NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
Full termination of MOX at Savannah River Site expected soon
Aiken Standard | 2/20/2020
Termination of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility will be completed in fiscal year 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's latest budget documents, a milestone
marking the end of one multibillion-dollar project and, perhaps, the beginnings of another.
The National Nuclear Security Administration, the semi autonomous weapons-and-nonproliferation arm of the U.S. Department of Energy, in October 2018 axed the MOX project, which had been more than a decade in the making.
Five months prior, the NNSA and the U.S. Department of Defense jointly recommended repurposing the never-completed plant for a majority stake in plutonium pit production: making 50 pits per year by 2030, while Los Alamos National Laboratory in northern New Mexico makes 30 per year.
National Nuclear Security Administration Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs Charles Verdon said Feb. 12 his agency "certainly" remains "laser-beam focused on the 2030 goal of 80 pits per year."
| Save the date for the 2020 National Cleanup Workshop!
September 16-18, 2020
Hilton Alexandria
Mark Center
Alexandria, VA
Follow the latest DOE budget updates with ECA's budget tracker
|
NUCLEAR WASTE
Critics decry proposed cuts in Hanford nuclear cleanup plan
Register Guard | 2/17/2020
Advocates for cleaning up a former nuclear weapons production site in Washington state are outraged that the Trump administration is proposing a $700 million budget cut next year.
The proposal released by President Trump called for cutting the annual Hanford cleanup budget from about $2.5 billion to about $1.8 billion. Critics say that large a cut is almost certain to delay the cleanup, which is on a legally-enforced schedule.
Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse, who represents the Hanford region, said the federal government has an obligation to clean up the radioactive waste at places like Hanford. “I will continue to work with the administration and with our senators to restore funding levels and get the job done,” Newhouse said.
Similarly, other communities were unhappy with the FY21 budget request and the impact that would have on their sites, as reported by Exchange Monitor.
Republican Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, whose congressional district covers parts of Oak Ridge, responded, "As a member of the House Appropriations Committee I will continue to do all I can to ensure that the site receives the funding that it needs for the next fiscal year."
The request seeks $432 million for the Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee, below the $450 million cleanup budget in the current cycle and the $450 million requested for fiscal 2020.
The Energy Department said in the budget in brief released this week that funding will be sufficient for slab and soil remediation at the East Tennessee Technology Park, a former uranium enrichment complex, as well as for continued design of a new waste landfill to take debris from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex.
NEW NUCLEAR
TAKE A ‘VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP’ TO IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY
INL| 2/18/2020
The Nuclear Reimagined Virtual Field Trip offers a behind-the-scenes view into INL, DOE’s leading lab for nuclear energy research, development, demonstration and deployment. As part of the tour, participants learn the ways STEM professionals
innovate solutions for the problems of today.
“Navigating Nuclear and the virtual field trip at INL are great opportunities to illustrate to students what the U.S. energy future will look like, as well as show them how they can play a role in it,” said Dr. Rita Baranwal, assistant secretary for DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy. “DOE is a strong proponent of STEM education and demonstrating nuclear energy capabilities to the next
generation can teach them about the careers that can contribute to a cleaner global environment.”
Read about DOE's High Level Waste Interpretation
Have questions about DOE’s recent high-level waste (HLW) interpretation? Download ECA’s Key Points and FAQs on the issue to better understand what ECA believes are the potential benefits of implementation.
Interested in learning more? Read the ECA report “Making Informed Decisions on DOE's Proposed High Level Waste Definition” at www.energyca.org/publications
Stay Current on Activities in the DOE World
Read the latest edition of the ECA Bulletin, a regular newsletter providing a detailed brief of ECA activities, legislative news, and major events from across the DOE complex. Have suggestions for future editions? Email bulletin@energyca.org.
|
Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles
ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's 13 active Environmental Management cleanup sites and national laboratories, highlighting their history, missions, and priorities. The profiles are a key source for media, stakeholders, and the public to learn more about DOE site activities, contractors, advisory boards, and their surrounding local
governments.
|
|
|
|
