NS&D Monitor
5/23/2014
In the NNSA
The National Nuclear Security Administration has added a new satellite to the United States Nuclear Detonation Detection System with the launch of an Air Force rocket late last week. The Delta IV rocket launched from Cape Canaveral May 16 carried a GPS IIF navigation satellite and a 300-pound Global Burst Detector payload fabricated to detect nuclear explosions around the world. The detector was built by Sandia and Los Alamos national laboratories, and will help the U.S. monitor compliance with the Limited Test Ban Treaty. “The sixth GPS IIF space vehicle launch puts into orbit the latest technology for treaty monitoring,” NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Anne Harrington said in a statement. “Supporting the verification measures of international treaties is an important part of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons around the world.”
In Congress
House Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) handily won this week the Republican primary for the Idaho House 2nd District. Pundits had declared the race “ground zero” for the ideological battle between the establishment of the Republican party and the more conservative-leaning Tea Party, but Simpson was able to retain the ability to run for re-election in November. Challenger Bryan Smith, a local attorney in the 2nd District, accused the eight-term incumbent of excessive earmarking and spending in his role on the House Appropriations Committee, but Simpson was able to brush off the hyper-conservative attacks. Simpson will face Democrat candidate Richard Stallings, a former U.S. Rep. for the 2nd District from 1984 to 1992, in the November election.
In the Industry
A number of Oak Ridge organizations, including the East Tennessee Economic Council and the Energy Technology and Environmental Business Association, are sponsoring a special Jobs Fair to help find jobs for the displaced workers at the American Centrifuge Manufacturing facility, which is being shut down. About 120 workers have been laid off by Babcock & Wilcox, which partnered with USEC Inc. on the manufacturing role, and the sponsors want to keep the skilled workers—some of them with advanced science and engineering degrees—available in the local workforce pool. The job fair will be held 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the University of Tennessee Outreach Center, 1201 Oak Ridge Turnpike. Former DOE Oak Ridge Manager Gerald Boyd, who is vice president of ETEBA, sent a letter to major employers in the region to seek their participation. He said the job fair was an opportunity to reach out “to a unique and highly skilled workforce.” Boyd noted: “All workers are U.S. citizens with DOE-Q security clearances, and skill levels ranging from advanced engineering and physics degrees, to a highly skilled craft workforce.”
On the International Front
Argentina has assumed full responsibility for a pair of radiation detection systems installed at two ports by the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Second Line of Defense Program. The NNSA installed radiation detection systems at the Port of Buenos Aires and the Port of Dock Sud in 2010, allowing customs officials at the ports to scan approximately 99 percent of cargo containers for nuclear or radiological materials. Argentina customs officials have operated and maintained the systems since 2012 with assistance from the NNSA, but the recent transition marks the complete turnover of the equipment. “This agreement is an important part of NNSA’s growing nuclear security cooperation within Latin America,” the NNSA said in a statement. “NNSA is expanding its collaboration within the region to advance shared nuclear nonproliferation, safety and security goals in areas such as nuclear security, border and port security, radioactive waste and environmental management.”
