LLNL - The True Story -

REPORT: "U.S. Nuclear Security Agency Has 'Failed,' Says Advisory Panel" Relax. Nothing is going to change.  This is just one report like all the others detailing the failure of the NNSA and the decline of the highly demoralized weapon labs. The path forward will continue as planned.  The TA-55 plutonium "Work Free Safety Zone" at LANL will continue. No startup anytime soon. LLNL and LANL will face further cuts in their work. The nation will not be building any new warheads and work on the previous warheads will slow down to a crawl. Bechtel profiteers and their enablers in management will continue to have free reign at the weapon labs. Parney is right with his recent comments. The weapon research staff have become little more than 'Maytag' repairmen, sitting around with little to do. Keep wearing those shoes that GRIP and taking those endless rounds of online training. What else is there left to do? Last one to leave should remember to turn out the ...

Given Held's comments: In February, Held said DOE/NNSA was looking to move toward more of a “public interest” model of management for the nuclear weapons laboratories and away from the high fees paid to Bechtel and University of California-run contractor teams at Los Alamos and Livermore... "My strong feeling is these institutions exist to serve the public interest. They do not exist for profit maximization," and given that Held concurred with Goldstein's selection, I would expect Goldstein, as President of LLNS, to be quite willing to accommodate the changes NNSA is trying to make.

U.S. Nuclear Security Agency Has 'Failed,' Says Advisory Panel A congressionally mandated panel says a key Energy Department agency has "failed" in its mission to effectively oversee U.S. nuclear-arms operations. The unmistakable conclusion of our fact-finding is that, as implemented, the 'NNSA experiment' involving creation of a semiautonomous organization has failed," according to Norm Augustine, who headed the bipartisan group with retired Adm. Richard Mies. The former officials attributed the National Nuclear Security Administration's history of high-profile security lapses at atomic-complex facilities and soaring cost overruns in major projects to problems that became embedded in the nation's nuclear weapons culture after the end of the Cold War. Congress established the agency in 2000 following the Wen Ho Lee spy scandal at Los Alamos National Laboratory, giving it the responsibility to oversee arms activities that were previously han...

 as next LLNL Director: Well, well, they finally got something right. Goldstein won't be all things to all people but he's very smart, very honest and respected by those left at LLNL whose respect is worth something. Say goodbye to patronage and hello to a bone fide effort to conduct science and technology development in the national interest.

Weapons Complex Monitor March 25, 2014 Albright: '3+2' Warhead Strategy Unlikely To Be Realized Budgetary pressure and technical considerations are likely to doom the Obama Administration’s “3+2” strategy for modernizing the nation’s nuclear stockpile, former Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Director Parney Albright said yesterday. Speaking at George Washington University, Albright said he supported the strategy, which would modernize and consolidate the nation’s nuclear stockpile through three interoperable warheads, a gravity bomb and an air-launched cruise missile, but he painted a bleak picture for the strategy’s prospects, which has received a lukewarm response from Congress and the military. Albright said the Administration’s recent decision to delay work on the W78/W88 interoperable warhead by five years would likely trigger a series of events moving the Administration away from the strategy. With the interoperable warhead delayed, he noted that the Administration ...

Weapons Complex Monitor March 27, 2014 Held: DOE Pushing For Fee Reductions At Los Alamos, Livermore The Department of Energy has had discussions with the companies that run Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories about reducing the fee paid to the companies, acting National Nuclear Security Administration chief Bruce Held confirmed yesterday. Speaking on the sidelines of a Senate Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing that was postponed, Held noted that the discussions were in their preliminary stages but he characterized them as “pretty productive.” In February, Held said DOE/NNSA was looking to move toward more of a “public interest” model of management for the nuclear weapons laboratories and away from the high fees paid to Bechtel and University of California-run contractor teams at Los Alamos and Livermore. “Conversations have been very, very good, really good,” Held said. “That’s not getting into the details but starting to frame the issue of what w...

Augustine's interim report to congress http://docs.house.gov/meetings/AS/AS29/20140326/101946/HHRG-113-AS29-Wstate-AugustineN-20140326.pdf

Air Force fires 9 commanders in nuke missile cheating scandal, dozens face disciplinary action Contrast how DoD handled this to how DoE handles screw-ups in the organization. http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2014/03/27/commanders-fired-in-nuke-missile-cheating-scandal

GOLDSTIEN APPOINTED 12TH LLNL DIRECTOR Laboratory colleagues, It is our pleasure to announce the appointment of Dr. William H. Goldstein as president of Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (LLNS) and the 12th director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), effective March 31, 2014. The selection of the Laboratory director is one of the most important responsibilities of the University of California (UC) and the Executive Committee of the LLNS Board of Governors. Bill's appointment has the unanimous approval of the Executive Committee of the LLNS Board of Governors and the concurrence of Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz, acting NNSA Administrator Bruce Held, UC President Janet Napolitano and Chairman of the Regents of the University of California Bruce Varner. Bill is a 29-year career LLNL employee with extensive experience as a scientific leader and senior manager across the Lab's programs, with demonstrated ability to strategically guide its unique science and...

Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor -- SPECIAL BULLETIN (3-27-2014) GOLDSTEIN TAPPED AS NEXT LAWRENCE LIVERMORE DIRECTOR Longtime Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory official Bill Goldstein will be named the lab’s next director later today, NS&D Monitor has learned. Goldstein, the lab’s Deputy Director for Science and Technology, takes over the top spot at the lab from Bret Knapp, who has led the institution in an acting capacity since Parney Albright abruptly announced his resignation in late October. Goldstein has headed up the lab’s Science and Technology Directorate since 2012. A theoretical physicist, he has worked at the lab for 29 years, playing a large role in the Stockpile Stewardship Program and research activities at the National Ignition Facility. For more information, see tomorrow’s edition of Nuclear Security and Deterrence Monitor.

NNSA Gives Russia Free Military Equipment Stories like this don't help to explain NNSA to Congress. http://www.judicialwatch.org/blog/2014/03/u-s-gives-russia-free-military-equipment-used-by-army-marines

Bay Area News Group March 20, 2014 UC closing in on naming new Lawrence Livermore Lab director By Jeremy Thomas The hunt for the 12th director of Lawrence Livermore Laboratory is reaching a conclusion, with an announcement of a selection expected soon from the University of California. At a Board of Regents meeting Wednesday in San Francisco, UC President Janet Napolitano called the months long search "virtually complete," adding that she and regent Norman Pattiz "participated in the candidate interviews last week, and a new director will be announced shortly." Reply Delete

Saturday, March 22, 2014 at 8:00 pm (Updated: March 22, 8:00 pm) When President Barack Obama sent his FY2015 budget to Congress, it turned out to be bad news for the Manuel Lujan Jr. Neutron Center, which is part of the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center. Through the past two decades, the Lujan Center has been operated through a partnership between the National Nuclear Security Administration and the Office of Basic Energy Sciences. Obama’s budget request cut $10 million in funding for the operational costs of the Lujan Center. This is what the budget request said. “The BES operations of the Lujan Neutron Scattering Center will cease and funding is requested for safe storage of facility components”. For well over a decade, the Lujan Center at LANSCE has been an international center of excellence and innovation for basic and applied research in neutron scattering and fundamental nuclear physics,” the budget statement said. http://www.lamonitor.com/content/neutron-center-loses-funding

Bob Alvarez, former Deputy Assistant Secretary for National Security and the Environment, examines the recent fire and plutonium leak at the WIPP nuclear repository in New Mexico; Egle Murauskaite explores this week's Nuclear Security Summit, and the changes in medical technology that will be discussed at the Summit in order to lessen proliferation risks. Best regards, Janice The WIPP Problem, and What it Means for Defense Nuclear Waste Disposal: http://thebulletin.org/wipp-problem-and-what-it-means-defense-nuclear-waste-disposal7002 The Nuclear Security Summit: One Way to Fight Radiological Terrorism:http://thebulletin.org/one-way-fight-radiological-terrorism-alternative-technology --Janice Sinclaire Internet Outreach Coordinator

Anonymous March 20, 2014 at 12:58 PM Mim John is giving a talk April 7 at LLNL. Is she on the short list of Director candidates? Reply Delete Anonymous March 20, 2014 at 6:11 PM UC President Napolitano will be holding an All hands at LLNL next Tuesday. Maybe she will be address the Lab Director search. Reply Delete Anonymous March 21, 2014 at 2:33 PM Corrected: UC President Napolitano will be holding an All hands at LLNL next Tuesday. Maybe she will address or be asked about the Lab Director search.

Update on when the latest committee report on the Labs will be out http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/mar14/o1.pdf "As part of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2013, Congress established a twelve-member Congressional Advisory Panel on the Governance of the Nuclear Security Enterprise to examine potential options and make recommendations for revising the governance structure, mission, and management of the nuclear security enterprise (NSE). The panel has committed to submitting a preliminary report, including findings, conclusions, and recommendations, in March to the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Energy, the Senate Committees on Armed Services, and Energy and Natural Resources, and the House of Representatives Committees on Armed Services, and Energy and Commerce, with a final report due at the end of summer."

