Nuclear Security
Several Issues Could Impede the Ability of DOE's Office of Energy, Science and Environment to Meet the May 2003 Design Basis Threat
Gao ID: GAO-04-894T June 22, 2004
A successful terrorist attack on Department of Energy (DOE) sites containing the material used in nuclear weapons, called special nuclear material, could have devastating consequences for the site and its surrounding communities. Because of these risks, DOE needs an effective safeguards and security program. A key component of an effective program is the design basis threat (DBT), a classified document that identifies, among other things, the potential size and capabilities of terrorist forces. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, rendered the then-current DBT obsolete resulting in DOE issuing a new version in May 2003. GAO examined the issues that could impede the ability of DOE's Office of Energy, Science and Environment to fully meet the threat contained in the May 2003 DBT by the department's fiscal year 2006 deadline.
Five Office of Energy, Science and Environment sites contain substantial quantities of Category I special nuclear material, which consists of specified quantities of plutonium and highly enriched uranium. These sites have all developed plans for implementing the May 2003 DBT. However, there are several issues that could make it difficult to implement these plans by DOE's deadline of the end of fiscal year 2006. The Office of Energy, Science and Environment sites approved their DBT implementations plans in February 2004 before the Deputy Secretary of Energy issued his April 2004 guidance on which sites had improvised nuclear device vulnerabilities. As a result, some sites may be required to shift to enhanced protection strategies, which could be very costly. Consequently, the assumptions in the Office of Energy, Science and Environment DBT implementation plans may no longer be valid, and the plans may need to be revised. The Office of Energy, Science and Environment site plans are based on the May 2003 DBT; however, DOE is now reexamining the May 2003 DBT and may revise it. Consequently, if the DBT is changed in a way that increases security requirements, some Office of Energy, Science and Environment sites may have to revise their implementation plans to reflect the need to provide for a more stringent defense. The plan for one Office of Energy, Science and Environment site was under funded. Specifically, officials in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology, which is part of the Office of Energy, Science and Environment, told GAO that, for one site, no DBT implementation funding had been requested for fiscal year 2005. Finally, full implementation of these plans will require the successful resolution of complex organizational arrangements between various program and security offices. Consequently, GAO continues to believe, as it recommended in April 2004, that DOE needs to develop and implement a departmentwide, multiyear, fully resourced implementation plan for meeting the new DBT requirements that includes important programmatic activities such as the closure of facilities and the transportation of special nuclear materials.
GAO-04-894T, Nuclear Security: Several Issues Could Impede the Ability of DOE's Office of Energy, Science and Environment to Meet the May 2003 Design Basis Threat
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Testimony:
Before the Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats, and
International Relations, Committee on Government Reform, House of
Representatives:
United States General Accounting Office:
GAO:
For Release on Delivery Expected at 10:00 a.m. EDT:
Tuesday, June 22, 2004:
Nuclear Security:
Several Issues Could Impede the Ability of DOE's Office of Energy,
Science and Environment to Meet the May 2003 Design Basis Threat:
Statement of Robin M. Nazzaro, Director, Natural Resources and
Environment Team:
GAO-04-894T:
GAO Highlights:
Highlights of GAO-04-894T, a testimony to Subcommittee on National
Security, Emerging Threats, and International Relations, Committee on
Government Reform, House of Representatives
Why GAO Did This Study:
A successful terrorist attack on Department of Energy (DOE) sites
containing the material used in nuclear weapons, called special nuclear
material, could have devastating consequences for the site and its
surrounding communities. Because of these risks, DOE needs an effective
safeguards and security program. A key component of an effective
program is the design basis threat (DBT), a classified document that
identifies, among other things, the potential size and capabilities of
terrorist forces. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, rendered
the then-current DBT obsolete resulting in DOE issuing a new version in
May 2003.
GAO examined the issues that could impede the ability of DOE‘s Office
of Energy, Science and Environment to fully meet the threat contained
in the May 2003 DBT by the department‘s fiscal year 2006 deadline.
