2009 study: Seismic activity at the Los Alamos nuclear lab could result in deadly amounts of airborne plutonium

[Emily]

http://articles.latimes.com/2009/oct/28/nation/na-plutonium-los-alamos28

Study finds quake risk at Los Alamos

October 28, 2009|Ralph Vartabedian

A big earthquake and resultant fire could trigger potentially deadly releases of radioactive materials from Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico due to "major deficiencies" in the nuclear weapons lab's safety planning, federal safety experts warned Tuesday.

The warning from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board was sent to Energy Secretary Steven Chu, urging him to "execute both immediate and long-term actions...."

They found the risk when planning a new plutonium processing facility. Huge glove boxes could fall over in an earthquake and start a fire.

Exactly how much plutonium is stored in the vaults at Los Alamos is classified, but the analysis assumes all of it would be vaporized in a massive fire and then drift off site.