[en] Community relations is becoming an increasingly prominent aspect of the environmental restoration business. Historically the DOE has been closed to public scrutiny, dating back to the origins of the weapons complex in the Manhattan Project. Rocky Flats community relations can be viewed as having its painful start on June 6, 1989, when over fifty FBI agents entered Rocky Flats to gather information on alleged operational and procedural violations of environmental law. The Plutonium Recovery Modification Project (PRMP) was the first initiative to hold public meetings and provide for real dialogue in May 1990. Building on this start, the last year has seen a phenomenal growth of Rocky Flats community relations activities, now averaging over one public forum of some kind per week. We believe the effort has been very successful in building understanding and credibility within the local community. Although community relations is not a panacea, neither is it an ogre. Community relations for environmental restoration is mandated by law, and for good management is a necessary part of the DOE for the 1990's and beyond. Properly utilized, it can augment an ongoing environmental program and help smooth the road to success

[en] Nuclear decommissioning is difficult, dirty, and dangerous work that can benefit significantly from technical innovations. The scope of the Rocky Flats Closure Project required the removal of radioactive material, the decontamination and the demolition of over 800 buildings and facilities (a dozen highly contaminated with plutonium or uranium), offsite disposal of all waste, and environmental remediation. The magnitude of the plutonium process decommissioning operation and the nature of the contamination defined how technologies could be applied. It was found that placing the decisions on technology deployment in the hands of the management directly responsible for the execution of the activity ensured that the effort remained focused and accountable, and was more likely to be deployed. The paper describes the various technologies applied and the experience obtained in their use. Generally, the use of simple technology, with continuous improvement, had greater success than highly engineered solutions with long deployment schedules. This is the evolutionary vs. revolutionary mindset which Rocky Flats found to consistently be more effective. The planning process should support the continual re-examination of activities to evaluate how technology improvements can address activity safety, cost and schedule. Rocky Flats found that to seek the right balance for technology, the criteria that improves worker safety often leads to improved cost and schedule efficiency, especially when it focuses on improving methods and tools for achieving work. (author)