What GAO Found:
Five Office of Energy, Science and Environment sites contain
substantial quantities of Category I special nuclear material, which
consists of specified quantities of plutonium and highly enriched
uranium. These sites have all developed plans for implementing the May
2003 DBT. However, there are several issues that could make it
difficult to implement these plans by DOE‘s deadline of the end of
fiscal year 2006. Specifically:
* Office of Energy, Science and Environment sites approved their DBT
implementations plans in February 2004 before the Deputy Secretary of
Energy issued his April 2004 guidance on which sites had improvised
nuclear device vulnerabilities. As a result, some sites may be required
to shift to enhanced protection strategies, which could be very costly.
Consequently, the assumptions in the Office of Energy, Science and
Environment DBT implementation plans may no longer be valid, and the
plans may need to be revised.
* Office of Energy, Science and Environment site plans are based on the
May 2003 DBT; however, DOE is now reexamining the May 2003 DBT and may
revise it. Consequently, if the DBT is changed in a way that increases
security requirements, some Office of Energy, Science and Environment
sites may have to revise their implementation plans to reflect the need
to provide for a more stringent defense.
* The plan for one Office of Energy, Science and Environment site was
under funded. Specifically, officials in the Office of Nuclear Energy,
Science and Technology, which is part of the Office of Energy, Science
and Environment, told GAO that, for one site, no DBT implementation
funding had been requested for fiscal year 2005.
* Finally, full implementation of these plans will require the
successful resolution of complex organizational arrangements between
various program and security offices.
Consequently, GAO continues to believe, as it recommended in April
2004, that DOE needs to develop and implement a departmentwide,
multiyear, fully resourced implementation plan for meeting the new DBT
requirements that includes important programmatic activities such as
the closure of facilities and the transportation of special nuclear
materials.
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-04-894T.
To view the full product, including the scope and methodology, click on
the link above. For more information, contact Robin M. Nazzaro at (202)
512-3841 or nazzaror@gao.gov.
[End of section]
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
I am pleased to be here today to discuss our work on physical security
at the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Energy, Science and
Environment (ESE). DOE's Office of Energy, Science and Environment
comprises nine offices, including the Offices of Environmental
Management (EM); Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (NE); and
Science (SC) and is headed by the Under Secretary for ESE.
DOE has long recognized that a successful terrorist attack on a site
containing the material used in nuclear weaponsócalled special nuclear
materialócould have devastating consequences for the site and its
surrounding communities. This is particularly true at sites that
contain Category I special nuclear material, which consists of
specified quantities of plutonium and highly enriched uranium in the
form of assembled nuclear weapons and test devices, major nuclear
components, and other high-grade materials such as solutions and
oxides.
Because terrorist attacks could have such devastating consequences,
DOE's effective management of its safeguards and security program,
which includes developing safeguards and security policies, is
essential to preventing an unacceptable, adverse impact on national
security.[Footnote 1] For many years, DOE has employed risk-based
security practices. To manage potential risks, DOE has developed a
design basis threat (DBT), a classified document that identifies the
potential size and capabilities of terrorist forces. DOE's DBT is based
on an intelligence community assessment known as the Postulated Threat.
DOE requires the contractors operating its sites to provide sufficient
protective forces and equipment to defend against the threat contained
in the DBT. The DBT in effect on September 11, 2001, had been DOE
policy since June 1999. DOE replaced the 1999 DBT in May 2003 to better
reflect the current and projected terrorist threats that resulted from
the September 11 attacks.
On April 27, 2004, we testified before this Subcommittee on several key
aspects surrounding DOE's development and implementation of its May
2003 DBT.[Footnote 2] Specifically, we reported on our examination of
(1) the reasons DOE needed almost 2 years to develop a new DBT, (2) the
higher threat contained in the new DBT, and (3) the remaining issues
that needed to be resolved for DOE to fully defend against the threat
contained in the new DBT. With regard to the issues needing resolution
for DOE to fully defend against the threat contained in the new DBT, we
found that DOE had been slow to resolve a number of significant issues
including developing DBT implementation plans and budgets to support
these plans. The need to fully resolve these issues may affect the
ability of its sites to fully meet the threat contained in the new DBT
in a timely fashion. Consequently, we stated that DOE's deadline to
meet the requirements of the new DBT by the end of fiscal year 2006 was
probably not realistic for some sites.
