3 In answering question three, we have considered how to maintain a robust program of domestic fusion research that will assure that we can make maximum use of the information gained from our international collaborations and make the United States a technically desirable partner to potential collaborators. In the President's Fiscal Year 1999 Budget, which has taken into account the ITER and other-than-ITER recommendations mentioned above, we have indicated where we intend to maintain key strengths, to strengthen important areas, and to initiate new collaborations with major fusion facilities abroad. The related sections of the budget narrative are also enclosed for your information. If you have any questions, please contact me on 202-586-5430 or have your staff contact Ms. Melanie Kenderdine, Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, on 202-586-5468. Sincerely, Martha Krebs J Martha A. Krebs Office of Energy Research Enclosures cc: The Honorable George E. Brown, Jr. Ranking Minority Member Introduction The Office of Fusion Energy Sciences will pursue a strategy of enabling and participating in collaborative fusion research worldwide. The U.S. approach to international fusion collaborations is based on this "Strategic Plan for International Collaborations in Fusion Science and Technology Research". This strategy supports the overall United States fusion program strategy described in the "Strategic Plan for the Restructured Fusion Energy Sciences Program” (DOE/ER-0684, August 1996). The approach to pursuing the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) activities is contained in a letter from the Chair of the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee (FESAC), Dr. John Sheffield, to the Director of the Office of Energy Research in the Department of Energy, Dr. Martha Krebs, dated October 21, 1997; the FESAC advice was adopted in the letter from Martha Krebs to Dr. Sheffield dated November 20, 1997. Technical options for collaborations other than ITER considered in developing the "Strategic Plan for International Collaborations in Fusion Science and Technology Research” were generated by the ad hoc Working Group on International Collaborations, chaired by Dr. N. Sauthoff of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. These technical options are presented in the working group's report, "Technical Opportunities for International Collaborations by the U.S. Fusion Program" (November 1997). The technical options were initially developed assuming that the U.S. will participate in a three year extension of the Engineering Design Activities. Once the key elements of the strategy were identified, the plan was examined to determine its sensitivity to that assumption. It has been determined that, while the overall U.S. fusion program would be severely affected, as might be the willingness of the international fusion community to attempt to establish new collaborative arrangements, the key technically-based strategic elements of international collaboration are to be insensitive to the assumption about our participation in ITER. The "Strategic Plan for International Collaborations in Fusion Science and Technology Research", the "Strategic Plan for the Restructured Fusion Energy Sciences Program", and the "Technical Opportunities for International Collaborations by the U.S. Fusion Program" are available on the World Wide Web at the following address: http://wwwofe.er.doe.gov/More_HTML/Fusion Docs.html A draft version of this document was reviewed by FESAC in January 1998 and the comments of the Committee have been incorporated into this document. The report of that FESAC review and the Sheffield to Krebs letter mentioned above are available on the World Wide Web at the following address: http://wwwofe.er.doe.gov/More_HTML/FESAC_CHARGES_Reports |