Guest column: New fence was needed to improve Y-12 security

Much has been made of the decision at the Y-12 National Security Complex to improve security by extending one of our security fences. As the president and general manager of B&W Y-12, the management and operating contractor for the National Nuclear Security Administration, I believe it’s important that a few of the facts surrounding this change be understood.

In case you haven’t been following this matter, we moved the boundary fence (also known as the 229 boundary) closer to our main entrance. This was done in response to recent trespassing events at Y-12 in order to strengthen our security posture. The response to this decision has been overwhelmingly positive among the vast majority of the people who take interest in Y-12’s operations. We are gratified by that support.

That said, we knew this decision would create concern among individuals and groups who have held demonstrations in the area that is now fenced in. So, in an effort to accommodate their interests but still uphold our mission to secure the site, we twice offered use of an alternate location, adjacent to the previous site, to a group that had a demonstration planned for this past weekend. (We continually make that location available to nonprofit organizations under a few reasonable guidelines.) Our offers were declined.

While some have criticized this change, we stand behind it as a needed security improvement for Y-12. While past decisions to allow demonstrations in this area may have been sound at the time, the fact is that we are now a more frequent target of intentional and illegal trespassing than ever before. We fully expect that others will test our security systems, so we will work to continuously improve them.

The new fence is not the only improvement we’ve made. For example, we have improved equipment and dramatically reduced the time it takes to repair that equipment when it requires maintenance. We have also constructed a more efficient Central Alarm Station that helps us better assess potential threats. We have increased patrols, and we have improved training and drills. The results are very good so far, and we are working hard to get even better.

The main reason we have high security standards is to protect the materials and information at Y-12 that are vital to our national security. Y-12 has a long and proud history of working tirelessly to keep this nation safe, and that effort for the future is demonstrated clearly in our plans to construct the Uranium Processing Facility. When complete, UPF will replace buildings that were constructed about seven decades ago, long before most of our workers were even born. We cannot efficiently provide uranium for our nuclear deterrent and perform other vital activities without this new facility.

In closing, I’d be remiss if I didn’t publicly acknowledge current and former employees who have given so much for our site’s success and our nation’s safety. Their work is often cloaked in secrecy, and the simple fact is that it must remain that way if we are to protect our vital assets from those who would seek to obtain them for purposes that are not in our national interest. While security restrictions don’t generally allow us to disclose the details about how our people daily meet great challenges with a can-do attitude, I can tell you that I’m very proud of our employees who accomplish great things every day to protect our country, uphold our Constitution, and support our community.