Subsequently, you asked us to examine in more detail the issues that
could impede ESE's ability to fully meet the threat contained in the
new DBT by DOE's fiscal year 2006 deadline. To carry out our objective,
we interviewed DOE and ESE officials, including EM, NE, and SC
headquarters security officials, as well as field security officials.
We also reviewed relevant documents these officials provided to us. In
addition, we reviewed recent reports from DOE's Office of Independent
Oversight and Performance Assurance for the ESE sites that contain
Category I special nuclear material. We also relied on our previous
work on DOE physical security conducted for this Subcommittee over the
last 2 years. We performed our work from May 2004 to June 2004 in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
In summary, ESE sites containing Category I special nuclear material
have developed plans for implementing the May 2003 DBT. However, we
believe there are several issues that could make it difficult to
implement these plans by DOE's deadline of the end of fiscal year 2006.
These specific issues are as follows:
* ESE sites approved their implementation plans during February 2004
before the Deputy Secretary of Energy issued his April 2004 guidance on
which sites had improvised nuclear device vulnerabilities. As a result,
some sites may be required to shift to enhanced protection strategies,
which could be very costly. Consequently, the assumptions in the ESE
site plans may no longer be valid, and the plans may need to be
revised.
* ESE site plans are based on the May 2003 DBT; however, DOE is now
reexamining the May 2003 DBT and may revise it. Consequently, if the
DBT is changed to increase security requirements, some ESE offices may
have to revise their implementation plans to reflect the need for a
more stringent defense.
* While ESE sites have developed implementation plans, even under the
old assumptions, the plan for one site was under funded. Specifically,
NE security officials told us that for one site no DBT implementation
funding had been requested for fiscal year 2005.
* Finally, full implementation of these plans will require the
successful resolution of complex organizational arrangements between
various program and security offices.
We continue to believe, as we recommended in April 2004, that DOE needs
to develop and implement a department wide multiyear, fully resourced
implementation plan for meeting the new DBT requirements that includes
important programmatic activities such as the closure of facilities and
the transportation of special nuclear materials.[Footnote 3]
Background:
Five ESE sites collectively contain substantial quantities of Category
I special nuclear material. These include the following:
* the Savannah River Site in Savannah River, South Carolina, and the
Hanford Site in Richland, Washington, which are managed by EM;
* the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory and the
Argonne National Laboratory-West which are located in Idaho Falls,
Idaho, and are managed by NE; and:
* the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, which is
managed by SC.
Contractors operate each site for ESE. The ESE program offices that
oversee these sitesóEM, NE, and SCóhave requested about $397 million in
fiscal year 2005 for security.
Two other organizations are important contributors to DOE's security
program. The Office of Security in DOE's Office of Security and Safety
Performance Assurance develops and promulgates orders and policies,
such as the DBT, to guide the department's safeguards and security
programs. The Office of Independent Oversight and Performance Assurance
in DOE's Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance supports
the department by, among other things, independently evaluating the
effectiveness of contractors' performance in safeguards and security.
It also performs follow-up reviews to ensure that contractors have
taken effective corrective actions and appropriately addressed
weaknesses in safeguards and security.
The risks associated with Category I special nuclear materials vary but
include the creation of improvised nuclear devices capable of producing
a nuclear yield, theft for use in an illegal nuclear weapon, and the
potential for sabotage in the form of radioactive dispersal. Because of
these risks, DOE has long employed risk-based security practices. The
key component of DOE's well-established, risk-based security practices
is the DBT, a classified document that identifies the characteristics
of the potential threats to DOE assets. The DBT traditionally has been
based on a classified, multiagency intelligence community assessment of
potential terrorist threats, known as the Postulated Threat. The DBT
considers a variety of threats in addition to the terrorist threat.
Other adversaries considered in the DBT include criminals, psychotics,
disgruntled employees, violent activists, and spies. The DBT also
considers the threat posed by insiders, those individuals who have
authorized, unescorted access to any part of DOE facilities and
programs. Insiders may operate alone or may assist an adversary group.
Insiders are routinely considered to provide assistance to the
terrorist groups found in the DBT. The threat from terrorist groups is
generally the most demanding threat contained in the DBT.
