[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 140 (Friday, July 22, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-17807]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 22, 1994]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEFENSE NUCLEAR FACILITIES SAFETY BOARD

 

Resolution of Potential Conflict of Interest

    The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Board) has identified 
and resolved a potential conflict of interest situation related to its 
contractor, Mr. Nicholas P. Armenis. This Notice satisfies the 
requirements of 10 CFR 1706.8(e) with respect to publication in the 
Federal Register. Under the Board's Organizational and Consultant 
Conflict of Interests Regulations, 10 CFR Part 1706 (OCI Regulations), 
an organizational or consultant conflict of interest (OCI) means that 
because of other past, present, or future planned activities or 
relationships, a contractor or consultant is unable, or potentially 
unable, to render impartial assistance or advice to the Board, or the 
objectivity of such offeror or contractor in performing work for the 
Board is or might be otherwise impaired, or such offeror or contractor 
has or would have an unfair competitive advantage. While the OCI 
Regulations provide that contracts shall generally not be awarded to an 
organization where the Board has determined that an actual or potential 
OCI exists and cannot be avoided, the Board may waive this requirement 
in certain circumstances.
    The Board's mission is to provide advice and recommendations to the 
Department of Energy (DOE) regarding public health and safety matters 
related to DOE's defense nuclear facilities. This includes the review 
and evaluation of the content and implementation of health and safety 
standards including DOE orders, rules, and other safety requirements, 
relating to the design, construction, operation and decommissioning of 
DOE defense nuclear facilities. In late 1991, Congress amended the 
Board's enabling Act, broadening the Board's jurisdiction over defense 
nuclear facilities to include the assembly, disassembly, and the 
testing of nuclear weapons. With this increase in responsibility, the 
Board revised its priorities to include reviews of additional 
facilities, including, principally the Pantex Plant (Pantex), Nevada 
Test Site (NTS), and additional facilities at Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant. The 
Board also recognized the need to direct its attention to the 
activities of the weapons design laboratories such as Los Alamos 
National Laboratory (LANL), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory 
(LLNL), and Sandia National Laboratory (Sandia).
    Two matters of immediate concern to the Board are the safety of 
ongoing weapons disassembly operations and maintenance of the 
capability to safely conduct nuclear testing operations. While the DOE 
had been engaged in these activities for decades, significant changes 
in the national security posture resulted in shifts in emphasis within 
DOE. Unprecedented numbers of simultaneous nuclear weapon retirements 
strained DOE's capabilities to develop and implement safe and well-
engineered procedures. A Congressionally-mandated and Presidentially-
extended nuclear testing moratorium removed the primary mechanism 
(i.e., an active, ongoing testing program) by which the capability to 
execute tests safely was exercised and ensured. At the same time, the 
weapons programs at the nuclear weapons laboratories were losing 
skilled and experienced personnel due to retirement, downsizing, and 
reassignments. This combination of issues required the Board to 
increase its attention, and with it the number of associated reviews, 
at both Pantex and the NTS. Further, the Board recognized that it 
needed individuals with expertise in multiple technical disciplines, 
not previously required, to effectively meet the challenges and 
responsibilities of its new authority. These technical disciplines 
included conventional and nuclear explosive technology and safety, 
nuclear materials handling and storage, criticality safety, and nuclear 
weapons assembly, disassembly, storage and testing.
    While the Board initiated an employee recruitment effort for 
individuals with formal training and experience in weapons related 
disciplines, it also recognized a need for technical assistance from 
outside experts who have direct relevant experience in this area. The 
Board identified Mr. Nicholas P. Armenis as an individual with the 
requisite knowledge and experience needed to provide the Board with 
immediate assistance in the weapons area and entered into an agreement 
with him for support services. Under this arrangement, Mr. Armenis 
provides technical expertise with respect to the design of nuclear 
weapons currently being returned to Pantex for dismantlement, including 
historical insight related to specific design and test details of the 
weapons systems. In particular, his expertise related to the mechanical 
aspects of weapons physics packages is being utilized to ensure the 
safe disassembly, handling, and storage of these nuclear weapons 
systems. Through the Board's direction, he has participated in reviews 
of various weapon dismantlement procedures, observed the complete 
dismantlement of selected weapons, and provided valuable insight into 
DOE developed operating and inspection standards for these activities. 
The Board believes that its activities, supported by Mr. Armenis, have 
contributed to the following achievements at Pantex; institution of a 
practice whereby the responsible DOE laboratories (LANL, LLNL, Sandia) 
review procedures for disassembly of nuclear weapons for identification 
of potential safety questions; and improved conduct of operations in 
disassembly of nuclear weapons.
    The Board has subsequently learned that Mr. Armenis is providing 
consulting services to LANL that may create a potential conflict of 
interest with his work for the Board. Specifically, Mr. Armenis assists 
the LANL staff in compiling complete development reports for weapons 
that are presently in the stockpile and in preparing final 
documentation for NTS tests that have been executed since none of the 
