Shows
CCNS UpdateCCNS Nuclear Literacy Program to Educate Nuevomexicano Communities on the LANL Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Plutonium Pit ProductionFor over eighty years, the People of New Mexico have borne the burden of the1943 establishment of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Through theCongressional continuing resolution process, LANL may receive an additional $1 billiondollars to support expansion of the number of plutonium triggers, or plutonium pits,fabricated for nuclear weapons. The people of northern New Mexico are unaware of theeffects that this potentially may have on nearby communities. The effects of eightdecades of nuclear weapons development has had a cumulative impact on New
2026-01-0104 minCCNS UpdateLos Alamos Warns the West Mesa: Stop the Next Perchlorate and Chromium CrisisFor over 25 years, Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety (CCNS) has fought toprotect surface and groundwater from radioactive, toxic and hazardous contaminationfrom Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). In 2004, that campaign expanded tocontain the co-located perchlorate and chromium plume – contamination that migratedinto the top of the 1,000 foot deep aquifer below LANL, Pueblo de San Ildefonso andthe Española Basin Sole Source Drinking Water Aquifer. Despite federal assurancesand repeated promises of a solution, the plume remains unresolved.
2025-11-2004 minCCNS UpdateAlarming Problems with Proposed Tritium Venting at LANLTo prepare for a public meeting with the U.S. Defense Nuclear Facilities SafetyBoard (“the Board”) in Santa Fe on Monday evening, CCNS followed its policy ofreviewing at least the last eight weeks of the Board’s reports for Los Alamos NationalLaboratory (LANL) and used that as a basis for questions and comments to present tothe Board. What we found:
2025-07-3004 minCCNS UpdatePlans to Commemorate Two New Mexico Atomic EventsIn this week’s Update CCNS provides information about the upcomingcommemorations of two harmful atomic events that both occurred in New Mexico onJuly 16th. The first is the 80th commemoration of the plutonium bomb test at the TrinityTest Site on July 16, 1945 at the White Sands Missile Range.
2025-06-2604 minCCNS UpdateThree Draft LANL SWEIS Public Comment Preparation WorkshopsPublic comments for the draft Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement forContinued Operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory are currently due onThursday, April 10th. Tewa Women United, Honor Our Pueblo Existence, CCNS,Communities for Clean Water, and the Union of Concerned Scientists will hostworkshops to assist you in the preparation and submission of your comments.Comments may be submitted to LANLSWEIS@nnsa.doe.gov
2025-03-2004 minCCNS UpdateTwo Upcoming LANL SWEIS Public Comment Preparation WorkshopsPublic comments for the draft Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement forContinued Operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory are currently due onThursday, April 10th. CCNS, Tewa Women United, Three Sisters Collective,Communities for Clean Water and others will host two workshops to assist you inpreparing your comments.
2025-03-1304 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and HOPE Argue Standing to Challenge a LANL Water Permit Before New Mexico Court of AppealsOn Thursday, February 20 th , Lindsay A. Lovejoy, Jr., the attorney for Honor OurPueblo Existence and CCNS, will argue before the New Mexico Court of Appeals thatthe non-government organizations have standing to challenge the misregulation of theRadioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility, a key facility at Los Alamos NationalLaboratory (LANL). The RLWTF treats liquid radioactive and hazardous wastegenerated at the Plutonium Facility from the fabrication of plutonium pits, or the cores,of nuclear weapons. Those activities are ramping up under U.S. government plans...
2025-02-1304 minCCNS UpdateWQCC Denied CCNS and HOPE Standing to Challenge LANL’s RLWTF - Next Step is Oral Argument Before New Mexico Court of AppealsThe Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), operated by the Department of Energy, plays a critical role in maintaining the safety and reliability of the nation’s nuclear stockpile. Central to this mission is the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility (RLWTF), which was constructed in the early 1960s to treat, store, and dispose of radioactive and hazardous liquids
2025-02-0604 minCCNS UpdateCCNS Submits Comprehensive Comments in Opposition to Proposed LANL Electrical LineThis week Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety, individuals and NGOs
submitted comments opposing the U.S. Forest Service’s plan to approve a Los Alamos
National Laboratory (LANL) proposal to install a companion electric transmission line
through the heart of the Caja del Rio traditional cultural landscape, an area sacred to
Pueblos.
