[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 45 (Tuesday, March 11, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1661-S1662]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF PACIFIC NORTHWEST NATIONAL 
                               LABORATORY

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, today, with my colleague Senator 
Cantwell, we commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Pacific Northwest 
National Laboratory, or PNNL. As one of the Department of Energy's 
premier national laboratories over the past 60 years, PNNL has tackled 
some of our Nation's most complex and urgent challenges using its 
strengths in chemistry, Earth sciences, biology, and data science. As 
longtime supporters who are well versed in PNNL's valuable 
contributions to our Nation's scientific discovery, energy, and 
national security, we are proud to take the opportunity to recognize 
its 60th anniversary.
  In January 1965, the Atomic Energy Commission, the predecessor Agency 
of the Department of Energy, selected Battelle, a nonprofit research 
and development organization, to take over the Hanford Laboratories at 
the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington State. Then known as 
Pacific Northwest Laboratory, the laboratory provided critical support 
to plutonium production and nuclear waste cleanup at Hanford and over 
the years evolved into one of DOE's most diverse multidisciplinary 
laboratories with significant portfolios in science, energy, and 
national security.
  Over the past 60 years, PNNL has leveraged its scientific 
capabilities to make significant contributions in important areas such 
as supporting the cleanup of legacy nuclear waste, understanding Earth 
systems, modernizing the grid, advancing energy storage, enabling 
energy resilience, supporting nuclear nonproliferation, and protecting 
against cyberattacks, as well as building and applying artificial 
intelligence tools to accelerate scientific discovery in key areas 
related to national security and energy. PNNL has grown from just over 
2,200 employees in 1965 to more than 6,400 today. It is the single 
largest employer in central Washington, with staff at its main campus 
in Richland, at PNNL-Sequim, DOE's only marine research facility, as 
well as in satellite offices in Seattle, Portland, Oregon, and College 
Park, MD.
  We also want to highlight PNNL's collaborations with both academia 
and industry. PNNL has over 200 joint appointments with over 60 
academic institutions and is home to seven joint institutes, combining 
the expertise and capabilities of universities and a national 
laboratory to accelerate science impact. In Washington, the Washington 
State University-PNNL Advanced Grid Institute is working to modernize 
the electric grid and provide secure energy infrastructure for the 
Nation. The WSU-PNNL Bioproducts Institute explores ways to transform 
engineered plants and industrial, agricultural, and municipal wastes 
into valuable materials and chemicals, including sustainable aviation 
fuel. The University of Washington-PNNL Northwest Institute for 
Materials Physics, Chemistry, and Technology, also known as NW Impact, 
focuses on advancements in materials that have the potential to 
transform multiple fields including energy, telecommunications, 
medicine, and information technology. Beyond Washington, PNNL has joint 
institutes with universities in Oregon, Maryland, and Georgia covering 
biomedical innovation, Earth systems, and cybersecurity and resilient 
infrastructure.
  PNNL also collaborates with businesses large and small throughout the 
United States. One of the primary missions at PNNL is to move 
innovations developed at the lab into the marketplace where they can be 
used to solve national problems, improve lives, and enhance security. 
Airport security checkpoints use PNNL-developed millimeter wave 
technology scanning to detect concealed objects and increase security. 
Technology identifying molecular differences in samples as small as

[[Page S1662]]

a single cell and 1,000 times faster than current methods is helping 
advance medicine and environmental management. And PNNL's 
superconducting Qubit testbed is contributing to advances in quantum 
computing, which can help solve problems of energy production and 
sustainability. PNNL researchers were named on 59 patents granted in 
fiscal year 2024 and on nearly 1,700 U.S. patents since 1965.
  During its long history, PNNL has committed to developing the future 
workforce in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Last 
year alone, the lab reached more than 51,000 students and 900 educators 
and hosted 1,717 students as interns, a 35 percent increase since 2020. 
In addition, PNNL created a STEM Ambassador Program, training its 
scientists on how best to communicate and convey the impact and 
relevance of their work to various audiences. STEM Ambassadors 
volunteer at outreach events throughout the Richland, Seattle, and 
Sequim areas using interactive, hands-on displays to spark interest in 
STEM learning and careers. STEM Ambassadors have been invited to 
present at DOE's National Science Bowl, a nationwide academic 
competition. PNNL's STEM Ambassador Program is now a model for similar 
efforts at other national laboratories.
  As longtime champions of PNNL, we know that we are lucky in 
Washington State to have such a phenomenal resource in our backyard. We 
want to congratulate all past and present employees of PNNL on an 
incredible 60 years. Thank you for everything you do for our State, our 
country, and our entire world. We look forward to many more years of 
innovation and discovery that will make our world a better, cleaner, 
and safer place to live.

                          ____________________