Jim Langevin: “I offer this amendment with my good friend and colleague, Congressman Larsen of Washington, to support the continued…”

“I offer this amendment with my good friend and colleague, Congressman Larsen of Washington, to support the continued assessment of the feasibility of using low-enriched uranium, or LEU, in naval reactor fuel that would meet military requirements for aircraft carriers and submarines. Using low-enriched uranium in naval reactor fuel brings significant national security benefits related to nuclear nonproliferation; it could lower security costs and support naval reactor research and development at the cutting edge of nuclear science. As we continue to face the threat of nuclear terrorism and as countries continue to develop naval fuel for military purposes, the imperative to reduce the use of highly enriched uranium, or HEU, will become increasingly important over the next several decades. Using LEU for naval reactors is not an impossible task. France's nuclear navy already has converted from HEU to LEU fuel. We must evaluate the feasibility for the U.S. Navy as well and take into account the potential benefits to U.S. and international security of setting a norm for using LEU instead of nuclear bomb-grade material. Furthermore, the U.S. Navy will eventually exhaust its supply of highly enriched uranium. Unless an alternative to using low-enriched uranium fuel is developed in the coming decades, the United States would have to resume its production of bomb-grade uranium for the first time since 1992, ultimately undermining U.S. nonproliferation efforts.…”