INITIAL OPERATION OF THE SAVANNAH RIVER SITE ADVANCED STORAGE MONITORING FACILITY

An advanced storage monitoring facility has been constructed at the Savannah River Site capable of storing special nuclear materials (SNM) with access to monitoring information available over the Internet. The facility is presently storing a significant quantity of HEU and is monitored with passive infrared devices, volumetric video surveillance, door alarms and T-1 electronic sensor platforms. The system is controlled and data is collected, stored and disseminated by a set of computers using the Sandia National Laboratories Material Monitoring System (MMS). The system was developed as part of a joint SRS/SNL/VNIIEF program to demonstrate advanced monitoring technologies in the Russian Federation and United States. A comparable facility is in operation in Sarov, Russia that will also store SNM but will use Russian designed and fabricated equipment for the monitoring regime. This system will also have monitoring information available over the Internet to appropriate users. The programs will ultimately supply authenticated and encrypted data from the storage sites to certified users to demonstrate the capability of using the Internet as a safe and secure communications medium for remote monitoring of sensitive items.