Hats off! The birthday of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park is now set for November 10, 2015. While the Manhattan Project National Historical Park Act became law on December 21, 2014, the Act requires that the two Departments reach an agreement within a year of enactment on their respective roles in implementing the new park. At that time, the park will be officially established.
We understand that the Departments of Energy and the National Park Service leaders are close to an agreement. The Secretary of Energy Ernie Moniz and Secretary of Interior Sally Jewell are scheduled to have a signing ceremony on Tuesday, November 10, 2015 in Washington, DC.
All three sites have plans to celebrate with special events on November 11th (Los Alamos) and 12th (Hanford and Oak Ridge).
The National Park Service published a draft agreement on July 28, 2015. This milestone reflects the work of a high-level team of National Park Service and the Department of Energy officials and key employees who participated in a series of public meetings and tours at the three sites. Starting in March, the team went to Oak Ridge, TN; in April, to Hanford, WA; and finally in June, to Los Alamos, NM.
The law passed after the National Park Service’s FY 2016 budget was in place so the funds available in 2016 for NPS’s work on the park are limited to $180,000. NPS Associate Director Victor Knox talked about 2016 as a transitional year for the new park, as the Park Service assumes management and focuses on how best to interpret the story of the Manhattan Project. The Department of Energy and its laboratories have been funding a variety of activities this year and have developed a five-year budget plan for restoring and providing public access to its historic assets.
Despite a bidding contest for the designation for the park’s headquarters, the National Park Service’s draft agreement names the Denver Service Center (DSC) which provides integrated park planning throughout the national park system. The DSC has been responsible for developing the special resource study, prelude to creating the Manhattan Project National Historical Park in 2010, and the Memorandum of Agreement.
What can you expect next year? Be patient. NPS Director Jonathan Jarvis expects that it will take two more years to complete the planning and three to five years after that to prepare the sites for public access. For example, while the V Site at Los Alamos was restored under a Save America’s Treasures grant in 2005, the public will not have regular access to it until the Los Alamos National Laboratory consolidates its operations in the area. Similarly, the T-Plant at the Hanford site will not be on the tour route as work continues inside the former chemical separations plant.
But there are still many sites that will be available to the public. Local museums are eagerly awaiting an influx of tourists at each of the three sites. In addition, virtual tours will be available through the Atomic Heritage Foundation’s “Ranger in Your Pocket” website. Visitors to the new park can access these tours on their smartphones and tablets to listen to the voices of Manhattan Project veterans recount their experiences working on the project that changed the world. Stay tuned!
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