programs SECO

Pantex Program

The Pantex Program, located in the State Energy Conservation Office, is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy to manage both the Agreement In Principle (AIP) and the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) programs.

The Agreement in Principle is designed to ensure protection of public health, safety and the environment at and around the Pantex Plant near Amarillo. This is accomplished through intergovernmental contracts with several state agencies and local governments that provide environmental oversight at the Pantex Plant and emergency response within the 10-mile emergency planning zone surrounding the plant.

The WIPP program's goal is safe and uneventful shipments of transuranic waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant while being prepared to respond should an incident occur involving a WIPP shipment. Intergovernmental contracts with two state agencies fund the training of first responders along the WIPP route in Texas; assistance to local governments with their emergency plans; and the tracking of intrastate WIPP shipments.