Hanford Site National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) - Pacific ...

The total annual average number of DOE contractor employees has declined by nearly 7,600
since FY 1994 when employment peaked at 19,200 employees, but DOE contractor employment still
represents 11 percent of the total jobs in the economy. Total employment in the Richland,
Kennewick, and Pasco metropolitan statistical area averaged 106,100 per month during 2006, down
from 107,700 in 2005 (LMEA 2007a).
Based on employee records as of April 2007, over 90 percent of DOE contractor employees live
in Benton and Franklin counties. Approximately 73 percent reside in Richland, Pasco, or Kennewick.
More than 36 percent are Richland residents, 11 percent are Pasco residents, and 25 percent live in
Kennewick. Residents of other areas of Benton and Franklin counties, including West Richland,
Benton City, and Prosser, account for about 17 percent of total DOE contractor employment.
4.7.1.2 Energy Northwest
Energy Northwest is a joint operating agency comprising 20 member public utilities from across
the state of Washington. Energy Northwest provides electricity, at cost, to public utilities and
municipalities in the northwest and operates four electricity generating stations: Columbia Generating
Station, Packwood Lake Hydroelectric Project, Nine Canyon Wind Project, and the White Bluffs
Solar Station. Although commercial nuclear power plant construction activity ceased with the
completion of the 1,157-megawatt (MW) WNP-2 nuclear reactor (now named Columbia Generating
Station) during 1983, Energy Northwest continues to be a major employer in the Tri-Cities area.
Nuclear power plants WNP-1 and WNP-4 were never completed. The unfinished facilities have been
partially remediated with some structures being reused for support and business purposes. As part of
an effort to reduce electricity production costs, Energy Northwest headquarters decreased the size of
its total workforce from over 1,900 during 1994 to 1,016 at the end of 1999. Total permanent
employment at the end of 2006 was 1,079 people. Based on annual payroll and employee counts,
Energy Northwest delivers more than $200 million in economic impact to the local economy.
4.7.1.3 Agriculture
During 2005, over 10 percent of workers in Benton and Franklin counties were employed in
agriculture. The total agricultural employment was 10,750, a decrease from the 2004 total of 11,200
(LMEA 2007b). Seasonal farm workers are not included in that total but are estimated by the U.S.
Department of Labor (DOL) for the agricultural areas in the state of Washington. During 2006, the
number of seasonal farm workers averaged 5,313 in Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla counties,
ranging from 826 workers during the winter pruning season to 11,984 workers at the peak of harvest.
An estimated average of 2,950 seasonal workers were classified as local (ranging from 519 to 7,366).
An average of 15 workers were classified as intrastate, 217 interstate, 585 foreign, and 1,550 as
unknown origin. The weighted seasonal wage for 2006 ranged from $7.62/hr to $7.95/hr, with an
average wage of $7.75/hr (DOL 2007).
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Regional Economic Information System
(REIS), 2,187 people were classified as farm proprietors in Benton and Franklin counties during
2005. Total farm proprietors’ income, according to this same source, was estimated to be $17.3
million (DOC 2007).
4.139