Public bus tours of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge facilities end for the year on Friday, Aug. 31.
The tour includes stops at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Y-12 National Security Complex, and East Tennessee Technology Park. The tour includes historical commentary on the transformation of the Oak Ridge Reservation during the past 65 years, a press release said.
So far this season, 1,099 visitors from 36 states have participated in the three-hour summer tour.
Two administrators at security contractor WSI Oak Ridge have been replaced after three anti-nuclear weapons activists penetrated the high-security Protected Area at the Y-12 National Security Complex on July 28, allegedly splashing blood and spraying paint on a uranium storage building.
Lee Brooks, former general manager at WSI Oak Ridge, has been replaced by Steve Hafner, who will serve as acting general manager, a press release said. Hafner is senior vice president and director of safety, security, and environment for Mission Support Alliance in Hanford, Wash.
Brooks and Gary Brandon, former director of the Y-12 Protective Force, are waiting to be reassigned by G4SGS, the WSI Oak Ridge press release said. WSI is a G4SGS company.
Three activists opposed to nuclear weapons pose with banners before their July 28 arrests at the Y-12 National Security Complex. From left to right, the three are Michael R. Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed. (Submitted photo)
The three anti-nuclear weapons activists arrested in a high-security area at the Y-12 National Security Complex on July 28 allegedly entered from the north, crossed Bear Creek Road, cut through fences, and activated numerous alarms and sensors before they reached a uranium storage building, according to criminal complaints available online today.
The three activists—Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael R. Walli—first crossed a boundary fence near the North Patrol Road on the north ridge of Y-12, U.S. Department of Energy Inspector General Special Agent Eric Dugger wrote in an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Knoxville on Friday. That fence has “No Trespassing” signs posted, he said.
About 50 protesters listen to a skit during a Sunday night vigil at the Y-12 National Security Complex, where a moment of silence was held to remember the bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945.
Security at the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex appeared about average Sunday night for an annual August protest, but it wasn’t clear what internal measures had been taken one week after an unprecedented intrusion into a high-security area.
About 50 protesters attended a Sunday night vigil at the plant organized by the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance. During the annual protest, activists recall the bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945, and oppose Y-12’s nuclear weapons work, calling for disarmament instead.
Four days of events in Oak Ridge and Knoxville this week will remember those who died in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945, and oppose plans to build a multi-billion-dollar uranium processing facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex.
Organized by the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, the ceremonies—which include a vigil, a protest, and remembrance and peace lantern ceremonies—start about one week after an unprecedented security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex. OREPA Coordinator Ralph Hutchison has said, however, that his organization had no connection to the July 28 intrusion at Y-12 by three anti-nuclear weapons activists.
The OREPA events start at 5 p.m. today with a vigil at Y-12.
Steven Chu
U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu said guards involved in an unprecedented security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex last week have been suspended, and the general manager of the contractor protective force has been removed.
Two members of the general manager’s leadership team have also been removed from their positions, Chu said in a statement.
In addition, a federal official at the site has been temporarily reassigned, pending the outcome of the investigation into the July 28 intrusion into the high-security Protected Area on the west end of Y-12 by three anti-nuclear weapons activists, Chu said.
“The Department has no tolerance for security breaches at any of our sites, and I am committed to ensuring that those responsible will be held accountable,” Chu said.
Chu did not name the suspended guards or the employees who have been removed or reassigned.
Note: This story was last updated at 1:14 p.m. Aug. 4.
KNOXVILLE—New felony property destruction charges were filed Friday against three anti-nuclear weapons activists who allegedly sneaked into the Y-12 National Security Complex on Saturday, and U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley agreed to release two of the defendants.
The new charges carry stiffer penalties than the previously filed misdemeanor trespassing charges, including up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
The new charges were filed against Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael R. Walli, who have been detained at the Blount County Corrections Facility after being arrested at about 4:30 a.m. Saturday in the high-security Protected Area on the west end of Y-12.
Greg Boertje-Obed
Megan Rice
Michael Walli
KNOXVILLE—Three anti-nuclear weapons activists accused of illegally crossing four fences to get into a high-security area at the Y-12 National Security Complex pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal misdemeanor trespassing charges.
An Oct. 9 trial date was set for the three defendants, and U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley scheduled a Friday afternoon hearing to help determine whether they should continue to be detained.
The three defendants—Michael R. Walli, 63, of Washington, D.C.; Megan Rice, 82, of New York; and Greg Boertje-Obed, 57, of Duluth, Minn.—have been jailed at the Blount County Corrections Facility.
The breach of a high-security area at the Y-12 National Security Complex by the three anti-nuclear weapons activists pictured above has not changed plans to cut up to 34 security officers. From left to right, the three are Michael R. Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed.
The plan to cut up to 34 security police officer jobs at the Y-12 National Security Complex hasn’t changed, despite a breach of a high-security area early Saturday morning by three anti-nuclear weapons activists, a federal spokesman said Wednesday.
Steven Wyatt, spokesman for the National Nuclear Security Administration, said the decision is not being re-evaluated.
“The size of the protective force is determined through a comprehensive process that considers a number of factors, which have not changed since the decision to reduce the size of the protective forces was made,” Wyatt said in a Wednesday evening e-mail.
All nuclear operations have been halted at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, a federal spokesman said Wednesday.
The unprecedented security “stand down” occurred after three activists breached the plant’s high-security area on Saturday and after an internal review by B&W Y-12 and the National Nuclear Security Administration found procedural violations, NNSA spokesman Steven Wyatt said.
“Once we found those, B&W decided it was prudent to stand down operations,” Wyatt said. B&W Y-12 manages and operates Y-12 for the NNSA.
Federal officials on Wednesday afternoon announced a security “stand down” at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge.
It’s a result of the the ongoing internal review of Y-12 security operations, according to a press release from the National Nuclear Security Administration.
During the “stand down,” all special nuclear materials will be moved to vault-type facilities on site, all nuclear operations will be halted, and contractor security personnel will undergo training and refresher instruction, the release said.
Three activists opposed to nuclear weapons pose with banners before their arrests on Saturday at the Y-12 National Security Complex. From left to right, the three are Michael R. Walli, Megan Rice, and Greg Boertje-Obed. (Submitted photo)
Three anti-nuclear weapons activists facing federal trespassing charges after sneaking into a high-security area at the Y-12 National Security Complex on Saturday have waived a detention hearing, meaning they will remain jailed for now, a court representative said Monday.
The three Plowshares activists are Michael R. Walli, 63, of Washington, D.C.; Megan Rice, 82, of New York; and Greg Boertje-Obed, 57, of Duluth, Minn. They have been jailed at the Blount County Corrections Facility.
The federal trespassing charges reportedly carry potential sentences of up to one year in prison and one year of supervised release as well as a maximum $100,000 fine. Supporters and officials have said other charges are possible.
