GAO: Concerns persist on DOE Order 140.1Nuclear NewsSecurityNovember 3, 2020, 12:00PM|Nuclear News StaffThe Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on October 29 outlining potential issues regarding a 2018 Department of Energy order on how the department, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and their contractors interact with the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) and its staff. DNFSB is the independent agency responsible for ensuring that DOE facilities are protective of public health and safety.According to the 81-page GAO report, provisions of DOE Order 140.1, issued in May 2018, restricted DNFSB’s access to information essential to its mission, and a subsequent revision of that order has not eliminated concerns that it would hinder DNFSB in carrying out its oversight responsibilities.The Pantex Plant in Texas. Photo: DOEBackground: DNFSB was established by statute in 1988 as an independent authority under the executive branch to oversee safety at DOE defense nuclear facilities. As of July 2020, DNFSB and its staff oversee more than 150 such facilities located at 10 active DOE sites across the country, with resident inspectors located at the Hanford Site, Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Pantex Plant, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Savannah River Site.The DOE has long used an established set of guidelines, called DOE Manual 140.1-1B, for directing its staff and contractors on how they may interact with DNFSB. In 2018, the DOE replaced the manual with Order 140.1, arguing that the manual was outdated and that there was a need to define how the department and DNFSB engaged in their separate roles.DNFSB objected to the 2018 order, noting that it claimed to exempt on-site workers from the board’s oversight and included provisions improperly limiting its access to information, personnel, and facilities. Subsequent to the DOE’s and DNFSB’s disagreements over Order 140.1, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of fiscal year 2020, passed in December 2019, amended DNFSB’s original enabling statute, reasserting the board’s oversight role and clarifying when the Secretary of Energy may deny access to information.Order 140.1A: In response to the FY2020 NDAA, the DOE replaced its 2018 order with Order 140.1A in June of this year. While the DOE did not collaborate with DNFSB on the revised order, the board said that the revisions resolved its previous concerns. Likewise, the GAO found that Order 140.1A “does not include the provisions we identified as inconsistent with DNFSB’s enabling statute.”In interviews with DOE and DNFSB officials and contractor representatives, however, the GAO found that there was a number of outstanding concerns not addressed in Order 140.1A that could continue to affect how the agencies cooperate and the board’s ability to conduct oversight. Particularly, the GAO noted that the DOE and DNFSB do not have a common understanding of a provision of the board’s enabling statute—section 2286c(b)—that authorizes the Secretary of Energy to deny access to information in certain situations.The GAO also found the DOE order does not provide clear guidance on how the department should interact with the DOE, creating uncertainties for DOE and contractor staff about how and when they can interact with DNFSB inspectors and staff.Recommendations: The GAO recommended that the DOE and DNFSB should develop a formal written agreement, such as a memorandum of understanding, to establish a common knowledge of how the DOE will implement section 2286c(b) and clarify procedures for interactions between the two agencies.The GAO also recommended that the DOE provide more robust training on Order 140.1A and develop better guidance on how to respond to DNFSB document requests.The DOE agreed with the GAO’s recommendations of developing a written agreement with the board and with updating its guidance. The DOE, however, did not concur with the recommendation on training, arguing that the department already maintains adequate communication and training for the small number of employees responsible for interacting with DNFSB.Tags:dnfsbdoennsaoversightsafetyShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
ANS member Joyce Connery appointed as DNFSB chairPresident Biden has appointed Joyce Connery as chair of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB). Connery, an ANS member since 2012, was appointed to the board in August 2015 for a term ending in October 2019. She was confirmed again by the Senate as a DNFSB member on July 2, 2020, for a term expiring on October 18, 2024. Connery previously held the chairmanship from August 2015 until January 2017.Go to Article
Initial Los Alamos comingled TRU waste delivered to WIPPWorkers at LANL's RANT facility load the first comingled TRU waste shipment from the DOE and the NNSA. Photo: DOEThe Los Alamos field offices of the Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management and the National Nuclear Security Administration have completed their first comingled shipment of transuranic (TRU) waste from Los Alamos National Laboratory to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico."Comingling NNSA and EM waste allows for more efficient shipments to WIPP," Kirk Lachman, EM Los Alamos field office manager, said on January 14. "Reducing LANL’s above-ground waste inventory is an important issue to our local communities and is one of our mission priorities.”The comingled shipment consisted of one Transuranic Package Transporter Model 3 container with a total of 28 drums and containers inside.Go to Article
Savannah River’s Salt Waste Processing Facility begins full operationsAn aerial view of the Salt Waste Processing Facility at SRS. Photo: DOEThe hot commissioning testing phase of operations at the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) has been completed, signaling the facility’s entrance into fully integrated operations with the other liquid waste facilities at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina.Radiation shielding, environmental emissions, and product waste acceptance requirements were all tested and validated during the commissioning phase of the SWPF, the DOE announced on January 19. The SWPF will treat the approximately 31 million gallons of remaining salt waste currently stored in underground tanks at SRS.Parsons Corporation, the contractor that designed and built the first-of-a-kind facility, will operate the SWPF for one year, beginning this month. It is anticipated that the facility will process up to 6 million gallons of waste during the first year of operations.Go to Article
