Reassessing Nuclear Policies: Impact of Plutonium Pit Production

1. For this presentation and far more info, clickwww.nukewatch.org(750,000 visitors a year do) Los Alamos’ Future: New Bombs or New Policies? Jay Coghlan, Director Scott Kovac, Operations Director John Witham, Communications March 1, 2008

2. A New Bombplex • The Department of Energy’s semi-autonomous weapons agency, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), is planning to “transform” its nuclear weapons complex. • Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has been selected as the permanent site for plutonium pit manufacturing.

3. Plutonium Pit Production at Los Alamos Pits, often called “triggers,” are the cores that initiate the incredible destructiveness of modern H-bombs.

4. Plutonium Pit Production at Los Alamos • Los Alamos developed and tested the world’s first plutonium pits and produced them until 1952 when Rocky Flats began industrial-scale production. • Much of the radioactive contamination in LANL’s canyons is from pit production. • Nevertheless, Los Alamos has maintained near continuous pit production, often testing new pits at the Nevada Test Site.

5. Plutonium Pit Production Ended at Rocky Flats • In 1989 Cold War pit production came to an end at the Rocky Flats Plant with a FBI raid investigating environmental crimes. • The Cold War nuclear complex was busily producing its newest weapon, the 450 kiloton sub-launched W88 (~30 times more powerful than the Nagasaki bomb), when the Plant was abruptly shut down.

6. NNSA Seeks Expanded Plutonium Pit Production • DOE’s first argument to reestablish pit production was that it has no spare W88 pits for “stockpile stewardship” tests. • However, the number of pits destructively analyzed is one per weapon type per year. • Last year LANL produced ten W88 pits that were shipped to Pantex, the site of final nuclear weapons assembly.

7. Expanded Plutonium Pit Production is Unneeded • The Moscow Treaty requires that deployed nuclear weapons be slashed to 2,200, or under, by 2012. • Why can’t the number of deployed W88s -- estimated in the mid-300’s -- be reduced to create spare pits for stockpile stewardship analysis? • Why manufacture W88 pits at all? • LANL is currently sanctioned to produce up to 20 pits per year. Even that is not necessary.

8. Expanded Plutonium Pit Production is Unneeded • At Nuclear Watch’s request, Senator Bingaman required independent expert review of plutonium pit lifetimes. • Those experts concluded that pits last a century or more! • The oldest pits in the planned stockpile are now 30 years old. • Pantex stores 12,000 pits and can “reuse” 350 per year. Why produce new pits?

9. Expanded Plutonium Pit Production Diverts Resources • Expanded production could block LANL from much needed mission diversification into addressing today’s real national security threats, such as nonproliferation, energy independence and global warming. • 65% of the Lab’s budget goes to core nuclear weapons programs. LANL cut its budget request for nonproliferation programs by 20%. • 0 % of the Lab’s budget request is for renewable energy R&D.

10. Cart Before the Horse It is unreasonable and premature to invest in a major overhaul of the nuclear weapons complex before already required review of the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. national security.

11. The Next Administration Will Redefine Nuclear Policy • It makes no sense for Complex Transformation, including expanded pit production, to proceed before a new Nuclear Posture Review.

12. Complex Transformation is Premature • NNSA repeatedly states that Complex Transformation is driven by Bush’s 2001 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). • Congress has specifically required that a new NPR be completed in 2009, which means by the incoming president. • Congress has also required a bi-partisan commission to recommend, by this December, the number of nuclear weapons needed and the necessary size of the complex to support that number.

13. We Need New Policies,NOT a New Bombplex A growing bi-partisan chorus of national security experts - including former cabinet secretaries Bill Perry, George Schultz, and Henry Kissinger, former Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sam Nun, and a wide array of national organizations - are calling for a radically different organizing principle for US nuclear weapons policy.

14. NukeWatch Bottom Line • The U.S. could and should go down to 1,000 total nuclear weapons immediately. • Encourage Russia to do the same. • From there, the U.S. should strongly lead in international negotiations that have the goal of verifiably eliminating nuclear weapons.

