The Nation - News from Nov. 28, 1988

A congressional panel has expanded its investigation of security and personnel problems to include the Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory after a senior computer operator there was arrested on marijuana charges, an aide to Rep. John D. Dingell (D-Mich.) said. Jeffrey Hodges said as part of the investigation, Dingell, chairman of the Energy and Commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations, has asked for the cooperation of Energy Secretary John S. Herrington, whose department owns the laboratories at Los Alamos, N. M., and Livermore, Calif. Both are being scrutinized. The department also has been plagued by problems that have shut down production at the Savannah River Plant in Aiken, S. C., and the Feed Materials Production Center in Fernald, Ohio. Dingell is seeking to learn why management at Lawrence Livermore halted an investigation that uncovered 127 employees suspected of using or dealing drugs.