ACCESS CONTROL AND NUCLEAR MATERIAL MONITORING UPGRADES AT AN UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR PRODUCTION FACILITY

The Mining and Chemical Combine (MCC) is a Federal Atomic Energy Agency (FAEA, or Rosatom) nuclear facility located near the city of Zheleznogorsk, Russia. Located on the bank of the Yenisey River, the production facility is contained within a granite massif, which houses both a reactor plant and a Radiochemical Plant. Prior to the 1995 time frame, the facility was tasked with the production of plutonium dioxide for shipment off-site. However, from 1995 to date, the mission of the site has changed to include provision of longer-term storage of nuclear materials produced as a result of site operations. Because of the location and underground configuration of the site, transportation for workers is provided using electric-powered commuter trains for most personnel assigned duties in the underground facility. Up to 800 personnel are moved to the site during a single train passage. This paper details the cooperative Material Protection Control & Accounting efforts between the MCC team and the United States Project Team to address implementation of effective access controls for the large number of personnel entering the underground facility using the commuter train and effective monitoring for nuclear materials as personnel depart the underground facility, to include the implementation of a personnel transfer station on the outside of the massif.