DOE counters the terrorist threat specified in the DBT with a
multifaceted protective system. While specific measures vary from site
to site, all protective systems at DOE's most sensitive sites employ a
defense-in-depth concept that includes sensors, physical barriers,
hardened facilities and vaults, and heavily armed paramilitary
protective forces equipped with such items as automatic weapons, night
vision equipment, body armor, and chemical protective gear.
The effectiveness of the protective system is formally and regularly
examined through vulnerability assessments. A vulnerability assessment
is a systematic evaluation process in which qualitative and
quantitative techniques are applied to detect vulnerabilities and
arrive at effective protection of specific assets, such as special
nuclear material. To conduct such assessments, DOE uses, among other
things, subject matter experts, such as U.S. Special Forces; computer
modeling to simulate attacks; and force-on-force performance testing,
in which the site's protective forces undergo simulated attacks by a
group of mock terrorists.
The results of these assessments are documented at each site in a
classified document known as the Site Safeguards and Security Plan. In
addition to identifying known vulnerabilities, risks, and protection
strategies for the site, the Site Safeguards and Security Plan formally
acknowledges how much risk the contractor and DOE are willing to
accept. Specifically, for more than a decade, DOE has employed a risk
management approach that seeks to direct resources to its most critical
assetsóin this case Category I special nuclear materialóand mitigate
the risks to these assets to an acceptable level. Levels of riskóhigh,
medium, and lowóare assigned classified numerical values and are
derived from a mathematical equation that compares a terrorist group's
capabilities with the overall effectiveness of the crucial elements of
the site's protective forces and systems.
Historically, DOE has striven to keep its most critical assets at a low
risk level and may insist on immediate compensatory measures should a
significant vulnerability develop that increases risk above the low
risk level. Compensatory measures could include deploying additional
protective forces or curtailing operations until the asset can be
better protected. In response to a September 2000 DOE Inspector
General's report recommending that DOE establish a policy on what
actions are required once a high or moderate risk is identified, in
September 2003, DOE's Office of Security issued a policy clarification
stating that identified high risks at facilities must be formally
reported to the Secretary of Energy or Deputy Secretary within 24
hours. In addition, under this policy clarification, identified high
and moderate risks require corrective actions and regular reporting.
Through a variety of complementary measures, DOE ensures that its
safeguards and security policies are being complied with and are
performing as intended. Contractors perform regular self-assessments
and are encouraged to uncover any problems themselves. DOE Orders also
require field offices to comprehensively survey contractors' operations
for safeguards and security every year. The Office of Independent
Oversight and Performance Assurance in DOE's Office of Security and
Safety Assurance provides yet another check through its comprehensive
inspection program. All deficiencies identified during surveys and
inspections require the contractors to take corrective action.
Reflecting the post-September 11 environment, the May 2003 DBT, among
other things, identified a larger terrorist threat than did the 1999
DBT. It also expanded the range of terrorist objectives to include
radiological, biological, and chemical sabotage. Key features of the
2003 DBT included the following:
* Expanded terrorist characteristics and goals. The 2003 DBT assumes
that:
terrorist groups are the following: well armed and equipped; trained in
paramilitary and guerrilla warfare skills and small unit tactics;
highly motivated; willing to kill, risk death, or commit suicide; and
capable of attacking without warning. Furthermore, according to the
2003 DBT, terrorists might attack a DOE facility for a variety of
goals, including the theft of a nuclear weapon, nuclear test device, or
special nuclear material; radiological, chemical, or biological
sabotage; and the on-site detonation of a nuclear weapon, nuclear test
device, or special nuclear material that results in a significant
nuclear yield. DOE refers to such a detonation as an improvised nuclear
device.
* Increased the size of the terrorist group threat. The 2003 DBT
increases the terrorist threat levels for the theft of the department's
highest value assets--Category I special nuclear materials--although
not in a uniform way. Previously, under the 1999 DBT, all DOE sites
that possessed any type of Category I special nuclear material were
required to defend against a uniform terrorist group composed of a
relatively small number of individuals. Under the 2003 DBT, however,
the department judged the theft of a nuclear weapon or test device to
be more attractive to terrorists, and sites that have these assets are
required to defend against a substantially higher number of terrorists
than are other sites. For example, a DOE site that, among other things,
assembles and disassembles nuclear weapons, is required to defend
against a larger terrorist group. Other DOE sites, such as an EM site
that stores excess plutonium, only have to defend against a smaller
group of terrorists. However, the number of terrorists in the 2003 DBT
is larger than the 1999 DBT number. DOE calls this a graded threat
approach.
