U.S. Secretary of Energy, Bill Richardson (right) jokes with members of the media as he tours the Savannah River Site Tuesday morning August 15, 1998.BRANT SANDERLIN/STAFF

Politicians working for new mission at SRS

Web posted May 30, 1999

By Brandon Haddock
Staff Writer

Savannah River Site never lacked a friend on Capitol Hill.

U.S. senators and representatives from Georgia and South Carolina worked for years to bring new plutonium-processing plants to the site. Energy Secretary Bill Richardson announced in December that he planned to locate at least three plants at SRS, at a cost of about $1.4 billion.

The plants will work to rid the nation of 55 tons of excess plutonium, a key radioactive component of nuclear weapons. The facilities also will bring about 1,000 long-term jobs and a peak of more than 1,200 construction jobs to the site, which lost thousands in recent years to post-Cold War cutbacks.

Those issues enabled politicians from both sides of the aisle and the Savannah River to work together in lobbying for the plants, some lawmakers said.

``I think you've got the national security issues at stake,'' said U.S. Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga. ``Members of Congress usually let their politics stop at the water's edge, and on issues of national security, we band together.

Energy Secretary Federico Pena gestures as he walks with Senator Max Cleland and others on a tour of the Savannah River Site. 12/16/97 Ron Cockerille photo SC METRORON COCKERILLE/STAFF

``Second, this was a common interest that we had. SRS supports so many people in South Carolina and Georgia.''

Mr. Cleland, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was one of several lawmakers whom the site could count as allies. The issue united congressmen across chambers, parties and state lines.

U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., is former chairman and a senior ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. South Carolina's other senator, Democrat Fritz Hollings, is a ranking member of the Senate Energy and Water Committee.

In the House of Representatives, U.S. Reps. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Charlie Norwood, R-Ga., spearheaded efforts on behalf of the site. Mr. Graham's district includes the site, the city of Aiken and other areas; Mr. Norwood's district includes metropolitan Augusta.

U.S. Rep. Floyd Spence, R-S.C., also worked on the site's behalf. Mr. Spence is chairman of the House National Security Committee.

Keeping the coalition together required considerable work, some congressional staffers said.

``This was not an easy sell for someone who does not understand the issue,'' said Richard Perry, Mr. Graham's chief of staff. ``There were people in both delegations who did not understand the importance of plutonium. How you sell it to them is you educate them about it.''

Lawmakers used personal visits with current and former Energy secretaries to push for the plants, they said. Soon after taking office, Mr. Norwood and Mr. Graham met former Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary to discuss SRS issues, said John Stone, Mr. Norwood's press secretary.

Mr. Cleland worked to arrange a site visit for Ms. O'Leary's successor, Federico Pena. After he left the post last summer, Mr. Hollings and Mr. Thurmond pushed Mr. Richardson to visit the site.

Former Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary came to Savannah River Site and the Augusta area seveal times during her tenure.RON COCKERILLE/STAFF

The community greeted such visits with pomp, with hundreds of people attending an Aiken reception, complete with a marching band, for Mr. Richardson in August. Such community support helped politicians' efforts, some lawmakers said.

``Lindsey basically responded to what the constituents were asking for,'' Mr. Perry said. ``The most important factor is community support. Some communities don't consider this an attractive option. Aiken and Augusta do.''

Not all observers cheer political efforts to bring new missions to SRS. Such maneuverings unnecessarily prolong sites' lifespans far beyond what is necessary, some nuclear activists said.

``The weapons sites often are the largest employers in their regions,'' said Maureen Eldridge, program director for the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability in Washington. ``There's quite a large incentive for congressional folks to try to keep that money coming even when the original mission is gone.

``It really hampers progress on really achieving cleanup. You don't have the forces that push for more reasonable and rational industrial development. They're just living on the federal dole, and there's no incentive to do things differently or better.''

Brandon Haddock covers energy issues for The Augusta Chronicle. He can be reached at (706) 823-3409 or bhaddock@augustachronicle.com.