On Monday, July 6^th, a South Carolina Environmental Law Project lawyer made a needed request for three Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) documents that should have been available at the start of the current public comment period for the draft Plutonium Pit Production Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS). Public comments about the draft PEIS are due to DOE/NNSA on or before Thursday, July 16^th.

Benjamin D. Cunningham, the Environmental Law Project lawyer, requested the “deadline for the public comment period for the draft PEIS be extended by thirty (30) days from the date that NNSA publicly releases the [three] documents or, if not released simultaneously, then the comment period be extended by thirty (30) days from the date the last document is released to the public.”  Cunningham asked that NNSA respond prior to the July 16^th deadline for the public comments and specifically by Monday, July 13^th. https://nukewatch.org/demand-letter-for-pit-peis-critical-documents-and-extension-of-public-comment-period and www.scelp.org.

The three requested documents are:

1. The unclassified executive summary of the new JASON Defense Advisory Group plutonium pit life study – Phase One;
2. The DOE’s “special study” of the NNSA’s leadership and management of the plutonium pit production program; and
3. The updated LANL Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis.

The three documents were completed before the end of 2025, but were not included in the draft PEIS.  That fact is referenced more than once in the draft PEIS.  See PEIS pages 2-13 (p. 39 of pdf) (Volume 1) and C-14 (p. 64 of pdf) (Volume 2) for seismic.

Of particular concern for CCNS, the draft PEIS states the updated Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis, which focuses on the potential seismic risks at the Plutonium Facility, was scheduled for release in early 2026.  With the current proposal that DOE/NNSA would fabricate up to 205 plutonium pits per year in the Plutonium Facility, the report should have been included in the draft PEIS document.

Further, the DOE/NNSA website states emphatically that, “The comment period will not be extended beyond July 16, 2026.”

Nevertheless, DOE/NNSA omitted the three essential documents in the draft PEIS.  DOE/NNSA must be held accountable for omitting the key documents from the PEIS process because the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) “requires that the public have access to information directly relevant to the draft PEIS during the public comment period.”

Cunningham represents three non-government groups who have been working for decades to oppose expanded plutonium pit production and protect the environment.  They are:  the Savannah River Site Watch, located in Columbia, South Carolina, at https://srswatch.org , Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment (Tri-Valley CARES) located in Livermore, California at www.trivalleycares.org , and Nuclear Watch New Mexico, located in Santa Fe at https://nukewatch.org .

1. The new film, An Ordinary Insanity, about the renowned whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Threat is available for FREE at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/. To view the 29-minute film, go to the Screenings Page at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/screenings    The film is a powerful wakeup call about the global threat posed by nuclear weapons and advocates how we can dramatically reduce the real and present danger of nuclear annihilation.

PLEASE SHARE ONLINE and SCREEN AT PUBLIC EVENTS.

2. Friday, July 10^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Thursday, July 16^th by 11:59 pm Mountain Time, your public comments about the draft PEIS for Plutonium Pit Production are due. As Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is the only U.S. location where plutonium pits, or the triggers, for nuclear weapons are fabricated, your comments are essential in the collective efforts for a world free of nuclear weapons. To learn more about the PEIS, visit http://tinyurl.com/PEISToolkit.

4. Saturday, July 18^th, the 47^th Annual Uranium Mill Tailings Spill Commemoration will begin at 6 am with opening prayers, breakfast and a walk to the site of the spill 12 miles north of the Red Rock State Park on Highway 566 near Church Rock, New Mexico. There will be speakers and discussions, as well as a silent auction, youth tent and educational booths. A free t-shirt will be available to the first 100 people. Food and drink donations are welcomed. For more information, visit https://swuraniumimpacts.org/

5. Sunday, July 19^th, beginning at 2 pm at St. Michael’s High School, 100 Siringo Road, in Santa Fe – You are invited to An Interfaith Remembrance of the July 16^th, 1945 Trinity Test with Archbishop John Wester of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe for an inspiring afternoon of remembrance, hope and commitment to honor the legacy of the Trinity Test. James Kenney, Secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department, will provide the keynote speech.  Interfaith leaders, advocates and community voices will join in reflections on the past and on efforts in the present to build a world free of nuclear weapons. This is a free event and can be viewed online.  For more information, https://archdiosf.org/ home page – announcement on left side under ASF & Parish Events.  Livestream available at http://bit.ly/2026-Trinity-livestream

6. Sunday, July 19^th – Submit your public comments opposing the Roca Honda Uranium Mine to mmd.marp@emnrd.nm.gov. Find draft statements and learn more at tinyurl.com/nmnuketoolkit

7. Monday, July 27^th – deadline to request a hearing and petition for leave to intervene in the Crownpoint-Churchrock ISL Project. For more information: federalregister.gov/d/2026-10440 and

www.tinyurl.com/nmnuketoolkit

Mark your calendar for some important upcoming events:  the PEIS comments are due on Thursday, July 16^th, then on Saturday, July 18^th, the Commemoration of the Church Rock Uranium Mill Tailings Spill, and on Sunday, July 19^th, the Commemoration of the Trinity Test.  Details for each of these follows.

First, your public comments about the draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Plutonium Pit Production (PEIS) are due on Thursday, July 16^th.  As Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is the only U.S. location where plutonium pits, or the triggers for nuclear weapons, are fabricated, your comments are essential in the collective efforts for a world free of nuclear weapons. To learn more about the PEIS, visit http://tinyurl.com/PEISToolkit.

To prepare for writing them, the Union of Concerned Scientists will host an online PEIS training on Wednesday, July 8^th at 4 pm Mountain Time. For more information, visit https://secure.ucs.org/a/2026-7-8-peis-training

Then, on Saturday, July 18^th, the 47^th Annual Uranium Mill Tailings Spill Commemoration will begin at 6 am with opening prayers, breakfast and a walk to the site of the spill 12 miles north of the Red Rock State Park on Highway 566 near Church Rock, New Mexico. There will be speakers and discussions, as well as a silent auction, youth tent and educational booths. A free t-shirt will be available to the first 100 people. Food and drink donations are welcomed.  For more information, visit https://swuraniumimpacts.org/

Finally, a commemoration of the Trinity Test will be held on Sunday, July 19^th, beginning at 2 pm at St. Michael’s High School, 100 Siringo Road, in Santa Fe.

You are invited to An Interfaith Remembrance of the July 16^th, 1945 Trinity Test with Archbishop John Wester of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe for an inspiring afternoon of remembrance, hope and commitment to honor the legacy of the Trinity Test. James Kenney, Secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department, will provide the keynote speech.  Interfaith leaders, advocates and community voices will join in reflections on the past and on efforts in the present to build a world free of nuclear weapons.

