ML20149L507
| ML20149L507 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 06/12/1997 |
| From: | Pomeroy P NRC ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON NUCLEAR WASTE (ACNW) |
| To: | Shirley Ann Jackson, The Chairman NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| References | |
| NACNUCLE-S-0089, NACNUCLE-S-89, NUDOCS 9708010257 | |
| Download: ML20149L507 (5) | |
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k UNITED STATES' ACNWS-0089 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION a
4 ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON NUCLEAR WASTE gG ((p
- g* e s e * *j-WASHINGTON, D.C. 20066 2
l June 12,1997 1
l The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson Chairman l
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission j
Washington, D.C. 20555-0001
SUBJECT:
SUMMARY
REPORT-92ND MEETING OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON NUCLEAR WASTE (ACNW), MAY 20-22,1997, AND OTHER RELATED ACNW i
ACTIVITIES i
Dear Chairman Jackson:
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During its 92nd meeting on May 20-22,1997, held at Two White Flint North,11545 Rockville j
Pike, Rockville, Maryland, the Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste (ACNW) discussed the i
following key issues:
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i HIGHLIGHTS OF KEY ISSUES CONSIDERED BY THE COMMITTEE i
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1.
Generic Methodoloav for Decommissionina Performance i
After presenting a brief background and comparison of the low-level waste (LLW)/ decommissioning regulatory framework, Mr. Mark Thaggard, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS), gave an overview of the decommissioning j
performance assessment (PA) approach and the codes used in that approach.
f He noted that in addition to having the SEDSS (Sandia Environmental Decision Support 1
System) computer code demonstrable by fall 1997, during the next year the PA methodol-ogy would be tested on a site decommissioning management plan site and finalized.
Conclusions / Action items i
The Committee indicated it wished to be kept informed of progress in this area and stated that it would appreciate the opportunity to observe the use of the SEDSS code later this M
year.
I 2.
Views on the Defense-in-Depth Anoroach g
Three Department of Energy (DOE) representatives presented their views on aspects of I
the defense-in-depth (DID) philosophy. Topics addressed included the extent to which DOE's proposed 10 CFR Pa 1960 relies upon DID, DID for the repository engineered barrier system, and the use of total system performance assessment (TSPA) to evaluate DID attematives. The proposed 10 CFR Part 960 relies on total system performance, consisting of natural and engineered barriers, each of which consists of multiple barriers.
DID is not addressed explicitly in the proposed 10 CFR Part 960. DOE continues to C%ik-7ttut).J b
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The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson 2
e i-support a single, risk-based, quantitative criterion for post-closure performance, as opposed to subsystem requirements. DOE is evaluating various engineering design options using sensitivity studies as part of the TSPA Viability Assessment.
Conclusions / Action items 4
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The ACNW plans to hear additional presentations on this topic at its July 23-25,1997 j
meeting before it prepares a letter to the Commission.
3.
The Use of Expert Elicitation in the Review of a Hiah-Level Waste Repository Dr. Stephan Brocorn, DOE, discussed DOE's perspective on the use of expert elicitation in its high-level waste (HLW) repository program. Dr. Brocoum discussed the purposes of DOE's expert elicita: ions and the ongoing elicitations being conducted by DOE to facilitate development of key process models and the costs of these elicitations and their use to support compliance arguments. Dr. Brocoum also discussed the probabilistic volcanic hazard assest, ment (PVHA) elicitation and expressed DOE's concems about NRC's response to the PVHA.
Mr. Mike Lee, NRC, discussed the NRC staff's concems about the elicitation process that DOE used. Mr. Lee communicated the staff's observations on the DOE elicitation process and the chronology for developing NRC's " Branch Technical Position (BTP) on
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the Formal Use of Expert Eiicitations in the HLW Program." He discussed the concems voiced by NRC in three letters to DOE regarding the following issues: (1) closing out NRC's Site Characterization Analyses comments about the use of expert judgment; (2)
NRC's concems about three specific areas: updating an elicitation with new data, i
documenting changes from feedback sessions, and the role of the " Technical Facilita-tor / integrator" in DOE's elicitations; and (3) approaches for documenting potential conflicts of interest. He also discussed the staff plans for observing future DOE elicitat-ions.
Conclusions / Action items The ACNW will continue to follow DOE's use of expert elicitation in the HLW program and NRC's actions with respect to implementation of the BTP guidance.
4.
Project Intearated Safety Assessment Ms. Carol Hanlon, DOE, briefed the Committee on the purpose and status of DOE's Project integrated Safety Assessment (PlSA). The PISA is a DOE intemal vehicle for presenting integrated information on scientific programs, design, and PA. It is modeled after safety assessments performed by the nuclearindustry. A management plan and a content guide will be distributed in June 1997. The PISA is scheduled for completion in the fall of 1998. The final PISA will provide a complete and current site description that can be used to form a basis for the safety analysis report of the license application.
Chapter 1 of the PISA is intended to be an executive summary for a public audience.
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The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson 3
Conclusions / Action items The Committee will revisit this topic in the fall of 1998 when the PISA is completed.
5.
DOE's Nonsite-Specific Toolcal Safety Analysis Report for a Central Interim Storace Facility Mr. Christopher Kouts, Director, Storage and Engineering Technology Division, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, DOE, and Dr. Dan Kane, Licensing Manager, DOE, discussed the contents of DOE's submission on May 1,1997, to the NRC's Spent Fuel Project Office (SFPO) of a topical safety analysis report (TSAR) for the proposed 40,000-MTU centralinterim storage facility (CISF).