* Mandated specific protection strategies. In line with the graded
threat approach and depending on the type of materials they possess and
the likely mission of the terrorist group, sites must now implement
specific protection strategies for Category I special nuclear material.
In addition, sites will have to develop, for the first time, specific
protection strategies for facilities, such as radioactive waste storage
areas, wastewater treatment, and science laboratories, against the
threat of radiological, chemical, or biological sabotage.
* Addressed the potential for improvised nuclear device concerns. The
May 2003 DBT established a special team to report to the Secretary of
Energy on each site's potential for improvised nuclear devices. Based
on the team's advice, in April 2004 the Deputy Secretary of Energy
designated whether a site had such a concern. This official designation
was intended to help address the general dissatisfaction with previous
DOE policies for improvised nuclear devices, knowledge of which was
carefully controlled and not shared widely with security officials. For
example, some EM sites had no information at all on their potential for
this risk.
A Number of Issues May Affect the Ability of ESE Sites to Fully Meet
the Threat Contained in the New DBT in a Timely Fashion:
When we testified before this Subcommittee in April 2004, we stated
that while DOE had issued the final DBT in May 2003, it had only
recently begun to resolve a number of significant issues that could
affect the ability of its sites to fully meet the threat in the new DBT
in a timely fashion. These issues involved issuing additional DBT
implementation guidance, developing DBT implementation plans, and
developing budgets to support these plans. We noted that fully
resolving all of these issues might take several years, and the total
cost of meeting the new threats was currently unknown. Consequently, we
stated, full DBT implementation could occur anywhere from fiscal year
2005 to fiscal year 2008, well beyond the department's goal of the end
of fiscal year 2006. Because some sites would be unable to effectively
counter the higher threat contained in the new DBT for up to several
years, we stated that these sites should be considered to be at higher
risk under the new DBT than they were under the old DBT.After reviewing
ESE's efforts to implement the May 2003 DBT at sites containing
Category I special nuclear material, we continue to be concerned about
whether DOE can meet its fiscal year 2006 deadline for full DBT
implementation. Specifically, while ESE sites that contain Category I
special nuclear material have developed plans for implementing the May
2003 DBT, as directed by the Deputy Secretary of Energy, we believe
there are four issues that will make it difficult to implement these
plans in a timely fashion.
First, ESE sites approved their implementation plans in February 2004
before the Deputy Secretary of Energy issued his guidance on which
sites had improvised nuclear device vulnerabilities. As noted
previously, the May 2003 DBT created a special team, composed of
weapons designers and security specialists to report on each site's
improvised nuclear device vulnerabilities. The results of this report
were briefed to senior DOE officials in March 2004 and the Deputy
Secretary of Energy issued guidance, based on this report, to DOE sites
in early April 2004. As a result, some sites may be required under the
2003 DBT to shift to enhanced protection strategies, which could be
very costly. This special team's report may most affect ESE sites,
because, in some cases, their improvised nuclear device potential had
not previously been explored. In addition, ESE security officials told
us that confusion exists about how or if this guidance applies to their
sites, and they stated that they are working with officials from DOE's
Office of Security to resolve this confusion. The Director of DOE's
Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance agreed that
additional guidance will be necessary to resolve this confusion.
Consequently, because ESE sites developed their plans well before this
guidance was issued, the assumptions in their plans may no longer be
valid and the plans may need to be revised.
