Oak Ridge Today

ORAU wins $6.5 million contract from Pennsylvania Department of Health

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Oak Ridge Associated Universities Building MC-100

Oak Ridge Associated Universities has won a five-year, $6.5 million contract from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Health to manage peer and performance reviews. (Photo courtesy ORAU)

Oak Ridge Associated Universities has won a five-year, $6.5 million contract from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Health to manage peer and performance reviews.

As part of this contract, ORAU will assist the Department of Health in meeting its mission to fund Pennsylvania research organizations to conduct biomedical, clinical, and health services research projects using peer review as part of the grant selection process and performance reviews to assess ongoing and completed grants. [Read more…]

Udall, Alexander reintroduce plan for independent panel to help Cold War nuclear workers

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U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander

Lamar Alexander

Mark Udall

Mark Udall

U.S. senators Mark Udall, a Colorado Democrat, and Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, on Thursday reintroduced a bipartisan plan to create an independent advisory panel to help Cold War workers from Oak Ridge and other nuclear weapons facilities get the help they need to treat cancer and other illnesses they developed as a result of exposure to radiation, a press release said.

“The panel would oversee the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program, which has been plagued by procedural inconsistencies and delays, preventing former nuclear workers from accessing the benefits they are owed,” the release said.

It said about 600,000 workers were unknowingly exposed to radioactive and toxic substances while employed at U.S. atomic weapons program facilities during the Cold War era. Because of this exposure, thousands of Americans now have developed debilitating—and often terminal—diseases. [Read more…]

Holocaust survivor to speak at DOE women’s program

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Arthur Pais

Arthur Pais

Holocaust survivor Arthur Pais will speak at a program sponsored by federal workers in Oak Ridge next week.

The free Aug. 8 program is open to the public. It’s co-sponsored by the Oak Ridge Federal Women’s Program, or FWP, and the Federally Employed Women Oak Ridge Chapter.

It’s scheduled from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Aug. 8 at the American Museum of Science and Energy at 300 South Tulane Ave. in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Civic Center Recreation Building closed for maintenance Saturday to Wednesday

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Oak Ridge Civic Center Gymnasium

The Oak Ridge Civic Center Gymnasium is pictured above during a Christmas ceremony in December 2011.

The Oak Ridge Civic Center Recreation Building will be closed for floor and swimming pool maintenance from Saturday, Aug. 2, to Wednesday, Aug. 7.

The building and pool will reopen on Thursday, Aug. 8, but the gymnasium will not reopen until Monday, Aug. 12.

The Civic Center Recreation Building is at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

In cities surrounded by good bear habitat, wildlife officials generally let bears keep moving

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Black Bear at Grill

A black bear investigates a backyard grill in north Oak Ridge in May 2012. To encourage bears to move on, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency recommends trying to eliminate outdoor food sources such as dog and cat food, bird seed, and grease traps. (Photo by George Ostrouchov)

Oak Ridge and Knoxville are surrounded by very good bear habitats—including the largest black bear preserve in the world—and it’s not unusual to see up to a half-dozen bears come through the Oak Ridge area each year and at least that many in the Knoxville area, Tennessee wildlife officials said this week.

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Sgt. Roy Smith of Morristown said the bear seen in Oak Ridge on Monday was not the first in the area this summer, and there have also been a few in Anderson County.

“It’s not an isolated incident,” Smith said. “We have bears moving through Oak Ridge from time to time.” [Read more…]

Y-12 protester temporarily released for funeral; officials don’t comment on whether she returned to prison

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Megan Rice and Michele Naar-Obed

Megan Rice, left, was convicted on two federal charges in May after breaking into the Y-12 National Security Complex on July 28, 2012, and vandalizing a uranium storage building with two other protesters. She was temporarily released last week to attend her brother-in-law’s funeral. Rice is pictured above outside U.S. District Court in Knoxville with Michele Naar-Obed, wife of one of the other protesters, Greg Boertje-Obed.

U.S. and Georgia officials did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday and Wednesday on whether peace protester Megan Rice, who has been convicted of destroying government property at the Y-12 National Security Complex, returned to prison in the Peach State this week after a five-day release to attend the funeral of her brother-in-law in New York.

But on Tuesday, Ralph Hutchison, coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, said he assumed Rice had returned to the Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, Ga.

“I assume she reported, or we’d have heard from someone trying to locate her,” Hutchison said in a Tuesday evening e-mail. “I know she was returning to Atlanta last night en route to Ocilla. That’s the last I heard.” [Read more…]

Property values decreasing, some Oak Ridge homes selling for much less than appraised values, county board says

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Anderson County Aerial View

An aerial view of Anderson County north of Oak Ridge.