This is a free event.  Reservations are recommended at bit.ly/2026-Trinity.

1. Take a few minutes to watch the trailer of the new film, called An Ordinary Insanity, about the renowned whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Threat at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/. View the 29-minute film in its entirety for ** FREE ** on the Screenings Page at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/screenings    The film is a powerful wakeup call about the global threat posed by nuclear weapons and advocates how we can dramatically reduce the real and present danger of nuclear annihilation.

PLEASE SHARE ONLINE and SCREEN AT PUBLIC EVENTS.

2. Read Testing the waters: Fed stop paying to sample LANL runoff – Buckman Direct Diversion Board picks up the cost for testing the Rio Grande, by Alicia Inez Guzmán in the Santa Fe Reporter at https://sfreporter.com/news/testing-the-waters-feds-stop-paying-to-sample-lanl-runoff   This story was first published online by Source New Mexico and is reprinted with permission by the Santa Fe Reporter. June 24, 2026. CCNS questions why LANL stopped financially supporting the sampling system that has existed for years. Why has the burden of LANL not cleaning up its mess fallen on those downwind and downstream?

3. Friday, July 3^rd from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

4. Wednesday, July 8^th at 4 pm Mountain Time – Union of Concerned Scientists is hosting a FREE online training about the draft PEIS and how to make comments before the July 16^th https://secure.ucs.org/a/2026-7-8-peis-training

By June 22^nd, hundreds of New Mexicans submitted comments in support of the New Mexico Environment Department’s strong stand to protect the People of New Mexico by requiring Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to remove plutonium-contaminated waste “Off the Hill.” https://nmed.commentinput.com/comment/extra?id=x2V7G3HrWN  

But the Department of Energy (DOE) and its contractors in New Mexico at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), LANL and Sandia, and in California, Idaho, Illinois, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington State all strongly oppose the Environment Department’s proposed permit modification requiring the cleanup of legacy waste stored at LANL in fabric tents next to the community of White Rock.

Among other things, DOE comments repeatedly stated that the Environment Department does not have legal authority “to dictate how or what waste can be disposed of at WIPP.” DOE stated: “the risk associated with LANL’s storage facilities would not be applicable to WIPP.” DOE comments stated that the Environment Department proposal would violate federal laws and “halt pit-production” for nuclear weapons. DOE reserves the right “to take appeals as provided by law and to seek any other available legal remedies in the event differences cannot be resolved.”

In contrast to the federal government, a New York State agency is “in strong support” of the Environment Department.  Oregon also supports “prioritizing cleanup of facilities in New Mexico.”

Four New Mexico nonprofit organizations, including Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety (CCNS) and two individuals support some of the Environment Department’s proposal, but also oppose some provisions.  Those groups and individuals proposed changes to make the permit more stringent. For example, they want more specific restrictions on the definition of “legacy” waste and more requirements for LANL cleanup.

The next step is for the 32 organizations and individuals that oppose the Environment Department’s proposal in whole or in part to meet in confidential negotiations in late July to see if they can resolve all of their differences. If agreement were reached, one or more meetings would be held to receive public comment about it.

If not all of the differences were resolved, there would be a public hearing, with expert testimony and cross-examination before an administrative hearing officer. That hearing would also include opportunities for public oral and written comments. After the hearing, there would be legal briefs submitted to the hearing officer who ultimately would issue a recommended decision to an Environment Department official who had not been involved in the permit modification proposal. That official would issue a final decision, which could be appealed to a court.

1. Take a few minutes to watch the trailer of the new film, called An Ordinary Insanity, about the renowned whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Threat at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/. View the 29-minute film in its entirety for ** FREE ** on the Screenings Page at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/screenings    The film is a powerful wakeup call about the global threat posed by nuclear weapons and advocates how we can dramatically reduce the real and present danger of nuclear annihilation.

PLEASE SHARE ONLINE and SCREEN AT PUBLIC EVENTS.stand up

2. Friday, June 26^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Sunday, June 28^th from 2 pm to 5 pm – Community Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) Workshop at Tewa Women United Office, 1003 E. Fairview Lane, Española, NM. Light snacks and refreshments provided. Flyer:Community Workshop Flyer Update June 28

Did you know? The Department of Energy (DOE) is required to produce a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for proposed expansion of plutonium pit production at LANL? Want to participate in the public comment period, but don’t know how? Join us for this workshop and learn how to make informed public comments.  Submit your comments by Thursday, July 16, 2026 to make your voice heard.  Send your comments to PitPEIS@nnsa.doe.gov

4. Tuesday, June 30^th – Public comments are due to the New Mexico Environment Department about its proposal to select a remedy for corrective action at the Technical Area V (TA-V) Groundwater (TAVG) Area of Concern (AOC) at Sandia National Laboratory (SNL). For more information and links, go to last week’s DYK? at https://nuclearactive.org/support-new-mexico-environment-departments-proposal-to-get-waste-off-the-hill-in-los-alamos-your-comments-due-on-monday-june-22nd/ , scroll down to No. 6.

5. Tuesday, June 30^th – Santa Fe County Commission will hold a public hearing on a Proposed Ordinance and Resolution – to be heard no earlier than 5 pm –

Ordinance No. 2026-_____, An Ordinance Imposing a Twelve-Month Moratorium on Development Approvals or the Issuance of Development Permits for Large-Scale Data Center Facilities by Commissioner Lisa Cacari Stone and Commissioner Hank Hughes.  For details including the proposed ordinance and BCC Memo, go to https://santafecountynm.community.diligentoneplatform.com/Portal/MeetingInformation.aspx?Org=Cal&Id=941

6. Wednesday, July 1 at 7 pm Mountain Time – Union of Concerned Scientists is hosting an online training about the draft PEIS and how to make comments before the July 16^th https://secure.ucs.org/a/2026-7-1-peis-training

7. Wednesday, July 8^th at 4 pm Mountain Time – Union of Concerned Scientists is hosting a FREE online training about the draft PEIS and how to make comments before the July 16^th https://secure.ucs.org/a/2026-7-8-peis-training

The New Mexico Environment Department has taken a strong stand to protect the People of New Mexico by requiring Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to remove plutonium-contaminated waste “Off the Hill.”  On April 23rd, the Environment Department released an essential modification to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Permit requring the cleanup of legacy waste stored at LANL in fabric tents on top of the mesa near the community of White Rock. The proposed modification also requires the disposal of legacy waste at WIPP, a nuclear bomb dump located east of Carlsbad, New Mexico. https://www.env.nm.gov/hazardous-waste/wipp/ , scroll down to “WIPP News” 2026, Agency-Initiated Modification Update.

The proposed modification requires that a minimum percentage of legacy waste shipments from LANL to WIPP occur during specific timeframes beginning on Friday, January 1, 2027 – a short time from now.