2024-10-2904 minCCNS UpdateCCNS Submits Comments about the Need to Excavate the Mixed Waste Landfill at Sandia National LaboratoriesThe Mixed Waste Landfill at Sandia National Laboratories is a 2.6-acre dump
that is leaking radioactive, hazardous and toxic wastes from unlined pits and trenches
that threaten Albuquerque’s drinking water aquifer. The public has been asking the
New Mexico Environment Department for nearly 25 years to order Sandia to excavate
the dump. Evidence of migrating contamination, such as the detection of volatile
organic compounds 400 feet below the dump in 2015, verifies the public’s concern.
2024-09-2604 minCCNS UpdateNNSA Delays Urgent Research on Plutonium “Pit” Aging But Spends Billions on Nuclear Weapons Bomb CoresThis week, CCNS highlights portions of a recent press release by Nuclear Watch
New Mexico, Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment (Tri-Valley
CARES), and the Savannah River Site Watch about the National Nuclear Security
Administration (NNSA). Their piece suggests NNSA does not have its priorities straight
in neither producing up-to-date information on the way plutonium appears to age nor
providing this information in a timely manner to the public. The entire press release is
posted at nuclearactive.org
2024-04-2504 minCCNS UpdatePublic Comments on LANL Proposed Electrical Line Due on Tuesday, February 20 thCCNS has prepared talking points and a sample public comment letter you can use
to craft your oral and written comments about the proposed 14-mile long, 115-kilovolt
electrical line across the Caja del Rio before it would cross the Rio Grande to Los
Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).
2024-02-1604 minCCNS UpdateLANL’s Toxic Hexavalent Chromium Plume Must Remain a PriorityCCNS provided the following response to a recent Santa Fe New Mexican Our View:
“In response to Stop Stalling: Clean up chromium plume, no one is stalling.
The plume does need immediate attention and does need to be analyzed
with a computer model that everyone can use. The consequences of
getting the cleanup of the toxic hexavalent chromium plume wrong would
be disastrous.
2023-08-3104 minCCNS UpdateCCNS Urges State Legislature to Protect the Española Aquifer from LANL PollutantsDid you know that in 2008 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
designated the 3,000 square mile Española Basin System as a Sole Source Drinking Water Aquifer? One ongoing concern is that Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) sits on its western edge, near the Valles Caldera. And a recent dispute between the New Mexico Environment Department and the Department of Energy about the LANL hexavalent chromium plume, which is being pushed deeper into the regional drinking water aquifer, highlights the need for state agencies to have the resources to protect it.
Hexavalent chromium is a known human c...
2023-08-2404 minCCNS UpdateSunday, July 16 th Vigil to Commemorate the 1945 Trinity Nuclear Test in New MexicoYou are invited to come to a free in-person and live stream public vigil entitled “From Reflection to Action: An Interfaith Remembrance of the Trinity Test” on Sunday, July 16 th from 4 to 6 pm at Santa Maria de la Paz Church at 11 College Avenue in Santa Fe. The vigil will commemorate the 78 th year since the detonation of the first atomic weapon, called The Gadget, at the Trinity Test Site in south central New Mexico and provide you with tools to work for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. Doors open at 3:15 pm so you may view exhibits and visit with...
2023-07-1204 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and NMED Negotiate Settlement Agreement for the WIPP Hazardous Waste Renewal PermitCCNS and five other non-governmental organizations and one individual
successfully negotiated a settlement agreement last week to revise the draft ten-year
hazardous waste renewal permit for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Also at the
table were the New Mexico Environment Department and the co-Permittees, the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE) and Salado Isolation Mining Contractors, LLC (SIMCO).
2023-06-2804 minCCNS UpdatePlease Contribute to CCNS This Summer! Together We Are Making a Difference!Each week you depend on CCNS to provide you with the latest nuclear safety
issues through the radio, on the internet and by email. We’ve been producing the
weekly CCNS News Update for over 35 years! We need your financial support to keep
our programs going.
