National Park Service asks for public comments about Manhattan Project Park

Posted at 11:06 am April 20, 2021
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

An undated aerial photo posted online by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management shows the former K-25 Building, once the world’s largest building, in west Oak Ridge. The building has been demolished, but its history is being preserved, including at the new K-25 History Center.

The National Park Service is asking for public comments about the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The comments are being sought as the Park Service prepares an interpretive plan for park programming, exhibits, and media, a press release said. The goal is to capture many different experiences and perspectives.

Discussions with the public are being organized by theme and region. The discussions focused on regions concentrate on the areas around the three Manhattan Project park locations: Hanford, Washington; Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Because of COVID-19, all events will be held virtually (online), the press release said.

The public meetings are Tuesday to Thursday this week. Here is the schedule:

Hanford Community Meeting—5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 20 (Pacific Daylight Time). You can register here.
Los Alamos Community Meeting—5:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 21 (Mountain Daylight Time). You can register here.
Oak Ridge Community Meeting—5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 22 (Eastern Daylight Time). You can register here.

The Manhattan Project National Historical Park was established in November 2015 as an agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Park Service. It preserves parts of Hanford, Los Alamos, and Oak Ridge. Those three cities helped he United States develop the world’s first atomic bombs, including the two dropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945, just before the end of World War II. The top-secret program to build the bombs was known as the Manhattan Project. Under the 2015 agreement, the National Park Service and DOE jointly manage and administer the park.

In Oak Ridge, there are areas of historic interest within the central city and at the former K-25 site, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Y-12 National Security Complex.

*An undated photo posted online by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management shows workers at the Graphite Reactor at X-10, now Oak Ridge National Laboratory.*

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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