ML070190292
| ML070190292 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Oyster Creek |
| Issue date: | 02/07/2007 |
| From: | Dyer J Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | Goyette R - No Known Affiliation |
| Homiak, M, NRC/NRR/DLR/RLRB, 415-1683 | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML070190419 | List: |
| References | |
| TAC MD3851, Y020060266 | |
| Download: ML070190292 (5) | |
Text
February 7, 2007 Mr. Russell W. Goyette 7 Strathmere Street Waretown, NJ 08758-2651
Dear Mr. Goyette:
On behalf of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), I am responding to your letter dated December 7, 2006, on the license renewal request for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (Oyster Creek). In your letter, you declare that the approval process is severely faulted and that it is a piecemeal process rather than a comprehensive one. You assert that NRC has not addressed in the license renewal process questions about evacuation routes (emergency preparedness) and spent nuclear fuel storage and disposal, and you also suggest that the NRC and the Administration (1) continue to build/improve the grid; (2) build new plants in isolated areas; and (3) develop a national depository (or regional depositories) to store nuclear waste.
In my previous letters, I explained the approval process for license renewal and NRCs oversight of nuclear power plant (NPP) safety. Let me again assure you that NRC takes seriously its mission of protecting public health and safety and the environment, and promoting the common defense and security. Your concerns about emergency planning and spent fuel storage issues are relevant to the safety and security of the public. As described in my previous letters, these safety issues are not reviewed in license renewal because they are addressed, on an ongoing basis, for all licensed NPPs.
NRC published Frequently Asked Questions on License Renewal of Nuclear Power Reactors (FAQ Final Report) to address questions on license renewal. For your convenience, I have enclosed a copy of this report with this letter. You also can find this report on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/sr1850_faq_lr.pdf. You may find this report to be a good resource. It answers questions on the license renewal review process and on topics such as emergency preparedness and radioactive waste storage and disposal.
The following information is from the FAQ Final Report:
1.
An NRC decision on license renewal is based on an environmental review and a safety review. The safety regulations can be found in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 54, Requirements for Renewal of Operating Licenses for Nuclear Power Plants. The safety review focuses on aging management issues to determine whether, during the period of extended operation, activities can adequately manage aging of certain passive and long-lived plant systems, structures, and components.
R. Goyette NRC considered the need to review emergency preparedness issues, specifically for license renewal, during its rulemaking proceedings for 10 CFR Part 54. Every NPP licensee must meet emergency preparedness regulations, regardless of plant design, construction, or license expiration date. The NRC continually reviews existing emergency preparedness plans to ensure that they account for changes in demographics and other site-related factors. As such, NRC determined that other regulations address emergency preparedness and that special license renewal reviews are not necessary. For more detailed information on emergency planning as it relates to license renewal, please refer to Section 4.3.6 of the FAQ Final Report.
Federal oversight of NPP emergency preparedness is the responsibility of NRC and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). NRC evaluates whether the onsite plant emergency plans are adequate to protect public health and safety. FEMA evaluates whether State and local governments have adequate offsite resources and plans for emergency evacuation and response. In addition, State and local government officials are responsible for deciding and implementing the overall, appropriate protective actions for the public during a radiological emergency. Licensees participate in required, biennial, full-scale, FEMA-graded emergency exercises. NRC and FEMA together determine the exercise requirements for the licensees and State and local governments, and evaluate both onsite and offsite emergency preparedness capabilities. Oyster Creek conducted its last emergency exercise on September 12, 2006. The next exercise is scheduled for May 8, 2007. FEMA evaluates evacuation plans and works with the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. For more information, please contact these agencies directly, or visit the FEMA Web site at http://www.fema.gov and the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management Web site at http://www.state.nj.us/oem/county.
2.
