Y-12 National Security Complex is located in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The price tag for a new uranium processing facility in Tennessee has grown nearly sevenfold in eight years to upward of $6 billion because of problems that include a redesign. The nuclear labs are getting renewed scrutiny in light of forced across-the-board federal budget cuts and high-profile security lapses, such as an incident last year in Tennessee. Protesters there cut through a fence and spread blood on the walls of a plutonium lab before being detected.OAK RIDGE, Tenn. - An airborne irritant in the Y-12 nuclear weapons complex's oldest building has afflicted at least five workers in recent months.
A report from the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board said the irritation was likely caused by vapors or dust from the processing of lithium hydroxide, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel. The report says the building is not normally occupied but a technician has been doing research there.
Steven Wyatt, with the National Nuclear Security Administration, declined to say whether lithium work was taking place in the building. He said air samples have been taken, and fans and other measures have been put in place to improve air quality.
The building is occasionally open for public tours because of its historical significance. Wyatt said all tours have been suspended.