Actual soil clean-up in the 100 Areas by the River is scheduled. Most liquid waste discharges to groundwater have been stopped. A national debate on plutonium disposition has begun. The Columbia River Comprehensive Impact Assessment has stakeholder involvement. The United States was founded on the principle of democracy, but we have the lowest voter participation of any country in the world.
American democracy is in trouble .
Most Americans are cynical about government. They see little or no hope for a bright future. But, here and there, across the country, there are seeds of change for regrowing our democratic process, for claiming the right of all citizens to help define the larger destiny of their community and world. These seeds are the believers who have not lost hope in the ability of the average person to challenge the status quo, disrupt existing contours of power and open the way for renewal. Active, caring citizens who share these beliefs have helped to shape policy at the Hanford Nuclear Site in Washington State.