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DOE explores options for uranium surplus
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The Department of Energy is exploring options to dispose of or reuse approximately 200 tons of bomb-grade uranium from the nuclear stockpile stored at Y-12 in Oak Ridge. DOE's preferred plan involves blending the highly-enriched uranium to reduce weapons potential and converting most of it into commercial nuclear reactor fuel. The Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance opposes this approach, arguing it would create additional nuclear threats through plutonium generation.
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DOE explores options for uranium surplus
By Frank Munger
News-Sentinel
Oak Ridge bureau
The U.S. government has a post-Cold War surplus of bomb-grade uranium, and the Department of Energy is looking at ways to dispose of or reuse about 200 tons of material from the nuclear stockpile.
A public workshop on the project will be held today at the Knoxville Hilton. Discussion sessions will begin at 1 and 6 p.m.
Most of the highly-enriched uranium is stored at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge.
DOE's preferred plan is to blend the bomb-grade uranium with other uranium stocks to reduce the amount of fissile U-235 and eliminate its potential for weapons use. Under this plan, most of the uranium would be converted into fuel elements for commercial nuclear reactors. A lesser amount would be disposed of as radioactive waste after the weapons potential had been curbed.
The nuclear work would take an estimated 15 to 17 years to complete.
U.S. Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary has said the project would provide revenues to help reduce the federal deficit and also set an example for other countries by reducing the risk of nuclear proliferation.
However, the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance blasted DOE's preferred option and said it would create additional nuclear threats. Ralph Hutchison, spokesman for OREPA, said the group opposes converting uranium into nuclear fuel because that will generate plutonium that could be used for weapons and highly radioactive spent fuel.
Stephen Smith, another member of the group, said the best option would be to blend the uranium to a low composition of U-235 and then dispose of it safely.
DOE will assess a range of options, including a "no action" alternative that would keep the weapons material in storage at Y-12.
Four sites are considered for uranium blending, including Y-12 and the Nuclear Fuel Services plant at Erwin. Other potential processing sites are DOE's Savannah River Site in South Carolina and the Babcock & Wilcox facility at Lynchburg, Va.