2023-06-2204 minCCNS UpdatePublic Comments Needed for the Scope of Sandia National Laboratory Site-Wide Environmental Impact StatementCCNS has prepared sample public comments you can modify about the scope of a new draft site-wide environmental impact statement for Sandia National
Laboratories in New Mexico. Comments may be submitted electronically to SNL-
SWEIS@nnsa.doe.gov through Monday, June 5 th , 2023.
2023-06-0104 minCCNS UpdateWQCC Denies CCNS and HOPE Standing to Challenge DP-1132The New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission not only denied Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) and CCNS standing to challenge the groundwater
discharge permit DP-1132, but also denied the public any opportunity to provide comment during
Tuesday’s hearing.
2023-05-1104 minCCNS UpdateWhat’s at Stake at Tuesday’s WQCC Hearing on HOPE and CCNS Standing?The health of the Rio Grande watershed in the area of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is at stake. The protection of the 3,000 square mile sole source
drinking water aquifer is at stake. LANL has contaminated it with hexavalent chromium and the plume is migrating towards the Pueblo de San Ildefonso, the Rio
Grande, and the Buckman wells and diversion facility. Every drop of water is precious and must be free from contamination. Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE)
and CCNS work to ensure that every drop is protected.
2023-05-0504 minCCNS UpdateMay 9 th New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission Hearing about CCNS and HOPE StandingHonor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) and CCNS will be before the New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission on Tuesday, May 9 th at the New Mexico
State Capitol to argue that they have standing to challenge the groundwater discharge permit, DP-1132, for the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). The Hearing Officer, who reports to the Commission, recommended to the Commission that the non-governmental
organizations do not have standing.
2023-04-2604 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and HOPE Petition for Mandamus from New Mexico Supreme CourtCCNS and Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) filed a Verified Petition for An Original Writ of Mandamus with the New Mexico Supreme Court about the improper regulation by the Water Quality Control Commission of the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
2023-02-2304 minCCNS UpdateCCNS Urges Santa Fe City Council to Use Its Emergency Powers to Install Tent Over Eberline Facility on Airport RoadOn Wednesday night, the Santa Fe City Council heard from dozens of people, both in person and virtually, about the proposed rezoning of 22 acres of
open space on South Meadows to housing. Dave Englert, a retired New Mexico Environment Department geologist, and Joni Arends, CCNS Executive Director,
urged the City Council to prioritize cleanup of the Eberline site that borders the 22 acres to the south. Arends asked the Council to use its emergency powers to
install a tent with HEPA filtration over the building now.
2023-02-0204 minCCNS UpdateSanta Fe City Council Must Consider Impacts of Eberline Operations on the South Meadows Open Space.The Santa Fe City Council will hold a special meeting on Wednesday, February 1 st at 7 pm to consider the proposed rezoning of the 22 acres of open
space on South Meadows. CCNS urges you to contact your city councilors and encourage them to vote no on the rezoning proposal. There are too many
unanswered questions about possible contamination of the open space remaining from decades of operations of the industrial Eberline / ThermoFisher
radiation detection manufacturing facility to the south.
2023-01-2604 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and HOPE Return to Water Quality Control Commission for Justice in the Discharge Permit DP-1132 MatterOn Tuesday, January 10 th , CCNS and Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) will return to the New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission to ask it
to vacate the decisions in which former Commission Chair Stephanie Stringer was involved. CCNS and HOPE have appealed the issuance of the groundwater
discharge permit, DP-1132, for the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to the Commission.
2023-01-0504 minCCNS UpdateEPA’s Environmental Appeals Board Remands LANL’s Outfall 051 Permit Back to Region 6 for More Public Input and ActionIn May 2022, CCNS, Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE), and Veterans
for Peace appealed the federal Clean Water Act discharge permit for Outfall 051,
which is connected to the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los
Alamos National Laboratory, to the EPA’s Environmental Appeals Board (EAB).
On December 28 th , the three-judge panel in Washington, DC ruled unanimously
to remand the federal permit, or send it back, to EPA’s Region 6 office in Dallas.
