[en] In order to maintain its ability to continue to conduct uninterrupted radioactive and metallurgical research in a safe, secure, and environmentally sound manner, the US Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to upgrade the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Chemistry and Metallurgy Research (CMR) Building. The building was built in the early 1950s to provide a research and experimental facility for analytical chemistry, plutonium and uranium chemistry, and metallurgy. Today, research and development activities are performed involving nuclear materials. A variety of radioactive and chemical hazards are present. The CMR Building is nearing the end of its original design life and does not meet many of today's design codes and standards. The Proposed Action for this Environmental Assessment (EA) includes structural modifications to some portions of the CMR Building which do not meet current seismic criteria for a Hazard Category 2 Facility. Also included are upgrades and improvements in building ventilation, communications, monitoring, and fire protection systems. This EA analyzes the environmental effects of construction of the proposed upgrades. The Proposed Action will have no adverse effects upon agricultural and cultural resources, wetlands and floodplains, endangered and threatened species, recreational resources, or water resources. The Proposed Action would have negligible effects on human health and transportation, and would not pose a disproportionate adverse health or environmental impact on minority or low-income populations within an 80 kilometer (50 mile) radius of the CMR Building