From left, Dr. Richard Sayre of Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Bioscience Division and the New Mexico Consortium, briefs DOE Secretary Ernie Moniz, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology President Daniel Lopez, New Mexico Congressman Ben Ray Lujan and Laboratory Director Charlie McMillan Tuesday at the New Mexico Consortium biological laboratory. Courtesy/LANL

Dr. Richard Sayre, one of the nation’s top specialists in algae and energy-producing plant research, briefs DOE Secretary Ernie Moniz on work underway at the Bioscience Research Lab. Photo by Leland Lehman/ladailypost.com

Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M. and DOE Secretary Ernie Moniz during a press conference following today’s tour of the New Mexico Consortium biological laboratory at Entrada Park. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

Santa Fe reporter Roger Snodgrass questions DOE Secretary Ernie Moniz during the Q&A portion of today’s event. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

Dr. Richard Dick Sayre, left, with Los Alamos County Councilor Rick Reiss at today’s event. Through his company Main Gate, LLC, Reiss is one of the developers of the Entrada Business Park in which the Bioscience Research Laboratory is located. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

• Tours biology laboratory created in partnership with Los Alamos County, universities and LANL

LANL News:

U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz today visited Los Alamos National Laboratory and the new biological laboratory built by the New Mexico Consortium (NMC) to explore alternative fuel sources from algae and other plants.

He said that Los Alamos and all the DOE labs have a major role in addressing two key initiatives of the President.

“In view of the President’s emphasis on nuclear security and climate change, the work at Los Alamos has never been more important,” Secretary Moniz said.

Moniz also addressed Los Alamos employees and received briefings on the Laboratory’s nuclear weapons and intelligence work. It was the first visit by an Energy secretary to Los Alamos since 2009.

Moniz was accompanied by Rep. Ben Ray Luján and New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology President Daniel Lopez.

The NMC is a non-profit formed by the three New Mexico research universities to engage universities and industry in scientific research in the nation’s interest and to increase the role of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in science, education and economic development in the state.

The Biological Laboratory was built by the NMC in partnership with the County of Los Alamos, Los Alamos National Bank and Los Alamos National Laboratory. The County of Los Alamos played a critical role in the project, providing a $2.6 million toward construction of the building.

The NMC Biological Laboratory supports the LANL/NMC initiative in sustainable global energy and food security. This initiative pursues joint research on higher yielding biofuel production systems and more nutritious and higher yielding crops.

“Los Alamos National Laboratory has been forward thinking and innovative in pursuing new mechanisms to engage with universities and industry through the NMC. I am very excited about the future of this partnership.” NMC Executive Director Katharine Chartrand said.

About the New Mexico Consortium (www.newmexicoconsortium.org) The New Mexico Consortium (NMC) is a non-profit corporation formed by the University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, and New Mexico Tech to advance scientific research, education and technology transfer in the state of New Mexico. NMC pursues joint initiatives with LANL in Advanced Computing, Plant Biology, Biomedical Engineering and Modeling and Analysis. Through the NMC, the universities and LANL have developed new models to advance scientific discovery in the nation’s interest and increase the impact of scientific research on the local and national economy.