2022-12-2904 minCCNS UpdatePlease Support CCNS and HOPE Request for Sanctions in the LANL DP-1132 Appeal before the New Mexico Water Quality Control CommissionCCNS and Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) request your support of our request for sanctions in the appeal of the groundwater discharge permit DP-
1132, issued to Los Alamos National Laboratory for operation of the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility. The appeal is before the New Mexico Water
Quality Control Commission, which has the authority to order sanctions. We seek sanctions requiring the Permittees, the Department of Energy / National
Nuclear Security Administration, to pay our expenses caused by DOE/NNSA’s unethical behavior.
2022-12-2204 min
Listen In With Lloyd GosselinkThe ABCs of CCNsWater Practice Group Principal David Klein shares the ABCs of CCNs (Certificates of Convenience and Necessity) focusing on water and wastewater CCNs. This podcast is both a background and an introduction to CCNs.
2022-12-1625 minCCNS UpdatePlease Support CCNS on Giving TuesdayFor over 34 years, CCNS has been a leader for nuclear safety. We began in 1988 to address community concerns about the proposed transportation of
plutonium contaminated hazardous waste from Los Alamos National Laboratory, or LANL, to the proposed Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, for disposal in
the deep geologic repository. At that time, the proposal was to ship the waste through Santa Fe on Saint Francis Drive, near traditional neighborhoods, seven
schools and the hospital.
2022-11-2304 minCCNS UpdateA Clear Case of Disqualification of NMED Deputy Cabinet Secretary Stephanie StringerThis week the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) provided evidence to CCNS and Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE) that Stephanie
Stringer, a New Mexico Environment Deputy Cabinet Secretary and Chair of the New Mexico Water Quality Commission, made adjudicatory decisions against
the non-governmental organizations while she was applying for NNSA employment. This is the second time NNSA has hired an adjudicatory decision-maker
during an ongoing proceeding addressing the groundwater discharge permit, DP-1132, for the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los Alamos
National Laboratory.
2022-11-1704 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and HOPE Request the Water Quality Control Commission Lift its Stay on Review of DP-1132 for LANLOn May 5, 2022, the New Mexico Environment Department issued discharge permit DP-1132 under the New Mexico Water Quality Act for the
Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The Facility manages hazardous waste and the Water Quality Act is expressly
limited so that it does not apply to a hazardous waste facility. Nevertheless, the Environment Department issued LANL the Water Quality Act permit.
2022-10-2704 minCCNS UpdateCCNS and HOPE Petition to Remand Permit for LANL’s Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment FacilityOn Tuesday, August 9 th the New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission will hear virtually a petition for review of the groundwater discharge permit, DP-1132, filed by non-governmental organizations CCNS and Honor Our Pueblo Existence (HOPE). DP-1132 allows Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to handle, store and discharge treated radioactive and hazardous waters from the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility into Effluent Canyon, a tributary of Mortandad Canyon.
2022-08-0304 min
CCNS UpdateOngoing Seismic Concerns at LANL and Expanded Plutonium Pit ProductionPlutonium operations at Los Alamos National Laboratory's Technical Area 55 are centered in the middle of the 36 square mile national nuclear weapons facility.
2022-05-1904 minCCNS UpdateNo additional money will guarantee 80 pits per year according to the Nuclear Weapons CouncilRecently released Biden Administration budget documents reveal that for Fiscal Year 2023, beginning on October 1st, the Administration is proposing a Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) budget of $4.6 billion, an overall increase o 21 percent.
2022-05-1204 minCCNS UpdateCerro Pelado Fire and Los Alamos National LaboratoryAs of Wednesday evening May 4th, the Cerro Pelado wildland fire was about five miles from the "back gate" of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).
2022-05-0504 minCCNS UpdateDOE Fails to Bring LANL's Plutonium Facility Ventilation System into Legal ComplianceNearly 30 years ago, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board began communications with the DOE about ventilation systems in nuclear facilities, saying that they must contain or confine radioactive materials during an accident or seismic event that might be followed by a fire.
2022-04-2804 minCCNS UpdateProposed Funding Increases for DOE Operations in New MexicoExploding Biden Administration budgets for the three Department of Energy (DOE) sites in New Mexico fully support the dangerous trend to develop more provocative nuclear weapons.
