EM Assistant Secretary Anne White recently viewed progress in EM’s cleanup at the Los Alamos Site, and met with Naval Reactors employees in San Diego, where she received training before riding in a submarine. Following is her report on the trip:
I’m particularly excited to be writing this trip report because with my visit to Los Alamos, I can now say I’ve been to all of our major EM cleanup sites as Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management. As I said when I met with the EM Los Alamos Field Office (EM-LA) employees, I saved the best for last! I worked at Los Alamos for several years, and lived in Nambé, so it was great to be back at my old stomping grounds to see the progress that EM is making at the site, visit with some old friends and colleagues, and of course, eat some green chile. Los Alamos is a great example of a site where we can make some significant cleanup progress and get “done done" to reduce our overall environmental liability.
I started the day with Ray Martinez from the Pueblo of San Ildefonso. Ray and I had a good discussion on EM’s work with the Pueblos on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) initiatives, and discussed the possibility of expanding these efforts in the future. I look forward to working with Ray and the other Pueblos to make that a reality.
Next, I headed “up the hill" to the Pueblo Complex where I met with members of our EM-LA staff. I especially enjoyed my lunch with the early career professionals from EM-LA and its contractor, N3B. From my discussions with them, I could tell they are engaged in the mission at Los Alamos, and they are enthusiastic about getting work done at the site.
Even though the site had 4 inches of snow the day before I arrived, EM-LA Manager Doug Hintze and his team still took me out to see some of the great progress we are making there. At Area G, I got to see two awesome women, Stephanie Griego and Ellen Gammon, running the show. I’m so proud of the work being done at Area G, and I’m very encouraged they have gotten out their first shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. They even gave me one of the T-shirts they had made to commemorate the shipment! At TA-21, I really felt at home and my old friend Duane Parsons and I discussed what has changed since we worked there together.
From New Mexico, I headed to San Diego, where our colleagues at the Naval Reactors invited me to take a ride on the USS Pasadena (SSN 752), a Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine. I was also able to visit the Submarine Learning Center where I got a small taste of the advanced training that Navy sailors complete prior to going out to sea. In the Control Team Trainer, a trainer configured as a submarine control room, I sat in the stern planes position, which controls the depth of the ship. In the Submarine Piloting and Navigation Trainer, I wore virtual reality goggles and navigated a simulated ship through the channel, and also "rescued" Oscar when he "fell off" a bridge as part of a training exercise. I want to give a big shoutout to Lieutenant Jonadel Caro. She is one of the first female submariners in the Navy, and she did an awesome job walking us through the Submarine Learning Center.
After my training sessions, I was ready to head out to sea. I was so impressed by every person I met on the USS Pasadena. Normally, I like to name a few of the folks who make a big impression on me during my trips, but if I did that for the USS Pasadena, I would have to name everyone I met on board! The team gave me great explanations of the various parts of the ship, as well as impressive demonstrations of diving, turning, and emergency drills.
I was truly impressed by how professional and knowledgeable the sailors were. Not only were they highly trained, they were also among the most personable and engaging group I have ever met. It was an amazing experience to get to spend a day at sea with them. Commander Corey Poorman has a great group of men working for him, including my fellow Jayhawk, Executive Officer, Lieutenant Commander Hector Marin. I also have to thank Captain Chris Cavanaugh, the Commander for Submarine Squadron 11 in San Diego, as well as Jeff Avery and Steve Kamas, for organizing the trip. Thank you for welcoming me onto your ship, and for giving me total access to see your team in action!
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management
