December 11, 2014 VOLU M E 31 | I SS UE 24 | 5 0 ¢
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Second time’s a charm Orion test launch a success By Ashley Reimers
areimers@colorado communitymedia.com Although it was 4 a.m., Morning Star Yazzie and Ariyah Castro, both 11, were full of energy as they waited to see a rocket burst into the atmosphere. “It’s pretty exciting to be here,” Yazzie said. Yazzie, Castro and 13 other members of Girls Inc. took part in the Dec. 4 Orion launch watch party at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Girls Inc., the official watch party sponsor, partners with Lockheed Martin to provide STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education mentoring programs and inspire girls. The trip to the watch party was part of the Rocket Girls program, which teaches the girls how to build and launch their own rockets. “The girls are already engaged in STEM and learning about rockets,” said Chris Homolac, a Lockheed Martin mentor. “So it was really exciting for them to have the opportunity to experience a real launch and take it to the next level.” Unfortunately the girls and about 500 other people left the museum disappointed after a failed launch attempt. Due to wind delays and other issues, Orion remained grounded at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida until a second at-
NREL leads in newly funded Lab-Corps Bridging the gap between national labs and venture capitalists By Amy Woodward
awoodward@colorado communitymedia.com
and on Dec. 5, Orion orbited the Earth twice, spending around 4.5 hours in the
The National Renewal Energy Lab will play a major role in the federal Department of Energy’s efforts to move clean energy technologies from national laboratories to the marketplace. The lab, better known as NREL, is implementing a new program that fosters entrepreneurship and industry partnerships. The program, called Lab-Corps, will operate through a five-lab partnership with other national labs, including the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Lawrence
Charm continues on Page 5
NREL continues on Page 5
People wait patiently for the launch of Orion on Dec. 4 at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Due to wind and other issues, Orion ended up staying grounded until a second attempt on the morning of Dec. 5. Photo by Ashley Reimers tempt the following morning, which took off without a hitch. Orion is part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s goal of sending humans to asteroids and Mars.
Activists speak out against Flats burn By Amy Woodward POSTAL ADDRESS
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P L EA SE R ECYC L E T H I S C OPY
awoodward@colorado communitymedia.com A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plan to burn part of Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge to conserve rare plant species has stirred up opposition from residents worried about the possible release of plutonium particles. “It’s not just a bad idea—it’s reckless,” said Paula ElofsonGardine, Rocky Flats activist and longtime researcher of Rocky Flats history. She reported an increase in radiation levels in the Denver area with a hand-held Geiger counter, a device that monitors radioactivity, after the Department of Energy burned around 50 acres in the buffer zone in April 2000. The concern has generated petitions to cancel the burn, which as of Sunday, Dec. 7, collectively had more than 1,500 signatures. But David Lucas, refuge manager at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is confident the burn will not be harmful to the public and said the real message is about wildfire safety. “Fire is a natural process that cannot be excluded from the landscape,” he said. “We are burning to enhance habitat, but also to reduce the risk of wildfire. It will be the first prescribed burn for the refuge — scheduled in the spring of 2015 — by the wildlife service which manages about 4,750 acres of the refuge out of the approximate 6,550-acre federal property. The burn is mapped for about 701 acres, Lucas said. “It is believed we will start on the southern boundary near the southwestern corner of the refuge.” The purpose of the burn is part
of the refuge’s Comprehensive Conservation Plan to improve growth of rare plant species in the area as well as reduce the spread of invasive weeds. The refuge was once the original security buffer of Rocky Flats during its days of operation between 1952 and 1989, where workers used plutonium to build nuclear weapon triggers. A nearly $7 billion cleanup of the federal property with the approval by the Environmental Protection Agency, were undertaken prior to the land’s transfer to USFWS in 2007, according to the wildlife service website. Speculation lingers over whether the cleanup was completely successful. And for many area residents, activity on Rocky Flats — including the refuge — is enough to generate concern. Adding to the worry is the fact that the Rocky Flats Stewardship Council Board of Directors, which oversees of Rocky Flats, opposed the burn proposal on Oct. 27. “Our opposition rests primarily on two factors,” the council’s motion read. “A burn will cause widespread community concern that will not be sufficiently alleviated through any public education process.” The council also said the wildlife service has other management options other than the burn. Arvada City Manager, Mark Deven, received a memo from Rocky Flats Stewardship Council member David Abelson detailing the board’s actions. Weeks later, the Arvada City Council directed Deven to draft a letter in support of Rocky Flats Stewardship Council’s decision. Deven also notified developers of the burn for the growing Can-
An aerial view of the wildlife refuge at Rocky Flats. Courtesy photo delas neighborhood that sits adjacent to the refuge. Petitions to cancel the burn due to the possible release of plutonium particles were authored by LeRoy Moore, former professor and co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Peace & Justice Center, a multi-issue advocacy organization that has focused on Rocky Flats for 31 years. Moore argues the burn will stir up plutonium particles that went beyond the original operational sites at Rocky Flats based on eye witness accounts from former Rocky Flats workers. He added the Department of Energy has not performed enough sampling and fails to realize small amounts of radiation can be harmful. “It’s a dangerous situation and they are dealing with uncertainty,” Moore said. Superior resident Michelle Gabrieloff-Parish, and Alesya Casse, whose father helped in the clean-up of Rocky Flats, are helping to raise awareness about the
petition, as well as about other concerns over developments near Rocky Flats, through their Facebook page and website; Candelas Glows. “We know that the site is contaminated, we just don’t know what will be released,” GabrieloffParish said. The wildlife service “is the wrong government agency to handle an ex nuclear Superfund site.” Opponents of the burn suggest alternative methods to managing the large reserve including livestock grazing and mowing. Activists like Moore are requesting that Lucas and his staff meet with the public to discuss different options. But Lucas said different treatments provide results that are not as successful as fire. That doesn’t appease ElofsonGardine. “There are containments out there in the buffer zone,” she said. “If they (the wildlife service) were really about public safety they’d find another alternative.”