2022-04-2104 minCCNS UpdateAnother Leaking Container at WIPPEight years after the 2014 explosion of one or more waste containers disposed in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) underground, on Saturday,
April 9 th , WIPP announced that one or more waste containers had leaked radioactive liquids while being unloaded from a TRUPACT-II shipping container
in the Waste Handling Building.
2022-04-1404 minCCNS UpdateAction Steps for the Planetary Nuclear Wake-Up CallLast week we quoted Cynthia Lazaroff about the nuclear dangers in Ukraine and her call to come forward that "Our work is more important now that ever."
This week we quote the call to come forward from Ralph Hutchison, Coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, to all those working for the Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty, that this is our time.
2022-04-0704 minCCNS UpdateWar in Ukraine Creates a Planetary Nuclear Wake-Up CallThis week the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation held a virtual presentation by Cynthia Lazaroff and Richard Falk about the nuclear dangers in Ukraine.
www.wagingpeace.org
2022-03-3104 minCCNS UpdateNuclear Watch New Mexico Settlement Moves Cleanup at LANL ForwardThis week Nuclear Watch New Mexico announced the successful settlement of its lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) about its slow cleanup of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL).
2022-03-2404 minCCNS UpdateCelebrate the Bob Alvarez Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday, March 19thPlease join the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability and the Nuclear Information and Resource Service to acknowledge Robert Alvarez, one of the bedrock founders of the national movement to unmask the human and environmental carnage that resulted directly from the U.S. effort to create a massive nuclear arsenal. The live virtual event runs from 1 to 2:30 pm Mountain Daylight Time this Saturday March 19th.
2022-03-1704 minCCNS UpdateVictories for Clean Water in New MexicoLast week, the New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission met to deliberate and make final decisions about the state's Surface Water Quality Standards.
2022-03-1004 minCCNS UpdateWhy You Should Care about the Expanding WIPP MissionExcerpts from Cindy Wheeler's speech during the March 1,2022 press conference at the New Mexico Capitol explains why you should care about the expanding mission for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
2022-03-0304 minCCNS UpdateImmediate Public Comments Needed about Two Proposed Beryllium Lathes at LANLIf you are concerned about proposed expansion of beryllium machining operations at LANL, now is the time to express your interest to the New Mexico Environment Depart Air Quality Bureau!
Find sample public comment letter on our website http://nuclearactive.org
2022-02-2404 minCCNS UpdateNew Mexico Environment Department Permits More Expansion of WIPP UndergroundDespite receiving comments from 19 non-governmental and business organizations representing tens of thousands of New Mexicans, the New Mexico Environment Department has permitted the use of the underground disposal Panel 8 at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) with 16-foot high ceilings.
2022-02-1804 minCCNS UpdateConfusion Reigns over Draft Discharge Permit for LANL’s Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment FacilityThis week Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety (CCNS) asked the New Mexico Environment Department to withdraw its draft groundwater permit DP-1132 for the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) because of the confusing, incomplete and defective documents released for public review and comment.
2022-02-1004 minCCNS UpdateLANL's Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility Needs Proper Regulation NowThe NMED is again trying to skirt proper regulation of the Radioactive Liquid Waste Treatment Facility at LANL as required by the New Mexico Hazardous Waste Act.
2022-02-0304 minCCNS UpdateTriad Wants DOE to Accept Increased Risk from Plutonium-238 Stored in Uncertified Containers at LANLThe independent Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board recently reported that Triad National Security LLC, the nuclear weapons contractor at LANL, wants the DOE to accept the risk of bringing large shipments of plutonium-238 in uncertified containers for repackaging in the Plutonium Facility.
2022-01-2704 minCCNS UpdateCelebration in Los Alamos on First Anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear WeaponsSaturday January 22, 2022, marks the first anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join us for a wonderful event from 1 to 3pm at Ashley Pond in Los Alamos.
2022-01-2004 minCCNS UpdatePastoral Letter from Santa Fe's Archbishop: Living in the Light of Christ's Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament.January 11th, Archbishop of Santa Fe John C Wester released his historic pastoral letter Living in the Light of Christ's Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament.
