March 2008
Nuclear nights in Britain
The Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association is hosting a one-day workshop April 15 on doing nuclear cleanup in the United Kingdom. Billions of dollars worth of work is reportedly up for grabs.
Registration and more info is available at ETEBA's website.
The workshop (at the Knoxville Airport Hilton) has a fee -- $145 for ETEBA members, $195 for non-members.
No, this wasn't taken at Y-12
The photo was reportedly shot at the offices of a sister newspaper, but it seemed appropos because of all the attention paid to sensible footwear at the Oak Ridge weapons plant.
'Risky Appropriations'
A coalition of environmental and watchdog groups today released a report criticizing the Bush administration's Global Nuclear Energy Partnership.
The report, "Risky Appropriations: Gambling U.S. Energy Policy on the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership," says GNEP timetable isn't feasible and hasn't been economically justified.
The report was sponsored by Friends of the Earth USA, Government Accountability Project, Institute for Policy Studies and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. Here's a link to the report.
Gone fishin'
Kitty McCracken tags a fish with paint (photo/Michael Patrick)
Was able to spend some time earlier this month with folks at ORNL's Aquatic Ecology Lab, where they do some cool experiments. We published a story today on work they're doing to reintroduce fish species to White Oak Creek.
Want to work at a national lab?
ORNL expects to do quite a bit of hiring in the next few years and lab director Thom Mason said many of the hires will likely come as a result of scientist-to-scientist contacts, not through any formal hiring process,
"The number of people that you get from random responses to ads you might put out who actually wind up getting hired is not so large," Mason said. "You've got to find other ways . . . Having networks or personal contacts, conferences, or people who visit the lab to use user facilities, are all ways to make that connection to people who might be future hires."
The Oakley effect
How has last year's arrest of a former worker (Roy Lynn Oakley) accused of stealing classified equipment from the site affected security at the K-25 dismantlement project?
"I can't comment on that because it really, I think, predated my arrival here, and I understand they're still looking at that . . . and I'm just not up to speed on it," said Paul Divjak, the president of Bechtel Jacobs Co. "I have not 'gone behind the wall' and gotten the cleared version of that yet."
Getting down to business at ORNL
The University of Tennesseee will reportedly field two teams for a business-related competition to be held this week at ORNL.
According to a media advisory from the lab, the theme will be energy for the Idea to Product Competition and the concurrent Energy Venture Showcase, which are being held Thursday and Friday in Oak Ridge. Thirteen universities (including such notables as the "other" UT, the University of Texas), one high school and five companies will participate, ORNL said.
Here's the agenda for the second-year event.
DOE to review K-25 options for 'couple of months'
It looks like a decision on K-25 preservation may not come until summer, if then.
Dept. of Energy spokesman John Shewairy acknowledged that the agency had received a recommendation from the Site Specific Advisory Board (in support of saving K-25's North Tower), as well as other citizen and community input, and that additional info may be provided to the agency in the days ahead.
Shewairy said it probably would take a couple of months for DOE to digest the info, rework and update cost and schedule figures, and re-evaluate the situation.
Continue reading "DOE to review K-25 options for 'couple of months'"
IG takes another look at foreign visitors
The Dept. of Energy Inspector General released a special report today on, "The Department's Unclassified Foreign Visits and Assignments Program."
This has been a longtime issue of interest to the IG, and this report find continuing weaknesses in how foreign visits are handled at the DOE national labs. The report said some hosts of foreign nationals acknowledged not taking all oversight and precautionary measures to reduce security risks.
Continue reading "IG takes another look at foreign visitors"
Incinerator restart April 8
Bechtel Jacobs Co. spokesman Dennis Hill today said the TSCA Incinerator is scheduled for restart April 8.
The Oak Ridge incinerator, which burns mixed waste contained both radioactive elements and hazardous chemicals such as PCBs, has been shut down since last October for maintenance and repairs. The cost of the work was about $200,000.
Reactor at full power
Just talked to ORNL's Kelly Beierschmitt, who said the High Flux Isotope Reactor is at full power (85 megawatts) and operating fine. Some additional testing will be done this afternoon, which makes the reactor more sensitive to tripping, but after 7 p.m., it should be routine operations, he said.
A previous post discussed this morning's glitch.
Another roadmap to nowhere?
John Fleck gets down to the nuts, bolts and dollars of complex transformation, and offers a keen insight on the dubious nature of this ongoing exercise, be it called Complex 21, Complex 2030 or just about any other name. Here's a blog link.
'Glitch' in HFIR restart
What was characterized as a "glitch" stalled the restart this morning of the High Flux Isotope Reactor, but ORNL's nuclear operations director said he still expects the reactor to return to operations today.
