Safety Issues at LANL's Plutonium Facility (PF-4)
updated 26 Apr 2024

Related news media & documents

• Government watchdog says LANL could be doing more to prevent glove box contaminant releases, Santa Fe New Mexican, Apr 17, 2024
• Reports: 2 mishaps at LANL in one day, Santa Fe New Mexican, Apr 8, 2024
• LANL director addresses rash of safety incidents, Santa Fe New Mexican, with published comment by Greg Mello, Feb 10, 2024
• Los Alamos glovebox fire sprinklers could cause criticality, safety watchdog says, Exchange Monitor, Feb 9, 2024
• Los Alamos National Laboratory logs two more skin-contamination incidents, Santa Fe New Mexican, Feb 5, 2024
• Los Alamos sees spate of radiological contamination episodes around plutonium facility, Exchange Monitor, Jan 18, 2024
• Report: Another LANL worker's skin contaminated, Santa Fe New Mexican, with published comment by Greg Mello, Jan 16, 2024
• Report: Radioactive contaminants found on Los Alamos National Lab worker's skin, Santa Fe New Mexican, Jan 9, 2024
• Glove box fire closed part of LANL plutonium facility in November, Santa Fe New Mexican, with published comment by Greg Mello, Dec 19, 2023
• Glovebox Fire shuts portion of LANL plutonium lab for nearly two weeks, Exchange Monitor, Dec 15, 2023
• Glovebox Fire shuts portion of LANL plutonium lab for nearly a month, Exchange Monitor, Dec 12, 2023
• Workers Are Getting Paid to Do Nothing at Los Alamos National Laboratory, The Nation, Nov 9, 2023
• Chess, cards and catnaps in the heart of America’s nuclear weapons complex, Searchlight New Mexico, Nov 8, 2023
• Lab contractor cited for 2022 glove box breach, Santa Fe New Mexican, with published comment by Greg Mello, Nov 3, 2023
• LANL reports glove box breach, tritium drift weeks apart, Santa Fe New Mexican, with published comment by Greg Mello, Nov 1, 2023
• Eight workers exposed to beryllium dust at LANL, a recurring problem, Santa Fe New Mexican, Sep 27, 2023
• Safety Lapses at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Searchlight New Mexico, Jul 13, 2023
• Triad Hit By DOE With Preliminary Notice Of Violation For 5 Nuclear Safety Issues At Plutonium Facility PF4 In 2021, Los Alamos Reporter, May 31, 2023
• Watchdog agency grills LANL, nuclear officials on lab safety, Santa Fe New Mexican, Nov 16, 2022
• DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments: Triad National Security, LLC Nuclear Criticality Safety Program at LANL, May 2021
• LANL temporarily suspends workers who violated nuclear protocols, Santa Fe New Mexican, Sep 27, 2017
• NNSA says LANL workers faced no danger in latest incident, Los Alamos Monitor, Sep 27, 2017
• Plutonium pits at Los Alamos, Cultural Energy, KCEI 90.1 FM Taos, radio interview, Greg Mello, Sep 25, 2017
• LANL: No risk of radioactive ‘criticality’ accident in recent incident, Albuquerque Journal, Sep 25, 2017
• ‘Criticality safety event’ occurred at LANL’s plutonium facility, Albuquerque Journal North, Sep 22, 2017
• Report: LANL twice violated nuclear safety standards in Aug, Santa Fe New Mexican, Sep 22, 2017
• DNFSB board members Jesse Roberson & Daniel Santos memo stating objection to Memorandum of Agreement with DOE/NNSA, Aug 11, 2017
• Sen Claire McCaskill letter to NNSA re: Safety Violations, Aug 3, 2017
• LANL in Final Stages of PF-4 Restart Project , Nuclear Security Deterrence Monitor, Jun 24, 2016
• DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments, Review of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Plutonium Facility Restart of Fissile Material Operations, Jan 2016
• Independent Review of Seismic Performance Assessments for PF-4, LA-UR-15-29138, Nov 25, 2015
• DOE-IG-0941 Audit: Follow-up on Nuclear Safety: Safety Basis and Quality Assurance at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Jul 2015
• NNSA Criticality Safety Program Weaknesses Resulting in an Operational Pause at the Plutonium Facility (PF-4), Apr 2014
• DOE says alternate analysis of PF-4 seismic risks will be done in Dec, Nuclear Weapons & Materials Monitor, Sep 6, 2013
• Selected Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) Background Regarding Criticality Safety at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), LASG, Oct 8, 2007
• Update of the Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis (PSHA) and Development of Seismic Design Ground Motions at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, May 25, 2007
  • PSHA Executive Summary & Plates
• Overview on Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) Assessment of Seismic Analysis Methods for Deeply Embedded NPP Structures, Apr 2007
• Numerous Infrastructure and Safety Deficiencies Impact Plutonium Pit Production at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Feb 20, 2007
• A Review of Criticality Accidents, 2000 Revision, LANL, LA-13638, May 2000, McLaughlin, et al. This document is the second revision of the original report LA-3611, released in 1967 and authored by William R. Stratton, LASL
• Seismic Safety of Federal and Federally Assisted or Regulated New Building Construction, Executive Order 12699, Jan 5, 1990

