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20 QUESTIONS

ABOUT IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY

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How much do you know about Idaho's 6th largest employer?

Over the years, a lot of questions surrounding the work we do at Idaho National Laboratory have been asked. Check out the answers to the top 20 questions INL tour guides get asked below or in this digital flipbook.

Flip through to start learning, and then take the quiz to find out if you are an INL expert!

How many people work there?

How much power do you generate?

What happens to the nuclear waste?

Why don't we reprocess spent nuclear fuel?

What's with all the buses?

Where did you build the bombs?

What about the love triangle/murder suicide rumor?

How much radiation was released at SL-1, and how did you clean up the accident?

What's new at INL?

What is a test reactor?

Is it safe to drink the water?

How big is INL?

Do your researchers study renewable energy?

What's the future of nuclear in this country?

How many reactors do you have out there?

Will I glow after I tour INL?

Why is everything so secret there?

What do you do besides nuclear?

What types of jobs are available at INL?

Why do you keep changing your name?
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Are you an INL expert? Take the quiz to find out!

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Sign up for an INL virtual facilities tour with one of our tour guides by emailing [email protected].

 
Have a question? Send an email to [email protected].
U.S. Department of Energy

Battelle Energy Alliance manages INL for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy

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1955 N. Fremont Ave.
Idaho Falls, ID 83415
866-495-7440

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Idaho National Laboratory

How many people work there?

More than 6,000 researchers and support staff members work at INL. The lab’s contractor, Battelle Energy Alliance, is the sixth-largest private employer in Idaho. Our economic impact to the state was $3.77 billion in fiscal year 2023. When you add in employees from the Idaho Cleanup Project, the U.S. Department of Energy-Idaho Operations Office and the Naval Reactors Facility, over 9,000 people work at the INL Site.

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How much power do you generate?

INL the nation’s nuclear energy research and development laboratory. Over the years, we have produced some electricity – notably when BORAX-III supplied all of the electricity for the town of Arco one night in 1955, marking the first tine in the world’s history that a city was powered by nuclear energy. Currently, however, our four reactors are designed for research and do not make electricity.

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What happens to the nuclear waste?

The INL Site generates and/or manages several types of hazardous and nuclear wastes and spent nuclear fuel. The material type dictates how the material is managed and ultimately disposed. Until the United States opens a national repository, most used or “spent” nuclear fuel is stored where it is generated.

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Why don't we reprocess spent nuclear fuel?

Currently, there is no commercial demand for recycling light water reactor fuel in the U.S.

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What's with all the buses?

INL provides buses for employees who work on the desert Site. About 86 buses take workers to and from the cities and towns in eastern Idaho to their workplaces. With the more than 2,800 employees at INL Site locations, busing dramatically reduces the number of vehicles on the highways, decreasing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing safety for all.

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Where did you build the bombs?

We didn’t build bombs. From our inception, INL’s focus has been to perform research and development on nuclear energy for power generation, space missions, nuclear medicine and other peaceful applications. INL has never been directly involved in the weapons arena.

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What about the love triangle/murder-suicide rumor?

In 1961, an experimental reactor called SL-1 had a steam explosion. It killed three operators. There was a rumor that one of the men caused the accident on purpose because he found out his wife was having an affair with his co-worker. Evidence does not support this scenario. Post-accident investigations indicated the reactor was of primitive design, and operator logbook entries noted that the central control rod had momentarily stuck in place during the previous six months. This accident brought about better reactor designs, material selections and conduct of operations.

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How much radiation was released at SL-1, and how did you clean up the accident?

Some radioactive elements were released during the accident, mostly radioactive gases like iodine. Surveys around the area and downwind of the SL-1 site detected very low levels of contaminants. No significant off-site exposure resulted from the event. The contaminated building and equipment, as well as soil and cleanup equipment, were buried near the SL-1 site to minimize the potential to spread contamination. The landfill was later capped with gravel and basalt boulders. The SL-1 site is reevaluated every five years by the Environmental Restoration Program.

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What's new at INL?

In partnership with private industry and government collaborators, INL is designing, developing and demonstrating advanced nuclear technologies including a new generation of small modular reactors and microreactors using our unique capabilities and robust test beds. We are also exploring clean energy solutions like large-scale hydrogen production, biofuels and energy storage options through the proposed Energy Technology Proving Ground. 

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What is a test reactor?

Unlike a commercial reactor (which is designed to generate heat and produce power), test reactors operate at much lower temperatures and pressures. Researchers test fuels and materials to advance the nuclear energy industry and help them better understand nuclear physics. INL has four operating test reactors today.

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Is it safe to drink the water?

The INL Site sits on top of the Snake River Plain Aquifer and legacy spills have impacted the aquifer. The Site’s impact on the aquifer is closely monitored by INL, state and federal agencies and, yes, it’s safe to drink the water. The final environmental study conducted by the Environmental Restoration Program in accordance with our nation’s environmental laws concluded that no contaminant would leave the INL boundary above drinking water standards.

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How big is INL?

The desert portion of the INL Site is 890 square miles. That’s about 73% the size of Rhode Island or 100 square miles smaller than Luxembourg.

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Do your researchers study renewable energy?

Yes! Broadly speaking, we are part of the clean energy solution. Along with our nuclear energy research, which is a low-carbon part of the energy system, we do a lot of important research work in renewables and future energy systems, such as biomass and battery storage research, integrating solar and wind power into the electric grid, and electrification of the transportation sector.

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What's the future of nuclear in this country?

Current reactors focus solely on producing electricity. In addition to producing power, future reactors will also help produce clean water, create hydrogen for vehicles and industry, and assist in new chemical processes.

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How many reactors do you have out there?

Since 1949, we have built 52 reactors on the Arco desert. It’s the largest complex of reactors in the world. Most of them were decommissioned and torn down after accomplishing their research missions. Today’s operating reactors are the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR), the ATR Critical Facility (ATR-C), the Neutron Radiography Reactor (NRAD), and the Transient Reactor Test (TREAT) Facility.

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Will I glow after I tour INL?

Only if you glowed before the tour. Dental hygienists, airline pilots and lifeguards all get more radiation exposure on their jobs than most people who work at INL. Visitors are not exposed to radiation beyond what they get from normal background levels.

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Why is everything so secret there?

It’s not! Some of the work we do is classified and some is proprietary, but much of what we do is available to the general public. We are proud of the contribution we’re making to the state, region, country and world. In fact, we love to show off what we’re doing. You can sign up for a tour of INL by emailing [email protected]. INL publishes a substantial amount of scientific and technical information, which is available at the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information or via a bibliographic search.

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What do you do besides nuclear?

To name just a few areas: We have a huge and growing cybersecurity mission; we work to keep industrial control systems secure; and we work with advanced manufacturing, advanced transportation and environmental sustainability. We also do research in wireless technology and the power grid.

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What types of jobs are available at INL?

We employ pretty much every type of worker you can think of. Sure, we have scientists and engineers. We also have firefighters, accountants and a robust internship program. Check out our opportunities at inl.gov/careers.

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Why do you keep changing your name?

As our mission has changed over the years, so has our name. See the historic progression below:

  • We started here after World War II as the National Reactor Testing Station. This is where nuclear scientists could explore peaceful applications of splitting an atom.
  • The name changed to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in 1974 to reflect that the lab’s mission expanded to many other projects.
  • In 1999, INEL became the lead lab for environmental cleanup technology, so the name changed to the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL).
  • In 2005, the contract to operate INEEL was split between laboratory research and cleanup work. It was a rebirth of the lab with an accompanying increase in capabilities and facilities available in Idaho; the name was changed to Idaho National Laboratory (INL).
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