The High Flux Isotope Reactor, which operates at a maximum power of 85 megawatts, has been shut down since early March for refueling and maintenance. An earlier post discussed what was done during the outage.
The greening of Y-12
In the latest issue of Y-12 Report, there's an artist's conception of the future plant that shows proposed changes for weapons complex transformation. That plan would greatly reduce the operations 'footprint' at Y-12, and it appears to leave acres of green space between the buildings.
I'm assuming that green stuff is grass, but I'm still having a hard time believing it. That really would be a change at the ex-Cold War industrial complex, where parking lots are considered landscaping.
HFIR due to restart; an assist from Argonne
Late this afternoon, Kelly Beierschmitt, ORNL's director of nuclear operations, said the High Flux Isotope Reactor will be restarted Wednesday morning as scheduled.
The reactor has been shut down since early March for refueling and maintenance. "We got a tremendous amount of work done on the facilities and (research) instruments," Beierschmitt said.
One big deal was replacing a neutron detector on the SANS (small-angle neutron scattering) instrument, he said.
Continue reading "HFIR due to restart; an assist from Argonne"
Update: Stats for Y-12 retirees
As long promised, here are some of the numbers for retirees (and surviving) spouses from Y-12.
This is a link to the chart that shows the total number of active retirees and the years they retired.
Below is a list of Y-12's new hires by year since 2001:
Mezga's letter to DOE
Copied below is the March 24 cover letter from Lance Mezga, chair of the Site Specific Advisory Board, that accompanied the recommendation and minority report sent to DOE's environmental chief, Steve McCracken.
Mezga notes that the recommendation was approved with the mininum number of votes and that the issue of preserving K-25 is "an emotional one."
Waiting on a DOE decision
Bill Wilcox at Feb. 19 meeting (photo/Amy Smotherman Burgess)
Bill Wilcox, city historian and co-chair of the Partnership for K-25 Preservation, said he was pleased with the SSAB's support for preservation -- as outlined in the advisory group's report sent to the Dept. of Energy.
In an e-mail response, Wilcox said:
SSAB's minority opinion on K-25
Four members of the Site Specific Advisory Board members -- Bill Bass, Ron Murphree, Bob Olson and Steve Stow -- authored a dissenting opinion on the K-25 recommendation.
The report raises a number of concerns about the future undertaking and suggests razing the North End and proceeding with alternate plans for commemorating the history of the Oak Ridge site.
Below is the minority report:
More support for K-25
Here is a link to the letters from the Local Oversight Committee supporting preservation of the North Tower of K-25.
SSAB supports K-25 preservation
1945 photo of K-25 with farm buildings in the foreground
Below is a copy of the recommendation passed March 12 by DOE's Site Specific Advisory Board, supporting preservation of the North Tower of the historic K-25 building.
SSAB chair Lance Mezga said a copy will be transmitted to DOE's Oak Ridge office, along with a transmittal letter. He said a minority report also will accompany the recommendation.
ORNL's electricity bill
Good ideas are meant to be stolen, and that holds true for story ideas, too, I suppose. John Fleck recently reported on his blog that Sandia's electricity bill was $12 million a year.
That prompted me, naturally, to inquire about ORNL's annual expenditure. I figured it was a lot, with the Spallation Neutron Source ramping up in power and continuing upgrades to the stable of supercomputers.
The tab for fiscal year 2007? $13.4 million.
Stair's eye-opening trip to Haiti
I knew ORNL communications chief Billy Stair had been to Haiti recently, but I didn't know the details. He shares the amazing and inspiring story, "Hope in Haiti," in today's News Sentinel. It's a must read.
NIOSH 'negotiating' with bidders
Responding to questions about delays in awarding a new contract for dose reconstruction, Larry Elliott of NIOSH said the institute's procurement office is negotiating with contract bidders who submitted proposals "within the competitive range." He did not say how many offerors were in contention.
NIOSH recently extended ORAU's existing contract for the seventh time (through May 31) to allow more time for the process. The original contact expired last September.
Stack's coming down near Bldg. 3019
photo/ORNL
There was a bump up in the price-tag for the U-233 down-blending project that will be conducted by Isotek Systems at ORNL's Building 3019, where the special nuclear material is stored.
One reason for the increase (from $379 million to $384 million) is for safety features associated with seismic and fire protection, according to DOE's Steve McCracken. To address the seismic concern, the big stack to the north of the high-security building will be taken down before any nuclear processing takes place, McCracken said.
Dose reconstruction redux
I'm sure this is nowhere close to a record, but ORAU confirmed today it had received a seventh (7th) extension of its dose-reconstruction contract with NIOSH, which apparently is still considering the bids received on a new contract.