Sandia contract extended for two years http://www.abqjournal.com/370441/news/contract-for-sandia-labs-extended-2-years.html

Weapons Complex Morning Briefing March 17, 2014 NNSA WEAPONS FUNDING PROJECTED TO APPROACH $10B BY FY 2019 Funding for the National Nuclear Security Administration’s weapons program is projected to continue to grow over the next five years, reaching nearly $10 billion by Fiscal Year 2019, according to the Obama Administration’s detailed budget justification for the agency that was released this weekend. The Administration requested $8.3 billion for the weapons program in FY 2015, a $533 million increase, and more of the same is expected in FY 2016, with the Administration projecting it will need $8.9 billion for the weapons program that year. Funding is projected to steadily increase before reaching $9.7 billion in FY 2019. The highest priced item in the NNSA’s budget is work on the B61 life extension program. The Administration requested $643 million for the program in FY 2015, and funding for the program is expected to steadily increase, reaching $729 million in FY 2018 and $726 mill...

More publicity for Omar Hurricane and NIF: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/science/the-challenge-how-to-keep-fusion-going-long-enough.html

Chili cookoff moving to LLNL? Remember the guy from the Sandia Chili cookoff? http://llnlthetruestory.blogspot.com/2013/06/what-waste.html Well, it looks like he may be moving to LLNL: http://academic.research.microsoft.com/Author/12839142/timothy-jon-shepodd

  Anonymous  said... Is it possible that the Russians have been keeping on eye on what America has been doing to the national labs and seeing all the people fleeing the labs? What idea do think that might give them? Somehow utterly destroying the moral at the labs may not be seen as the best move. March 15, 2014 at 11:34 AM  

A MESSAGE TO EMPLOYEES FROM BRET KNAPP March 14, 2014 LLNL employees It is important for me to send this message to my friends and colleagues at the Laboratory. In the last few days, I have been diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. While I remain optimistic about a full recovery, I have made the decision to withdraw my application for the LLNL director position. It is disappointing for me to do so, but it was the decision made with my family after evaluating my medical situation. The search for a permanent Laboratory director is continuing as originally scheduled, and I expect this to come to a successful conclusion shortly. I am hopeful about my journey over the coming months. As I have said many times since I took the acting director position last November, I am extremely confident and optimistic about the Laboratory's future.  I am inspired by the work you do and by your commitment to your collective future as you carry out the important work for the nation....

http://www.ladailypost.com/content/breaking-news-lanl-deputy-director-resigns

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/ rundown/us-intelligence- officials-monitor-federal- employees-security-clearances/ I have a feeling this is going to exacerbate the skills gap, as it will be hard to find employees (or good ones, that is) wanting to put up with this sort of thing.  Collective punishment never really works that well.

http://www.abqjournal.com/364848/news/lanls-no-2-quits-over-conflict.html?paperboy=loggedin&utm_source=emailed2friend

NNSA Press Release FY2015 Budget Request: Preserving President Obama’s Nuclear Security Vision Mar 4, 2014 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The President’s FY2015 Budget Request for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), delivered to Congress today, includes $11.7 billion to support NNSA’s continued efforts to keep the American people safe by modernizing the U.S. nuclear stockpile, executing an aggressive international nuclear nonproliferation agenda and supporting U.S. Navy requirements. “NNSA’s budget reaffirms the President’s commitment to nuclear security and nonproliferation. The FY15 request provides the resources we need to modernize and maintain an aging nuclear weapons stockpile and supporting infrastructure, keep dangerous nuclear material out of the hands of proliferators and terrorists, respond to a nuclear or radiological emergency and ensure that our nuclear Navy has the power it needs to sail the globe,” said NNSA Acting Administrator Bruce Held. “NNSA has an enduring re...

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/new-budget-for-lanl-does-not-include-money-for-plutonium/article_3749ec30-ac2a-5b9c-a898-210861358d93.html Almost no work has occurred at the facility for the last 9 months due to safety issues. Among the alternatives for getting Pu work done is a proposal to do it at Livermore's Pu facility, see: http://www.abqjournal.com%2F362158%2Fblogs%2Fu-s-plutonium-options-the-congressional-research-service-report.html&ei=-y4XU7XANIOTyQHh44HACg&usg=AFQjCNET1Ez9VPd4UTEfJLq7OfCGMRySxw&bvm=bv.62286460,d.aWM What will LLNL's response be?

Lucy,you have some splainin to do: h ttp://nextbigfuture.com/2014/03/russian-focus-fusion-device-gets-to-30.html

We've just published the Center for Investigative Reporting's year-long investigation into the Navy's refusal to look into radiation contamination at Treasure Island in San Francisco. It's an important piece with an accompanying multimedia presentation and a primer on military nuclear waste; please check it out if you can. Best regards   http://thebulletin.org/treasure-island-cleanup-exposes-navy%E2%80%99s-mishandling-its-nuclear-past Multimedia http://thebulletin.org/multimedia/treasure-island-nuclear-timeline A primer: Military nuclear wastes in the United States: http://thebulletin.org/primer-military-nuclear-wastes-united-states --Janice Sinclaire Internet Outreach Coordinator