2022-01-1204 minCCNS UpdateCelebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. on the First Anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.Saturday January 22nd from 1 - 3 PM at Ashley Pond in Los Alamos join CCNS, Veterans for Peace, Nuclear Watch New Mexico and others for a celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. and the first anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Visit Nuclear Ban Treaty Days of Action facebook Page for information. ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/336042507972854 )
For information on Dr. King and the Treaty visit Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. ( https://orepa.org/ )
2022-01-0604 minCCNS UpdateJanuary 6th Environment Dept. Virtual Meeting for LANL Consent OrderThe New Year will begin with the NM Environment Department's virtual public meeting about the annual cleanup plan for legacy waste at LANL.
2021-12-2904 minCCNS UpdateWill Construction be Delayed on the New Shaft at WIPP?Two appeals have been filed in the NM Court of Appeals to challenge the decision by NM Environment Dept. Secretary James Kenney to approve the new shaft at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
2021-12-2204 minCCNS UpdateSanta Fe Archbishop to Hold an Unveiling and Blessing of a Sign of Peace December 19thAt 1:00p.m. Mountain Time Sunday December 19th, the Archbishop of Santa Fe, John C Wester, will hold an Unveiling and Blessing of a Sign of Peace at The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in downtown Santa Fe, New Mexico.
2021-12-1604 minCCNS UpdateRECA Amendments Pass House Judiciary Committee 25 to 8 Dec 9In a stunning bipartisan vote, this week the U.S. House Judiciary Committee passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2021 on a vote of 25 to 8.
2021-12-1404 minCCNS UpdateRECA Amendments Pass House Judiciary Committee 25 to 8In a stunning bipartisan vote, this week the U.S. House Judiciary Committee passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2021 on a vote of 25 to 8.
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2021-12-0904 minCCNS UpdateA Third Attempt at Consent-Based Siting for High-Level Radioactive WasteTuesday November 30th, the DOE held a press conference to announce a third attempt to find communities, sovereign tribal nations, or local or state governments to host an interim federal storage facility for high-level radioactive waste from commercial nuclear reactors.
2021-12-0204 minCCNS UpdatePublic Comments Needed for Public Hearing on WIPP Panel 8DOE has raised the height of the underground waste disposal Panel 8 from 13 feet to 16 feet in violation of the Permit.
2021-11-2304 minCCNS UpdateAppeal Filed Against NMED Approval of the New Shaft at WIPPOn October 27th, New Mexico Environment Department Secretary James Kenney granted the DOE and its contractor, Nuclear Waste Partnership, the latest approval requested to expand WIPP.
2021-11-1804 minCCNS UpdateN3B Puts Profits before the Public's Concerns about Permit Renewal at LANLThe public learned this week that DOE asked the LANL cleanup contractor, N3B, to request that the NM Environment Department move 19 hazardous wast sites from one part of the hazardous waste permit to another.
2021-11-1204 minCCNS UpdateCOP26 and Nuclear Power: Direct Support for Nuclear WeaponsOur colleague, Linda Pentz Gunter, has written a brilliant piece about the connections between nuclear power and nuclear weapons.
2021-11-0304 minCCNS UpdateDOE's Santa Came Early: NMED Approves FOREVER WIPPNMED granted the Department of Energy approval to excavate and use new Shaft No. 5 and its associated drifts in the WIPP Underground. Essentially ensuring Forever WIPP.
2021-10-2804 minCCNS UpdateWIPP Shipments Stopped Due to Maintenance Problems at SiteDue to on-going maintenance problems in the underground disposal facility, WIPP requested an extension of time from NMED to store waste in the Waste Handling Building.
2021-10-2104 minCCNS UpdateSanta Fe County Nuclear Waste Emergency Response Town Hall Tuesday October 19thIn response to community concerns about the proposed increased shipments of more dangerous forms of plutonium along New Mexico State Road 599, Santa Fe County District 2 Commissioner Anna Hansen will host a Nuclear Waste Emergency Response Town Hall Tuesday October 19th from 6 - 7:30 PM.
2021-10-1404 minCCNS UpdateNew Mexico Governor's WIPP Task Force Holds MeetingFor the first time in 3 years, the New Mexico Governor's WIPP Task Force met October 6th.
