Sandia National Laboratories Special Nuclear Material De-inventory Project;Best Practices and Lessons Learned, Final Phase

摘要

This paper is the third and final presentation on Sandia National Laboratories' SNM De-inventory project. On May 7, 2004, the Secretary for the United States Department of Energy (DOE) announced the National Nuclear Security Agency's (NNSA) Nuclear Materials Consolidation Initiative. This initiative was established to reinforce national security by consolidating Special Nuclear Material (SNM) from across the nuclear weapons complex. As an early adopter of this initiative, Sandia National Laboratories was directed to remove all Security Category I and II SNM from the Albuquerque, New Mexico location by the end of fiscal year 2007. Sandia identified seven discrete groups of SNM requiring removal in order to meet the objectives and establish Sandia National Laboratories as a "non-enduring" SNM site for the complex. Planning and preparations began early and continued throughout the project to solve the numerous logistical, operational and political challenges of transferring large quantities of nuclear materials from one site to another. Proper and sustainable transfers of SNM between sites present formidable challenges even under ideal circumstances. Development of transfer/ receipt agreements, safety analyses, packaging certifications, transportation and security solutions under the pressures of an aggressive schedule amplifies these challenges significantly. While many of the core processes to package, ship and dispose of materials are well-established within the DOE Complex, the unique and varied characteristics of Sandia's nuclear materials did not fit neatly within the confines of the typical transfer routines. SNM disposition requirements include material analysis, site receiving agreements, shipping container certifications, packaging hardware development/ procurement, MC&A, safeguards and security requirements, safety authorization basis approvals, and nuclear criticality and radiological safety. Also, basic project management elements including task identification, scheduling, budget, staffing, stakeholder buy-in, and communication must be managed judiciously to ensure project success. This paper summarizes the Sandia National Laboratories SNM De-inventory Project and presents some lessons learned and best practices.