Trump’s nominee for energy secretary called finishing the environmental cleanup at the Hanford nuclear site in Eastern Washington critical when he was questioned at a Senate hearing Wednesday.

Layoffs at the Hanford site near Richland included safety engineers, environmental scientists and employees who protect workers’ rights, said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., in a news release Friday.

Workers started preparing to clean up a highly radioactive spill beneath the Hanford site 324 Building near Richland and the Columbia River in 2017. (Courtesy Department of Energy) More than a ...