ANA Experts Raise Weapons and Nuclear Energy Oversight Concerns

Graphic from ananuclear.org

By Odile Hugonot-Haber

What follows is a brief report on the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability (ANA) Fall 2018 Meeting in Boulder, CO, one of two annual working and planning meetings. This was my first time participating in a working meeting. The meeting, held September 12-15, had two “pods”:  the Peace Pod for the activists who monitor weapons labs, and the Green Pod for the activists who monitor nuclear waste. Pat O'Brien, a Colorado WILPFer, went to the Green Pod, and I went to the Peace Pod.

ANA began thirty years ago as an alliance of affected peoples, organizers, health workers, and scientists who wanted to take on the nuclear weapons complex that was poisoning communities, wasting billions of our dollars, and putting the world at risk. WILPF is one of over 30 member organizations in ANA. ANA has blocked dangerous nuclear weapons programs, supported more responsible nuclear waste management plans, and worked to decommission hazardous nuclear reactors. Its citizen experts, from across the country, are deeply rooted in the ongoing impacts of nuclear weapons, waste, and energy on our health and environment.
 
#1: Top on the agenda was to support a bill proposed by a group of Democratic lawmakers, led by Rep. Ted Lieu of California, to ban the Defense Department from developing a new low-yield nuclear warhead, as it could fuel a very dangerous escalation of the arms race and hasten nuclear war. Our president had signed an appropriation bills package that gave $65 million to this program. The money would pay to modify the W76-1 warhead for the Navy Trident II D5 ballistic missile into a W76-2 warhead. This bill is called the “Hold the LYNE (Low-Yield Nuclear Explosive) Act” and it is attempting to freeze this program. WILPF-US joined a coalition that supports this bill. This effort is led by Marylia Kelley for Tri-Valley CAREs, who is on the board of ANA.

According to ANA’s experts, this year the weapons we should be most concerned about are:

• W1/W78 Novel Design Inter-operable Warhead - $53 million in the budget
• W76-2 (low yield) - $65 million
• W80-4 Long Range Stand Off  (LRSO) new warhead - $54.7 million (double from before and double from previously)\
• B 61-12 -  $794 million
• Plus stockpile sustainment - $64.5 million

Experts also delivered statements about how the labs drive the arms race.

#2: Another urgent item concerns nuclear facility oversight. On May 14, 2018, the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE), which oversees nuclear facilities, approved DOE Order 140.1 Interface with the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, which limits the DNFSBs access to nuclear security sites and personnel. DNFSB was established by Congress as the only independent oversight of nuclear weapons facilities, and has in the past been instrumental in finding and requiring the correction of numerous problems.  For more information see this fact sheet posted by Tri-Valley CAREs.

#3: ANA will of course continue to focus on ratifying and enforcing the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.  

ANA’s big event is the spring DC Days, which provide teaching and lobbying days and scholarships to youth. Carol Urner, former co-chair of WILPF-US DISARM/End Wars Issue Committee, fully participated in ANA for many years, as has current co-chair Ellen Thomas. I was brought to DC days the first time by Kay Cumbow, who received an award there for her work on monitoring nuclear waste in the Great Lakes, and I attended again in 2017 with Ellen.

We hope that WILPF branches could be mobilized to bring youth to DC Days like they do for the UN Practicum. It would benefit WILPF branches to join with ANA for these events and to provide an opportunity for younger people to learn about these issues.

For information about all of ANA’s activities, visit their website.

Inset photo caption: ANA DC Days in 2018. Photo by Ellen Thomas.