[SOE LETTERHEAD]
The Honorable John T. Conway
Chairman
Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board
Dear Mr. Chairman:
The Department is pleased to forward the
Department's Implementation Plan (Plan) in response to the Board’s
Recommendation 2004-1, Oversight
of Complex, High-Hazard Nuclear Operations. The Plan outlines the actions we will take to
upgrade federal safety assurance, to learn from internal and external operating
experience, and to reinvigorate our Integrated Safety Management program
implementation.
This Plan represents a significant step forward. It commits the Department to having Central Technical Authorities with a strong and active role in assuring safety. We expect to work with the Board as we move down the path outlined in this Plan. I am confident that the Department, with the Board’s continued involvement, can successfully implement this Plan.
In
response to your request, we are also providing the current Project Management
Plan (PMP) associated with this Plan.
The PMP is our internal management tool to help our managers keep implementation
of the Plan on target and on track.
I have assigned Mr. Jerry Paul and Mr. John
Shaw to work together as the Department’s responsible managers for successfully
executing this Plan and resolving the issues raised in Board Recommendation
2004-1. Mr. Paul can be reached at (202)
586-1656 and Mr. Shaw can be reached at (202) 586-6151. We
appreciate the advice and feedback provided by the Board and its staff during
the development of this Plan.
Sincerely,
Spencer Abraham
Enclosure