If the permit modification is approved, the Environment Department’s action would stop LANL’s plans to leave one million cubic meters of radioactive and hazardous waste buried in volcanic tuff in a seismic zone above the regional drinking water aquifer and the Rio Grande. Further, the action would limit the volume of waste from new proposed plutonium pit production at LANL that could be shipped to WIPP.

The Stop Forever WIPP Coalition, of which CCNS is a member group, opposes the expansion of WIPP for newly generated LANL waste from plutonium pit production. WIPP was built to dispose of legacy waste, not for newly generated LANL waste. https://stopforeverwipp.org/home

The proposed  permit provisions include:

• From January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2031, at least 55 percent of the total volume of all waste emplaced at WIPP from all generator and storage sites must be LANL legacy waste;
• Beginning January 1, 2032, and until all LANL legacy waste has been emplaced at WIPP, LANL waste must be at least 75 percent of the total volume of waste emplaced from all generator and storages sites;
• Legacy waste currently stored above-ground at LANL’s Area G shall be shipped and emplaced at WIPP by July 1, 2028; and
• If at any point any of those conditions are not met, all generator and storage site shipments, with the exception of LANL, must cease until all deficiencies are cured.

For more information, please visit the Stop Forever WIPP website at https://stopforeverwipp.org/home

Submit your comments, and see more than 550 other comments, by Monday, June 22, 2026 at 5 pm Mountain Time. Please use the Environment Department’s Comment Portal at https://nmed.commentinput.com/?id=x2V7G3HrWN  In the alternative, email your comments tot HWB-WIPP-Comment@env.nm.gov.

1. You can watch the trailer of the new film, called An Ordinary Insanity, about the renowned whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Threat for FREE at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/. View the 29-minute film on the Screenings Page at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/screenings     The film provides a powerful wakeup call about the global threat posed by nuclear weapons and advocates how we can dramatically reduce the real and present danger of nuclear annihilation. Before he released the top secret Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War, Ellsberg was a nuclear war planner with access to classified information on U.S. nuclear strategy. Filmed one year before his death at age 92, Ellsberg speaks with clarity and urgency about the dangers we face, noting, ”I’ve long said that to my last breath I will be doing what I can to postpone and avert the risk of nuclear war.” With ongoing conflicts heightening global nuclear tensions and with the recent end of the New START treaty potentially triggering a renewed arms race, AN ORDINARY INSANITY is a timely film to help mobilize broad public concern and action for arms control and nuclear disarmament.  PLEASE SHARE ONLINE & SCREEN AT PUBLIC EVENTS.

2. Friday, June 19^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Sunday, June 13^th from 10 am to 11 am – Albuquerque Inaugural Women Veterans Celebration at New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana SE. Albuquerque Concert Band will begin music at 9:45 am. For more information, please call 505 768-4495.

4. Thursday, June 25^th from 5:30 to 7:00 pm – New Mexico Environment Department will host a hybrid public information session about the hexavalent chromium plume that has spread onto Pueblo de San Ildefonso at the Harold Runnels Auditorium, 1190 South St. Francis Drive, Santa Fe and on WebEx. For more information: https://www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D204711616

5. Sunday, June 28^th from 2 pm to 5 pm – Community Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) Workshop at Tewa Women United Office, 1003 E. Fairview Lane, Española, NM. Light snacks and refreshments provided.  Flyer Community Workshop Flyer Update June 28

Did you know? The Department of Energy (DOE) is required to produce a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for proposed expansion of plutonium pit production at LANL? Want to participate in the public comment period, but don’t know how? Join us for this workshop and learn how to make informed public comments.  Submit your comments by Thursday, July 16, 2026 to make your voice heard.  Send your comments to PitPEIS@nnsa.doe.gov

6. Tuesday, June 30^th – Public comments are due to the New Mexico Environment Department about its proposal to select a remedy for corrective action at the Technical Area V (TA-V) Groundwater (TAVG) Area of Concern (AOC) at Sandia National Laboratory (SNL).

This is an important issue!  If you need more time to review and prepare your comments, ask for an extension of time. Contact Neelam Dhawan at neelam.dhawan@state.nm.us , (505) 476-6042.  Cite the lengthy and detailed LANL SWEIS and draft PEIS for Plutonium Pit Production documents and what a heavy lift it has been recently for the public.

 “TA-V was established in 1961 to test radiation effects on weapon components and has hosted multiple generations of research reactors…. Currently, active nuclear facilities include the Annular Core Research Reactor…. “ The TAVG AOC has been under investigation since the 1990s. 

 A copy of the Public Notice and the proposed remedy are available electronically here:  https://www.env.nm.gov/public-notices/, scroll down and click on Sandia National Laboratory. There you will find the Public Notice in English and Spanish, a Fact Sheet / Statement of Basis, along with the TAVG AOC Current Conceptual Model and Corrective Measures Evaluation Report (May 2024) and a link to the Public Comment Portal.

 See the Public Notice about how to request a public hearing and what information is required to do so.

 The TAVG AOC is described as follows on p. 9 of the Fact Sheet / Statement of Basis as:

“E. TECHNICAL AREA V GROUNDWATER (TAVG) AREA OF CONCERN (AOC)

“E.1 BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF THE TAVG AOC

“E.1.1 Location/Unit Description

“The Technical Area V Groundwater (TAVG) Area of Concern (AOC) Technical Area (TA)-V is located in the west-central portion within KAFB on DOE-owned land and KAFB-permitted land (Figure E-1). It occupies approximately 35 acres in the northeast corner of TA-III at SNL/NM. TA-V was established in 1961 to test radiation effects on weapon components and has hosted multiple generations of research reactors, including the Sandia Engineering Reactor Facility (SERF), the Sandia Pulsed Reactor, the High Energy Radiation Megavolt Electron Source, and the PROTO I Facility. Currently, active nuclear facilities include the Annular Core Research Reactor, the Sandia Pulsed Reactor, and the Auxiliary Hot Cell Facility, as well as radiological facilities such as the Gamma Irradiation Facility and the Low Dose Rate Irradiation Facility. Historically, wastewater derived from TA-V facilities was disposed of at the Liquid Waste Disposal System (LWDS) drain field, the two unlined LWDS surface impoundments, and the TA-V seepage pits.”

On Monday, May 8th, 2026, at a press conference in front of La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and co-founder of the U.S. Senate Stewardship Caucus, and U.S. Representative Teresa Leger Fernández, Ranking Member of the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs, unveiled their Caja del Rio Protection Act legislation to permanently protect the Caja del Rio Plateau.

Senate Bill 4458 is cosponsored by U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján, a member of the U.S. Senate Indian Affairs Committee, U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury, a member of the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez, founder and co-chair of the U.S. House Public Lands Caucus.

Pueblo of Tesuque Governor Mark Mitchell celebrated the legislation to protect the Caja del Rio. He explained, “It’s a living landscape.  It holds the history of our ancestors and our ongoing relationship with the land, water, plants, animals that sustain our ceremonies for our people. This is about protecting the landscape, but also the way of life we continue today.”  https://www.tesuquepueblo.org/

Representative Leger Fernández added, “The Caja del Rio is where the beautifully diverse story of New Mexico lives — in our petroglyphs, our piñon gathering, our Tribal traditions, and our Hispano ranching communities. This land belongs to the people of New Mexico who have cared for it since time immemorial and to future generations who deserve to inherit its tradition and its beauty. As Republicans in Washington push to sell off public lands, we’re making clear that the Caja is not for sale.This legislation not only reflects our diverse heritage — it is also a product of collaboration and diverse communities coming together to protect their shared heritage. That’s how it’s done in New Mexico where we know that diversity is our strength.”  https://fernandez.house.gov/

Key provisions of the legislation are to:

• Protect public lands from sale or privatization
• Prohibit new roads, mining and rights-of-way
• Require consultation with area tribes and coordination with Traditional Historic Communities
• Preserve traditional uses, such as herb and mineral gathering, hunting and grazing
• Protect confidential Indigenous knowledge and sacred site locations from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act
• Reduce unauthorized roads and limits motor vehicle use.

The All Pueblo Council of Governors, the Santa Fe County Commission, the Sandoval County Commission and Santa Fe Mayor Michael Garcia all endorse the Caja del Rio Protection Act.

Sign up to receive alerts about the proposed legislation at https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4458

1. You can watch the trailer of the new film, called An Ordinary Insanity, about the renowned whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg and the Nuclear Threat for FREE at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/. View the 29-minute film on the Screenings Page at https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/screenings    The film provides a powerful wakeup call about the global threat posed by nuclear weapons and advocates how we can dramatically reduce the real and present danger of nuclear annihilation. Before he released the top secret Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War, Ellsberg was a nuclear war planner with access to classified information on U.S. nuclear strategy. Filmed one year before his death at age 92, Ellsberg speaks with clarity and urgency about the dangers we face, noting, ”I’ve long said that to my last breath I will be doing what I can to postpone and avert the risk of nuclear war.” With ongoing conflicts heightening global nuclear tensions and with the recent end of the New START treaty potentially triggering a renewed arms race, AN ORDINARY INSANITY is a timely film to help mobilize broad public concern and action for arms control and nuclear disarmament.  PLEASE SHARE ONLINE & SCREEN AT PUBLIC EVENTS.

2. Friday, June 12^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Monday, June 8^th through Thursday, June 18^th at 9 am at the NM State Capitol Building – Water Quality Control Commission Public Rulemaking Hearing for the Proposed Surface Water Quality State Permitting Program (WQCC 25-74(R)). To learn more, visit Amigos Bravos at  https://www.amigosbravos.org/upcoming-events/    To connect to the hearing: https://www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D199647881

4. Sunday, June 13^th from 10 am to 11 am – Albuquerque Inaugural Women Veterans Celebration at New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana SE. Albuquerque Concert Band will begin music at 9:45 am. For more information, please call 505 768-4495.

5. Tuesday, June 30^th – Public comments are due to the New Mexico Environment Department about its proposal to select a remedy for corrective action at the Technical Area V (TA-V) Groundwater (TAVG) Area of Concern (AOC) at Sandia National Laboratory (SNL). This is an important issue!  If you need more time to review and prepare your comments, ask for an extension of time. Contact Neelam Dhawan at neelam.dhawan@state.nm.us , (505) 476-6042.  Cite the lengthy and detailed LANL SWEIS and draft PEIS for Plutonium Pit Production documents and what a heavy lift it has been recently for the public.

“TA-V was established in 1961 to test radiation effects on weapon components and has hosted multiple generations of research reactors…. Currently, active nuclear facilities include the Annular Core Research Reactor…. “ The TAVG AOC has been under investigation since the 1990s.  A copy of the Public Notice and the proposed remedy are available electronically here:  https://www.env.nm.gov/public-notices/, scroll down and click on Sandia National Laboratory. There you will find the Public Notice in English and Spanish, a Fact Sheet / Statement of Basis, along with the TAVG AOC Current Conceptual Model and Corrective Measures Evaluation Report (May 2024) and a link to the Public Comment Portal.  See the Public Notice about how to request a public hearing and what information is required to do so.

The TAVG AOC is described as follows on p. 9 of the Fact Sheet / Statement of Basis as:

“E. TECHNICAL AREA V GROUNDWATER (TAVG) AREA OF CONCERN (AOC)

“E.1 BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF THE TAVG AOC

“E.1.1 Location/Unit Description

“The Technical Area V Groundwater (TAVG) Area of Concern (AOC) Technical Area (TA)-V is located in the west-central portion within KAFB on DOE-owned land and KAFB-permitted land (Figure E-1). It occupies approximately 35 acres in the northeast corner of TA-III at SNL/NM. TA-V was established in 1961 to test radiation effects on weapon components and has hosted multiple generations of research reactors, including the Sandia Engineering Reactor Facility (SERF), the Sandia Pulsed Reactor, the High Energy Radiation Megavolt Electron Source, and the PROTO I Facility. Currently, active nuclear facilities include the Annular Core Research Reactor, the Sandia Pulsed Reactor, and the Auxiliary Hot Cell Facility, as well as radiological facilities such as the Gamma Irradiation Facility and the Low Dose Rate Irradiation Facility. Historically, wastewater derived from TA-V facilities was disposed of at the Liquid Waste Disposal System (LWDS) drain field, the two unlined LWDS surface impoundments, and the TA-V seepage pits.”

Dr. Ghassan Shahrour, a medical doctor and human rights advocate, considers the need to choose limits over expansion of new weapons systems and provides historical examples. He writes:

“In 1868, long before satellites or nuclear weapons, the world confronted a deceptively simple question: Should every weapon that can be built also be used?

“The question arose after the Russian Empire developed an exploding rifle bullet that inflicted devastating injuries far beyond any military necessity. Russian military physicians warned that the wounds were so catastrophic that they served no legitimate strategic purpose. In a rare moment of moral clarity, Russia renounced the weapon it had invented and invited other powers to negotiate what became the St. Petersburg Declaration — the first international agreement to prohibit a weapon because of its inhumane effects.

“The declaration established principles that still shape international humanitarian law:

• “Humanity
• “The prohibition of unnecessary suffering
• “Distinction between combatants and civilians

“More importantly, it affirmed a truth the modern world risks forgetting: human dignity, not technological capability, must define the limits of war.

“As someone who has spent decades advocating for humanitarian disarmament — from landmines to cluster munitions to nuclear risk reduction — I see in St. Petersburg not a historical footnote, but a living compass.

“The Golden Dome: A Shield That Creates More Swords

“More than 150 years later, humanity faces a similar test — only now the technologies are vastly more destructive.

“The proposed U.S. ‘Golden Dome’ missile‑defense system is presented as a shield against nuclear attack. Yet decades of scientific and strategic analysis show that no existing missile‑defense architecture can reliably stop a large‑scale, sophisticated nuclear strike involving multiple warheads, decoys, or advanced delivery systems.

“But the deeper danger is political and strategic.

“Missile‑defense systems reshape the calculations of rival powers. When one state seeks invulnerability, others respond by expanding their arsenals, improving penetration technologies, and accelerating weapons development. What begins as a defensive project becomes a catalyst for a new cycle of escalation driven by fear and mistrust.

“Systems designed as defensive are often perceived by adversaries as enabling future offensive advantage. This increases instability during crises and weakens already fragile deterrence mechanisms.

“And because technological systems are never infallible, a false alarm or malfunction could trigger decisions made under extreme pressure — decisions that would not remain confined to military command centers….

“The illusion that technology can eliminate vulnerability is not security. It is strategic overconfidence with human lives at stake.”

“From Earth to Orbit: The Rise of Space Supremacy

“This same illusion is now extending beyond Earth.

“The emerging doctrine of space supremacy seeks dominance in orbit through advanced surveillance systems, anti‑satellite weapons, and integrated missile‑defense architectures. Space — once viewed as a shared domain of human activity — is becoming another arena of military competition.

“Efforts at the United Nations to prevent this shift, particularly through proposals related to the Treaty on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS), have stalled amid geopolitical rivalry.

“Meanwhile, anti‑satellite weapon tests have already created dangerous fields of orbital debris that threaten civilian and scientific satellites alike. A conflict in space would not remain in space. Damage to satellite networks could disrupt communication systems, emergency response, civilian aviation, financial infrastructure, and nuclear early‑warning systems on Earth.

“In an age of automation and nuclear weapons, confusion itself becomes a security threat.

“One Illusion, Two Frontiers

“To make the connection unmistakable:

“From missile‑defense fantasies on Earth to supremacy doctrines in orbit, the same illusion persists: that technology can replace diplomacy, restraint, and human security.

“Golden Dome and Space Supremacy are not separate debates. They are two faces of the same strategic error — the belief that dominance can substitute for stability.

“The Humanitarian Compass We Still Need

“The enduring lesson of St. Petersburg is not about one weapon or one treaty.
It is about restraint itself.

“In 1868, a state recognized that its own innovation had crossed a moral line and chose to step back. Today, the challenge is broader: the belief that technological superiority can permanently guarantee safety in a nuclear‑armed world.

“It cannot.

“Missile‑defense megaprojects and the militarization of space risk expanding the battlefield rather than limiting it. They encourage competition while weakening international efforts designed to reduce catastrophic risk.

“Humanitarian disarmament initiatives — from banning landmines and cluster munitions to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons — all reflect the same principle first articulated in St. Petersburg: some technologies create levels of suffering and danger no claim of military necessity can justify.

“A Call for Leadership Rooted in Humanity

“The world does not need new arenas for military rivalry.
It needs leadership grounded in restraint, diplomacy, and human security.

“That leadership should include:

• “Reassessing destabilizing missile‑defense programs
  • “Rejecting doctrines of space supremacy
  • “Advancing nuclear risk‑reduction measures
  • “Reviving arms‑control negotiations
  • “Recommitting to preventing the weaponization of outer space

“In 1868, leadership meant choosing limits over expansion.

“In 2026, it may mean choosing whether humanity’s future is shaped by shared survival — or by an endless pursuit of technological supremacy in a world increasingly unable to survive its consequences.”

https://peaceandhealthblog.com/2026/06/03/st-petersburg-vs-the-golden-dome-a-150-year-old-warning-we-are-ignoring/

Dr. Ghassan Shahrour, coordinator of the Arab Human Security Network, is a medical doctor and human rights advocate specializing in health, disability, disarmament, and human security. He has contributed to global campaigns for peace, disarmament, and the rights of persons with disabilities. This article was originally published in CounterCurrents, and is republished with permission under their fair use policy.

1. Thursday, June 4^th at 6 pm MDT – FREE online showing of Daniel Ellsberg on the Nuclear Threat at the premiere of An Ordinary Insanity – a 28-minute film by Oscar-nominated director Judith Ehrlich, filmed one year before Ellsberg’s death at age 92. To register:  https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/  The free premiere will include a panel featuring director Judith Ehrlich, Ellsberg family members, and nuclear weapons experts and activists, followed by a Q&A. After the premiere, the film will be available to view FREE online and to use for screenings and events to help build greater awareness of the threat we face and to encourage action.

2. Friday, June 5^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Saturday, June 6^th at 1:30 pm MDT – Santa Fe Archbishop John Wester, Partnership for a World Without Nuclear Weapons, will present on his 2022 pastoral letter,Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament to a virtual summit dialogue to activate Catholics to work for the global abolition of nuclear weapons. For more information about the Pax Christi New England Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (PCAN) and to register, go to https://paxchristima.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/PCAN-Summits-Flyer-PDF.pdf

4. Sunday, June 7^th at 7:30 pm – Candlelight Vigil on the Santa Fe Plaza, as part of SEVEN DAYS IN JUNE movement calling for health care as a human right and political priority, hosted by Third Act New Mexico, Upaya Zen Center and Veterans for Peace. Launched by longtime organizer and AIDS activist Cleve Jones (SevenDaysInJune.org), the campaign responds to sweeping cuts to healthcare, scientific research, and public health programs – including Veterans Administration health services – that threaten millions of Americans.

The event will honor the 45th anniversary of the AIDS crisis, remember those affected by health inequities, and call for a more compassionate future. Rebecca Solnit and others will speak, joining communities across the country in raising their voices for health, justice, and human dignity.

5. Monday, June 8^th at 9 am at the NM State Capitol Building – Water Quality Control Commission Public Rulemaking Hearing for the Proposed Surface Water Quality State Permitting Program (WQCC 25-74(R)). The public hearing may be held until June 18^th. To learn more, go to:  Amigos Bravos:  https://www.amigosbravos.org/upcoming-events/   To connect to the hearing: https://www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D199647881

6. Sunday, June 13^th from 10 am to 11 am – Albuquerque Inaugural Women Veterans Celebration at New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana SE. Albuquerque Concert Band will begin music at 9:45 am. For more information, please call 505 768-4495.

On April 23rd, the New Mexico Environment Department issued an important permit modification to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in order to speed up cleanup of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and focus on the disposal of legacy waste at WIPP.  The draft Hazardous Waste Act permit modification proposes to require a minimum percentage of legacy waste shipments from LANL to WIPP during specific timeframes beginning soon on January 1, 2027.

The Environment Department’s action would stop LANL’s plans to leave one million cubic meters of radioactive and hazardous waste buried in volcanic tuff in a seismic zone above the regional drinking water aquifer and the Rio Grande. The action, if approved, would limit waste from new proposed plutonium pit production that could be shipped to WIPP.

The Stop Forever WIPP Coalition opposes the expansion of WIPP for newly generated LANL waste from plutonium pit production. CCNS is a member group.

CCNS and the Stop Forever WIPP Coalition fully support the Environment Department’s action and urge you to submit your public comments by Monday, June 8th.

Some of the important proposed permit provisions are:

• From January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2031, at least 55 percent of the total volume of all waste emplaced at WIPP from all generator and storage sites must be LANL legacy waste;
• Beginning January 1, 2032, and until all LANL legacy waste has been emplaced at WIPP, LANL waste must be at least 75 percent of the total volume of waste emplaced from all generator and storage sites;
• Legacy waste currently stored above-ground at LANL’s Area G shall be shipped and emplaced at WIPP by July 1, 2028; and
• If at any point any of those conditions are not met, all generator and storage site shipments, with the exception of LANL, must cease until all deficiencies are cured.

Recall that the Department of Energy (DOE) promised New Mexico that if the state allowed WIPP, Cold War and other radioactive waste stored at LANL would be the priority for disposal in WIPP.  DOE has broken its promise for decades.

The Environment Department needs to know that the public supports the permit modification. DOE strongly opposes it.

For more information, visit the Stop Forever WIPP website at https://stopforeverwipp.org/

To learn about the NMED draft Permit, Public Notice and Fact Sheet, go to https://www.env.nm.gov/hazardous-waste/wipp/ , scroll down to “WIPP News – 2026” and view the April 23, 2026 entry.

Submit your comments by email to HWB-WIPP-Comment@env.nm.gov or use the WIPP Agency Initiated Modification (AIM) Draft Permit Public Comment Portal at https://nmed.commentinput.com/?id=x2V7G3HrWN

1. Friday, May 29^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

2. Saturday, May 30^th from 9 to 11 am – Opening Community Day in the Garden at the Española Healing Foods Oasis located next to the Española Public Library (313 N. Paseo de Oñate) and behind City Hall. Opening Ceremony at 9 am; guided garden tours, planting seeds and snacks and beverages.  Free and Open to Everyone! For more information – https://tewawomenunited.org/events/2026-opening-day-at-the-espanola-healing-foods-oasis

3. Monday, June 1^st from 5:30 to 7 pm – Join the Fight! New Mexico vs. The Nuclear Industry – Webinar on the proposed Revisions to the WIPP Permit (comment period now until June 8^th); Roca Honda Uranium Mine (comment period now until early July); and Plutonium Pit Production (comment period now until July 16^th). Register for Zoom: https://tinyurl.com/NMvsNukeIndustry  Learn more: https://tinyurl.com/NMNukeToolkit

4. Wednesday, June 3^rd from 5 to 7 pm MDT at 10 Cities of Gold Road #A, Tribal Room, at the Cities of Gold Hotel in Pojoaque – hybrid MS Teams interactive public forum at which N3B and LANL discuss Wildfire Preparedness and Mitigation with Q&A. In-person participants are invited to interact with N3B and LANL subject matter experts. For meeting information, including login details, visit: https://n3b-la.com/public-meeting/emcf-6-3-2026/.

5. Thursday, June 4^th at 6 pm MDT – FREE online showing of Daniel Ellsberg on the Nuclear Threat at the premiere of An Ordinary Insanity – a 28-minute film by Oscar-nominated director Judith Ehrlich, filmed one year before Ellsberg’s death at age 92. To register:  https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/ The free premiere will include a panel featuring director Judith Ehrlich, Ellsberg family members, and nuclear weapons experts and activists, followed by a Q&A. After the premiere, the film will be available to view FREE online and to use for screenings and events to help build greater awareness of the threat we face and to encourage action.

6. Saturday, June 6^th at 1:30 pm MDT – Santa Fe Archbishop John Wester, Partnership for a World Without Nuclear Weapons, will present on his 2022 pastoral letter,Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament to a virtual summit dialogue to activate Catholics to work for the global abolition of nuclear weapons. For more information about the Pax Christi New England Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (PCAN) and to register, go to https://paxchristima.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/PCAN-Summits-Flyer-PDF.pdf

7. Monday, June 8^th at 9 am at the NM State Capitol Building – capitWater Quality Control Commission Public Rulemaking Hearing for the Proposed Surface Water Quality State Permitting Program (WQCC 25-74(R)). For more information: https://www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D199647881

8. Sunday, June 13^th from 10 am to 11 am – Albuquerque Inaugural Women Veterans Celebration at New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana SE. Albuquerque Concert Band will begin music at 9:45 am. For more information, please call 505 768-4495.

A newly released independent review of Los Alamos National Laboratory’s 2025 tritium venting raises serious concerns about radiation risks to children and infants and highlights major gaps in LANL’s public reporting and decision-making process.

The review also questions LANL’s decision to proceed with venting despite no measurable pressure buildup in the waste containers — meaning the explosion risk used to justify the releases may not have existed. https://www.ccwnewmexico.org/tritium

On May 14^th, 2026, the Communities for Clean Water published the review analyzing two reports LANL released following its controversial September 2025 tritium release operations. https://www.ccwnewmexico.org and https://static1.squarespace.com/static/6418a35a30fed803c21f2bb1/t/6a0604cc6c803b7fd1032476/1778779340789/Review+of+Vol+1+and+2+of+LANL+tritium+venting+reports+by+Arjun+Makhijani+for+CCW+2026-05-14.pdf

Authored by Dr. Arjun Makhijani, President of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (https://ieer.org/), the “Review of Los Alamos National Laboratory’s tritium venting reports – Volume 1 and Volume 2” provides a summary of the tritium venting as well as the data and estimates detailed in the two LANL reports.

1. 1. FTWC Radioactive Air Emissions Summary, Volume 1: Stack Emissions & Off-Site Dose Consequence, LA-UR: 25-31093, November 14, 2025; and
   2. FTWC Radioactive Air Emissions Summary, Volume 2: Environmental Sampling & Expanded Plume Modeling, LA-UR: 26-20967, February 17, 2026.

Notably, LANL formally acknowledged for the first time that estimated radiation doses to infants were more than three times higher than doses to adults — a change that came only after sustained public pressure and community participation in public meetings and hearings. Nevertheless, infant doses were not considered during the planning and modeling that took place prior to the tritium releases.  LANL stated that infant doses would not be taken into account moving forward.

Dr. Makhijani responded by saying, “Had infant doses been considered during permitting, the operation would not have been allowed as planned, since infant doses under LANL’s appropriately conservative source term assumption would have been more than the regulatory limit of 10 [millirem]. This raises the question of whether EPA’s “standard practice” of enforcement for adults only is providing equal protection under the law to infants and children when infant doses are estimated to exceed the regulatory limit of 10 [millirem] but adult doses do not. The fact that the actual venting resulted in doses well below 10 [millirem] for infants is not relevant to the question of whether the permit was properly granted.”

The findings raise broader concerns about how federal agencies assess radiation risks to nearby communities, particularly for infants, children, pregnant women, and Indigenous communities living near nuclear facilities.

Kalyn Finnell, Coordinator for the Communities for Clean Water, stated, “Community members pushed for transparency every step of the way, and that pressure forced important admissions that were absent from LANL’s original planning. But serious questions remain about whether children and families are being adequately protected.”

1. Friday, May 22^nd from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

2. Friday, May 22^nd through Monday, May 25^th at 3 pm and 7:30 pm – showing of Amy Goodman’s film Steal This Story, Please, at The Guild in Albuquerque. BONUS * BUT SOLD OUT – at The Guild! Amy Goodman in person at the Sunday, May 24

The film will also be shown at the CCA from Friday, May 22^nd through Tuesday, June 2^nd.  For more information and show times:  https://ccasantafe.org/ and https://ticketing.uswest.veezi.com/sessions/dwadj82g7zwrbd9zzytyah11j0

3. Wednesday, June 3^rd from 5 to 7 pm MDT at 10 Cities of Gold Road #A, Tribal Room, at the Cities of Gold Hotel in Pojoaque – hybrid MS Teams interactive public forum at which N3B and LANL discuss Wildfire Preparedness and Mitigation with Q&A. In-person participants are invited to interact with N3B and LANL subject matter experts. For meeting information, including login details, visit: https://n3b-la.com/public-meeting/emcf-6-3-2026/.

4. Thursday, June 4^th at 6 pm MDT – FREE online showing of Daniel Ellsberg on the Nuclear Threat at the premiere of An Ordinary Insanity – a 28-minute film by Oscar-nominated director Judith Ehrlich, filmed one year before Ellsberg’s death at age 92. To register:  https://www.anordinaryinsanity.com/   The free premiere will include a panel featuring director Judith Ehrlich, Ellsberg family members, and nuclear weapons experts and activists, followed by a Q&A. After the premiere, the film will be available to view FREE online and to use for screenings and events to help build greater awareness of the threat we face and to encourage action.

5. Saturday, June 6^th at 1:30 pm MDT – Santa Fe Archbishop John Wester, Partnership for a World Without Nuclear Weapons, will present on his 2022 pastoral letter,Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament to a virtual summit dialogue to activate Catholics to work for the global abolition of nuclear weapons. For more information about the Pax Christi New England Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (PCAN) and to register, go to https://paxchristima.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/PCAN-Summits-Flyer-PDF.pdf

6. Monday, June 8^th at 9 am at the NM State Capitol Building – Water Quality Control Commission Public Rulemaking Hearing for the Proposed Surface Water Quality State Permitting Program (WQCC 25-74(R)). For more information: https://www.env.nm.gov/events-calendar/?trumbaEmbed=view%3Devent%26eventid%3D199647881

7. Sunday, June 13^th from 10 am to 11 am – Albuquerque Inaugural Women Veterans Celebration at New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, 1100 Louisiana SE. Albuquerque Concert Band will begin music at 9:45 am. For more information, please call 505 768-4495.

On Thursday, April 23rd, the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) issued a draft permit modification to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in order to speed up cleanup of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and focus on the disposal of legacy waste at WIPP.  The draft Hazardous Waste Act permit proposes to require a minimum percentage of legacy waste shipments from LANL to WIPP during specific timeframes beginning on January 1, 2027.

NMED’s action would help stop LANL’s plans to leave one million cubic meters of radioactive and hazardous waste buried in unlined pits, trenches and shafts in the volcanic tuff in a seismic zone above the regional drinking water aquifer and the Rio Grande. The action, if approved, would limit waste from new plutonium pit production that could be shipped to WIPP.

CCNS and the Stop Forever WIPP Coalition support NMED’s action and urge you to submit your public comments by Monday, June 8th.  The Stop Forever WIPP Coalition opposes the expansion of WIPP for newly generated LANL waste from plutonium pit production. CCNS is a member group.  https://stopforeverwipp.org/home

Some of the NMED proposed permit provisions include:

• From January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2031, at least 55 percent of the total volume of all waste shipped to WIPP for disposal must be LANL legacy waste;
• Beginning January 1, 2032, at least 75 percent must be LANL legacy waste;
• Legacy waste at LANL’s Area G that is stored above-ground must be shipped by July 1, 2028; and
• If the requirements are not met, all non-LANL shipments must cease until all deficiencies are cured.

How did we get here?  In June of 2023, members of the Stop Forever WIPP Coalition, NMED, DOE, the WIPP contractor, and other citizen groups and businesses met to negotiate permit conditions to ensure WIPP’s continued operations. Those provisions provided greater state oversight, required prioritization of legacy waste in New Mexico and protections for the People and Lands of New Mexico. For more information, go to https://www.env.nm.gov/hazardous-waste/wipp/, scroll down to “WIPP News – 2023” and view the October 4, 2023 entry.

Written public comments may be submitted until 5 pm Mountain Time on Monday, June 8, 2026. For more information about the NMED draft Permit, Public Notice and Fact Sheet, go to https://www.env.nm.gov/hazardous-waste/wipp/, scroll down to “WIPP News – 2026” and view the April 23, 2026 entry.

Submit your comments by email to HWB-WIPP-Comment@env.nm.gov or use the WIPP Agency Initiated Modification (AIM) Draft Permit Public Comment Portal at https://nmed.commentinput.com/?id=x2V7G3HrWN

1. Held and Upcoming DOE/NNSA PUBLIC HEARINGS about the draft Plutonium Pit Production Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) (five public hearings in total)

 1. North Augusta, South Carolina on Tuesday, May 5^th – Completed with informed public opposition to DOE’s plans.

 2. Kansas City, Missouri on Thursday, May 7^th – no virtual meeting option – Completed with informed public opposition to DOE’s plans.

 3. Livermore, California on Tuesday, May 12^th – no virtual meeting option – Completed with informed public opposition to DOE’s plans.

 4. Santa Fe, New Mexico on Thursday, May 14^th from 5 pm to 8 pm MT – hybrid training and public hearing focused on LANL operations.

 Public Hearing Location:   Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute

                                                      1607 Paseo de Peralta

                                                      Santa Fe, NM  87501

 Comment/Hearing Training for LANL:

Wednesday, May 13^th – In-Person/Hybrid at 6:00 pm MT

1420 Cerrillos Rd, Santa Fe, NM 87505

Link for hybrid meeting TBA – go to https://pitpeis.com/comment-and-hearing-resources/ for link.

5. Washington, DC on Wednesday, May 20^th – no virtual meeting option.

Public Meeting Location:   Southwest Library

Large Meeting Room

900 Wesley Place SW

Washington, DC  20024

For more information:  https://pitpeis.com/comment-and-hearing-resources/

2. Friday, May 15th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Monday, April 27^th to Friday, May 22^nd – Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) at the United Nations in New York. At a time of renewed nuclear arms racing, increasing threats of nuclear weapons use, and risks of further nuclear proliferation, Legislators (mayors and parliamentarians) and civil society activists, including Abolition 2000 member groups, will also be at the 2026 NPT Review Conference advocating for concrete measures to reduce nuclear risks and advance nuclear abolition. Abolition 2000 is a global network to eliminate nuclear weapons:  No Nukes, No War. You can participate virtually! A list of events available at:  https://www.abolition2000.org/events/

4. Saturday, May 16 to Sunday, June 14^th – the Pax Christi New England Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (PCAN) will host a virtual summit dialogue in four sessions. Each will feature four to six Catholic and other faith leaders who will speak briefly, exchange ideas and field audience questions on activating Catholics to work for the global abolition of nuclear weapons. For more information and to register, go to https://paxchristima.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/PCAN-Summits-Flyer-PDF.pdf

 Archbishop John Wester, Partnership for a World Without Nuclear Weapons, will be on Panel 3 on June 6, 2026.  PCAN’s goals include building upon the Archbishop’s 2022 pastoral letter, Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament.

Our colleague, Hunter Noffsinger, an organizer with the Union of Concerned Scientists, crafted a three-minute public comment about the draft Plutonium Pit Production Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) that you can use as a model for your comments at the Thursday, May 14^th public hearing in Santa Fe. It will take place from 5 to 8 pm at the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute at 1607 Paseo de Peralta and on MS Teams.   https://www.ucs.org/resources/plutonium-pit-production

Noffsinger wrote, “The draft PEIS misses a lot of things raised in the scoping period last May, as well as a few bare minimum requirements. First, the PEIS as drafted does not include enough consideration for the impacts of plutonium pit production across other sites, such as the Kansas City plant, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, the Nevada National Security Site, and [the] Lawrence Livermore National Lab, as is the whole purpose of this programmatic environmental impact statement. The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and [the] Department of Energy (DOE) must include the full impacts of the plutonium pit program in the final PEIS.

“Additionally, among many other concerns, I question the decision to move forward with plutonium pit production at the Savannah River Site considering SRS has been deemed an [Environmental Protection Agency] Superfund site. Plutonium pit production carries danger to human and environmental health no matter where it happens. We know this from our history of pit production at Rocky Flats as well as from the current pit production already happening at Los Alamos National Lab. In the time since Los Alamos produced its first diamond stamped pit in December of 2024, there have been several safety issues involving plutonium. One can only expect these safety incidents to become more frequent as production ramps up.

“As it relates to safety: The draft PEIS as written does not fully consider the impacts for worst-case scenarios such as plutonium fires. The impact radius must be expanded beyond the 50-mile radius in order to accurately account for these worst-case scenarios and the impacts they could have well beyond the region.

Noffinger concluded, “I, among many others, share many more concerns than this that I hope the NNSA truly considers rather than checking a box to say you ‘heard from the community.’ The NNSA and DOE have a responsibility to ensure the safety of our community members. Under the guise of national security, [they] are instead putting more people unnecessarily in harm’s way.”

1. Wednesday, May 6^th from 6 to 7:30 pm Mountain Time – Virtual training about submitting public comments for the draft Plutonium Pit Production Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement by PeaceWorks Kansas City.Virtual on Zoom:
   https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/2nbGZ0CtQoux1mUEwM2mUw

If you can’t make it in person PeaceWorks Kansas City plans to livestream the teach-in on Facebook and the recording will be archived at https://peaceworkskc.org/plutonium/

Upcoming DOE/NNSA PUBLIC HEARINGS (five in total)

1. North Augusta, South Carolina on Tuesday, May 5^th – Completed with informed public opposition to DOE’s plans.

2. Kansas City, Missouri on Thursday, May 7^th – no virtual meeting option. See above for Wednesday, May 6^th virtual training opportunity.

3. Livermore, California on Tuesday, May 12^th – no virtual meeting option.

Meeting Location:   Garré Vineyard & Winery

                                          Santa Rosa Room

                                          7986 Tesla Road

                                          Livermore, CA  94550ß

Comment/Hearing Training for Livermore: Thursday, May 7 at 6:30 pm MT; 5:30 pm PT

Virtual on Zoom:  https://tinyurl.com/2sp2592m

4. Santa Fe, New Mexico on Thursday, May 14^th from 5 pm to 8 pm MT

 Meeting Location:   Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute

                                          1607 Paseo de Peralta

                                          Santa Fe, NM  87501

Comment/Hearing Training for LANL:

Wednesday, May 13 – In-Person/Hybrid at 6:00 pm MT

1420 Cerrillos Rd, Santa Fe, NM 87505

Link for hybrid meeting TBA – go to https://pitpeis.com/comment-and-hearing-resources/

5. Washington, DC on Wednesday, May 20^th – no virtual meeting option.

Meeting Location:   Southwest Library

Large Meeting Room

900 Wesley Place SW

Washington, DC  20024

For more information:  https://pitpeis.com/comment-and-hearing-resources/

2. Friday, May 8^th from noon to 1 pm – Join the nuclear disarmament community at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval in Santa Fe for the weekly peaceful protest in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners.

3. Monday, April 27^th to Friday, May 22^nd – Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) at the United Nations in New York. At a time of renewed nuclear arms racing, increasing threats of nuclear weapons use, and risks of further nuclear proliferation, Legislators (mayors and parliamentarians) and civil society activists, including Abolition 2000 member groups, will also be at the 2026 NPT Review Conference advocating for concrete measures to reduce nuclear risks and advance nuclear abolition. Abolition 2000 is a global network to eliminate nuclear weapons:  No Nukes, No War.

You can participate virtually! A list of events available at:  https://www.abolition2000.org/events/