The current regulations address your concerns about the safety of onsite storage of spent nuclear fuel and the need for a waste repository. NPPs, such as Oyster Creek, temporarily store spent nuclear fuel onsite in spent fuel pools or above-ground, dry storage casks. The storage of spent fuel, whether onsite or offsite, must be in accordance with NRC regulations to ensure protection of public health, safety, and the environment. A substantial radiological release occurring from a terrorist attack on a spent fuel pool or dry cask storage facility is highly unlikely. NRC regularly reviews security-related design-basis threats and revises the regulations in 10 CFR 73.1 to reflect changes in the threat environment. The NRC recently approved a new design-basis threat rule to modify and enhance generic security requirements for operating NPPs.
Congress has addressed the long-term storage of spent nuclear fuel. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, authorizes and requires the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to build a permanent, high-level waste repository. DOE is preparing a license application for a facility near Yucca Mountain, NV. When the application is submitted, NRC will review it under 10 CFR Part 63, Disposal of High-Level Radioactive Wastes in a Geologic Repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. As stated in 10 CFR 51.23, NRC has confidence that a permanent repository with sufficient capacity will be available within the first quarter of the 21st century, but until such a facility is licensed and operating, spent nuclear fuel will be stored safely either onsite or at offsite, R. Goyette interim storage facilities. For more detailed information on the storage and disposal of spent nuclear fuel, please refer to Section 4.5 of the FAQ Final Report.
Your suggestions that the Administration take a course of action to: (1) continue to build/improve the grid; (2) build new plants in isolated areas; and (3) develop a national depository (or regional depositories) that can be better addressed by contacting other Federal agencies or private utility companies. Each suggestion is addressed in the corresponding numbered paragraphs below.
1.
The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ensures the reliability of the high-voltage interstate transmission system and monitors and investigates the energy markets. The DOE Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (DOE/OE) also leads Federal efforts to modernize the electric grid, enhance the security and reliability of energy infrastructure, and facilitate recovery from disruptions to the energy supply.
For more information, please contact FERC or DOE/OE directly, or visit the FERC Web site at http://www.ferc.gov and the DOE/OE Web site at http://www.oe.energy.gov/.
2.
The NRC, as an independent regulatory agency, does not decide whether to build an NPP. Utilities and other private entities make such decisions and must submit applications for new facilities for approval by the NRC. For more information on this and other new reactor licensing activities, please contact the NRC Office of New Reactors, or visit the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactor-licensing.html. In addition, the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE/NE) funds programs to lead the Governments efforts in maintaining and enhancing the National nuclear technology infrastructure. For more information on these efforts, please contact the DOE/NE, or visit the DOE/NE Web site at http://www.ne.doe.gov/.
3.
Congress has directed DOE to build and operate a geologic repository for high-level waste at Yucca Mountain, subject to NRC approval. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issues the environmental standards for evaluating the repository and the NRC issues the technical criteria for licensing. For more information on DOEs role in high-level radioactive waste disposal, please contact the DOE Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM), or visit the OCRWM Web site at http://www.ocrwm.doe.gov/. For more information on the EPAs role, please contact EPA, or visit the EPA Web site at http://www.epa.gov/radiation/yucca/index.html. For more information on NRCs role, contact the NRC Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, or visit the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/waste/hlw-disposal.html.
I trust this reply provides in-depth information on license renewal and on other issues associated with commercial NPPs. I also trust that I have outlined the other issues and the roles and responsibilities of the NRC and other Federal agencies in addressing the issues and R. Goyette in executing national policy, and provided sufficient information so that you may contact the appropriate agency to express a concern or request additional information.
Sincerely,
/RA/
J. E. Dyer, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Enclosure:
NRC Final Report, Frequently Asked Questions on License Renewal of Nuclear Power Reactors, dated March 2006 I trust this reply provides in-depth information on license renewal and on other issues associated with commercial NPPs. I also trust that I have outlined the other issues and the roles and responsibilities of the NRC and other Federal agencies in addressing the issues and in executing national policy, and provided sufficient information so that you may contact the
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OGC NAME YEdmonds MHomiak HChang MYoung w/edits DATE 2/01/07 1/31/07 1/29/07 2/01/07 OFFICE (A)BC:RLRA:DLR D:DLR D:NRR NAME RSchaaf PTKuo JDyer DATE 2/01/07 2/01/07 2/07/07