Anderson County property values are decreasing to less than about 85 percent of their appraised values, and Oak Ridge appears to have several types of property that are selling for much less than their state appraisals, including older, low-priced homes and high-priced, high-quality homes, officials said.

All land tracts in the county also appear to be selling for much less than their state appraisals, the Anderson County Board of Equalization told Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and county commissioners in a July 15 letter.

The board said the Oak Ridge properties selling for much less than their appraised values include low-priced homes built during the Manhattan Project era in World War II and high-priced, high-quality homes that are now unaffordable for most working-class employees. The Oak Ridge properties, as well as land tracts in Anderson County, appear to be selling at about 70 to 85 percent of the state appraised values. [Read more…]

Nazarewicz, Sumpter, Wullschleger named UT-Battelle Corporate Fellows

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UT-Battelle Corporate Fellows

From left are Witold Nazarewicz, Bobby Sumpter, and Stan Wullschleger. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

Witold Nazarewicz, Bobby Sumpter, and Stan Wullschleger of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have been selected as 2013 UT-Battelle Corporate Fellows.

The rank of corporate fellow—among the lab’s highest honors—recognizes the researchers’ significant accomplishments and continuing leadership in their scientific, engineering, and technological fields. The addition of Nazarewicz, Sumpter and Wullschleger brings the number of active corporate fellows at ORNL to 33 researchers. [Read more…]

Cub Scouts, Elks collect donated items to help Oklahoma tornado victims

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Moore, Oklahoma, Tornado Damage

Members of the Oklahoma National Guard’s 63rd Civil Support Team conduct search and rescue operations in response to the EF-5 tornado that ripped through the center of Moore, Okla., on May 20. (Photo by The National Guard/Used under a Creative Commons license)

Since the tragic storms that struck Moore, Okla., on May 20, the Cub Scout Pack 226 of Linden Elementary School and Oak Ridge Elks Lodge #1684 have begun a donation drive to aid victims of deadly tornadoes.

“A generous donation from EnergySolutions of Oak Ridge has put us well on our way,” a press release said.

The Oak Ridge Elks Lodge has offered their facility at 684 Emory Valley Road as a donation center for anyone that wishes to help the community fill a truck with the relief items for the victims of these deadly tornadoes, the press release said. The Cub Scouts will be assembling “comfort kits” for donation to the American Red Cross. These kits contain hygiene items, toothbrush, comb, razor, soap, and other items to give to disaster victims as first-need items. [Read more…]

Public meeting next month, construction next year on Jackson Square project

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Jackson Square Grant Ceremony

Gov. Bill Haslam, fourth from left, joins local residents re-creating a famous “War Ends” photograph in Jackson Square, but this time with an $800,000 state check for parking lots, sidewalks, benches, and bicycle racks. (File photo June 2012)

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam visited Oak Ridge about one year ago to announce that a state grant valued at roughly $800,000 had been awarded to the city to help revitalize Jackson Square, focusing on parking, lighting, landscaping, and benches.

Next month, Oak Ridge officials will have an open house to present three conceptual drawings for the project, which is in the city’s original town center. The public meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 7, at the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation Enhancement Grant awarded last year is to be used for the project’s first phase, which includes renovating the Jackson Square parking lot by adding handicapped parking and access, pedestrian lighting and circulation, landscaping and event enhancements, and bicycle racks and benches, a city press release said. [Read more…]

ORNL’s Croft elected fellow of the Institute of Physics

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Stephen Croft

Stephen Croft

Stephen Croft of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been elected fellow of the Institute of Physics.

He was selected for his achievements in physics and outstanding contributions to the physics profession.

Croft works in ORNL’s Nuclear Security and Isotope Technology Division. [Read more…]

Roane County Chamber names new board chair, members

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Chris Ahler

Chris Ahler

KINGSTON—The chair of the Roane County Chamber of Commerce board for the 2013-2014 year is Chris Ahler, who owns his own investment management business in Harriman.

Ahler took over July 1 from outgoing board chair Kenyon Mee, the facility manager of Diversified Scientific Services, a subsidiary of Perma-Fix Environmental Services.

“Our Chamber board this year is one of the strongest in recent memory. It brings youth and experience all at the same time to a board that already boasts a virtual ‘Who’s Who’ of Roane County business and community leaders,” Chamber President Leslie Henderson said. “I am so pleased and gratified that all of these folks have agreed to serve (or continue to serve) our Chamber membership and our community in this way.” [Read more…]