The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which has unique expertise in nuclear weapons and nuclear material, plays a key role in the U.S. government’s comprehensive effort to combat terrorism. Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, NNSA has doubled spending on nuclear nonproliferation programs. NNSA works with over 100 countries to fight against nuclear proliferation and terrorism, and has successfully completed the following:

Secured Nuclear Material and Warheads

• Secured enough nuclear material for hundreds of warheads, by completing upgrades at more than 85% of the Russian nuclear warhead sites of concern, including all 39 Russian Navy nuclear sites and all 25 Russian Strategic Rocket Forces sites, with work underway at nine 12th Main Directorate sites to be completed by the end of 2008.
• Secured 178 buildings containing hundreds of metric tons of weapons-useable Russian nuclear material at 11 Russian Navy reactor fuel sites, seven Rosatom Weapons Complex sites, six civilian (non-Rosatom) sites, and 12 Rosatom civilian sites.
• Completed the largest U.S.-Russian effort to secure weapon-grade nuclear material at the Mayak Production Association in Ozersk, Russia.
• Secured 15 nuclear material buildings outside of Russia.
• Returned almost 610 kilograms (enough for over 20 nuclear weapons) of Soviet-origin highly enriched uranium from vulnerable sites around the world.
• Returned 1,163 kilograms (enough for over 45 nuclear weapons) of U.S.-origin highly enriched uranium.
• Removed over 140 kilograms (enough for five nuclear weapons) of other highly enriched uranium from vulnerable sites around the world.
• Converted into low enriched uranium approximately 10.7 metric tons of Russian excess non-weapons program highly enriched uranium.
• Helped to eliminate Libya’s nuclear weapons program by removing 1.8 metric tons of uranium hexafluoride and over 500 metric tons of centrifuge components and related materials.
• Reached agreement with Russia on principles to sustain security upgrades after 2012, when Russia assumes full responsibility for security for its own sites.
• Achieved shutdown of two Seversk weapons-grade plutonium reactors in April and June 2008, six months early; actively pursuing the closure of the Zheleznogorsk reactor ahead of the projected 2010 schedule, thereby eliminating a combined total of 1.2 MT of plutonium annually and permanently shutting down the last remaining plutonium production reactors in Russia.  The material produced is in storage monitored by the United States.
  

Protected “Dirty Bomb” Material

• Recovered over 18,000 radioactive sources in the United States, containing nearly 450,000 curies.
• Upgraded the physical security at 600 facilities around the world that contained vulnerable, high-risk radioactive material, containing over 9 million curies.

Safeguarded Research Reactors

• Converted 52 research reactors around the world from operating on highly enriched uranium to running on low enriched uranium.
• Shut down four highly enriched uranium civilian research reactors.

Provided Security-Related Training

• Trained over 250 foreign officials every year since the 9/11 terrorist attacks on how to physically protect nuclear material and facilities.
• Trained over 1,000 foreign officials on nuclear material control and accounting methods since 9/11.
• Trained over 5,900 domestic and 10,500 international export control enforcement officials on strategic trade controls and identification of weapons of mass destruction-related goods since the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
  

Prevented Nuclear Smuggling and Transfer of Nuclear Expertise

• Emphasized long-term research efforts to develop improved technologies to detect weapons of mass destruction and nuclear proliferation around the world.
• Completed Megaports radiation detection equipment installation in 12 countries, testing operations in three countries, and at various stages of implementation in 16 countries.
• Initiated the installation and/or sustainment of radiation detection systems and associated training in Ukraine, Slovakia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Slovenia, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Greece, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Estonia, Mongolia, Latvia, Bulgaria, Uzbekistan, Mexico and at the Vienna International Center; through July 2008, 53 sites outside of Russia have received radiation detection systems.
• Reached agreement with Russia to complete the installation of radiation detection equipment at all Russian border crossings (350 sites total) by 2011 (6 years ahead of schedule), building on the 120 crossings already equipped.
• Engaged thousands of former weapons scientists and engineers in the former Soviet Union, Libya and Iraq, helping redirect their talents to civilian pursuits while preventing the flow of WMD expertise to countries of proliferation concern and terrorist groups.
• Completed over 7,000 reviews of export license applications/requests related to material, technology and equipment of weapons of mass destruction concern in 2007, recommending the denial of 227.
  

Downblended or Disposed of Nuclear Material

• Monitored the downblending of over 337 metric tons (enough for 13,180 nuclear weapons) worth of Russian highly enriched uranium, which now provides 10 percent of U.S. electricity.
• Downblended over 100 metric tons (enough for approximately 2,200 nuclear weapons) of surplus U.S. highly enriched uranium into low enriched uranium for peaceful use as nuclear reactor fuel, with an additional 15 metric tons packaged and shipped for downblending (total of nearly 115 metric tons).
• Initiated downblending of an additional 17.4 metric tons of highly enriched uranium for the Reliable Fuel Supply Initiative, which will be used as an incentive to other countries to forego their own enrichment and reprocessing capabilities.
• Working to dispose of at least 68 metric tons (enough for 8,500 nuclear weapons) of U.S. and Russian weapons-grade plutonium by converting it into mixed-oxide fuel for commercial nuclear power reactors and also continues construction of the U.S. Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility, which began in August 2007.
  

Maintained Leading Emergency Response Capabilities and Training
NNSA has robust emergency capabilities with some of the world’s top professional scientists, engineers, pilots, medical personnel, technicians and other leading nuclear experts.  Using extremely sophisticated laboratories and equipment, NNSA teams are ready to respond to and resolve nuclear and radiological terrorist incidents, including supporting other government agencies, and deploying search, analysis and medical teams.

• NNSA participated in 80 national and international exercises in 2007 to maintain its elite response standards.
• NNSA deployed multiple field teams to conduct 35 high profile special events and 97 emergency responses around the world in support of the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of State.  These include State of the Union, Super Bowl, United Nations General Assembly, and numerous deployments and search operations.
• NNSA worked with emergency response organizations in over 39 countries and 9 international organizations to address radiological emergencies and nuclear incidents.  The international cooperation involves technical exchanges, mutual training events, jointly conducted exercises and emergency management assistance.
• NNSA established a national radiological “reachback” capability, in cooperation with the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO), to provide first responders with access to broader expert analysis of detector readings.
• Trained 32 of the 52 certified National Guard Civil Support Teams (CST) in emergency response.
• Assisted DNDO in the development of an initiative to increase the state and local first responder detection capabilities within key US cities.  New York City was the first city to field a robust local detection capability through this initiative.
• Established a maritime response team to conduct sophisticated radiation measurements on ships at sea.

For more information on NNSA's emergency response capabilities, click here.