2024

• Week Ending March 15, 2024 Plutonium Facility–Operations: Last Thursday, workers accidentally placed a piece of equipment that had been removed from a laboratory room on the pressure plate for a decontamination shower. The shower actuated and water flowed until it overflowed the shower berm, migrated into a contaminated pump room, and started seeping through the walls and floors into adjacent rooms and the basement

2023

• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0014 - Hand Injury from Door, May 4, 2023 (ORPS)
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0015 - Los Alamos Fire Department Responds to PF-4 For Dropbox Fire Alarm Activation, May 2, 2023 (ORPS)
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0008 - Plenum Cooldown Activation - fire suppression water flowing into PF-4 basement, Mar 13, 2023
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0012 - Los Alamos Fire Department Responds to Technical Area-55-4 for Hand Injury, Feb 21, 2023
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0010 - Safety Significant Component Degradation: Facility Control System Inoperable, Feb 14, 2023
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0005 - Discovery of Uncontrolled Hazardous Energy During Electrical Work on Power Panel in PF-4, Feb 3, 2023
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0004 - Small Fire in a Nuclear Facility Dropbox, PF-4, Jan 9, 2023

2022

• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0006 - Process Deviation Resulting in Documented Safety Analysis Non-Compliance, PF-4, Dec 13, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0003 - Management Concern: Unauthorized Removal of Lockout/Tagout Device, PF-4, Nov 16, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0012 - Technical Safety Requirement (TSR) violated, Flammable Gas Analysis performed in "Cold Standby" mode, Sep 22, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0015 - Failure to Follow a Hazardous Energy Control Process, PF-4, Sep 15, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0013 - Safety Significant Structure, System or Component Degradation: Ventilation Loss of Differential Pressure, PF-4, Aug 31, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0011 - Potential Process Deviation - SNM container not stored correctly, Aug 16, 2022
• GAO: LANL Contractor Improving in Safety and Other Areas but Still Faces Challenges, GAO-22-105412, Jun 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2023-0001 - Two potentially energized Capacitors Discovered Following Down-sizing, PF-4, May - Sep 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0007 - Performance Degradation of PF-4 North Side Ventilation System, Mar 29, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0004 - Employee Received Electrical Shock While Unplugging Monitor, PF-4, Feb 15, 2022
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2022-0002 - Skin Contamination Detected on Employees During Glovebox Operation, PF-4, Jan 7, 2022
• DNFSB review, LANL Onsite Transportation Safety, Jan 6, 2022

2021

• DNFSB ltr, Conceptual Design LANL LAP4, Nov 24, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0020 - Confinement System LCO not Entered While Performing Work on Ventilation System, Oct 19, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0018 - Skin Contamination Detected on Employee's Hands after Performing Analysis of Actinide Material in a Microscopic Laboratory, PF-4, Aug 3, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0014 - Safety Significant Structure System or Component Degradation: Facility Control System Failure, PF-4, Jun 29, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0011 - Safety Significant Structure, System, or Component Degradation: Discovery of Waste Drum with Filter Corrosion, PF-4, Jun 10, 2021
• DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments: Triad National Security, LLC Nuclear Criticality Safety Program at LANL, May 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0010- Worker Sustains Metacarpal Fracture When Wind Gusts Unexpectedly Shut Shipping Container Door on His Hand, PF-4, Apr 15, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0009 – Safety Class Safety Significant Component Degradation: Discovery of Damaged SAVY Container, PF-4, Apr 8, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0006 - Skin and Personal Clothing Contamination Identified Resultant of Glovebox Machining Operations, PF-4, Mar 3, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0005 - Fire Department Response to Sparks Observed in Glovebox during Waste Handling Activities, PF-4, Feb 26, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0004 - Material Move Results in a Documented Safety Analysis Noncompliance and a Critical Safety Infraction, PF-4, Feb 11, 2021
• NA--LASO-LANL-TA55-2021-0003 - Employee Tripped and Fell on a Single-Fork Pallet Jack Fracturing Right Hand, PF-4, Jan 12, 2021

