Editing Fermilab (section)

==Site==
===Access===
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (aka Fermilab) was founded in 1967 as an open science research laboratory, and, to this day, does not conduct classified research. The initial plans called for Fermilab to employ a guard force "...to control movement of personnel onto the site when tests are being conducted" as noted in the December 1971 Environmental Statement and "..to enforce the site boundary".  Early leadership moved toward greater public openness  allowing for ease of scientific collaboration and public enjoyment to include the relocated bison herd.

In the late 2010s and early 2020s, the management of Fermilab began to introduce severe restrictions on access to the Fermilab site by the public and by scientists.  By spring 2023, the restrictions had become so onerous that more than 2500 physicists and visitors to the laboratory signed an "open petition to elected representatives to reopen Fermilab."<ref>{{cite web |title=Petition to Reopen Fermilab |url=https://www.reopenfermilab.com/ |website=Reopen Fermilab |publisher=Physicists and visitors to Fermilab |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230705155017/https://www.reopenfermilab.com/ |access-date=April 28, 2023|archive-date=July 5, 2023 }}</ref>    The petition stated that:   "The access policy changes undermine critical aspects of the scientific process as well as the basic functioning of Fermilab. Hosting research meetings, interviewing prospective employees, collaborating with scientists outside the lab, and enacting our famously impactful education programs have all been hindered."    With respect to the general public, the petition stated:  "Today, the general public is only permitted to access the main road, and with ID requirements that are becoming increasingly stringent, soon its doors will be closed to tourists and even to some immigrants. We can no longer drive or bike around the premises freely. The dog park, Wilson Hall with its exhibits on the top floor, and other areas are no longer generally accessible. Fishing and other activities open to the public have been canceled."   The petition emphatically requested that access policies be reverted to the open laboratory model that governed the laboratory prior to 2020.

In May 2023, Director Lia Merminga posted a response to the petition on the Fermilab website,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Merminga |first1=Lia |title=From Director Lia Merminga: Accessing Fermilab's Batavia site |url=https://news.fnal.gov/2023/05/from-lia-merminga-accessing-fermilabs-batavia-site/ |website=Fermilab News |date=May 16, 2023 |publisher=Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory |access-date=May 16, 2023}}</ref> noting that
some areas on site remain open to the public during specific hours with ID access requirements.  Merminga's response justifies the new restrictions because the lab "manage[s] a large amount of non-public information"---reasoning that conflicts with the petition that points out that the lab is fully tax-payer funded, does no classified research, and has a government mandate to publish all of its scientific results.   Further coverage of the petition and the management response appeared in the magazines ''Physics Today''<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Feder |first1=Toni |title=Scientists and the public petition to roll back Fermilab access restrictions |journal=Physics Today |url=https://doi.org/10.1063/PT.6.2.20230525a |access-date=May 28, 2023 |publisher=American Institute of Physics |date=May 25, 2023|volume=2023 |issue=5 |pages=0525a |doi=10.1063/PT.6.2.20230525a |bibcode=2023PhT..2023e2386F |url-access=subscription }}</ref> and ''Physics World''.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gwynne |first1=Peter |title=Fermilab faces protest over visitor restrictions |url=https://physicsworld.com/a/fermilab-faces-protest-over-visitor-restrictions/ |access-date=June 22, 2023 |agency=Physics World |publisher=IOP Publishing |date=June 19, 2023}}</ref>

In keeping with Real ID requirements for DOE facilities, all unescorted adult visitors entering the site must present a government-issued photo ID compliant with the [[Real ID Act]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Marc |first1=Tracy |title=Fermilab site reopens to the public, welcomes visitors |url=https://news.fnal.gov/2022/03/fermilab-site-reopens-to-the-public-welcomes-visitors/ |publisher=Fermilab News |date=March 28, 2022}}</ref>  Up-to-date specifics about access can be found on the Fermilab website.<ref name=tritfaq>{{cite web |title=Visit Fermilab |url=https://www.fnal.gov/pub/visiting/index.html |publisher=Fermilab |access-date=April 13, 2022}}</ref>

===Architecture===
[[File:Interior of Fermi Lab Wilson Hall.JPG|thumb|Interior of Wilson Hall]]

Fermilab's first director, Robert Wilson, insisted that the site's aesthetic complexion not be marred by a collection of concrete block buildings. The design of the administrative building (Wilson Hall) was inspired by [[Beauvais Cathedral|St.&nbsp;Pierre's Cathedral]] in [[Beauvais]], [[France]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://history.fnal.gov/GoldenBooks/gb_wilson2.html |title=Fermilab History and Archives Project |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118014849/http://history.fnal.gov/GoldenBooks/gb_wilson2.html |archive-date=January 18, 2017 }}</ref> though it was realized in a [[Brutalism|Brutalist]] style. Several of the buildings and sculptures within the Fermilab reservation represent various mathematical constructs as part of their structure.

