Colloquium | February 6 | 4-5 p.m. |  Sibley Auditorium, Bechtel Engineering Center

Speaker/Performer: Dr. Per F. Peterson, Chair, Department of Nuclear Engineering at U.C. Berkeley; member of the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future

Sponsor: Nuclear Engineering (NE)

Abstract
President Obama directed the Secretary of Energy to create a new Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future in January, 2010, to review U.S. policy for the management of spent fuel and high level waste and recommend a new path forward. The Commission held some 30 different public meetings around the nation to obtain information, and visited to observe current programs in Finland, Sweden, Japan, France and Russia. Based upon public and stakeholder input on a draft report issued in June, 2010, the Commission completed and issued its final report on January 26, 2012. This talk will review the major recommendations of the Commission, and discuss the path forward for U.S. nuclear waste policy.

Open to audience: All Audiences

Attendance restrictions: No children under 18.

Event Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 510-642-4077

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future today released its final report to the U.S. Energy Secretary, detailing comprehensive recommendations for creating a safe, long-term solution for managing and disposing of the nation's spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste.

The report is the culmination of nearly two years of work by the commission and its subcommittees, which met more than two dozen times since March 2010, gathering testimony from experts and stakeholders, as well as visiting nuclear waste management facilities both domestic and overseas.

Download full report HERE.

Washington, D.C. – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has awarded $25 million to the University of California, Berkeley, to lead a multi-institution consortium that will support the nation's nuclear nonproliferation mission through the training and education of experts in the nuclear security field.

The NNSA today announced the five-year grant to establish the National Science and Security Consortium (NSSC) at its annual Laboratory Directed Research and Development Symposium at the University of California Washington Center in Washington, D.C.

“Investing in the scientific and technical underpinnings of our program is critical to implementing the President’s nuclear security agenda and to preventing nuclear terrorism or nuclear proliferation," said NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Anne Harrington. “As we push the boundaries of science and discovery, partnerships like the National Science and Security Consortium are a vital part of our effort to invest in the future of our programs by building a strong pipeline of new technical talent to our laboratories."

You can now watch a live online stream of Monday colloquiums here: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/ucbne-colloquia

The group photo from the NSSC Kick-Off meeting on June 10, 2011. There were representatives from 7 collaborating universities, 5 national laboratories and DOE NNSA.

I was extremely happy when our team won in a very strong competition! We put a lot of efforts in preparing the best proposal, and competed agains basically all other Nuclear Engineering Departments in the country, as well as the best Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Chemistry Departments. The SUCCESS PIPELINE  (Seven Universities Coordinating Coursework and Experience from Student to Scientist in a Partnership for Identifying and Preparing Educated Laboratory-Integrated Nuclear Experts) Nuclear Science and Security Consortium (NSSC) includes Michigan State University; the University of Nevada, Las Vegas; and Washington University, Saint Louis, as well as four University of California campuses (Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, and San Diego) and UC’s Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation. The UC Berkeley is the lead university in this Consortium. I am the Principal Investigator for the grant, and Prof. James Siegrist (Physics) is the Executive Director of the NSSC.