2020

• Causal Analysis for TA-55 Glove Breach and Pu-238 Dose Event of June 2020, Jul 28, 2020

2019

• DNFSB Technical Report, PF-4 Leak Path Factor Methodology, Nov 12, 2019
• DNFSB staff report, PF-4 Safety Basis, Aug 16, 2019
• DNFSB LANL weekly site report (WSR), PF-4 seismic performance, Jan 4, 2019

2018

• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 seismic safety, Dec 28, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, Update to the Site-Wide Probabilistic Seismic Hazards Assessment & criticality safety, Sep 21, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 accident investigation, Sep 14, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 Safety Basis, Aug 17, 2018
• DNFSB Site Rep Jonathan Plaue presentation to the NM RHMC, Aug 15, 2018
• DNFSB Review of LANL Nuclear Criticality Safety Program, Aug 14, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 seismic safety, Aug 3, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 Safety Basis, Jul 20, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 Safety Basis, Jun 1, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 Safety Basis & criticality safety, May 18, 2018
• DNFSB LANL WSR, PF-4 safety, May 4, 2018

2017

• NNSA says LANL workers faced no danger in latest incident, Los Alamos Monitor, Sep 27, 2017
• LANL temporarily suspends workers who violated nuclear protocols, Santa Fe New Mexican, Sep 27, 2017
• Plutonium pits at Los Alamos, Cultural Energy, KCEI 90.1 FM Taos, radio interview, Greg Mello, Sep 25, 2017
• LANL: No risk of radioactive ‘criticality’ accident in recent incident, Albuquerque Journal, Sep 25, 2017
• ‘Criticality safety event’ occurred at LANL’s plutonium facility, Albuquerque Journal North, Sep 22, 2017
• Report: LANL twice violated nuclear safety standards in Aug, Santa Fe New Mexican, Sep 22, 2017
• DNFSB board members Jesse Roberson & Daniel Santos memo stating objection to Memorandum of Agreement with DOE/NNSA, Aug 11, 2017
• Sen Claire McCaskill letter to NNSA re: Safety Violations, Aug 3, 2017
• DNFSB Staff Report, Emergency Preparedness & Response at LANL, Jul 28, 2017
• Safety lapses undermine nuclear warhead work at Los Alamos, Patrick Malone and R. Jeffrey Smith, Center for Public Integrity, The Washington Post, Jun 18, 2017  — also: Nuclear Negligence, six part series, The Center for Public Integrity, Jun 2017
• Lessons Learned in the Nuclear Criticality Safety Program at the LANL Plutonium Facility, May 11, 2017
• DOE 2016 annual report to DNFSB re: Nuclear Criticality Safety Programs, Jan 2017

2016

• DNFSB weekly site report, Aug 19, 2016: The recent spill of about 100 mL of solution containing an estimated 10 g of plutonium-238 in 9.8 M nitric acid and hydrofluoric acid (see 7/8/16 and 7/29/16 weeklies) brought to light the practice of using cellulosic materials (i.e., cheesecloth) as an absorbent for acid spills despite strong evidence indicating that this can create a chemically unstable material.
• DNFSB weekly site report, Jul 8, 2016: NNSA Facility Representatives identified several items in a glovebox that appeared potentially melted and charred. The items were located in a glovebox that is associated with the bench-scale recovery line, an aqueous operation that uses several multi-liter open top vessels to purify heat-source plutonium (i.e., material enriched in plutonium-238). The Site Representatives note that issues with similar rags contributed to the August 5, 2003, radioactive material uptake event that was subject to a DOE Type B Accident Investigation.
• LANL in Final Stages of PF-4 Restart Project , Nuclear Security Deterrence Monitor, Jun 24, 2016
• DNFSB public hearing, Santa Fe, Transuranic Waste, Mar 22, 2016
  • Greg Mello testimony, part 1, Mar 22, 2016
  • Greg Mello testimony, part 2, Mar 23, 2016
    
• DNFSB Staff Report, Seismic Qualification of Fire Suppression System at the Plutonium Facility, LANL, Jan 29, 2016
• DOE-EA-31 Review of LANL Plutonium Facility Restart Fissile Material Operations, Jan 2016
• DOE Office of Enterprise Assessments, Review of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Plutonium Facility Restart of Fissile Material Operations, Jan 2016

