All Three DOE Nuclear Weapons Labs Win Support of President
“To forswear nuclear testing for the longer term, one has to be in a position to declare the stockpile safe and reliable.” -- Energy Secretary Hazel O’Leary
President Clinton announced his support for the Energy Department’s three weapons labs on September 25, stating: “To meet the challenge of ensuring confidence in the safety and reliability of our stockpile, I have concluded that the continued vitality of all three DOE nuclear weapons laboratories will be essential.” He added, “While it would be easy to destroy premier Federal laboratories through severe budget cuts or senseless closures, that is not a path that this Administration will follow.”
The President’s decision to maintain all three weapons labs - Lawrence Livermore, Los Alamos, and Sandia - was based in part upon a review of the DOE, DOD, and NASA federal laboratory systems, conducted by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) in May. The NSTC document relies heavily on internal laboratory reviews performed by the three agencies, including the Foster Report for NASA (see FYI #51) and the Galvin Report for DOE (see FYIs #17, 40, 60). The NSTC, while warning of the need for downsizing, better management, elimination of duplication, and more clearly defined missions, found that “each of the laboratory systems makes important contributions in multiple areas of national need,” such as fundamental science, national security, environmental protection, and industrial competitiveness.
The NSTC review found that DOE’s 10 largest labs were overburdened with directives and audits, and encouraged the Department to “vigorously pursue its current activities to improve management of its labs.” The review also focused explicitly on the three weapons laboratories, noting contrary opinions among experts over the optimum number. It cited a University of California advisory panel recommendation that three labs be kept in operation for approximately 10 years in order to provide sufficient redundancy and oversight of the stockpile stewardship mission. “The argument is that the scientific basis for assuring safety and reliability of the stockpile, without nuclear testing, is not yet well developed,” NSTC stated.
In a September 25 press conference, Energy Secretary Hazel O’Leary explained that the United States’ advocacy of a comprehensive nuclear test ban would require a strong science-based program for monitoring the nuclear weapons without testing. She reported that “our major customer, the Department of Defense, was not comfortable unless we could set up an independent review function apart from Los Alamos,” a function that would be performed by Lawrence Livermore. She added that the NSTC review provided support for the 10 major DOE laboratories, but remarked that among DOE’s 17 smaller labs, “there do exist opportunities to privatize.” O’Leary also stated that by the end of the year, DOE will have in place a strategic plan for its labs.
The NSTC document, “Interagency Federal Laboratory Review,” is available by calling 202-456-6100, or faxing your request to Laurel Kayse at 202-456-6026.
