[DNFSB
LETTERHEAD]
September 13, 2005
The Honorable Samuel W. Bodman
Secretary of Energy
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20585-1000
Dear Secretary Bodman:
The Defense Nuclear Facilities
Safety Board (Board) received your letter dated August 17, 2005, enclosing the
Department of Energy’s (DOE) Implementation Plan for the Board’s Recommendation
2005-1, Nuclear
Material Packaging. The Board’s Recommendation stressed
the need for the development of technically justified criteria for packaging of
nuclear materials on a DOE-wide level. The Board has reviewed the Implementation Plan
and finds that it satisfies the Board’s Policy Statement 1 and is responsive to
the issues documented in the Recommendation. The Board therefore accepts the proposed Implementation
Plan. Acceptance is predicated on the
assumption that adequate funding will be provided to execute the commitments
therein.
The Board found DOE’s response
to this Recommendation to be noteworthy, particularly with regard to the early
establishment of a dedicated team and the timely development of an aggressive
schedule of commitments to implement the Recommendation. The Board is also encouraged by the commitment
to use a technical review board to review and comment on the principal activities
related to the resolution of safety issues. The Board believes that use of technical
review boards may prove beneficial in helping to resolve other safety issues
within the DOE complex.
The Board’s staff will continue
to stay in close contact with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Environment, Safety and Health to follow progress toward implementing Recommendation
2005-1.
Sincerely,
A.
J. Eggenberger
Chairman
c: Mr. Mark B. Whitaker, Jr.
Mr.
John S. Shaw