The latest extension is good through May 31, said Oak Ridge Associated Universities spokeswoman Pam Bonee.
U-turn to Oak Ridge
Today's column has more information, albeit scant on details, about upcoming shipments of highly enriched uranium coming to Y-12.
IG looks at DOE's public websites
A new Inspector General report is out today, "Management of the Department's Publicly Accessible Websites."
The report addresses the risks and vulnerabilities, noting a rash of incidents over the past three years (including one hacking event where users of the Brookhaven website were directed to porn sites). ORNL actually gets a couple of kudos in the report for some pro-active steps.
Trailblazing women in Oak Ridge
photo Lynn Freeny/DOE
Honored at last week's career workshop were (from left) Alice Murphy, Pat Howse-Smith, Michelle Buchanan, Bonnie Carroll, Jennifer Fowler, and Judy Penry
Keeping tab of taxpayer dollars
In response to questions, Bechtel Jacobs provided updated info on the cost of a couple of projects -- small and big.
$200,000 -- That's the cost of recent repairs to the Oak Ridge incinerator.
$218 million -- That's how much was spent on stabilization work and defueling activities at the Molten Salt Reactor from 1994 until the end of fiscal 2007.
How long the Oak Ridge burn?
Oak Ridge workers fill 'hat boxes' with waste to prepare for incineration (BJC file photo)
Now that the Dept. of Energy has acknowledged cleanup operations at the former K-25 site will continue through 2016 or thereabouts, does that impact the planned shutdown of the TSCA Incinerator (located the same site) at the end of fiscal 2009?
Apparently not.
The Bechtel Way
Paul Divjak, the (relatively) new president of Bechtel Jacobs Co., makes it clear that Bechtel is interested in remaining a part of the Oak Ridge cleanup effort for years to come -- beyond the 2011 conclusion of the BJC contract. I wrrote a bit about him in my column in the latest Knoxville Business Journal.
Feds OK restart of uranium process at Y-12
The NNSA has approved the restart of the Oxide Conversion Facility at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant. OCF is a big part of the recycling of highly enriched uranium for weapons purposes.
Story on the main page at Knoxnews.com.
Securing the U-233
Molten Salt Reactor has been shut down since 1969
Workers are reportedly close to completing the removal of uranium-233 from the Molten Salt Reactor at ORNL. There's a story today on main site.
Women in science: extra challenges
Many scientists, especially at the national labs, have to make a choice during their careers whether to stick to research or move into management and administration.
Michelle Buchanan, who's now the associate lab director for physical sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, had to work overtime just to get that choice.
Chain-gang security at K-25
Everybody knows safety is a huge issue on the project to dismantle the World War II-era K-25 plant, especially after an Oak Ridge worker was seriously injured a couple of years ago when he fell through a deteriorated floor.
But what about security at the K-25 building, where much of the gaseous diffusion technology is still classified and where deposits of enriched uranium still reside in the process equipment?
EnergySolutions responds
A spokesman for the Utah-based company said Congressman Bart Gordon's legislation to bar imports of foreign nuclear waste is "unwise, unwarranted and unecessary."
Mark Walker of EnergySoutions, which has applied for a license to import up to 20,000 tons of waste from Italy, said the NRC has the expertise to make "thoughtful decisions based on the facts."
Here is the company's full statement:
Defense board members at Y-12
DNFSB board members Joseph Bader and Larry Brown were in Oak Ridge Wednesday for a meeting at Y-12, where the discussions reportedly focused on the Uranium Processing Facility (a proposed multi-billion dollar facility that would replace Y-12's main production complex, 9212).
Gordon takes nuke waste fight to Congress
U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon and two other congressmen today submitted legislation that would ban imports of foreign nuclear waste. The move is intended to block the NRC from approving an EnergySolutions application to bring as much as 20,000 tons of Italian waste to Oak Ridge for processing.
The story is posted at the main Knoxnews.com site.
Continue reading "Gordon takes nuke waste fight to Congress"
HEU clarification
The NNSA took issue with some of the wording I used in a March 5 column about the IAEA inspections coming to an end at Y-12.
The federal agency emphasized that none of the 10 tons of highly enriched uranium originally declared surprlus and made available for international inspections will ever be used in a nuclear weapon -- even though some of the material may be placed in the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility now under construction.
Burning waste (again) by April
photo/Joe Howell
Repairs are almost completed, and the TSCA Incinerator will likely be restarted later this month, according to the government's Oak Ridge cleanup manager.
Dennis Hill of Bechtel Jacobs Co. said workers have repaired part of the roof on the incinerator's secondary combustion chamber and "associated supports for the thermal relief valve stack."