Mr. 'Kouts explained DOE's intent that this early submission of a generic, non-site-specific report would facilitate the timely design and licensing of the CISF once a site is desig-nated. The intent is to move interim storage design efforts off the critical path of license application development and is particularly motivated at this time by proposed HLW legislation.
Dr. Kane briefly discussed the contents in each chapter of the TSAR, noting DOE's request that NRC provide an acceptance evaluation for each chapter. He stressed DOE's belief that such an approach was possible since DOE had drafted the TSAR in accordance with NRC requirements and approved standards and codes.
Conclusions / Action items The Committee wishes to be kept informed of progress on the CISF and other related DOE activities requiring NRC approval (such as DOE's proposed " Dry Transfer System").
6.
NRC's Licensina Process for Centralized Interim Storace Ms. Susan Shankman, SFPO, presented a brief historical background on how the agency handled topical reports and then discussed the staff's intentions regarding the processing of DOE's CISF TSAR. She noted that the two major unknowns identified by the SFPO staff thus far were that the cask designs referred to in the TSAR are yet to be certified by the NRC and the site was not identified.
Mr. Michael Raddatz, SFPO, then discussed the NRC assessment report, noting that the staff could perhaps at this time agree on the questions that DOE would need to address at the time of submitting a license application but that all conclusions would come with the caveat "no further questions at this time." The staff indicated its intent to either issue a design acceptance or retum the DOE TSAR before the end of June 1997.
Mr. Oharles Haughney, SFPO, summarized the current staff position, noting some of the current problems the agency is facing, both in the area of public acceptance of spent fuel storage and its routing and transportation. He also discussed recent problems with the performance of three of the most popular cask vendors, such as faulty seal welds on the lids. These problems included the length of time the fuelis to be stored, the design life of the canisters for extended storage, and the risk of transportation accidents.
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i The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson 4
Dr. Dan Kane stated his opinion that NRC and DOE expectations on the TSAR seemed to be congruent.
Conclusions / Action items The Committee wishes to be kept informed of relevant issues regarding the spent fuel cask and facility safety considerations, particularly those related to the TSAR.
1 7.
Reaularly Scheduled Information Exchance Between the ACNW and the Director.
Division of Waste Manaaement. NMSS I
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Mr. John Greeves, Director, Division of Waste Management (DWM), NMSS, discussed current issues of mutualinterest to the Committee and DWM. These discussions included the following:
a.
activities conceming the decommissioning rule; b.
ongoing staff work on the HLW ianks at DOE facilities at the Savannah River Plant, South Carolina; Hanford, Washington; and West Valley, New York; c.
status of the " Branch Technical Position for Performance Assessment for Low-l Level Waste Disposal Facilities."
Ms. Margaret Federline, Deputy Director, DWM, NMSS, discussed the staff's briefings of the Commission on the HLW program on May 14,1997, and PA for the HLW, LLW, and decommissioning programs on May 15,1997. Mr. Greeves discussed greater-than-Class-C waste in decommissioned reactors. Dr. John Austin, NMSS, discussed the activities of NRC's task force on extemal regulation of certain DOE facilities.
i Conclusions / Action items.
This portion of the meeting was part of a regularly scheduled information exchange between the Committee and the Direc+or of NMSS.
8.
Election of ACNW Officers The Committee elected Drs. B. John Garrick and George M. Homberger to be the Chairman and Vice-Chairman, respectivaly, of the ACNW for a 1-year term beginning July 1,1997, through June 30,1998.
9.
Proposed Schedule for the 93rd ACNW Meetino The Committee agreed to consider the following issues at the 93rd ACNW meeting on July 23-25,1997, to be held in San Antonio, Texas, at the Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses (CNWRA):
l The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson 5
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A full day's session will be devoted to reviewing the PA capability of the NRC and CNWRA staffs. The session will focus on the use of PA in calculating the conse-quences of igneous activity on an HLW repository, on the use of PA in the prioritization process, and on the integration of the PA into the overall regulatory process.
A full day's session will be devoted to reviewing the use of probabilistic PA approaches for waste management. The transition to risk-informed, performance-based regulation will form part of the discussion. Representatives from the NRC, CNWRA, DOE, and the nuclear industry will participate.
The ACNW will hear a description of science and engineering experiments currently in progress at the CNWRA.
Preparation of ACNW Reports - The Committee will discuss potential reports, including igneous activity related to the proposed Yucca Mountain repository, and other topics discussed during the meeting, as appropriate.
Committee Activities / Future Aaenda - The Committee will consider topics proposed for future consideration by the full Committee and Working Groups. The Committee will discuss ACNW-related activities of individual members.
Miscellaneous - The Committee will discuss miscellaneous matters related to the conduct of Committee activities and organizational activities and will complete discussions on matters and specific issues that were not completed during previous meetings.
OTHER RELATED ACTIVITIES OF THE COMMITTEE Because this was Dr. William J. Hinze's last meeting as an ACNW member, the Commit-tee thanked Dr. Hinze for his contributions and service during his term on the Committee.
There will be no ACNW meeting in June 1997.
The ACNW will hold its 93rd meeting on July 23-25,1997, in San Antonio, Texas.
Sincerely,
{
Paul W. Pomeroy Chairman 1
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