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Monday, Feb. 3, 1997

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Did you here the rumor about ...
Recent news articles feature the Lab
NM 502 update
Meetings scheduled in Santa Fe to accept comment on WIPP
Important insurance coverage information regarding Budget Rent a Car
Clarification

Did you here the rumor about ...

There has been much speculation on the possibility of an upcoming retirement incentive. The University of California has confirmed that there are no plans or intentions of offering a retirement incentive.

More from Benefits and Compensation . . .

Tax-deferred 403(b) Plan: In the past, 403(b) plan participants were able to increase or decrease their contribution amount only once during any tax year. On Jan. 17, 1997, the Regents of the University of California ratified the plan rule and participants may change their contribution amount as often as needed. This change will be effective retroactively to Jan. 1, 1997.

Recent news articles feature the Lab

Laboratory employees and or their research are highlighted in several recent newspaper, journal and news magazine articles. Among them are:

-- The Jan. 28 Albuquerque Journal and Los Alamos Monitor reported on a Lab technology to transform cement into a stronger material that's impermeable and chemically stable using carbon dioxide under high pressure. Craig Taylor of Organic Analysis (CST-12) heads the Lab effort in this process, which has been patented by a Reno, Nev., company.

-- The Jan. 27 Albuquerque Journal talked about Bob Carpenter of Materials Research and Processing Science's (MST-5) work measuring the dynamic properties of materials. The story also dealt with Carpenter's affinity for working on his classic 1951 Henry J (named after automobile builder Henry J. Kaiser), and his 10 years on the road-racing circuit in Colorado.

-- The Jan. 21 New York Times published an article about sensitive experiments by Steve Lamoreaux of Neutron Science and Technology (P-23) involving theoretical predictions based on quantum electrodynamics, a theory that touches on many of the riddles of existence and on the origin and fate of the universe. The article also referenced the journal, Physical Review Letters, which described Lamoreaux's experiments.

-- The Department of Energy's January DOE This Month reported on work the Lab is developing to commercialize the new Russian process that stresses, squeezes and breaks down microscopic nanopowders. The process could produce stronger orthopedic components including bone implants, along with stronger parts for cars, airplanes and spacecraft and improve the performance of many conventional materials. Yuntian Zhu of Materials Research and Processing Science (MST-5) and Terry Lowe, deputy director of the Materials Science and Technology (MST) Division were principal investigators for the Lab on this project.

The Dec. 9, 1996, New Technology Week also contained a story about this Lab work.

-- The Associated Press on Jan. 21 reported that the 1991 Pinatubo volcano has helped validate the accuracy of a Lab computer model replicating Earth's climate. Jim Kao of Atmospheric and Climate Sciences (EES-8) told an international symposium in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, that the volcanic eruption has further depleted Earth's ozone layer and increased global cooling. The Albuquerque Journal reported the same two days later and the Santa Fe New Mexican on Jan. 20.

-- The Jan. 16 Los Alamos Monitor reported on Laboratory Director Sig Hecker's annual state of the lab report to the University of California Board of Regents. Hecker said the lab is growing into its new role of stockpile stewardship and maintenance of nuclear weapons.

-- The Washington Post, Los Alamos Monitor, Santa Fe Reporter, Santa Fe New Mexican and Albuquerque Journal in mid-January all reported about the Lab agreeing to outside monitoring of its radioactive air emissions. The agreement was part of a settlement of a lawsuit between the Lab and the Santa Fe-based Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety.

--Compiled by Steve Sandoval

NM 502 update

Laboratory employees who travel through the intersection of NM 502 and NM 30 may experience some delays Thursday and Friday.

The general contractor building a new interchange will be installing concrete beams over NM 502 that connect with NM 30, said Danny Gallegos, project supervisor with the state Highway and Transportation Department's Española project office.

Corn Construction Co. of Albuquerque is the general contractor for the $4 million interchange project expected to be completed in October.

From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. both days, weather permitting, the contractor will be hanging the 40-to-50-ton concrete beams between the already built bridge abutments, Gallegos explained. Two cranes are needed to move the beams into place because they're so heavy, he said. While this work is taking place, flag persons will stop traffic in both directions of NM 502 and from NM 30 for up to 30 minutes, he said.

"If they're really fast it shouldn't take more than two hours each day," said Gallegos, also noting that NM 502 is about 120 feet in width. Once the beams are installed, the contractor can start building the bridge's metal decking that will form the base for road surface of the bridge, he said.

Gallegos said emergency vehicles will be allowed to go through the work area; if delays exceed more than 30 minutes, flagpersons will direct traffic through the work area on a temporary ramp, he said.

Corn Construction has completed moving nearly a half million cubic yards of dirt for the "approaches" to the soon-to-be built bridge over NM 502.

The approaches carry eastbound NM 502 traffic onto the new bridge, and vehicles from NM 30 over and onto NM 502, Gallegos explained. He added that the approaches won't be used until the bridge is built.

NM 30 is a two-lane road that cuts through Santa Clara Pueblo intersecting with NM 502 on the south and Española on its northern end.

The posted speed limit through the construction area is 45 miles per hour.

Gallegos added that the contractor won't work during peak rush hours. He added that the contractor has notified radio stations and newspapers in Santa Fe, Los Alamos and Española about the expected delays.

About 2,000 Lab employees and subcontractor personnel live in Santa Fe County; 2,300 live in Rio Arriba County and another 500 live in Bernalillo and Sandoval counties south and west of Santa Fe. Many of them travel Interstate 25, U.S. 84-285 and NM 502 to work daily.

The Lab allows managers to use flex-time scheduling, but employees should plan on delays and adjust their schedules accordingly.

Employees and subcontract personnel traveling from Santa Fe and points south who commute along this route also may consider joining car or vanpools. Those interested in joining a vanpool can call 988-7433, 294-0302 or 877-9597.

--Steve Sandoval

Meetings scheduled in Santa Fe to accept comment on WIPP

The federal Environmental Protection Agency is holding two public meetings in Santa Fe Feb. 21 to accept comment on the Department of Energy's compliance certification application for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.

The meetings are from noon to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. in Room 1 of Sweeney Convention Center.

Sweeney Convention Center is located at 201 W. Marcy St. in downtown Santa Fe. Public parking is available at the center, at the Municipal Parking Garage on West San Francisco Street or at on-street parking meters.

The EPA also plans meetings on the certification application Feb. 19 in Carlsbad and Feb. 20 in Albuquerque.

The compliance certification application is the DOE's response to the EPA's environmental protection requirements for WIPP. The document consists of about 2,000 pages of text, 22,000 pages of apendices and 60,000 pages of references, according to Howard Vasquez of WIPP's Santa Fe public information office.

The estimated $1.8 billion Waste Isolation Pilot Plant is located a half-mile underground in ancient salt beds 26 miles southeast of Carlsbad. The project is designed to bury plutonium-contaminated waste from the nation's defense industry -- some low-level waste now being stored above ground at the Lab would be shipped to WIPP for burial.

More information about the compliance certification application for WIPP is available on the World Wide Web by going to http://www.wipp.carlsbad.nm.us/ online.

--Steve Sandoval

Important insurance coverage information regarding Budget Rent a Car
For those who frequently go on official Lab travel, you need to know the latest Budget Rent a Car insurance coverage amendments.

Other Laboratory news sources
Reflections | Press and Science Releases | Dateline: Los Alamos

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