NNSA unveils yearly Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a branch of the Department of Energy, recently released its Fiscal Year 2016 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan (SSMP).

The FY16 SSMP shows the 25-year strategic plan of the NNSA. The plan is to maintain the security, safety, and efficiency of the nuclear stockpile while avoiding nuclear testing. It also explains the NNSA’s gradual approach to recapitalizing and maintaining the production and scientific infrastructure on which the national nuclear security business depends.

The SSMP updates the public each year with this information. It is the main way that the NNSA, the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense collaborate on nuclear topics. The NNSA uses the formal response in the update to fulfill the requirements of several Congressional reports. The Nuclear Weapons Council must approve of the policies and plans of the NNSA.

“The SSMP serves as a valuable resource for anyone who wants to better understand the NNSA and how it accomplishes its vital national security missions through the unique scientific, engineering and technical expertise resident in our national laboratories and production plants,” NNSA Administrator Frankl Klotz said. “These world-class capabilities also support a host of other national security and nonproliferation activities.”