DOE/NNSA Los Alamos Field Office Manager Ted Wyka answers questions Tuesday from Los Alamos County Councilors. Los Alamos Reporter Screenshot
BY MAIRE O’NEILL
maire@losalamosreporterer.com
Ted Wyka, NNSA Federal Manager and Risk Acceptance Official for Los Alamos National Laboratory told Los Alamos County Councilors Tuesday evening during their meeting in White Rock that he is not applying any pressure to the team working on the depressurization of the Flanged Tritium Waste Containers at LANL, which began this week.
“I want them to focus on their work and not on outside pressure. They’re doing very well. They have a bunch of observers from New Mexico Environment, EPA Region 6, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board and as well as my team,” Wyka said.
He added that the team successfully reached a major milestone over a decade in the making over last weekend by beginning the depressurization process on the four FTWCs containers and that he is pleased to report that the process is proceeding smoothly.
“Getting these barrels down to WIPP has been a huge priority for NNSA and we are very close to having that goal accomplished. On Sept 8 we received NMED’s approval on our Temporary Authorization to depressurize the four FTWCs at Area G to enable final waste disposal off-site<” Wyka said.
He said depressurization would be ongoing this week and that the operation is being monitored closely.
“The operation is well planned and is being implemented by some of our best experts on
site in a safe and compliant way. We expect no off-site impact from the operation. Off-site disposal supports the safe and compliant operations at LANL and further reduces the risk to our workers, the community and the environment. We endeavor to complete this before the weather gets too cold to allow safe operations in 2025,” Wyka said.
NNSA announced Friday that the operation would resume Saturday, Sept. 20, to depressurize three more waste containers that have been in temporary storage at the lab since 2007. (For latest updates on the project, go to https://www.lanl.gov/engage/environment/ftwc)
In other updates to the Council, Wyka reported that the Lab’s funding profile remains steady with a slight upward trajectory related to the recent passage of the budget reconciliation process.|
“As we approach the end of the federal fiscal year, we remain hopeful that a budget agreement will be reached, but I am confident LANL can weather any temporary budget disruption should one occur. Looking at the Laboratory’s projected fiscal path for FY 26, I believe the LANL will remain in a hiring mode. It appears they will continue to replace their annual attrition (roughly 900 staff) with some modest hiring on top of the 900 attrition replacements,” he said.
He added that the hiring freeze at the NNSA Field Office will continue and reminded Council that DOE lost nine people at LANL to the Deferred Resignation Program.
“The NNSA mission and our broader national security responsibilities demand the commitment of each team member to transform and accelerate a culture of urgency to achieve specific strategic objectives today and meet the challenges of tomorrow. The NNSA field office team is committed to the mission and willing to do what it takes to succeed. I’m proud of their resilience,” Wyka said. “Not unsurprisingly, construction and national security activities will again be the main areas where programmatic dollars will be spent, and budget increases will occur.
Wyka addressed what he called continued operational improvements noting that he continues to be encouraged with traffic safety improvements both internally and externally to the site.
“While I recognize that NNSA and LANL do not make or enforce the traffic safety laws in New Mexico I see progress. Speeding appears to be getting better based on our internal telemetry data, our car/van pool usage is up (taking more cars off the road) and bus ridership is steadily increasing,” he said. “In addition, many of you will have noticed the major repaving happening on the Truck Route right now and improving the the road surface will enhance safety. I am optimistic that the work will be completed in the next 3 to 6 weeks depending on the weather.”
Wyka said NNSA continues to work with the Los Alamos Police Department to install speed cameras along the Truck Route.
“It is our understanding that the LAPD is working through their procurement process for the cameras. Once they provide us with the locations where they want to install the cameras, LANL will install the utility connections and pole structures for the cameras. We are also working with the County to establish a Memorandum of Understanding for the Speed Camera Safety Enforcement,” he said.
Another item on his list was the New Electric Coordination Agreement between Los Alamos County and NNSA, which expires Dec. 31, 2025. Wyka said Los Alamos Department of Public Utilities and NNSA staff are working on the agreement with procurement staff in Albuquerque.
On the Rendija Canyon Land Transfer, NNSA continues to work with the U.S Army Corps of Engineers on Rendija Canyon to develop an interagency agreement to estimate the cost of additional clearance of unexploded ordnance in the areas specified by Los Alamos County staff in the letter sent to NNSA last fall, Wyka said.
“This cost estimate will include a survey to a depth of 4 feet (or greater where utilities are buried) of approximately 28 acres of Rendija Canyon that are associated with the proposed recreational vehicle park and the utility and road rights of way. NNSA is currently in the process of scoping this work for an interagency agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” he said.
Wyka mentioned the Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement (SWEIS} being prepared that will assess the impacts of future operations across LANL.
“As with prior SWEIS updates, the purpose of this new SWEIS is to analyze the environmental impacts of potential new or expanded future operational activities and programs that have not been previously analyzed through the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. We are completing our internal reviews of the analysis and preparing to publish the final SWEIS in November 2025,” he said, adding that the SWEIS will follow the recently updated NEPA Implementing Procedures for context, clarity and efficiency.
The LANL SWEIS, including appendices, and the NNSA decision will be published to the US EPA Office of Federal Activities following EPA’s filing guidance and on the DOE NEPA website. Wyka said a notification will be sent to LAC when the LANL SWEIS and any associated decisions are published.
On the Electrical Power Capacity Upgrade, project, Wyka said NNSA issued a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) to their Environmental Assessment of the project. Santa Fe National Forest and the Bureau of Land Management issued the same finding,
“We executed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between DOE/NNSA, State Historic Preservation Office, Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and Santa Fe National Forest for the EPCU in compliance with National Historic Preservation Act, Section 106. This was required before the three agencies issued their final NEPA determination. The MOA involved extensive consultation with Tribes and other parties and includes mitigations for the adverse cultural impacts resulting from the project,” Wyka said,
The project now transitions into design with construction starting in the Fall of 2026 on the new transmission line, he said. and NNSA’s Acquisition and Project Management Office will lead the execution of the project.
“The infrastructure upgrades onsite for EPCU are scheduled to begin in Fall 2025. Construction of the line on BLM and Santa Fe National Forest lands is scheduled to begin next Fall 2026,” Wyka said.
On transuranic waste (TRU)nshipping as an environmental priority, Wyka said NNSA remains conscious of widespread interest in transuranic waste removal.
“Reducing our waste inventory is a priority of the State and DOE/NNSA and continues to be a high priority for my office. We project a total of 76 TRU shipments for this fiscal year and we’re on track to meet our goals to reduce inventory. We have shipped more than 3,000 m 3 of Chem/Haz material off the hill to licensed facilities and we are pleased with LANL’s performance in transporting waste off the hill. Our strong partnership with DOE/EM supports cleanup of Area G and will help us reach major milestones over the coming year,” he said.
Wyka said the Cooperative Agreement between Los Alamos County and NNSA for fire department services continues to ensure the protection of the Los Alamos County community and LANL employees.
“Our partnership has been successful. As part of stakeholder engagement, County staff are invited and attend Cooperative Agreement meetings including the Staffing Working Group meetings where staffing details are discussed to address fire response at LANL. In late 2024, the County requested that we look at the new NFPA standard related to occupational medical programs to reduce risks and provide for the health, safety, and effectiveness of fire fighters,” he said. “The new NFPA 1580 standard consolidated multiple standards into one standard for
emergency responder occupational health. Since that request, NNSA has directed Triad to implement the NFPA 1580 standard. We started phased implementation on June 23, 2025 which should be completed by Sept. 30, 2026.”