"YAKIMA, Wash. -- The company hired to design and build a massive plant at the nation's most contaminated nuclear site should no longer have authority over its design, according to an internal U.S. Department of Energy memo released Tuesday."

"The memo raises more questions about a waste treatment plant project long viewed as critical to ridding the Pacific Northwest of pollutants left from decades of weapons production for the nation's nuclear arsenal, but one that has endured countless technical problems, delays and skyrocketing costs.

It also raises more concerns about the contractor at the center of the mix, Bechtel National Inc., which has come under fire in recent months from critics who say the company has suppressed employee concerns related to the plant's safety and retaliated against whistleblowers."

Shannon Dininny reports for the Associated Press August 28, 2012. [2]