Fleischmann Highlights Lifesaving Isotope Mission at House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus Event

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03), Chairman of the House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus and Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, joined leaders from the Department of Energy and the nuclear industry for a House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus event highlighting how America’s legacy nuclear cleanup mission is supporting the production of critical isotopes used in medicine, scientific research, industry, and other vital applications.

The July 15 event, “DOE’s Isotope Mission: Legacy Cleanup Saving Lives and Powering America’s Future,” brought together Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil, Savannah River Operations Office Manager Edwin Deshong, Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management Manager Erik Olds, and representatives from across the nuclear cleanup and energy communities.

“America’s nuclear legacy has given us tremendous responsibilities, but it has also created remarkable opportunities,” said Congressman Fleischmann. “In Oak Ridge, we are seeing firsthand how materials from our nation’s historic nuclear mission can be recovered and put to work in extraordinary ways, including producing isotopes that are helping doctors fight cancer and save lives. This is exactly the kind of innovation that demonstrates why continued investment in both nuclear cleanup and domestic isotope production is so important to America’s future.”

Fleischmann highlighted Oak Ridge’s unique role in connecting environmental cleanup with the Department of Energy’s isotope mission. At the East Tennessee Technology Park, Isotek is processing the nation’s inventory of uranium-233, fulfilling an important environmental cleanup responsibility while recovering thorium-229 that can support the production of actinium-225, an isotope with significant potential for targeted cancer therapies.

The Congressman also stressed the importance of expanding reliable domestic production of critical isotopes. As medical and scientific applications continue to advance, strengthening America’s isotope production capabilities will help provide researchers and physicians with the materials they need while reducing reliance on foreign supply chains.

“As I often say, Oak Ridge is the Rome of the nuclear world, and there are few better examples of that than the work taking place in our isotope mission,” Fleischmann continued. “We are taking a legacy of American scientific achievement, responsibly cleaning it up, and finding ways to use it to advance medicine and improve lives. That is a tremendous success story for Oak Ridge, the Department of Energy, and our nation.”

As Chairman of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, Fleischmann has consistently supported the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management and isotope missions and has advocated for investments that strengthen the United States’ leadership in nuclear science and technology.

The event was hosted by the Energy Facility Contractors Group (EFCOG), the Energy Technology and Environmental Business Association (ETEBA), and the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), in cooperation with the House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus.