LANL Reneges on Active Confinement Ventilation Systems at PF-4

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) continues to neglect its obligations to safely operate its nuclear weapons facilities in a manner required by laws, orders, guidance and common sense.

A recent report from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB or the Board) details the threats from the release of plutonium contaminated air during a seismic event from the LANL Plutonium Facility, or PF-4.  For over 20 years, the Board has recommended that LANL establish active confinement ventilation systems for PF-4, and LANL agreed.  https://www.dnfsb.gov/content/review-los-alamos-plutonium-facility-documented-safety-analysis

Active confinement ventilation systems require negative air pressure in rooms and buildings where plutonium is stored, handled and processed.  In the event of seismic activity, or other possible catastrophic events, the negative air pressure would keep the contamination inside where it could be held and filtered before being released.

The converse, which is called passive confinement systems, would do nothing.  No filtration would occur.  Contaminated air would move out of the building and into the air we breathe.  Depending on the wind direction, radioactive plutonium particles would be deposited in neighborhoods, on hiking trails, fields, school grounds, and in the Rio Grande.

The first major report about the Board’s recommendations for active confinement systems was in 2004 – over 20 years ago.  In a case of fits and starts, progress to establish active confinement systems moved forward and then were delayed.  The Board has been consistent in its nuclear safety recommendations for active confinement systems, not less.

In 2009, the Board again recognized on-going safety issues at the Plutonium Facility because of the lack of active confinement systems.  The Board described the very large potential doses the public may receive following seismic events.  The Board and LANL continued the conversation for years.

In March 2022, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Administrator reversed the commitment for active confinement systems.  The Administrator wrote to the Board stating that its focus would shift from active confinement systems to passive confinement systems where NNSA would manage obsolescence, do incremental upgrades and install replacements as needed.  The NNSA commitment to active confinement systems was out the window, like plutonium blowing in the wind.  The Administrator wrote an active confinement ventilation system “would require substantial facility upgrades for in excess to those that are currently planned.”

NNSA’s priorities remain – to ignore common sense.  NNSA’s shift to passive confinement systems would deny the public the protection needed from the anticipated very large radioactive plutonium doses from the Plutonium Facility in a seismic event.

1. Friday, November 14^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. Watch A House of Dynamite on Netflix. Read Joe Cirincione’s article A House of Dynamite Explodes the Missile Defense Myth: It is no wonder the interceptors fail in the film. This is an accurate portrayal of what is likely to happen in a crisis in New Republic (October 15, 2025). Cirincione is a national security analyst and author in Washington, D.C.

3. Thursday, November 13^th and Friday, November 14^th – International Uranium Film Festival at the Navajo National Museum in Window Rock, Arizona. The IUFF showcases an array of compelling films and explores the detrimental impacts of the uranium fuel chain on communities around the world. Organizers believe the films are a necessary part of the ongoing resistance to nuclear, specifically for public health and harm reduction efforts. For more information, visit: https://uraniumfilmfestival.org/

Tags: active confinement ventilation systems, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, DNFSB, LANL, Los Alamos National Laboratory, National Nuclear Security Administration, NNSA, passive confinement ventilation systems, PF-4, Plutonium Facility, Review of the Los Alamos Plutonium Facility Documented Safety Analysis