National Laboratories

NNSA Asks DOE IG to Investigate Case of Fired LANL Nonprolif. Expert NS&D Monitor 9/19/2014 National Nuclear Security Administration chief Frank Klotz is asking the Department of Energy’s Inspector General to look into whether a Los Alamos National Laboratory nonproliferation expert was fired based on an the publication of a pro-nuclear abolition article. DOE has […]

Sandia Official to Serve as Director of National Ignition Facility NS&D Monitor 9/19/2014 Sandia National Laboratories official Mark Hermann will take over as the new director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility Oct. 6, Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science Jeff Wisoff said in a Sept. 16 memo obtained by NS&D […]

Sens. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) have formally established a bipartisan Senate National Laboratory Caucus aimed at rallying funding and policy support for the Department of Energy’s 17 institutions. The Senators gathered with Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and directors or representatives from each of the 17 laboratories yesterday to showcase the latest innovations […]

Sandia National Laboratories official Mark Hermann will take over as the new director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility Oct. 6, Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science Jeff Wisoff said in a memo yesterday obtained by NS&D Monitor. Hermann has served as the director of Sandia’s Pulsed Power Sciences Center, senior […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Science is moving to give more autonomy to national laboratories from headquarters on management and budget decisions, a DOE official yesterday told a panel tasked with reviewing the labs. The Congressionally-mandated Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories at a meeting in Alexandria, Va., yesterday pressed […]

National Nuclear Security Administration chief Frank Klotz is asking the Department of Energy’s Inspector General to look into whether a Los Alamos National Laboratory nonproliferation expert was fired based on an the publication of a pro-nuclear abolition article. DOE has rejected Jim Doyle’s whistleblower claims and his appeal for a secretarial review of his case […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Science is moving to give more autonomy to national laboratories from headquarters on management and budget decisions, a DOE official yesterday told the panel tasked with reviewing the labs. The Congressionally-mandated Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories at a meeting in Alexandria, Va. yesterday probed […]

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz is hosting a National Lab Day at the Dirksen Senate Office Building Tuesday, and the directors of 15 of 17 national labs are expected to attend, including the heads of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s three nuclear weapons laboratories. Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) will also attend the […]

Leak Found at ORNL Research Reactor Pool WC Monitor 9/12/2014 A leak was discovered this week at the Oak Ridge Research Reactor, a nuclear research reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The leak was found at the reactor pool, which is still used to store some irradiated reactor components and other tools and equipment, but […]

2013 Marks Lowest Radioactive Air Emissions Rate in Decades WC Monitor 9/12/2014 In 2013 Los Alamos National Laboratory measured the lowest radioactive air emissions rate in 20 years, according to results released this week. Last year’s offsite dose rate, measured by the 40 air monitoring stations in the area, was 0.21 millirem, compared to the […]

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 The National Nuclear Security Administration has ordered new Y-12 contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security to dig deeper into a series of abnormal events over the past couple of years, assess whether there are any systemic issues that have been missed or undocumented and come up with a path forward that will […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 It doesn’t appear that Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Plutonium Facility will be fully operational any time soon, according to information released this week. Work at the facility was shut down in June  2013, with only partial operations having resumed, and National Nuclear Security Administration Acting Associate Administrator for Infrastructure and […]

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 The Department of Energy’s national labs need to open to up to small and medium businesses in their locales and make a bigger impact on regional economies, spreading the wealth of their expertise and research missions, according to a new study by the Brookings Institution. The report, titled, “Going Local: […]

It doesn’t appear that Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Plutonium Facility will be fully operational any time soon. Work at the facility was shut down in June of 2013, with only partial operations having resumed, and National Nuclear Security Administration Acting Associate Administrator for Infrastructure and Operations Jim McConnell said the facility is being restarted with […]