2015

• Independent Review of Seismic Performance Assessments for PF-4, LA-UR-15-29138, Nov 25, 2015
• DNFSB ltr to NNSA re: PF-4 seismic performance, Sep 30, 2015
• DNFSB Technical Report - Opportunities for Risk Reduction at PF-4 through minimization of Material-at-Risk, Sep 21, 2015
• NNSA ltr to DNFSB re: PF-4 seismic performance, Aug 18, 2015
• DOE-IG-0941 Audit: Follow-up on Nuclear Safety: Safety Basis and Quality Assurance at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Jul 2015
• DNFSB weekly site report, May 8, 2015: concerns with criticality safety infraction management in the Plutonium Facility. The field office notes that there are currently more than 60 unresolved infractions, many of which have been resident for months, or even years. Of greatest concern are the multiple infractions involving unknown liquids discovered in process equipment that have not been properly characterized or addressed (see 4/3/2015 and 1/30/2015 weekly reports), and present an inherently higher criticality risk than non-aqueous operations.
• NNSA ltr to DNFSB re: PF-4 seismic analysis, Feb 13, 2015
• DOE 2014 annual report to DNFSB re: Nuclear Criticality Safety Programs, Jan 31, 2015

2014

• DNFSB ltr to NNSA re: PF-4 seismic vulnerability, Dec 17, 2014
• Los Alamos National Laboratory Plutonium Facility (PF-4) Seismic Safety, presentation, NNSA Los Alamos Field Office, Oct 22, 2014
• DNFSB Report to Congress - Status of Significant Unresolved Issues in DOE's Design & Construction Projects, Sep 19, 2014
• DNFSB Site report re: PF-4 seismic safety, Jul 1 1, 2014
• DOE final report to DNFSB re: Rec 2004-2, active confinement systems, Jun 2014
• DNFSB ltr to NNSA re: PF-4 criticality safety, May 16, 2014
• NNSA Criticality Safety Program Weaknesses Resulting in an Operational Pause at the Plutonium Facility (PF-4), Apr 2014
• NNSA Criticality Safety Program Weaknesses at PF- 4, Apr 2014

2013

• DNFSB report on status of significant unresolved safety issues - design & construction of DOE's defense nuclear facilities, Dec 26, 2013
• DNFSB LANL WSR: PF-4 seismic & criticality safety, Dec 13, 2013
• NNSA ltr to DNFSB re: pause in programmatic operations due to criticality safety concerns in PF-4, Dec 6, 2013
• DOE says alternate analysis of PF-4 seismic risks will be done in Dec, Nuclear Weapons & Materials Monitor, Sep 6, 2013
• DNFSB Fourth Annual Report to Congress: Summary of Significant Safety-Related Infrastructure Issues, Oct 30, 2013
• DOE Dep. Sec. Poneman ltr to DNFSB, Sep 3, 2013
• NNSA ltr to DNFSB re: PF-4 criticality safety controls, Aug 15, 2013
• DNFSB response to DOE Sec. Moniz, re:Public and Worker Protection for a Seismic Collapse Scenario at PF-4, Jul 17, 2013
• DNFSB Staff Report re: LANL Criticality Safety Program, Jul 2, 2013
• DOE Sec. Chu ltr to DNFSB , Mar 27, 2013
• DOE NNSA ltr re: TA-55 Conduct of Operations & Criticality Programmatic Pause, Jan 26, 2013
• DNFSB ltr to DOE Sec. Chu re: PF-4 seismic accident scenarios, Jan 3, 2013

2012

• DNFSB Report to Congress, Status of Significant Unresolved Issues DOE's Design & Construction Projects, Dec 24, 2012
• DNFSB Third Annual Report to Congress: Summary of Significant Safety-Related Infrastructure Issues, Oct 31, 2012
• DOE Dep. Sec. Poneman ltr to DNFSB, Sep 28, 2012
• DNFSB ltr to DOE Dep. Sec. Poneman, Jul 18, 2012
• DNFSB ltr to NNSA Admin. D'Agostino re: Documented Safety Analysis, Jun 18, 2012
• DNFSB Staff Report, Documented Safety Analysis and Post-Seismic Accident Consequences, May 8, 2012
• NNSA Dep. Admin. for Def. Prog. Cook ltr to DNFSB, Jan 30, 2012

