Nuclear Test Readiness; Briefing to Jerald Paul
Washington DC: National Nuclear Security Administration, Office of Defense Programs, 2004. Presumed First thus. hard copy vugraphs, disbound, held by binder clip. 25 page hard copy vugraph briefing slides, held together by a binder clip. Illustrations (most with color). This briefing describes the program at the Nevada Test Site and the weapons laboratories. It addressed maintaining critical personnel, equipment and infrastructure. There was an emphasis on long-lead activities and activities needed to be conducted in parallel. Key elements included experimental programs, especially subcritical experiments which be definition had no nuclear yield and were not nuclear tests. Jerald S. Paul (born 1966 in Lancaster, Ohio) previously served as the Principal Deputy Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration at the U.S. Department of Energy. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in July 2004. He oversaw all of this agency's nuclear nonproliferation programs with the principal responsibility of preventing the spread of nuclear materials, technology and expertise. In June 2006 Paul stepped down from this position to return to his law practice. Jerald Paul previously served as a Representative in the House of Representatives of the U.S. state of Florida. He attended the University of Florida, and received his Juris Doctorate from the Stetson University. Copies of these informational briefings for senior Senate Confirmed Presidential Appointees rarely survive the period the appointee remains in office. 50 U.S. Code § 2527. Nuclear test ban readiness program
(a) Establishment of program--The Secretary of Energy shall establish and support a program to assure that the United States is in a position to maintain the reliability, safety, and continued deterrent effect of its stockpile of existing nuclear weapons designs in the event that a low-threshold or comprehensive ban on nuclear explosives testing is negotiated and ratified within the framework agreed to by the United States and the Russian Federation.
(b) Purposes of program. The purposes of the program under subsection (a) shall be the following:
(1) To assure that the United States maintains a vigorous program of stockpile inspection and non-explosive testing so that, if a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban is entered into, the United States remains able to detect and identify potential problems in stockpile reliability and safety in existing designs of nuclear weapons.
(2) To assure that the specific materials, components, processes, and personnel needed for the remanufacture of existing nuclear weapons or the substitution of alternative nuclear warheads are available to support such remanufacture or substitution if such action becomes necessary in order to satisfy reliability and safety requirements under a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban agreement.
(3) To assure that a vigorous program of research in areas related to nuclear weapons science and engineering is supported so that, if a low-threshold or comprehensive test ban agreement is entered into, the United States is able to maintain a base of technical knowledge about nuclear weapons design and nuclear weapons effects.
(c) Conduct of program--The Secretary of Energy shall carry out the program provided for in subsection (a). The program shall be carried out with the participation of representatives of the Department of Defense, the nuclear weapons production facilities, and the national security laboratories. Condition: Good.
Keywords: Nuclear Weapons, Weapons Testing, Test Readiness, National Nuclear Security Administration, Subcritical Experiments, Underground Nuclear Test, Presidential Decision Directive, 50 U.S. Code Section 2527, Weapons Safety, Weapons Effects, Jerald Paul
[Book #80425]
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