Second, the ESE site implementation plans are based on the May 2003
DBT; however, DOE is now reexamining the May 2003 DBT and may revise
it. In our April 2004 report, we expressed several concerns about the
May 2003 DBT. In particular, we noted that some DOE sites may have
improvised nuclear device concerns that, if successfully exploited by
terrorists could result in a nuclear detonation. However, under the May
2003 DBT, DOE only required these sites to defend against a relatively
small group of terrorists. Because we believed that DOE had not made a
persuasive case for defending against a lower number of terrorists, we
recommended that DOE reexamine how it applies the DBT to sites with
improvised nuclear device concerns. Subsequently, in May 2004, the
Secretary of Energy announced that the department would reexamine the
DBT. Originally, this reexamination was to be completed by June 30,
2004. However, according to the Director of DOE's Office of Security
and Safety Performance Assurance this effort will not be completed
until August 6, 2004. In addition, the Director stated that the end
result of this effort may only be a plan on how to revise the DBT.
Consequently, if the DBT is changed in a way that increases security
requirements, some ESE offices may have to revise their implementation
plans to reflect the need to provide for a more stringent defense.
Third, in one case ESE does not have adequate resources. Specifically,
while ESE sites have developed implementation plans, even under the old
assumptions, the plan for one site was under funded. NE security
officials told us that for one site no DBT implementation funding had
been requested for fiscal year 2005, even though the site recognized
that it needed to substantially increase its protective forces to meet
the new DBT.
Finally, ESE faces a number of complex organizational issues that could
make DBT implementation more difficult. Specifically:
* EM's Security Director told us that for EM to fully comply with the
DBT requirements in fiscal year 2006 at one of its sites, it will have
to close and de-inventory two facilities, consolidate excess materials
into remaining special nuclear materials facilities, and move
consolidated Category I special nuclear material, which the National
Nuclear Security Administration's Office of Secure Transportation will
transport, to another site. Likewise, the EM Security Director told us
that to meet the DBT requirements at another site, EM will have to
accelerate the closure of one facility and transfer special nuclear
material to another facility on the site. Because the costs to close
these facilities and to move materials within a site are borne by the
EM program budget and not by the EM safeguards and security budget,
obtaining adequate funding could be difficult.
* At an Office of Science site, a building that contains Category I
special nuclear material is managed and protected by the Office of
Science, while the material itself belongs to NE. NE is currently
planning to remove the material and process it. After processing, the
material will no longer have to meet the protection requirements for
Category I special nuclear material. Accomplishing this task will
require additional security measures, the planning and funding for
which will have to be carefully coordinated between the Office of
Science and NE.
* NE sites face similar issues. For example, the NE Security Director
told us that EM currently owns all of the Category I special nuclear
material stored at an NE site. EM is currently planning to have the
National Nuclear Security Administration's Office of Secure
Transportation transport this material to several other locations by
the end of January 2005. According to the NE site Security Director, NE
is counting on the successful removal of this special nuclear material
to meet the department's fiscal year 2006 deadline for implementing the
May 2003 DBT. To implement the May 2003 DBT, NE also needs to
consolidate two of its sites into a single national laboratory, which
will, among other things, ensure that it has an adequate number of
protective forces. If the EM special nuclear materials are not moved
and this consolidation is not achieved, the number of protective forces
at this site may not be adequate.
Because of the importance of successfully integrating multiple program
activities with security requirements, we continue to believe, as we
recommended in April 2004, that DOE needs to develop and implement a
departmentwide, multiyear, fully resourced implementation plan for
meeting the May 2003 DBT requirements that includes important
programmatic activities such as the closure of facilities and the
transportation of special nuclear materials.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes our prepared statement. We would be happy
to respond to any questions that you or Members of the Subcommittee may
have.
GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments:
For further information on this testimony, please contact Robin M.
Nazzaro at (202) 512-3841. James Noel and Jonathan Gill made key
contributions to this testimony. Don Cowan and Preston Heard also made
contributions to this testimony.
FOOTNOTES
[1] See U.S. General Accounting Office, Nuclear Security: NNSA Needs to
Better Manage Its Safeguards and Security Program, GAO-04-471
(Washington, D.C.: May 30, 2003).
[2] See U.S. General Accounting Office, Nuclear Security: DOE Must
Address Significant Issues to Meet the Requirements of the New Design
Basis Threat, GAO-04-701T (Washington, D.C.: April 27, 2004).
[3] See U.S. General Accounting Office, Nuclear Security: DOE Needs to
Resolve Significant Issues Before It Fully Meets the New Design Basis
Threat, GAO-04-623 (Washington, D.C.: April 27, 2004).