WIPP = Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
DOE = Department of Energy
NAS = National Academies of Science
GAO = Government Accountability Office
2021-10-0704 minCCNS UpdateWIPP Expansion Continues; Public Comments on Proposed Panels 11 and 12 Due Monday, October 4thWhen will the New Mexico Environment Department acknowledge the DOE's proposals for WIPP as expansion?
2021-09-2904 minCCNS UpdateNow Before Congress: Bills to Extend and Expand RECA to Trinity Downwinders and Post '71 Uranium WorkersA deadline of July 10th, 2022 is looming for continuing the federal Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) and associated programs.
2021-09-2304 minCCNS UpdateTexas Bans High Level Nuclear Waste Storage; NRC Approves Radioactive Waste Dump ThereIn a rare bi-partisan effort, the Texas legislature passed a nearly unanimous bill prohibiting the future storage or disposal of high-level radioactive waste, however, the NRC licensed construction and operation of a Consolidated Interim Storage Facility in Andrews County, Texas.
2021-09-1604 minCCNS UpdateDOE's Latest Plan for Expanding WIPP-Three New Drifts and Two New Waste Disposal PanelsDOE's plan to expand WIPP without public comment underway.
https://stopforeverwipp.org/home
http://nuclearactive.org
2021-09-0904 minCCNS UpdatePublic Hearing for Groundwater Discharge Permit at WIPP Begins Tuesday September 7thBeginning at noon on Tuesday September 7th, the New Mexico Environment Department will hold a virtual public hearing for a groundwater discharge permit for WIPP.
2021-09-0204 minCCNS UpdateAnother Example of NMED's Staff Support of WIPP ExpansionNMED is holding a virtual public hearing for a groundwater discharge permit that would allow the construction and use of a Salt Cell 5 and Salt Storage Pond 5, It is scheduled for Tuesday September 7th at noon.
2021-08-2604 minCCNS UpdateDOE Continues Its Push for WIPP ExpansionPublicly denying plans to double the size of WIPP, the DOE continues to ask for a new "west wing"
2021-08-1904 minCCNS UpdateNorthern New Mexico Activists Hold Events Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki.On August 6th and 9th, 1945 the U.S. Government dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. Commemoration events were held in Los Alamos and Taos.
To listen to the panel discussion, courtesy of KCEI-FM go to - https://culturalenergy.org/listenlinks.htm#aug2021
2021-08-1204 minCCNS UpdateDOE's Planned Expansion Could Mean that "It ain't your Daddy's WIPP anymore"Over 60 people attended a town hall to learn about Santa Fe County's emergency preparedness and response capabilities.
2021-08-0504 minCCNS UpdateHiroshima and Nagasaki Commemoration Events in Los Alamos and Taos August 7th and 8thNear the end of WWII on August 6th, the U.S. Government dropped a uranium atomic bomb on Hiroshima and 3 days later on August 9th dropped a plutonium atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan.
2021-07-2904 minCCNS UpdateEnvironment Department Ignores Sandia's Plan to Excavate the Mixed Waste LandfillEven though Sandia National Laboratory stated it could completely excavate the Mixed Waste Landfill, NMED replied sampling and monitoring would be sufficient to address potential risks.
2021-07-2204 minCCNS UpdateThis Weekend We Remember the Trinity Downwinders - Events in Tularosa and MescaleroThree events are scheduled to commemorate the long-lasting harm done by the first atomic bomb test at the Trinity site in south central New Mexico on July 16th, 1945.
2021-07-1504 minCCNS UpdateVirtual Public Hearing about New Mexico's Water Quality Standards Begins on Tuesday July 13thIf you live near or recreate on a New Mexico river, stream, or lake or irrigate from one, water quality should be a concern. Participate in the Public Hearing!
2021-07-0804 minCCNS UpdateNGOs Sue DOE for Plutonium Pit Production Programmatic EISHow many times do non-governmental organizations need to ask for the DOE and the NNSA to follow the law before they file a lawsuit, six!
2021-07-0104 minCCNS UpdateNew Mexico Governor Petitions EPA to List PFAS Chemicals as Hazardous WasteNew Mexico Governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham petitions EPA to safeguard water in state from toxic chemicals.
