Independent Assessment of Emergency Preparedness Capabilities at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
Office of Enterprise Assessments
October 17, 2023
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October 2023,
Independent Assessment of Emergency Preparedness Capabilities at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA) conducted an independent assessment evaluating whether the Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO), Salado Isolation Mining Contractors, LLC (SIMCO), the recently established Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) management and operating (M&O) contractor, and Nuclear Waste Partnership, LLC (NWP), the previous M&O contractor until February 2023, established and validated their emergency preparedness capabilities as required by DOE Order 151.1D, Comprehensive Emergency Management System. The assessment, conducted from June through July 2023, evaluated data from October 1, 2017, to September 30, 2022 [fiscal year (FY) 2018 to FY 2022]. The assessment was performed prior to the WIPP October exercise assessment at the request of CBFO. Specifically, the site exercise program was evaluated to determine whether Federal and contractor organizations validated emergency preparedness capabilities to ensure that the site can respond effectively and efficiently to all operational emergencies with appropriate response measures to protect workers, responders, and the public.