The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) plans to install two new ammunition storage magazines at Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Outdoor Live Fire Range, replacing existing structures that no longer meet current security requirements.
The project, detailed in an August floodplain assessment released by the Department of Energy, would take place at Technical Area 72, where a live-fire range has operated since the 1950s. NNSA said the upgrades are intended to support a trained and qualified Protective Force while improving range safety.
The two prefabricated magazines would be installed on reinforced concrete pads near an existing building. The structures would meet or exceed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives specifications and military requirements for the physical security of arms, ammunition and explosives.
The project would also include a sidewalk, drainage swale and electrical connection for lighting and security systems. Most of the work would occur within the existing developed range area.
About 3,200 square feet, or 0.07 acres, of the Sandia Canyon 100-year floodplain would be affected. NNSA and LANL said the project would cause only minor, temporary impacts and would not significantly alter floodplain flow paths.
The existing storage structures, or the “no action alternative,” do not meet requirements established under DOE Order 473.2A, Protective Force Operations, the assessment said. NNSA also rejected offsite storage as an alternative because personnel would have to travel 32 miles roundtrip whenever range supplies are needed.
DOE and NNSA took public comments on the floodplain assessment for 15 calendar days, until Aug. 18, before issuing a statement of findings.