Securing U.S. Nuclear Material: DOE Has Made Little Progress Consolidating and Disposing of Special Nuclear Material
GAO-08-72
Published: Oct 04, 2007. Publicly Released: Nov 05, 2007.
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Highlights
The Department of Energy (DOE) recognizes that a terrorist attack on a DOE site containing material that can be used in a nuclear weapon could have devastating consequences. DOE currently stores special nuclear material at 10 sites in 8 states. To reduce security costs, DOE plans to consolidate the material at fewer sites and dispose of material that it no longer needs. In 2005, DOE chartered the Nuclear Material Disposition and Consolidation Coordination Committee (the committee) to plan for consolidation and disposition of DOE's special nuclear material. GAO was asked to (1) examine DOE's progress in consolidating and disposing of special nuclear material and (2) determine if DOE's plans to consolidate and dispose of special nuclear material can be implemented on schedule and within cost. To do this, GAO reviewed the committee's plans and discussed consolidation and disposition with DOE officials.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Energy | To help ensure that Department of Energy (DOE) begins implementing its plans to consolidate and dispose of special nuclear material in a timely manner, the Secretary of Energy should specify who in the department--the Nuclear Materials Disposition and Consolidation Coordination Committee, the committee's Executive Steering Committee, or the Secretary himself--is responsible for final approval of plans. |
Closed – Implemented
DOE Order 410.2, signed by the Deputy Secretary of Energy in August 2009, specifies that the Program Secretarial Officer of the DOE headquarters program office (including NNSA) that manages nuclear material covered by the order is responsible for approving plans for material under the program office's control, in cooperation with the DOE Office of Nuclear Materials Integration.
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| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should require that DOE's implementation plans for consolidating and disposing of special nuclear material include a description of the organizational roles and responsibilities for consolidating and disposing of DOE's special nuclear material such as information about which program offices or sites are responsible (1) for ensuring that consolidation and disposition occurs, (2) for paying for consolidation and disposition activities, and (3) for coordinating the activities of the numerous DOE organizations involved in consolidation and disposition. |
Closed – Implemented
DOE Order 5660.1B (Management of Nuclear Materials), originally issued in May 1994, was revised to reflect DOE's current organizational structure and to better define roles and responsibilities relative to nuclear materials management. The new DOE order (DOE Order 410.2) on nuclear materials management was signed by the Deputy Secretary of Energy in August 2009. This order defines the roles and responsibilities for various program offices across the department as they relate to consolidation and disposition of DOE's special nuclear material. It specifies which departmental entities are responsible for ensuring that consolidation and disposition occur, who pays for those efforts, and who (DOE's new Office of Nuclear Material Integration) is responsible for coordinating the activities of the numerous DOE organizations involved in the consolidation and disposition of special nuclear material.
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| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should require that DOE's implementation plans for consolidating and disposing of special nuclear material include performance measures that will allow DOE and the Congress to monitor the department's progress in consolidating and disposing of special nuclear material, including milestones for shipping special nuclear material for consolidation and outcome-based measures, such as quantities of special nuclear material that have been consolidated and disposed. |
Closed – Implemented
DOE's Order 410.2 on nuclear materials management established a Nuclear Materials Advisory Board. DOE's Office of Nuclear Materials Integration in cooperation with the advisory board will now review integrated schedule data for the consolidation and disposition of special nuclear material and will produce guidance for developing milestones and performance metrics. A National Strategic Plan for Management of Nuclear Materials has been developed that defines strategies for all of the Department's nuclear materials including those excess to program needs.
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Topics
Nuclear facilitiesNuclear facility securityNuclear materialsNuclear waste disposalNuclear waste managementNuclear waste storagePerformance measuresPhysical securityPlutoniumRadioactive waste disposalRadioactive wastesStrategic planningUraniumProgram implementation