INDEX
CHAPTER V
NUCLEAR MATERIALS INVENTORY MANAGEMENT
1. GENERAL. Nuclear materials are a highly valuable resource that must be
considered along with dollars and work force in making decisions based
on the total resources to accomplish program objectives at the least
cost to the Government. Sound materials management policies minimize
nuclear materials stored onsite, or held in user programs, which are not
needed for near-term mission accomplishment. Annual assessments of
nuclear material inventories are required to evaluate the need for the
inventory levels and to determine if the materials are categorized
properly. Appropriate indicators for inventory evaluation should be
developed and used.
2. REQUIREMENTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
a. Field Offices.
(1) Establish appropriate inventory management guidelines based on
programmatic needs, and review/evaluate contractor inventories
on a continuing basis.
(2) Ensure that the nuclear materials for which the field office
has programmatic responsibility are accurately categorized,
e.g., project number, composition of ending inventory, and
usage status.
(3) Perform formal reviews of contractor nuclear materials
utilization and report the findings according to the
procedures set forth in Chapter VII.
(4) Prepare and provide to Headquarters, by 1-15, an annual
assessment of the nuclear material inventories held by
contractors, as of 9-30, for which the field office has
programmatic responsibility.
b. Headquarters Program Organizations. Directors of Headquarters
program organizations shall review the annual assessments of
nuclear materials inventories submitted by the field offices and
approve and/or recommend changes in project inventory levels, based
on existing and planned program activities, to ensure that
appropriate inventory levels and good inventory management
practices are maintained.
3. FIELD OFFICE ASSESSMENT OF CONTRACTOR USE OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS. The
following instructions are provided for preparing the annual nuclear
materials inventory assessment report:
a. Inventory Date. The assessment shall cover nuclear materials on
inventory as of 9-30.
b. Reporting Responsibility. The assessment should cover nuclear
materials under all user and supply projects for which the field
office has programmatic responsibility or, in the case of nuclear
materials or weapons production operations, contract administration
responsibility. This responsibility is identified by the prefix in
the alphanumeric project number used to identify all DOE program
nuclear materials. Onsite "M" and "E" project materials should be
included in the assessment. Materials with "I" project numbers are
excluded from the assessment report.
c. Material to be Reported. The following table shows the nuclear
materials to be included in the annual inventory assessment reports
along with project quantities below which no explanations are
required:
Project Exempt
Material Type Reporting Unit Quantities
------------- -------------- --------------
Enriched Uranium kg U-235 2 kg
Plutonium kg Pu 2 kg
Uranium-233 kg U-233 1 kg
Heavy Water (D20) kg D20 equiv. 500 kg
Plutonium-238 gm Pu-238 100 gm
Tritium gm Tritium 10 gm
Normal Uranium MT U 10 MT
Depleted Uranium MT U 10 MT
Plutonium-242 gm Pu-242 100 gm
Americium-243 gm Am-243 1 gm
Curium gm Cm 1 gm
Americium-241 kg Am-241 1 kg
Berkelium-249 ægm Bk-249 1 ægm
Californium-252 ægm Cf-252 1 ægm
Lithium-6 kg Li-6 2 kg
Neptunium-237 kg Np-237 1 kg
Thorium kg Th 1000 kg
d. Analysis Format. Assessments submitted to Headquarters should
summarize inventories by individual projects with explanations
using the following categories:
(1) Active Material. Material that is actively used in DOE user
programs.
(2) Inactive Material - Defined Use. Material not in active use,
but held for probable future use in an identifiable DOE
program within the next 2 years or being held in designated
reserves for probable future use beyond 2 years.
(3) Inactive Material - No Defined Use. Material not in active
use or needed for an onsite DOE program now or in the next 2
years. Includes material that is surplus to projected needs
but is desirable for retention, but does not include reserves
designated for specific purposes.
In addition, the assessments shall include composition of ending
inventory data codes with the material quantities.
e. Source of Data. The quantities of nuclear materials contained in
the assessment reports should be consistent with that reported to
Nuclear Materials Management and Safeguards System. Reports are
available from Nuclear Materials Management and Safeguards System
that show the project inventories, inventory composition, assays,
etc.
f. Assessments. The explanations should contain sufficient
information to allow determination as to whether inventory levels
are reasonable relative to programmatic objectives and established
inventory guidelines, where applicable. Merely restating
composition of ending inventory categories is not adequate. A
major consideration in assessing inventories, associated with
processing operations, fabrication operations, reactor operations,
and scrap processing operations, is the rate of inventory use,
throughput, or turnover. The circumstances related to all inactive
usable materials should be clearly identified, as well as the
rationale for continued storage, and the final disposition plan, if
known. Information, such as problems in disposing of scrap,
irradiated fuel ("I" project material excluded) or other excess
material should be specified. In effect, the assessment is not
merely a look at the inventory at a point in time but includes
plans in terms of quantities and timeframe to make the review
dynamic in nature. Significant recent materials management
activities, such as the reduction in inventory levels, should be
reported.
g. Timing. The annual field office inventory assessment report is due
to the Office of Nuclear Weapons Management (with copies to the
appropriate Headquarters programs) by 1-15. Headquarters program
comments on the field office submissions should be forwarded to the
Office of Nuclear Weapons Management by 1-31.