For release: Sept. 16, 1999
Contacts:
Steve Karsjen, Ames Lab Public Affairs, (515) 294-5643
Bill Wicker, DOE headquarters, (202) 586-5827
The U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory will receive its first Cabinet-level visit when Energy Secretary Bill Richardson tours the facility on Friday.
During his visit, Secretary Richardson will meet with employees and tour the lab to see first-hand the facility's cutting-edge technologies. U.S. Senator Charles Grassley and Congressman Leonard Boswell will join Secretary Richardson on this tour.
Reporters are welcome to accompany Secretary Richardson on his tour of the laboratory, which begins at 1:45 p.m. at the Technical and Administrative Services Facility (TASF). Secretary Richardson also is available to meet briefly with reporters immediately following the tour.
Secretary Richardson is the first cabinet official to visit Ames Laboratory since the Energy Department was formed in 1977. With this visit, he will have toured all of the department's national laboratories -- a goal the Secretary set when he was sworn into office in August 1998.
Ames Laboratory is operated for the Department of Energy by Iowa State University. It conducts research into various areas of national interest, including energy resources, high-speed computer design, environmental cleanup and restoration, and the synthesis and study of new materials.
Last revision: 9/16/99 sd