2021-06-2404 minCCNS UpdateBiden-Putin Geneva Summit and Future Arms Control DialogueThe presidents of the United States and Russia met and discussed a number of matters including "Strategic Stability."
2021-06-1704 minCCNS UpdateClean Water Act Action Needed on Contaminants of Emerging Concern and Persistent Toxic PollutantsThe New Mexico Water Quality Control Commission will take up important regulatory water issues soon.
2021-06-1004 minCCNS UpdateWhat Does DOE's Nuclear Weapons Budget Request Say?The DOE released its Fiscal Year 2022 congressional budget request for nuclear weapons activities this past Friday.
2021-06-0304 minCCNS UpdateNext Steps Following Public Hearing on New Shaft for WIPP ExpansionThe Virtual Public hearings on the new shaft at WIPP ended last week. Here is a possible timeline.
2021-05-2704 minCCNS UpdateTopics Limited during the Virtual Public Hearing for WIPP ExpansionLegal maneuvering by the New Mexico Environment Department and the
Department of Energy (DOE), and decisions made by the Hearing Officer, have limited
the scope of the virtual public hearing about whether the plan to dig a new $197 million
shaft at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) will be approved.
The hearing Clerk's email address: Madai.Corral@state.nm.us.
2021-05-2004 minCCNS UpdateMany ways to comment during Public Hearing about Proposed WIPP ExpansionMonday May 17th begins a 5 day virtual public hearing by the Hazardous Waste Bureau. Plan to be a part of the event!
2021-05-1304 minCCNS UpdateNo DOE Employee testifying at Permit hearing about proposed WIPP expansionNo DOE employee will testify about the purpose and need for construction of a fifth shaft into the underground mine at WIPP.
2021-05-0604 minCCNS UpdateThis is what happens whe DOE gets in a hurry.When DOE (Department of Energy) gets in a hurry to ship plutonium-contaminated waste, bad things happen.
2021-04-2904 minCCNS UpdateThree Fabulous Free Virtual Public Education EventsCelebrating Earth Day and the 35th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986, with 3 events.
https://taosenvironmentalfilmfestival.com/
https://tosavetheworld.ca/events-3/?event_id=433
http://www.nuclearban.us/
2021-04-2204 minCCNS UpdateIncomplete Draft Permit Supporting WIPP Expansion Subject to a Public HearingWhy is the Hazardous Waste Bureau processing an incomplete permit modification for WIPP?
2021-04-1404 minCCNS UpdateLANL Sparking Drum Causes Suspension of Radioactive Waste Shipments to WIPPA 55-gallon drum of plutonium-contaminated waste had sparks visible and caused an evacuation at LANL!
2021-04-0804 minCCNS UpdateNew Mexico Files Suit to Halt Two Proposed High-Level Nuclear Wast Storage FacilitiesLong term waste storage licenses asked to be halted by New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas.
2021-04-0104 minCCNS UpdatePublic Comments to EPA about LANL Industrial Wastewater Discharge PermitThe EPA plans to renew the Clean Water Act permit for LANL, why?
2021-03-2504 minCCNS UpdateSanta Fe City Council Committee Considers Leaving the Regional Coalition of LANL CommunitiesMembers of the City of Santa Fe Quality of Life Committee discuss benefits of LANL Regional Communities.
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2021-03-1804 minCCNS UpdateLos Alamos Proposed Expansion into Santa FeA new Plutonium pit for a proposed nuclear warhead would be fabricated at LANL. The W-87-1.
Also, proposed expansion of LANL into Santa Fe!
2021-03-1104 minCCNS UpdateNew Mexico Environment Dept. Sues DOEPlease follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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2021-03-0404 minCCNS UpdateWIPP Radiation ReleaseCommunity Groups Oppose Next WIPP Radiation Release
Get more information at www.nuclearactive.org
2020-12-0303 minCCNS UpdateLANL Must Comply with the LawCurrently LANL (Los Alamos National Laboratory is failing to comply with the law. We want to know why.
Visit our website to learn more www.nuclearactive.org
2020-11-2303 minCCNS UpdateCCNS News on why LANL’s Area G Waste Handling Lacks Proper Safety DocumentsLANL stands for Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Find more information on our website!
2020-11-2003 min