Compliance Actions Could Come Within 60 Days Kenneth Fletcher WC Monitor 9/5/2014 SUMMERLIN, Nev.—Warning of “significant penalties” coming to the Department of Energy in the wake of the incidents that occurred earlier this year that have closed the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, New Mexico regulators are also looking to go after DOE for cleanup-related concerns […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Former Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore Director Mike Anastasio is joining the Boards of Governors of both contractors that run the two national laboratories. Anastasio retired as the director of Los Alamos in 2011 after leading the lab for five years, and he spent three years as Livermore’s director from […]

Lab, Former NIF Director Ed Moses, Part Ways NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and former National Ignition Facility Director Ed Moses are officially parting ways, with Moses accepting a job as the president of the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization. Moses was the director of NIF through its conception, construction and early operations, serving […]

NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 IN DOE The Congressionally mandated Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories is scheduled to hold its second meeting Sept. 15. The meeting will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Alexandria, Va., and will include a review of previous studies […]

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and former National Ignition Facility Director Ed Moses are officially parting ways, with Moses accepting a job as the president of the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization. Moses was the director of NIF through its design, construction and early operations, serving as the Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science in […]

The Congressionally mandated Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories will hold its second meeting Sept. 15. The meeting will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Alexandria, Va., and will include a review of previous studies on the Department of Energy’s national labs […]

Former Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore Director Mike Anastasio is joining the Boards of Governors with both contractors that run the laboratories. Anastasio retired as the director of Los Alamos in 2011 after leading the lab for five years, and he spent three years as Livermore’s director from 2002 to 2005. His appointment begins immediately, […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Sandia National Laboratories may have trouble meeting neutron generator production requirements in the future, according to a Department of Energy Inspector General report released this week. The audit report calls into question Sandia’s ability to ramp up neutron generator production as requirements for the key nuclear weapons component increase 50 […]

IG Notes Idaho’s Improvements in Integrated Safety Management WC Monitor 8/29/2014 The Idaho National Laboratory is making progress in addressing weaknesses identified in its Integrated Safety Management system, according to a Department of Energy Inspector General’s Office report released late last week. In half of the 59 safety incidents analyzed by the report that occurred […]

FAS Pushes for Reinstatement of LANL Scientist NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 The Federation of American Scientists is calling on Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz to reinstate Los Alamos nonproliferation analyst James Doyle, who was fired earlier this summer in retaliation for a report advocating a world without nuclear weapons. In an Aug. 21 letter to Moniz, FAS […]

NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Seismic Activity in Oak Ridge Could be More Severe Than Previously Thought New data from the U.S. Geologic Survey suggests that seismic activity in Oak Ridge might be more severe than previously predicted. The information was released this month, updating 2008 data and indicating an increase in potential seismic activity, and an […]

NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 IN THE INDUSTRY Bechtel executive Kim Cassara is joining Los Alamos National Laboratory as its associate director for Project Management starting Oct. 1, LANL Director Charlie McMillan said in a message to employees earlier this month. Cassara replaces Matt Nuckols, who left Los Alamos earlier this month to work on the Uranium […]

Bechtel executive Kim Cassara is joining Los Alamos National Laboratory as its associate director for Project Management starting Oct. 1, LANL Director Charlie McMillan said in a message to employees earlier this month. Cassara replaces Matt Nuckols, who left Los Alamos earlier this month to work on the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12. Cassara most […]

New data from the U.S. Geologic Survey suggests that seismic activity in Oak Ridge might be more severe than previously predicted. The information was released this month, updating 2008 data and indicating an increase in potential seismic activity, and an Oak Ridge-based nuclear activist group keyed on the information, suggesting that the Department of Energy […]

Former Y-12 Site Office Manager Ted Sherry has been hired as an associate deputy director in the Director’s Office at Los Alamos National Laboratory, according to a lab announcement. Sherry most recently worked as the senior manager for NNSA programs at Longenecker and Associates. He also served as the director of Homeland Protection and Advanced […]

Sandia National Laboratories may have trouble meeting neutron generator production requirements in the future according to a Department of Energy Inspector General report released yesterday. The audit report calls into question the ability of Sandia to ramp up neutron generator production as requirements for the key nuclear weapons component increase 50 percent in Fiscal Year […]