Tri-Valley CAREs
Communities Against a Radioactive Environment
Media Advisory December 8, 2006
Public Hearings In Livermore And Tracy, Ca On Energy Dept. Plan To Build New Nukes
Peace, Environmental, Nuclear Policy Organizations Will be Joined by Livermore Lab Scientists, Sick Workers to Tell Government "Go Back to the Drawing Board" with Complex 2030 Plan
for more information, contact:
Marylia Kelley, Executive Director, Tri-Valley CAREs (925) 443-7148
What: Public Hearings in Livermore and Tracy on Dept. of Energy (DOE) "Complex 2030" plan to transform the nuclear weapons complex to build 125 new nuclear weapons per year. A broad range of public interest organizations, scientists and DOE workers made ill by on the job exposures will hold news conferences at both hearing locations.
When:
Tuesday, December 12, 2006 Livermore News Conferences -- 11:30 AM (day) and 6:30 PM (evening) The Livermore public hearing will run from 11 AM to 10 PM, beginning with a walk around DOE "poster session" for the first hour. The news conference will be held during the "poster session" and will conclude before the hearing plenary is convened.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006 Tracy News Conference -- 6:30 PM (evening session only) The Tracy public hearing is evening session only and will run from 6 PM to 10 PM, with a walk around DOE "poster session" for the first hour. The news conference will be held during the "poster session" and will conclude before the hearing plenary is convened.
Where: Livermore Public Hearing -- Robert Livermore Community Center, 4444 East Avenue. Tracy Public Hearing -- Tracy Community Center, 950 East Street.
Who: Participating in the Livermore and/or Tracy news conferences will be:
- Dr. Ray Kidder, senior scientist, Livermore Lab, rtd.
- Dr. Hugh DeWitt, astrophysicist, Livermore Lab, rtd.
- Gerry Giovacchini, exposed nuclear worker, Sandia, Livermore Lab
- Marylia Kelley, Tri-Valley CAREs
- Janis Turner, Tri-Valley Sierra Club
- Rebecca Griffin, Peace Action West
- Dr. Robert Gould, Bay Area Physicians for Social Responsibility
- Mary Alice O'Connor, Mt. Diablo Peace Center
- Jackie Cabasso, Western States Legal Foundation
- Chelsea Collogne, Fiat Pax, UC Berkeley
- Sandra Schwartz, American Friends Service Committee
- Dale Nesbitt, East Bay Peace Action
- Sarah Harling, Nevada Desert Experience
- Robert Alpern, Friends Committee on National Legislation
Why: The DOE has a new plan to "transform" the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, called "Complex 2030." The driving force for this new "Bombplex" is the controversial Reliable Replacement Warhead program to re-design every nuclear weapon in the enduring U.S. arsenal and build 125 new nuclear weapons each year. The "Bombplex" plan means a new plutonium bomb core factory to manufacture about 200 plutonium "pits" per year, of which 125 will be certified to go into new weapons for the arsenal.
Scientists and policy analysts will discuss the implications of the recent JASON report that plutonium pits in the current arsenal will last 100 years or longer -- making "replacement" weapons unnecessary. Community leaders, analysts and public interest groups will also outline the nuclear proliferation risks, financial costs, environmental degradation and health threats posed by "Complex 2030."
Local impacts at Livermore Lab, including nuclear weapon design activities, plutonium vulnerability and the future of high explosives testing will be detailed in the Livermore and Tracy news conferences.
The DOE is conducting the public hearings pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. They are called "scoping" hearings, and are the public's first opportunity to comment on DOE's plans for "Complex 2030."
News conference participants are available for pre-event interviews. Call Tri-Valley CAREs at (925) 443-7148 to obtain contact information.
Additional information can be found at www.trivalleycares.org.