Preserving the Mound Laboratory Legacy-The Mound Cold War Discovery Center - 19550
- US Department of Energy Office of Legacy Management, Harrison, Ohio (United States)
- Navarro Research and Engineering, Inc., Weldon Spring, Missouri (United States)
The Mound Cold War Discovery Center (MCWDC) opened at the former DOE Mound Laboratory in Miamisburg, Ohio, on April 23, 2018, approximately three years after the US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management, Dayton History, the Mound Science and EnergyMuseum Association (MSEMA), and the Mound Development Corporation signed the Mound Educational Center Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). This MOA designated each party's responsibilities for the facility and laid the groundwork for DOE to enter into a Cooperative Agreement with Dayton History to design, build, and perform initial operations of the educational center. Dayton History is a nonprofit organization that operates several historical facilities in Montgomery County, Ohio. The Mound Development Corporation is the nonprofit organization that operates the Mound Business Park, privately owned property previously associated with the former DOE Mound Laboratory. The US Atomic Energy Commission began operations at the Mound Laboratory in 1948 as an integrated research, development, and production facility that supported the nation's weapons and energy programs. In October 2015, DOE entered into a five-year Cooperative Agreement with Dayton History to preserve, protect, and make accessible legacy records and information about the history of the Mound site through the development of an educational center. Years One and Two were for design and construction, respectively. Years Three through Five were for operation of the new center. The new center, located in a building owned by the Mound Development Corporation, would carry on the mission started by the MSEMA, a nonprofit organization started by former Mound site employees more than 15 years ago after DOE mission work ended at the site. As part of the cooperative agreement, Dayton History is responsible for creating interactive displays and exhibits to draw, entertain, and educate the public on the Mound site's significant contributions to the protection of the nation; developing educational programs; and initiating marketing strategies for the long-term sustainability of the educational center. In 2016, parties to the MOA officially named the facility the Mound Cold War Discovery Center. The MCWDC was designed to preserve the history of the Mound site through effective, entertaining, and efficient communication of the history of the Mound Laboratory; the site's legacy to the US weapons production complex and space exploration program; and promote understanding of what has happened at the site since DOE mission work ended, including environmental cleanup under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act and the regulator-approved end state of industrial/commercial land use with associated institutional controls. The cooperative agreement requires Dayton History to develop and implement marketing strategies to support the long-term sustainability of the MCWDC at the Mound site. Dayton History will submit a report after the first year of operation and every year thereafter during the period of the cooperative agreement. These reports will describe and status efforts to obtain sustainability and offer for consideration any operational changes, corrections, or suggestions that may improve the potential for sustainability. Prior to the end of the cooperative agreement, a sustainability assessment decision will be made by DOE to determine whether the MCWDC has enough community interest to financially sustain itself at the Mound site. The status of the MCWDC Legacy Fund established by Dayton History will be considered in DoE's assessment determination. If DOE determines that the MCWDC is not sustainable at the Mound site, the exhibits will be relocated to Carillon Historical Park in Dayton, with the five key exhibits that were predetermined in the MOA to be placed on permanent display, thereby maintaining the legacy of the Mound site. Dayton History is required to submit a final closeout report at the end of Year Five of the cooperative agreement. The report will describe all activities completed under the agreement, provide an assessment of how project goals were achieved or not achieved, and describe how the legacy of the site will be preserved. (authors)
- Research Organization:
- WM Symposia, Inc., PO Box 27646, 85285-7646 Tempe, AZ (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 23005409
- Report Number(s):
- INIS-US-21-WM-19550; TRN: US21V1336045743
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: WM2019: 45. Annual Waste Management Conference, Phoenix, AZ (United States), 3-7 Mar 2019; Other Information: Country of input: France; available online at: https://www.xcdsystem.com/wmsym/2019/index.html
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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