ENERGY COMMUNITIES ALLIANCE (ECA)
Annual Conference
February 15, 2007
Washington, DC
(PowerPoint Presentations are available at the ECA website, located at http://www.energyca.org/meetings.htm)
I. Setting the Stage for 2007 and Keynote Address
Welcome: ECA Chair, Kevin Phillips, Caliente, NV
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ECA representatives from a lot sites are present
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Recognizing the Corporate Sponsors
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Thank you to DOE for their continued support
ECA Comments to Deputy Secretary Sell
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GNEP- Must have a repository; must maintain balance and decrease the waste stream; DOE should move forward with GNEP R&D
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ECA partnerships with DOE have improved
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Presenting "The Politics of Cleanup"
Keynote: Deputy Secretary Clay Sell, U.S. Department of Energy
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2006, DOE re-drafted its Strategic Plan with a renewed focus on old obligations and responsibilities;
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New Congress--weapons complex issues are bipartisan; the environment is different but the issues remain the same
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Health, Safety, Security of Employees
Re-organization to create a new office to address this principle
Controversial on Capitol Hill, but the results have been good:
(a) continuing dialogue
(b) HHS Safety Program
(c) EOIPFA (worker claims)
(d) accidental reporting improved (better stats0
(e) enhanced independent oversight (HHS)
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Keeping Our Commitments:
Budget request speaks to this point
Background--enormous progress has been made (i.e. Rocky Flats and Fernald closures)
As a result of accelerated cleanup, saving billions of dollars in annual appropriations
Commitment to OMB--accelerated cleanup means more money up front, and less money for out years
Problems include technological issues, regulatory issues, and additional work scope to meet the needs around the complex
FY08 Budget Request at $5.2 billion, but its still well short
Why is the budget request appropriate?
Huge undertaking;
Must balance the interests of non-proliferation, terrorism, and energy security;
Highest risk prioritization;
Yucca Mountain is uncertain.
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Questions and Answers:
(1) Commitment to MOX Project? (Smith)
Answer: Administration supports; Congress does not
(2) How to address the aging DOE workforce?
Answer: Must replace people, yes; DOE active in this regard
(3) What is DOE doing in terms of procurement reform?
Answer: Process not as transparent as it should be; it takes time
(4) Please comment on the technical problems at Hanford? (Pam)
Answer: $690 million/yr allocated to the Waste Treatment Plant until 2012; High-level waste at Hanford is the most
dangerous threat
(5) HHS Office--why create a new office instead of improving the Environmental Health Safety Office? (WCM)
Answer: Looked at a lot of options; time will show positive results
(6) What is DOE's view on promoting NE, GNEP? (Seth K.)
Answer: Centrality of the Department--fissile materials weave a lot of the Dept offices together; Waste,
but future energy need; from an energy security standpoint, any rational person believes nuclear power is key;
must have a lot of plants built to meet future energy needs; What do we do with the waste?--prolif concerns with
enrichment and reprocessing; must start early; there is a broad acceptance of the GNEP principles and the scale
of GNEP $ is not out of proportion; jobs through GNEP help the have-not nations develop a regime that will help the
developing world
II. 2007 Budget Update and Discussion
Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management Mark Frei, U.S. Department of Energy
See, PowerPoint presentation available on ECA website
Martin Schneider, Editor-in-Chief, Weapons Complex Monitor
The accelerated cleanup program that DOE committed to 5 years ago now looks like "Decelerated Cleanup"
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Hanford slips from 2035 to 2042
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Idaho National Lab slips from 2020 to 2025
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Savannah River slips from 2025 to 2031
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Lifecycle costs have increased $50 billion
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Budget details reasons from increased costs and pushed back schedules: optimistic planning assumptions, technology,
regulatory framework, and change to risk prioritization
III. Environmental Cleanup - 2007 and Beyond
Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management Jim Rispoli, U.S. Department of Energy
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Communication with stakeholders at an all-time high
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Congratulations on "The Politics of Cleanup"-- sent to all lab managers; DOE committed to Recommendation 9, the importance of dialogue; this is a two-way street with stakeholders
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Working Groups have been established within DOE to address:
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Success stories:
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Long-term Stewardship:
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If there is an enduring mission site (NNSA, NE), LTS will be carried out by the same landlord host
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Legacy Management will have LTS responsibilities at EM sites with an on-going mission
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DOE asks for help in ensuring LTS
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EM Priorities (from Budget Rollout)
IV. Looking Toward the Future of GNEP and Yucca Mountain
See, PowerPoint presentations on ECA website
V. Where Will It All Go? DOE's New Waste Disposition Strategy
Deputy Assistant Secretary Frank Marcinowski, U.S. Department of Energy
See, PowerPoint presentations on ECA website
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Status after early draft -- initial draft was just EM waste; now, expanding to all Departmental waste (SC, NE, NNSA)
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Policy remains the same -- first, try for on-site disposal; second, look for another DOE site for disposal; third, commercial disposal
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Wean ourselves off of the TOSCA facility at Oak Ridge
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Annual collection of data from field sites
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National LLW/Mixed Waste Disposition Strategy -- coming out of the EM-1 level; going through final review; revision 0>1>2 "living document" with stakeholder comments to be addressed
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TRU waste disposition planning