Purdue team uses Argonne’s APS for 3D view of irradiated fuelImage: Purdue University/Maria OkuniewskiA team of researchers led by Purdue University has used X-ray imaging conducted at Argonne National Laboratory’s Advanced Photon Source to obtain a three-dimensional view of the interior of an irradiated nuclear fuel sample. The use of synchrotron micro-computed tomography could lead to more accurate modeling of fuel behavior and more efficient nuclear fuel designs, according to the researchers.Go to Article
DOE looks to dispose of Savannah River process equipment as LLWThe Department of Energy is considering disposing of contaminated process equipment from its Savannah River Site (SRS) at a commercial low-level waste facility using its recent interpretation of the statutory term “high-level radioactive waste,” which classifies waste generated from the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel based on its radiological content rather than its origin.Go to Article
Trump leaves space nuclear policy executive order for Biden teamA hot fire test of the core stage for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket at Stennis Space Center in Mississippi was not completed as planned. The SLS is the vehicle meant to propel a crewed mission to the moon in 2024. Source: NASA TelevisionAmong the executive orders President Trump issued during his last weeks in office was “Promoting Small Modular Reactors for National Defense and Space Exploration,” which builds on the Space Policy Directives published during his term. The order, issued on January 12, calls for actions within the next six months by NASA and the Department of Defense (DOD), together with the Department of Energy and other federal entities. Whether the Biden administration will retain some, all, or none of the specific goals of the Trump administration’s space nuclear policy remains to be seen, but one thing is very clear: If deep space exploration remains a priority, nuclear-powered and -propelled spacecraft will be needed.The prospects for near-term deployment of nuclear propulsion and power systems in space improved during Trump’s presidency. However, Trump left office days after a hot fire test of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket did not go as planned. The SLS rocket is meant to propel crewed missions to the moon in 2024 and to enable a series of long-duration lunar missions that could be powered by small lunar reactor installations. The test on January 16 of four engines that were supposed to fire for over eight minutes was automatically aborted after one minute, casting some doubt that a planned November 2021 Artemis I mission can go ahead on schedule.Go to Article
Slaybaugh named to lead Berkeley Lab’s Cyclotron RoadSlaybaughThe Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory recently named Rachel Slaybaugh, ANS member since 2003 and associate professor of nuclear engineering at the University of California–Berkeley, to lead the lab’s Cyclotron Road Division.Get to know her: Prior to coming to Berkeley, Slaybaugh served as a program director for the DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), whose mission is to advance high-potential and high-impact energy technologies. From 2017 through 2020 at ARPA-E, Slaybaugh led programs supporting research in advanced nuclear fission reactors, agriculture technologies, and sensing and data analytics for four years.Go to Article
NNSA to hold virtual public meetings regarding Surplus Plutonium Disposition ProgramThe Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration will hold two virtual public meetings on a new environmental impact statement for its Surplus Plutonium Disposition Program (SPDP). The meetings will be held on Monday, January 25, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. (ET) and Tuesday, January 26, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. (ET). Participants can join by computer, telephone, or other device. A Notice of Intent contains a full description of the proposal and other options for providing public comment until February 1.The program: The SPDP EIS will analyze alternatives for the disposition of 34 metric tons of surplus plutonium using the capabilities at multiple sites across the United States. The NNSA’s preferred alternative, the dilute and dispose approach (also known as plutonium downblending), includes converting pit and non-pit plutonium to oxide, blending the oxidized plutonium with an adulterant, and emplacing the resulting transuranic waste underground in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), in New Mexico. The approach would require new, modified, or existing capabilities at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, the Pantex Plant in Texas, and WIPP.Go to Article
NNSA releases contractor performance evaluationsThe National Nuclear Security Administration last week released performance evaluation summaries on the effectiveness of its management and operating (M&O) contractors in meeting the agency’s expectations during fiscal year 2020.The summaries feature assessment “scorecards,” as well as links to M&O contractor performance evaluation and measurement plans. Also included are specific contractor accomplishments, plus issues requiring attention.Go to Article
The year in review 2020: Waste ManagementHere is a look back at the top stories of 2020 from our Waste Management section in Newswire and Nuclear News magazine. Remember to check back to Newswire soon for more top stories from 2020.Waste Management sectionFirst-ever cleanup of uranium enrichment plant celebrated at Oak Ridge: The completion of the decades-long effort to clean up the former Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant was celebrated on October 13, with Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette joining U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, and other state and community leaders at the East Tennessee Technology Park, where the uranium enrichment complex once stood. Read more.Go to Article