Per requirements of the Freedom of Information Act, will DOE provide documents to SRS Watch by December 5, 2019 on the conversion of MOX plant to a Plutonium Bomb Plant?
For over 10 months, DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has stonewalled a Freedom of Information ACT (FOIA) request by SRS Watch for documents related to the planning for “repurposing” of the partially finished plutonium fuel (MOX) building into a Plutonium Bomb Plant (which remains unfunded and unauthorized by Congress).
On November 6, 2019, the lawyer for SRS Watch wrote to NNSA noting the the FOIA law was being violated due to the non-response and demanded from NNSA a time by which the requested documents would be provided. The letter implied further legal action if NNSA did not follow the law. (Final letter Lawton to NNSA Request for completion date for FOIA 19-00083 Nov 6 2019)
The SRS Watch FOIA request is seeking:
“DOE/NNSA “statement of work” or “terms of work” provided to Savannah River Nuclear Solutions for development of “preliminary design and planning work” for conversion of the MOX plant at SRS to production of plutonium puts for nuclear weapons”
In response to the letter above, on November 21, 2019, a DOE staff official – a “Government Information Specialist, Office of the General Counsel, National Nuclear Security Administration” – stated in an email to SRS Watch and our lawyer that there would be a response to the FOIA request by December 5, 2019:
It is the practice of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Office of the General Counsel, in accordance with the Departmental policy, to process FOIA requests in the approximate order of the date received by this office. A number of requests received prior to yours are pending. Please note that your case is nearing completion and is currently with the reviewing official for final review. We will continue to monitor your case as it progresses.
Estimated Time of Completion is 5 Dec 19. Upon completion, you will be provided a FEDEX tracking number prior to dispatch.
Thus, we shall see if DOE responds as it has stated. If the request is not “completed” as stated – which we interpret as being sent to SRS Watch – further legal action will be reviewed.