Publications

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The subject report from High Bridge Associates (HBA) was issued on March 2, 2016, in reaction to a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program decision to pursue down-blending of surplus Pu and geologic disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Sandia National Laboratories was requested by the DOE to review the technical arguments presented in the HBA report. Specifically, this review is organized around three technical topics: criticality safety, radiological release limits, and thermal impacts. Questions raised by the report pertaining to legal and regulatory requirements, safeguards and security, international agreements, and costing of alternatives, are beyond the scope of this review.

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Sandia National Laboratories faces institutional challenges that are unique in its history. Never before have the national laboratories been viewed so critically, and never before has their role been the subject of such study and debate. At the same time, the opporunities to render `exceptional service in the national interest` have never been greater. The business of Sandia today and into the foreseeable future will rely on a strong, integrated technical foundation, represented most fundamentally by its core competencies. While is is impossible to foresee precisely what missions Sandia will pursue many years from now, one thing is clear: Central to its service to the nation will be the application of science-based engineering skills to the stewardship of the nuclear weapons stockpile. Whether on not the nation ever builds a new nuclear weapon, those that remain in stockpile will require continuous stewardship based on the integration of scientific understanding with experienced systems engineering. Sandia`s steadfast commitment to DOE`s stockpile stewardship mission will also be evident in the production of limited numbers of certain vital weapon components as the weapons production complex is realigned. Complementing this enduring responsibility will be expanded missions in energy, environment, and economic competitiveness. The work for other federal agencies will be jointly sponsored under high-level agreements with DOE. Multi-institutional teams will become a common way of doing business. The multiprogram laboratory model will evolve toward a new model of multi-laboratory programs addressing major national needs. Sandia will be a distinct and important component of an integrated system of national laboratories.