A pair of activist groups are asking the Department of Energy to hold off on using plutonium in shots at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility. The shots involving plutonium could begin as early as today, but Livermore-based Tri-Valley CAREs and the Natural Resources Defense Council called on shots involving plutonium to be halted until an environmental review of the lab’s plans are completed. The Jan. 27
letter was sent by Washington, D.C.-based law firm Meyer, Glitzenstein and Crystal.
Tri-Valley CAREs Executive Director Marylia Kelley said the plan to use plutonium in NIF experiments involves a “clear risk of contaminating the laser optics and target chamber, and potentially exposing workers and the public to plutonium. Before these controversial experiments begin, at a minimum, we believe the government must undertake a stringent environmental review and solicit public comment pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act.”
The lab and NNSA have downplayed the risks, comparing the potential exposure to much less than a dental X-ray. The shots will use about 10 milligrams of plutonium and fewer, about the size of a poppy seed. About a dozen shots per year are expected as the NNSA seeks to expand its understanding of plutonium properties. The NNSA last analyzed using plutonium in NIF in a 2005 Sitewide Environmental Impact Statement, but the activist groups have argued that review focused on shots using an inner containment vessel, which is no longer the NNSA’s plan. Livermore spokeswoman Lynda Seaver said NIF’s target chamber was designed to contain radioactive materials and debris. "All materials will be contained primarily within the target assembly or associated diagnostic," Seaver said in a statement to NS&D Monitor. "In the unlikely event any material escapes the target assembly, it would be contained within the target chamber."