The power of Oak Ridge women
Gerald Boyd, DOE's Oak Ridge manager, surveyed the ballroom jampacked with women this morning, and he commented, "I have to admit I'm a little bit intimidated."
The women's career workshop held at the DoubleTree Hotel in Oak Ridge was a huge success, big turnout. There'll be a story in Thursday's News Sentinel and on Knoxnews.com.
A look at the greenhouse future
photo/ORNL
In today's column, I wrote about the FACE experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, one of the projects that evaluates the greenhouse effects (in this case increased levels of carbon dioxide). It's been providing good data for more than a decade, and the success of the project has brought deserving attention to Rich Norby -- a corporate fellow at ORNL and all-around good guy.
For more information, check out the project's website. Good stuff.
The Fort Knox of Uranium
photo Brett Pate/B&W
Construction of the new $549 million storage complex at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant is now 74 percent completed, according to B&W Technical Services, the government's managing contractor at the site. Caddell-Blaine, a partnership of construction companies, is doing the work under a subcontract to B&W.
Above is the latest photograph (taken in February) of the uranium fortress that's been cleared by Y-12's classification folks. Eventually, the government will consolidate its stocks of bomb-grade uranium at the facility.
Italian waste: news update
Good news for EnergySolutions. The Tennessee Division of Radiological Health sent a March 4 letter to the NRC, indicating the proposed processing of Italian nuclear waste would be permitted under the critieria of the company's operating license for its Oak Ridge facility.
Warhead waves
Expect there to be more and more reporting on the W76 and related Fogbank issues in coming months amid the ongoing debate regarding the need or desirability of the Reliable Replacement Warhead.
Dr. Jeffrey Lewis addressed some of the issues at his blog, Arms Control Wonk, pulling together what's been said to date on Fogbank and adding his analysis.
'Pure coincidence'
That's what the affable Bruce Bursten, dean of arts and sciences at UT and president of the American Chemical Society, said of the timing of ACS honoring Oak Ridge National Laboratory as a National Historic Chemical Landmark during his tenure at the society's helm.
Cool guys
Alex Zucker is cool. Always has been. He was cool before cool was a concept, I'm sure of it, and that was even before I started covering Oak Ridge things.
I saw Zucker at an ORNL gathering this week to celebrate the lab's early work with radioisotopes and to hammer another historic designation into the official record, and that was enough to remind me that it's people, not the institutions, who are really important.
IG addresses nano fears
Worker in 'bunny suit' enters a clean room at ORNL nanoscience center (photo/Saul Young)
The DOE Inspector General issued an audit report this week that said the federal agency and its contractors had not taken all safety precautions to address potential issues regarding exposures to nano particles and the health implications.
The department did not agree with that bottom line, and Linda Horton, director of the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences at ORNL, didn't either.
High-speed research ops at Oak Ridge
Oak Ridge Associated Universities is partnering with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to open up more research opportunties on the lab's supercomputers -- including the ultra-fast Jaguar (capable of 250 trillion calculations per second).
ORAU is going to foot the bill for faculty-student grants of $75,000 over three years, with plans to award two of these science grants annually. ORNL is going to provide time on the big machines and offer staff expertise for the research collaborations.
Do you want to be a star?
Well, that's not going to happen. But if you want to serve on the Dept. of Energy's environmental advisory board, there's still hope.
DOE is seeking citizen volunteers for the Site Specific Advisory Board in Oak Ridge. For more info and a membership application, you can go to the SSAB's website or you can call 865-241-4583. The deadline for applications is March 31.
National Historic Chemical Landmark
photo Curtis Boles/ORNL
Big turnout today at ORNL for the designation by the American Chemical Society. This memorable quote from longtime lab director Alvin Weinberg puts the early Oak Ridge work with radioisotopes in perspective.
"If at some time a heavenly angel should ask what the Laboratory in the hills of East Tennessee did to enlarge man's life and make it better, I daresay the production of radioisotopes for scientific research and medical treatment will surely rate as a candidate for first place."
W76, Fogbank and Y-12
Reports out today regarding the super-secret material at Y-12 that's holding up the life-extension work on the W76 warhead. I have a story on the main page at Knoxnews.com, and there are reports by New Scientist and The Guardian in UK.
It's not clear yet where this is headed, but ultimately the NNSA is going to have to show its hand on priorities and whether the W76 is salvageable. There have been previous questions raised about its design and whether or not it will work as originally advertised.
Do foreign students stick around after Ph.D.?
Michael Finn of the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education has produced a new research report (through 2005) on the "stay rates" of foreign nationals who earn their doctorate degrees in the United States.
