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Safety problems at nuclear weapons complex?
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Secretary Dept. of Energy Chu
Department of Energy (DOE) inspectors found instances of substandard materials instead of military-grade components at the Savannah River site nuclear weapons complex on the South Carolina-Georgia border.
As reported in McClatchy Newspapers by James Rosen, contractors at one of the nations major nuclear weapons facilitates repeatedly used construction materials that could have caused a major radioactive spill.
During DOE inspector general Gregory Friedman's five-month investigation it was found that contractors bought substandard reinforcing bars for the site located near Aiken, S.C. The faulty steel broke during the construction of the $4.8 billion facility to convert spent nuclear weapons-grade plutonium into mixed-oxide (MOX) which is fuel for civilian reactors.The Obama stimulus plan included another $1.6 billion.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu was informed by the inspector general on April 23, 2009 that the contractors and subcontractors that build, supply and install equipment at the facilities ignored safety regulations that had been developed by the American Society of Engineers. In addition, he found that 10,000 to 25,000 employees were not supervised properly.
Officials with the National Nuclear Security Administration has disputed the findings. They did agree with the recommendations made in the inspector general's memo but did not agree with the safety concerns. However, it admitted that the report did represent a failure of contractors and subcontractors to "properly implement existing requirements and policies.
The report can be viewed at Procurement of Safety at Savannah River Site Audit Report
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