KENNEWICK — Bechtel National has named an acting project director for the Hanford site vitrification plant after the unexpected death of Valerie McCain.
John Atwell comes to the Hanford nuclear reservation from Georgia and has led some of Bechtel’s largest and most complex nuclear power projects.
He has been a Bechtel principal vice president since 2005.
For the past two years he has served as project director for Bechtel’s Vogtle Units 3 & 4 Completion project for Georgia Power, a project adding two nuclear units to the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant.
Atwell knows the Hanford vit plant after serving as manager of functions and operations for Bechtel’s nuclear, security and environment business unit from 2020-’21. He was responsible for operational oversight of the vit plant project on behalf of Bechtel.
He has more than 40 years of managerial experience leading engineering and project management activities across a range of projects, including nuclear power plants, nuclear and high-hazard facilities, and corporate functional departments, said Bechtel National.
He earned a bachelor of science in nuclear engineering from the University of Maryland and a master of business administration from National University.
The vitrification plant is being built to glassify much of the 56 million gallons of radioactive waste in underground tanks at Hanford to allow its disposal. The waste is left from chemically processing irradiated uranium to produce nearly two-thirds of the plutonium for the nation’s nuclear weapons program in World War II and the Cold War.
Bechtel National began construction on the plant under a Department of Energy contract in 2002 and now is working on commissioning the plant to start treating some of the least radioactive tank waste.
McCain was the Bechtel project director for the massive plant from 2018, leading a team of 2,250 employees, until her death after a short illness March 26. She had been a Bechtel senior vice president since 2020.
A week before her death DOE gave Bechtel its highest ever rating for its performance at the vit plant.
“She was highly respected, exemplified our One Hanford spirit and consistently inspired all who were lucky enough to serve with her,” said Brian Vance, the DOE manager for the Hanford nuclear reservation site in Eastern Washington.
Bechtel leadership has worked with McCain’s family to create a memorial fund with the Three Rivers Community Foundation.
The fund will establish scholarships or be distributed to nonprofits with missions that were important to McCain.
Donations can be made online at 3 Rivers Community Foundation under the “Giving” tab. For questions, call 509-735-5559.
During the online process, donors can choose to leave a remembrance note that will be shared with McCain’s family.
