“Megatons To Megawatts a Good Deal”

(As Published in The Newport News Daily Press 11/22/01)

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon have forced a reassessment of the entire approach to combating terrorism. The top priorities remain intelligence gathering and military engagement. A key challenge is also to prevent nuclear-weapons materials from falling into the hands of terrorists.

Russia is estimated to have 1,100 metric tons of bomb-grade uranium as well as 170 tons of plutonium, the other critical ingredient for making nuclear warheads. It's no secret that just 40 pounds of "enriched" uranium or a few ounces of plutonium are enough to build a crude nuclear weapon.

Because Russia's economy remains precarious, every effort needs to be made to reduce its huge nuclear stockpile. Fortunately, the conversion of "megatons into megawatts" is under way. Under an agreement between Moscow and Washington reached in 1993, Russia has converted the equivalent of 5,000 nuclear warheads into very dilute uranium fuel, which is sold to U.S. utilities for use in producing electricity at nuclear power plants. The cash-starved Russians are getting hard currency in return.

The U.S. Enrichment Corporation was chosen to carry out the "megatons into megawatts" deal, which calls for 500 metric tons of highly-enriched Russian uranium to be delivered over a 20-year period. So far, 125 metric tons have been blended down to produce nuclear-generated electricity.

Granted, there is still more than enough bomb-grade uranium to be worried about. But the fact that the Russians are delivering on their end of the deal reduces the chances of any clandestine diversion. And it strengthens the economic and political ties between our respective countries at a time when we face a mutual threat from terrorism.

But a lot more must be done, and faster, if we want to be safe from nuclear terrorism. The uranium and plutonium that come out of dismantled atomic weapons can easily be used to make new weapons, unless used to produce electricity. In the sober words of an expert panel assembled by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences: "The existence of large excess stocks of these materials poses a clear and present danger to national and international security."

Just as bomb-grade uranium is being diluted to make reactor fuel for nuclear plants, the same should be done with surplus plutonium. Most industrialized countries regard plutonium as a valuable energy resource for peaceful uses that should not be wasted. Indeed, a blue-ribbon panel of the American Nuclear Society, headed by the late Nobel laureate Glenn Seaborg, called for converting weapons plutonium into so-called mix-oxide fuel for commercial power reactors. In this process, uranium and plutonium are combined to produce a mixed-oxide fuel, known as MOX. Several U.S. utilities have notified the Energy Department that they would like to use MOX fuel in nuclear power plants.

Expanding the uranium agreement with Russia to include plutonium is clearly in our nation's interest. Some of the plutonium could be converted into MOX fuel, while the rest might be encased in glass for permanent burial. Such a dual-track strategy for dealing with plutonium was recommended by a panel of scientists headed by John Holdren of Harvard University. The opportunity to purchase this material from the Russian nuclear stockpile before it falls into the wrong hands is too great to ignore.

Some opponents of nuclear power object to the use of MOX fuel in commercial reactors, arguing that its use would increase the distribution of plutonium throughout the world and increase the possibility that plutonium could be converted into weapons.

However, the plutonium is only vulnerable to diversion at the MOX fuel fabrication facility. Since only one or two such facilities would be required, a great deal of care could be devoted to guarding them.

Misguided opposition from anti-nuclear groups should not be allowed to dominate our consideration of the dangers of nuclear terrorism to the extent that our country fails to cooperate with Russia on a plutonium-conversion program that can make a decisive contribution to our national security. This is an enormous opportunity to contribute to the safety of ourselves and the rest of the world. Now is the time to start.

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Dr. Porter is president of the Waste Policy Center in Leesburg, VA, and was formerly an assistant administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.