Political Quotes

“the amendment that Senator Hatfield and I are proposing is a right-to-know act to help protect Oregonians from the unusual and highly dangerous hazards that the Hanford Nuclear Reservation poses for the people of Oregon. There is no other contaminated Federal property in the country that has caused the serious injuries to residents of another State that Hanford has already caused to citizens of Oregon. And no other Federal site currently poses anywhere near as serious a threat to the health and safety of citizens of another State as Hanford does to our citizens. Because of this special situation, the State of Oregon needs direct access to the same information that the Energy Department is now required to provide the State of Washington under the Hanford Tri-Party Agreement. And Oregon needs to have an opportunity to review and comment on how DOE proposes to clean up the Hanford site. Recognizing the unique conditions present at Hanford and the immediate danger they pose for Oregonians does not set a precedent for other Federal facilities besides Hanford. It will not turn every military base with a leaking gasoline tank into a multi-State cleanup issue. Let me put that concern to rest. First, there is simply no facility in this country--Federal or non-Federal--that compares to Hanford. In fact, Hanford is generally considered to be the most contaminated site in the Western hemisphere.”