NRDC: Weaponeers of Waste -- The Bush DOE's Nuclear Weapons Complex and Stockpile Stewardship

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Issues: Nuclear Energy, Waste & Weapons

Weaponeers of Waste
A Critical Look at the Bush Administration Energy Department's Nuclear Weapons Complex and the First Decade of Science-Based Stockpile Stewardship

This April 2004 report from NRDC's nuclear program provides an independent assessment of the U.S. nuclear "stockpile stewardship" program, whose purpose is to guarantee a safe, reliable nuclear weapons stockpile in absence of full-scale underground testing. The report found that, despite the end of the Cold War, the Bush administration is spending 12 times more on nuclear weapons research and production than on nonproliferation efforts to retrieve, secure and dispose of nuclear weapons materials worldwide. The report focuses on a half-dozen DOE nuclear weapons projects, revealing they are billions of dollars over budget and years behind in meeting their goals.

OVERVIEW & QUICK REFERENCE
Press Release

FULL REPORT IN PDF
Adobe Acrobat file (size: 596k)
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
1: Real Funding Growth for Nuclear Weapons in a Budget Burdened by Deficits
2: The Dual Axis Radiographic Hydrotest Facility (DARHT)
3: Does the Nation Really Need Nukes with "Micro-Machines" Inside?
4: Advanced Simulation and Computing Initiative (ASCI) Campaign
5: The National Ignition Facility (NIF)
6: The Pit Manufacturing and Certification Campaign
7: Beware Warnings of an Impending Tritium Gap
8: Conclusions and Recommendations
Appendix: What Things Really Cost in the NNSA "Weapons Activities" Budget
Glossary of Acronyms and Technical Terms
Endnotes

Related NRDC Pages
The Bush Administration's Nuclear Weapons Policies