The [[Archimedean Spiral]] is the defining shape of several [[pumping station]]s as well as the building housing the MINOS experiment. The reflecting pond at Wilson Hall also showcases a {{convert|32|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} [[hyperbola|hyperbolic]] obelisk, designed by Wilson. Some of the high-voltage [[transmission line]]s carrying power through the laboratory's land are built to echo the Greek letter [[pi|π]]. One can also find structural examples of the [[DNA]] double-helix spiral and a nod to the [[geodesic sphere]].

Wilson's sculptures on the site include ''Tractricious'', a free-standing arrangement of steel tubes near the Industrial Complex constructed from parts and materials recycled from the Tevatron collider, and the soaring ''[[Broken Symmetry (sculpture)|Broken Symmetry]]'', which greets those entering the campus via the Pine Street entrance.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://fnal.gov/pub/about/campus/sculptures.html |series=About Fermilab |title=The Fermilab Campus |date=December 1, 2005 |access-date=February 27, 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403134748/http://www.fnal.gov/pub/about/campus/sculptures.html |archive-date=April 3, 2007 }}</ref> Crowning the [[Robert F. Ramsey|Ramsey Auditorium]] is a representation of the [[Möbius strip]] with a diameter of more than {{convert|8|ft}}. Also scattered about the access roads and village are a massive hydraulic press and old magnetic containment channels, all painted blue.

===Wildlife===
In 1967, Wilson brought five [[American bison]] to the site, a bull and four cows, and an additional 21 were provided by the Illinois Department of Conservation.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Shivni|first=Rashmi|date=January 27, 2016|title=The genetic purity and diversity of the Fermilab bison herd|url=https://news.fnal.gov/2016/01/the-genetic-purity-and-diversity-of-the-fermilab-bison-herd/|access-date=November 22, 2020|work=Fermilab News|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Sharos|first=David|date=April 22, 2019|title=Baby bison born at Fermilab|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/aurora-beacon-news/ct-abn-fermilab-baby-bison-st-0423-story.html|access-date=November 22, 2020|work=The Beacon-News |via=Chicago Tribune}}</ref> Some fearful locals believed at first that the bison were introduced in order to serve as an alarm if and when radiation at the laboratory reached dangerous levels, but they were assured by Fermilab that this claim had no merit. Today, the [[Fermilab bison herd]] is a popular attraction that draws many visitors<ref>
{{cite web|website = Fermilab|date = December 30, 2005|title = Safety and the Environment at Fermilab|url = http://www.fnal.gov/pub/about/safety/questions.html|access-date = January 6, 2006|url-status = dead|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060926124711/http://www.fnal.gov/pub/about/safety/questions.html|archive-date = September 26, 2006}}</ref> and the grounds are also a sanctuary for other local wildlife populations.<ref>{{cite web |website=Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory |url=http://www.fnal.gov/pub/about/campus/ecology/wildlife/ |title=Ecology/Nature - Wildlife |access-date=October 26, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030301181223/http://www.fnal.gov/pub/about/campus/ecology/wildlife/ |archive-date=March 1, 2003 |date=August 24, 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://ecology.fnal.gov/ |title=Nature and Ecology |website=Fermilab |access-date=September 9, 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180701083401/http://ecology.fnal.gov/ |archive-date=July 1, 2018 }}</ref> A [[Christmas Bird Count]] has occurred at the lab every year since 1976.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fnal.gov/ecology/wildlife/cbc/|title=Fermilab Christmas Bird Count|website=Fermilab|access-date=February 22, 2019}}</ref>

Working with the [[Forest Preserve District of DuPage County]], Fermilab has introduced [[Western barn owl|barn owl]]s to selected structures around the grounds.<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 6, 1978|title=Birds Find Haven at Fermilab|url=https://history.fnal.gov/historical/site/birds_find_haven.html|access-date=April 27, 2021|website=Fermilab {{!}} History and Archives {{!}} Site and Natural History}}</ref>

===Tritium on site===
During running, particle beams produce [[tritium]], an isotope of hydrogen consisting of a proton and two neutrons that is weakly radioactive with a half-life of 12.3 years. This can bind with oxygen to form [[tritiated water]]. Tritium levels measured on site are low compared to federal health and environmental standards. Fermilab monitors tritium leaving the site in surface and sewer water, and provides an FAQ sheet for those who want to learn more.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tritium at Fermilab |url=https://www.fnal.gov/pub/tritium/index.html |publisher=Fermilab |access-date=April 13, 2022}}</ref>

At an informational meeting for potential bidders for the management contract, held on March 1, 2023, the presentation slides indicated that although the rate of tritium leaving site is below the required standards, there is sufficient tritium contamination on site to represent a "challenge".<ref name=rebid />  In particular, tritium produced in the NuMI beamline that sends neutrinos to experiments in Minnesota has been pumped into the industrial water cooling system that is used for equipment across the Fermilab campus.  As a result, it is concluded that now "tritium contamination is largely throughout the research complex."<ref name=rebid />