CONSIDERATIONS IN REDUCING A PROTECTED AREA AT A FORMER WEAPONS PLANT

In the summer of 2001, the original Protected Area (PA) at the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site (Site), was reduced to a smaller PA surrounding Buildings 371/374. In support of the closure mission at the Site, new strategies for implementing safeguards and security requirements must be explored. A key component of the Kaiser-Hill LLC (K-H) closure strategy was to consolidate strategic materials in a single facility, while reducing both Special Nuclear Material (SNM) and classified holdings. This strategy permits more efficient personnel and vehicle access to facilities outside of the reduced PA and expedites decommissioning efforts, and provides significant cost and time savings. Additional benefits include the opportunity to shift resources from security uses to direct mission-related closure activities. The purpose of this paper is to describe the strategy used by K-H to reduce the PA and some lessons learned from this project. The strategy included relocation/removal of SNM, closure of all Material Access Areas except for one, establishment of new limited areas and waste storage areas, and the renovation/reconfiguring of the Perimeter Intrusion Detection and Assessment System. Some of the major activities described in the paper include holdup measurements, installation of the intrusion detection systems, protective force redeployment, and Material Control and Accountability processes. As additional sites execute closure efforts, it is anticipated that some of the lessons learned described here may be applicable elsewhere.