weapons have been thoroughly documented and final NTS device data has 
not been compiled. His efforts involve working with LANL engineers in 
the proper compilation of data to assure consistency in methods and to 
prevent the exclusion of critical details of this historical 
reconstruction of information.
    The Board reviewed this situation and concluded that, even if the 
circumstances could give rise to a potential conflict of interest 
situation, it is nonetheless in the best interest of the Government to 
have Mr. Armenis continue to provide support to the Board for the 
reasons described below. Mr. Armenis possesses a comprehensive 
understanding of nuclear weapons assembly and dismantlement procedures 
based on his approximately forty years of direct involvement in these 
activities. He spent thirty years working at LANL as a design engineer 
and supervisor involved in the design and assembly of nuclear devices 
from 1948 through 1977. He also assisted in the technical management 
and administration of a LANL unit which was responsible for nuclear 
design, nuclear device assembly, production specifications liaison with 
DOE contractors, and feasibility studies for various weapon programs. 
Further, since his departure from LANL, Mr. Armenis has worked as a 
consultant for his former employer in this technical area. His efforts 
included reviews of NTS test device records to determine document 
retention issues and the research of weapon development records. This 
research has resulted in written histories of the development of 
various stockpile weapons. Therefore, Mr. Armenis's unparalleled blend 
of hands-on expertise in the development of assembly and disassembly 
procedures of nuclear weapons, coupled with his more recent work in 
research and recreation of these activities, makes him uniquely 
qualified to assist the Board in its health and safety reviews of 
current DOE weapons disassembly efforts.
    The Board also examined Mr. Armenis's current financial 
relationship with LANL, which includes a vested pension program and 
approximately twelve weeks a year of the consulting work described 
above, and considered the potential effect it may have on his 
objectivity in performing the Board's work. Based on this review, the 
Board determined that these relationships should not interfere with his 
work for the Board since the pension, and any future increases, is 
calculated according to fixed formulas and prior contributions, and the 
relative value of his LANL consulting effort is low compared to the 
number of hours actually worked by Mr. Armenis each year.
    Further, the continued use of Mr. Armenis by the Board is 
consistent with the spirit and intent of Board Recommendation 93-6 to 
the Secretary of Energy dated December 10, 1993. This recommendation 
highlights the need for DOE to retain access to capability and capture 
the unique knowledge of individuals who have been engaged for many 
years in certain critical defense nuclear activities in order to avoid 
future safety problems in these and related areas. The Board's concern 
is that while documentation essential to DOE's current weapons 
dismantlement program exists on the design and safety aspects of 
nuclear weapons, it is also important, for safety reasons, to involve 
individuals from the design laboratories of LANL, LLNL, and Sandia. 
These individuals should participate in reviews of detailed 
dismantlement procedures and specialized procedures and should respond 
to problems encountered in the course of weapon dismantlement. The 
design individuals from the laboratories most needed in connection with 
dismantlement of a specific weapon are those who had been active in the 
original design of that weapon.These individuals are believed to 
possess information not recorded in documentation, such as reasons for 
specific design features and personal knowledge of any problems that 
have arisen during design, fabrication, and stockpile life. Therefore, 
while the Board believes that DOE must retain and utilize certain 
expertise in the weapons area, it also recognizes the value of 
acquiring specialized technical support from Mr. Armenis in the 
fulfillment of its health and safety responsibilities.
    The Board also recognized that it is unlikely that the work being 
performed by Mr. Armenis could be satisfactorily performed by anyone 
else whose experience and affiliations would not give rise to a 
conflict of interest question. That is because the individuals who have 
the requisite expertise in this area could only have obtained such 
expertise through previous or current employment or consulting 
relationship with one or more of the weapons design laboratories. The 
pertinent experience of other qualified individuals would therefore 
likely raise similar conflicting questions.
    Finally, as the Board is required under its OCI Regulations, where 
reasonably possible, to initiate measures which attempt to mitigate an 
OCI, Mr. Armenis and the Board agreed to the following during contract 
performance. Should the effort Mr. Armenis is currently performing for 
LANL change from only providing assistance in the historical recreation 
of past weapons activities to one of assessing the adequacy or safety 
of current weapons disassembly procedures or some other task which 
would directly conflict with work he performs for the Board, he will 
immediately notify the Board, which then will take further action as 
appropriate. Also, the efforts of Mr. Armenis will be overseen by 
experienced technical staff of the Board who are able to ensure that 
all of his resultant work products are impartial and contain full 
support for any findings and recommendations issued thereunder.
    Accordingly, on the basis of the determination described above and 
pursuant to the applicable provisions of 10 CFR part 1706, the Chairman 
of the Board granted a waiver of any conflicts of interests (and the 
pertinent provisions of the OCI Regulations) with the Board's contract 
with Mr. Nicholas P. Armenis that might arise out of his existing 
relationship with LANL.

    Dated: July 18, 1994.
Joe Neubeiser,
Acting General Manager.
[FR Doc. 94-17807 Filed 7-21-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6802-KD-M