and time that have been generated by collisions of black holes and neutron stars. And not only that, LIGO is making world leading discoveries,” Inslee said at LIGO’s grand opening event.

June 3 is Gun Violence Awareness Day

Gov. Jay Inslee and First Spouse Trudi Inslee wearing orange in support of Gun Violence Awareness Day. #WearOrange

Friday, June 3 [was} Gun Violence Awareness Day. Gun violence is preventable and Washingtonians have helped pass several nation-leading efforts in partnership with public health leaders and local communities.

Nearly all the policies Biden called for in his speech to the nation Thursday on gun violence are already in place in Washington state. Gov. Jay Inslee responded to Biden’s message by urging Congress to approve these commonsense measures that save lives.

One important aspect of Washington’s gun violence prevention efforts is an office created in 2020 that takes a data-driven approach for reducing firearm-related injuries and death. Strategies for preventing firearm-related suicides will be different from strategies for reducing firearm-related domestic violence incidents or community violence. Kate Kelly, the director of the office, was interview by KXLY about her work.

Honoring those who gave all: Memorial Day wreaths laid on Capitol Campus

Photo from Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs Memorial Day video.

The Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs partnered with the Northwest Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America this week to honor veterans lost in service to our country, including those lost to service-connected disabilities and those who died by suicide.

NWPVA donated wreaths to be placed at the World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam War memorials at the capitol in Olympia.

WDVA shared a video of the wreath laying ceremonies.

“On Memorial Day, we honor and reflect on the service of those who gave their lives in defense of our country. We also honor their comrades who served, came back home to resume their lives, and were called by the supreme commander to join the post everlasting. On this day, when we pause to remember, there are essential lessons for the young, and indeed for all of us as well: appreciate the blessings of freedom, recognize the power and virtue of sacrifice, and honor those who gave everything on behalf of our common good,” said WDVA on Facebook.

Federal infrastructure package includes several wins for Washington’s rail infrastructure

President Biden’s expansive infrastructure package includes important funding for Washington’s railways.

On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell announced $13.8 million in federal grants has been awarded to two rail infrastructure projects in Western Washington to help prevent landslides and improve passenger rail service in the Puget Sound region.

Sound Transit’s Pierce County Rail Capacity and Reliability Improvement Project received $10 million. Once this project is completed it will bring an additional four to 16 daily trains along the Amtrak Cascades line, increase service reliability, and reduce delays. This route, owned by Sound Transit, is currently used for both Amtrak Cascades and Amtrak long-distance trains and for Sounder South service to Lakewood. Planned double-tracking under this grant will significantly increase capacity to allow more daily train trips and support Sounder expansion to DuPont in the future.

The Washington State Department of Transportation will receive $3.8 million to fund the fourth phase of their rail landslide mitigation program, which will help reduce the risk of landslides on tracks between Everett and Seattle. These tracks are used by Amtrak Cascades, Amtrak’s Empire Builder, Sounder North, and BNSF freight trains.

Additional federal rail investments include New Amtrak Cascades train equipment funded by the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. WSDOT will acquire eight new trains, two locomotives, and one spare cab car. These new train sets will replace existing equipment and serve the corridor for decades to come.

Reminder: Washington Listens is a free tool to help people manage stress and anxiety

Graphic courtesy of Washington Listens Support Helpline.

Several state agencies partnered together during the COVID-19 pandemic to offer a free hotline for anyone needing help managing feelings of stress and anxiety. The service is still available through June 29 as COVID-19 and various world events continue to take a toll on people’s emotional well-being.

If you or anyone you know is feeling overwhelmed and needs to talk, call or text the Washington Listens support line at 1-833-681-0211. Hours for the remainder of June are from 9 AM to 9 PM Monday through Friday, and 9 AM to 6 PM Saturdays and Sundays. TTY and language access services are available by using 7-1-1 or their preferred method.

Is your child wondering what to do after they graduate? New 2022 career guides are here

Washington Workforce Board’s free 2022 career guides have arrived. The “Where Are You Going?” guide provides a step-by-step process for students to explore their interests and match to careers that best fit. This popular guide features a career quiz, information about hundreds of occupations, tips on how to write a resume and cover letter, do’s and don’ts for interviews, and a wide range of education and career-focused resources, including grants and scholarships information.

Students and workers can find the guide at WorkSource centers, middle and high schools, and many colleges and universities, or order free copies online.