U.S. administration requests funds for nuclear weapons facilities

The FY2011 NNSA budget request includes funding of the Readiness in Technical Base and Facilities program. As part of this program, NNSA plans to complete design and begin construction of two fissile-material handling facilities - the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement (CMRR) facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) at the Y-12 National Security Complex (p. 11). Full construction at these sites is expected to begin in FY2012. Both facilities are scheduled to begin full operations in 2022.

CMRR will replace the existing Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Facility at Los Alamos, which "conducts plutonium research and development and provides analytical capabilities in support of pit surveillance and production". The Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 "will support production and surveillance of highly-enriched uranium components."

Another project planned at Los Alamos is the increase pit production capacity and capability at the PF-4 Plutonium Facility "to demonstrate pit reuse by 2017 and production by 2018-2020" (p. 11). The Plutonium Sustainment program is expected to ensure the capability to produce up to 10 plutonium pits at PF-4 and to support a range of other activities there (p. 76).