Northwest communities alter Cold War economies
Sunday, November 13, 2011
YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) -- A remote pocket of the inland Pacific Northwest is beginning to deal with big layoffs, thanks to the completion of work at the Umatilla Chemical Depot and some work at the nearby Hanford nuclear reservation.
About 2,000 people have been laid off in recent months at the southeast Washington Hanford site. Some 1,200 workers will be looking for work as efforts wind down at the Umatilla site, which once housed 12 percent of the nation's chemical weapons stockpile.
Retraining programs are being offered to affected workers. But local officials say the region is better prepared than in years past for the losses.
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