Area 1: NUCLEAR WEAPON OPERATIONS

DOE operations that directly support the nuclear stockpile and defense nuclear research are conducted in a manner that ensures adequate protection of the health and safety of the workers and the public.

Other Information:

Stockpile management is the term used to describe the industrial aspects of maintaining the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile and complex. Board oversight activities for this strategic area focus on assuring that current and planned operations at the Pantex Plant in Texas, the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee, and tritium operations at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina are accomplished safely according to approved standards. Also included in this strategic area is the DOE stockpile stewardship program, which refers to activities carried out by DOE to ensure confidence in the safety, security, and reliability of nuclear weapons in the stockpile, in the absence of underground nuclear weapons testing. The Board’s oversight of the stockpile stewardship program is centered on assuring the safety of the research, development, manufacturing, and testing activities conducted at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, the Nevada Test Site, and Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico and California. Outcome: DOE will have acknowledged, acted upon, and/or resolved the health and safety issues raised by the Board, and the facilities are operated to approved safety standards, rules, orders, and directives. Follow-up technical evaluations of DOE’s nuclear stockpile activities will verify necessary improvements in safety.

Indicator(s):

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