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News Releases Former LANL chemist returns as DOE assistant secretary, tours Recovery Act work site
Triay receives "key to the county"
DOE Assistant Secretary Inés Triay gets a description of work at TA-21 from demolition manager Al Chaloupka.
June 7, 2010—Saying New Mexico is her second home, former LANL chemist Inés Triay returned to Los Alamos on Friday, this time as DOE’s Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management.
Triay received a ceremonial key to Los Alamos County and toured Recovery Act cleanup work sites at TA-21.
“You are the grand lady of Los Alamos,” said County Council chairman Michael Wismer. He thanked Triay for allocating $212 million to accelerate cleanup at TA-21.
Wismer said the ceremonial key was the first ever presented by the county.
“Los Alamos is a special place and you have much responsibility,” Triay told councilors. “Being born in a communist country, I feel that Los Alamos is a veteran of war. Los Alamos in so many ways won the Cold War for this country.” Triay is a native of Cuba.
As head of Environmental Management, Triay is responsible for DOE’s nationwide cleanup programs.
At TA-21, Triay toured cleanup sites and met workers at Material Disposal Area B and the former Tritium Systems Test Assembly building.
She was appointed assistant secretary by President Obama in 2009. Triay also managed DOE’s field office in Carlsbad, NM.
Photos by Fred deSousa and Patricia Leyba
DOE Assistant Secretary Inés Triay with a group at TA-21, including LASO manager Don Winchell (in white).
DOE Assistant Secretary Inés Triay receives a ceremonial key to Los Alamos County from council chair Mike Wismer (center) and couniclor Robert Gibson.
Fast Facts
People
11,127 total employees
Los Alamos National Security, LLC 8,683
SOC Los Alamos (Guard Force) 419
Contractors 606
Students 1,101
Place
Located 35 miles northwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico, on 36 square miles of DOE-owned property.
More than 2,000 individual facilities, including 47 technical areas with 8 million square feet under roof.
Replacement value of $5.9 billion
Budget FY 2012: Approx. $2.2 billion
57% Weapons programs
9% Nonproliferation programs
7% Safeguards and Security
8% Environmental Management
4% DOE Office of Science
4% Energy and other programs
11% Work for Others
Workforce Demographics (LANS and students only)
34% of employees live in Los Alamos, the remainder commute from Santa Fe,
Española, Taos, and Albuquerque.
Average Age: 46
70% male, 30% female
43% minorities
63% university degrees
· 23% hold undergraduate degrees
· 16% hold graduate degrees
· 24% have earned a Ph.D.
Major Awards
121 R&D100 awards since 1978
31 E.O. Lawrence Awards
The Seaborg Medal
The Edward Teller Medal
The Nobel Prize in Physics, Frederick Reines