15. Stockpile Stewardship Existing US nuclear weapons are reliable. They are certified annually as reliable.

16. Don’t Stand Under One!!! • “You think our weapons don't work? Go stand under one. But don't take your wife and kids." Bob Peurifoy, retired vice-president of Sandia’s nuclear weapons programs.

17. Complex Transformation FAQs • What is the status of the nuclear weapons complex today? • NNSA - The current complex was designed and built during the Cold War and now is too old, too large, and very expensive to maintain. • Reality - the U.S. should lead toward verifiable global nuclear disarmament under the 1970 NonProliferation Treaty.

18. Complex Transformation FAQs • Why do we need to transform the complex? • NNSA - to retire aging buildings and consolidate “special nuclear materials” at fewer sites in order to reduce escalating costs. • Reality - This is gigantic hoax on the taxpayer. It is stimulated by self interest to extract ever more money from the taxpayer. It is also about new-design nuclear weapons. • Bottom line: NNSA’s “transformation”proposal should be withdrawn until there is a new Nuclear Posture Review.

19. Preferred Alternative Means Pits • LANL would produce up to 80 pits per year, which ultimately is about new-design “Reliable Replacement Warheads.” • Construction and operation of the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement -Nuclear Facility (CMRR). • Upgrades to the existing pit production facility adjacent to CMRR, which would create a super plutonium complex.

20. CMRR Los Alamos is destined to become this country’s permanent plutonium pit production center. (Unless we stop it!)

21. $2B CMRR at Los Alamos • CMRR Phase A (offices and light labs) is under construction, but construction of the “Nuclear Facility” has not yet started. There is time to voice your opinion. • CMRR is currently estimated to cost over $2 Billion (original cost was $655 million).

22. Weapons vs. Cleanup at Los Alamos Laboratory

23. Spending at Los Alamos and Sandia Laboratories

24. National Environmental Protection Act • There are two opportunities for public comment during the NEPA process.

25. Why Bother to Comment? Because: • The nuclear weaponeers want to build up their bomb production complex, not clean it up. • Each of your comments adds to the public record, which can help provide the basis for resolving the issues in court. • Democracy is a muscle. Use it or lose it!

26. Speak up! • The claimed need for new and expanded pit production is false. • The Complex Transformation Environmental Impact Statement should be withdrawn until the next administration reformulates the nation’s nuclear weapons policies as required. • The nation’s Bombplex must shrink as we head towards disarmament.

27. Attend NNSA’s Hearings! • Santa Fe, March 13, 6-10 p.m.,Genoveva Chavez Community Center, 3221 Rodeo Road. • Espanola, March 27, San Gabriel Mision y Convento, Plaza de Espanola, 6 to 10pm. Activists fought for and got this hearing, so please show up! • Submit written comments to complextransformation@nnsa.doe.gov We’ll help you!

28. More NNSA Hearings! Albuquerque, March 11, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. & 6-10 p.m., Albuquerque Convention Center, 401 2nd Street, NW Los Alamos, March 12, 6-10 p.m. Hilltop House 400 Trinity Drive at Central Los Alamos, March 13, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Hilltop House 400 Trinity Drive at Central

29. How to comment

30. What Can Activists and the Public Do? • Support your local, regional and national organizations that are working in the trenches. • Volunteer or donate! • Don’t overlook the routine and obvious: write letters-to-the-editor and continually make your opinions known to your congressional delegation.

31. What Can Activists and the Public Do? • Stay cool. • We’re doing this work for our children, grandchildren, the planet and posterity. • Take the long view: the Bush Administration will soon pass! • Everybody needs to be convinced that it is everybody’s interests to rid of the world of WMDs.

32. We Have Impact! Collectively, citizens have: • Defeated the “Modern Pit Facility” designed to produce up to 450 plutonium pits per year and the “Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator.” • Played a role in plutonium pit lifetime studies, thereby knocking out the “aging” argument. • Created widespread political change in the last election, offering the opportunity for rejecting the Bush Administration’s extreme nuclear weapons policies as well.

33. Please visit www.nukewatch.org