2011

• DNFSB Public Hearing & Meeting in Santa Fe, NM, Nov 17, 2011
     – Transcript #1 Plutonium Facility Seismic Safety, and Emergency Preparedness and Response
     – Transcript #2
• DNFSB Second Annual Report to Congress: Summary of Significant Safety-Related Infrastructure Issues, Sep 30, 2011
• NNSA deliverables in answer to DNFSB recommendation 2009-2, Jun 28, 2011
• NNSA deliverable 5.4.2 of Implementation Plan for DNFSB Recommendation 2009-2, LANL Plutonium Facilily Seismic Safety, Apr 1, 2011
• NNSA Implementation Plan (IP) deliverable 5.4.1 for DNFSB's Rec 2009-2, LANL Plutonium Facility Seismic Safety, Jan 31, 2011
• NNSA Implementation Plan (IP) deliverable 8.6.5 for DNFSB's Rec 2004-2, Ventilation systems in DOE complex, Jan 12, 2011

2010

• DNFSB report on "Summary of Significant Infrastructure Issues at Operating Defense Nuclear Facilities," Sep 10, 2010
• "Implementation Plan for DNFSB Recommendation 2009-2, "Los Alamos National Laboratory Plutonium Facility Seismic Safety," Jul 13, 2010
• NNSA's response to DNFSB ltr re: documented safety analyses, Jun 30, 2010
• Letter from DOE to DNFSB re: Rec 2009-2, "Los Alamos National Laboratory Plutonium Facility Seismic Safety," Feb 2, 2010

2009

• DNFSB recommendation 2009-2 addressing seismic safety at LANL's Plutonium Facility (PF-4), Oct 26, 2009
• NNSA ltr re: PDSA & Safety Strategy of CMRR facility, Apr 21, 2009
• DNFSB review of CMRR nuclear safety design strategy & safety-class & safety-significant systems, Mar 30, 2009

2008

• DNFSB Staff Report, Documented Safety Analysis for PF-4, Apr 8, 2008

2007

• Selected Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) Background Regarding Criticality Safety at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), LASG, Oct 8, 2007
• DNFSB Staff Report re: Design, Functionality, & Maintenance of Safety Systems at LANL, Aug 31, 2007
• DNFSB Staff Report re: Nuclear Criticality Safety (NCS) implementation in PF-4 vault, Aug 6, 2007
• Update of the Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis (PSHA) and Development of Seismic Design Ground Motions at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, May 25, 2007
• PSHA Executive Summary & Plates
• Overview on Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) Assessment of Seismic Analysis Methods for Deeply Embedded NPP Structures, Apr 2007
• LANL Investigation Report: Investigation of Two Separate Worker Injuries and Resultant Internal Contamination, LA-UR-07-1305, Feb 23, 2007
• Numerous Infrastructure and Safety Deficiencies Impact Plutonium Pit Production at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Feb 20, 2007

2004

• DNFSB Staff Report, Status of Safety Bases at Los Alamos National Laboratory, (LANL has 26 nuclear facilities. Includes list of LANL's 17 HC-2 nuclear facilities), May 3, 2004

2003

2002

• DNFSB Staff Report, PF-4 ventilation shut down for calibration, second time in two months TA-55 has had to rely on passive filtration mode for confinement due to a minor evolution, Sep 20, 2002
• The DOE's Pit Production Project, DOE/IG-0551, Apr 2002

2001

2000

• TYPE A Accident Investigation of the March 16, 2000 Plutonium-238 Multiple Intake Event at the LANL Plutonium Facility, Office of Oversight, Office of Environment, Safety, & Health, DOE, Jul 2000
• A Review of Criticality Accidents, 2000 Revision, LANL, LA-13638, May 2000, McLaughlin, et al. This document is the second revision of the original report LA-3611, released in 1967 and authored by William R. Stratton, LASL

1999

• DNFSB Staff Report review of LANL electrical, instrumentation & control, & fire protection systems, Aug 3, 1999

1998

• DNFSB Staff Report on LANL's pit production capability & resolve open seismic questions, such as potential surface faulting, Sep 21, 1998

1996

• DNFSB Trip Report - TA-55 Facility Electrical and Ventilation Systems, Oct 11, 1996
• DNFSB review of renovations at LANL's Nuclear Materials Storage Facility (NMSF), Aug 13, 1996

1990

• Seismic Safety of Federal and Federally Assisted or Regulated New Building Construction, Executive Order 12699, Jan 5, 1990
class="ContentBlk9pt">DOE Plutonium Ventilation System Study Report, Mar 15, 1996