The goal of United States Government’s nuclear security
programs is to prevent the illegal possession, use or transfer of
nuclear material, technology and expertise or radioactive material.
Successful nuclear security relies on the integration
of technology, policy, operational concepts and international
collaboration to prevent acts of nuclear terrorism.
The Basics of Nuclear Security include:
- Removing
or Eliminating Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) and separated plutonium.
Only when nuclear material is completely removed from a site is the
threat of nuclear theft completely eliminated because the removal
results in permanent threat reduction. HEU and separated plutonium
removal and/or disposition is an important effort in securing vulnerable
nuclear material worldwide. Twenty-eight nations have plans to
eliminate all current stocks of HEU by the end of 2013.
- Upgrading
security measures, including physical protection, material control and
accounting, at nuclear material and warhead sites around the world to
prevent the loss or theft of nuclear material.
- Converting
civilian commercial reactors and isotope production facilities to use
Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) fuel and targets to reduce global reliance on
HEU for research, energy and medical isotopes. Reducing the amount of
WMD-usable HEU in the civilian fuel cycle minimizes the threat of
nuclear terrorism.
- Deploying radiation detection
capabilities, as well as providing training and sustainability support,
at high-risk land, sea and air border crossings and strategic locations
to provide a backstop to the nuclear site security systems and increases
the likelihood that stolen nuclear material will be detected and
seized.
- Formulating and implementing international and
domestic nuclear nonproliferation strategies, policies, and treaties to
combat nuclear terrorism along with international partners.
- Advancing
nuclear forensics capabilities to trace the origin of seized materials
or devices, help identify smuggling networks and aid prosecution efforts
of such illicit trafficking, pinpoint vulnerabilities in security
measures to ensure nuclear and other radioactive materials remain
secured, and build and harmonize foreign nuclear forensics capabilities.
- Promoting nuclear security awareness among law
enforcement while strengthening domestic and international partner
capabilities to detect and prevent illicit trafficking of WMD-related
material, equipment, technology, information, and expertise.
Nuclear Security vs. Nuclear Safety: Nuclear
security pertains to the prevention of nuclear material theft, nuclear
smuggling and terrorism while nuclear safety deals with the practices
and safeguards to keep nuclear facilities and workers safe.