Skeletons in the closet: Implementation of the packaging program at Los Alamos

In May 1994, The Defense Nuclear Facility Safety Board (DNFSB) issued recommendation 94-1 to the Secretary of Energy indicating the need for improved remediation efforts within the defense nuclear facilities complex. The primary concern was for the safety of the workers, the public, and the environment as a result of improperly stabilized and packaged fissile materials. The DNFSB recommended that an integrated plan be formulated to convert the identified materials to forms or conditions suitable for safe interim storage. In addition, the DNFSB recommended that plutonium metal and oxides (> 50 weight-percent plutonium) be stabilized and packaged in accordance with the criteria stated in the DOE storage standard (DOE-STD-3013). In response to the recommendations, DOE requested input from all the defense-related sites and as a result, individual Site Integrated Stabilization and Management Plans (SISMP) were established. The following 2 milestones are identified in the Los Alamos SISMP: (1) stabilize high-risk vault items and recover the plutonium as oxide for packaging to meet the long-term storage standard by September 1997; (2) stabilize the remaining residue inventory and recover the plutonium as oxide. Repackage the existing plutonium metal and oxide (> 50% plutonium assay) for long-term storage by May 2002