Among the findings: Two-thirds of foreigners who got doctorates in science and engineering from U.S. universities in 2003 still lived in the United States two years later. That two-year stay rate peaked at 71 percent a few years earlier, so this indicates a decline.
Continue reading "Do foreign students stick around after Ph.D.?"
ORAU and Wadsworth, too
Jeff Wadsworth at ORAU annual meeting (photo Lynn Freeny/DOE)
Ex-ORNL Director Jeff Wadsworth was back in town Tuesday to speak to the annual meeting of Oak Ridge Associated Universities' Council of Sponsoring Institutions.
I attended a part of the afternoon session, including the talk by Wadsworth and one by University of Tennessee President John Petersen.
Nuclear safeguards lab
In today's column, I mentioned ORNL's newest user facility, the Safeguards Laboratory.
One of the interesting things about the lab is the availability of Special Nuclear Material (in small quantities, of course) for testing and training purposes. The Oak Ridge lab currently has about 600 grams of highly enriched uranium and is hoping to acquire a small amount of plutonium in the near future.
Update: Italian waste
Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesman David McIntyre today said the number of comments on the EnergySolutions application to import Italian nuclear waste is now over 500.
The address to comment is: hearingdocket@nrc.gov. McIntyre said a new email system is in the works, and the new address will be hearing.docket@nrc.gov. Either one should work, he said.
Peace video from complex transformation
The video produced by the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance is available on KnoxTube and features some of the young attendees, including 9-year-old Inca Nicholson.
The video was taken from the Feb. 26 public meetings held in Oak Ridge, where the National Nuclear Security Administration gathered input on alternatives for the weapons complex of the future.
NRC extends comment for Italian waste
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has extended the public comment period on EnergySolutions’ application to import up to 20,000 tons of nuclear waste from Italy. The proposed project would process the low-level radioactive materials at the company’s Oak Ridge waste facility and then ship the residues to a landfill in Utah for disposal.
The NRC said today the deadline for comment has been extended to June 10.
Four-star general visits Y-12
Gen. Kevin Chilton, commander of the U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM), was in town Monday for a morning-long tour and classified briefing of activities at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant. He was accompanied, at least for part of the session, by Robert Smolen, the National Nuclear Security Administration's deputy administrator for defense programs.
Wanted: scholarship applicants
ETEBA (The Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association) is seeking applications for the 2008 "Earn and Learn Scholarship Program."
It's a cool program in partnership with ETEBA's member companies where high school seniors get to intern and earn cash for college and gain a bunch of experience, too..The internships vary from two to eight weeks.
DOE's In-lieu-of-tax payments
The Dept. of Energy has made its annual payments in lieu of taxes to local municipalities.
According to DOE spokesman John Shewairy, the payments for 2007 included $1,413,801 to the City of Oak Ridge, which was an increase from 2006 payment of $1,361,175.37. That was due to a tax rate increase, he said.
The other payments were to Roane County, $814,701 (up from $725,939.29 due to a tax rate increase in Roane), and $498,701.01 to Anderson County -- same as in 2006 payment.
Mayors support Oak Ridge retirees
The mayors of Oak Ridge and Roane and Anderson Counties have sent a letter to U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, asking Tennessee's senior senator for his help in boosting benefits for contractor retirees.
HFIR refueling outage
photo/Michael Patrick
The High Flux Isotope Reactor was shut down Saturday for maintenance and refueling. It is scheduled for restart March 26, according to the report from ORNL's neutron sciences directorate.
230 volunteer to leave Y-12
That's the number of Y-12 workers who applied for the Voluntary Separation Payment Program, which offered financial incentives for those willing to take early retirement. Today's story notes that's fewer than the hoped-for number (300 to 400), which would seem to indicate some layoffs may be necessary. But a plant spokesman said that hasn't been decided -- yet.
'Toxic Time Bomb . . .'
A powerful story today in the Washington Post, "A Toxic Time Bomb in the Northwest," illustrates the cleanup nightmares still on the horizon.
That was no dog . . .
Nope, it apparently was a coyote that ran ahead of my car and into the woods as I approached ORNL last week on Bethel Valley Road. I'd heard reports of coyotes roaming the area, but I hadn't seen one myself. Of course, the federal reservation is loaded with deer and turkeys and critters of every other sort. Cool.
Unfortunately, the undeveloped areas of the reservation keep shrinking.
Frank Munger will be covering the Dept. of Energy's Oak Ridge facilities and other things nuclear. The blog will include random thoughts and opinions, behind-the-scenes tidbits, and expanded coverage and analysis of Oak Ridge news. 