ML19239A360
| ML19239A360 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 08/27/2019 |
| From: | Michael Layton, John Mckirgan Division of Spent Fuel Management, Spent Fuel Licensing Branch |
| To: | |
| McKirgan J | |
| References | |
| Download: ML19239A360 (20) | |
Text
Overview of NRCs Role in Storage and Transportation of Spent Fuel Michael C. Layton, Director Division of Spent Fuel Management Office of Nuclear Material Safety & Safeguards John McKirgan, Branch Chief, Spent Fuel Licensing Branch September 2019
Topics
- Overview of the NRC
- NRC's Mission, Organization, Responsibilities
- NRCs Review of Spent Fuel Storage Applications
- NRCs Safety Review
- NRCs Environmental Review
- NRCs Adjudicatory Hearing Process
- Expected Timelines for NRC's Review
- NRCs Role in Transportation of Spent Fuel
- Conclusions
- Questions and Answers 2
NRC's Mission NRC Mission:
To license and regulate the Nation's civilian use of radioactive materials to protect public health and safety, promote the common defense and security, and protect the environment.
3
Examples of what NRC regulates
- Commercial nuclear power plants and non-power reactors
- Nuclear fuel cycle facilities
- Medical, industrial, and academic uses of radioactive material
- Transportation, storage, and disposal of nuclear materials and waste, and decommissioning of nuclear facilities from service 4
The NRC
- Five NRC Commissioners
- Appointed by the President; confirmed by Senate
- At most 3 of any one political party year terms
- Chairman designated by the President VACANT 5
6 What the NRC staff does
- Implements Commission regulations and policies
- Recommends public health and safety, environmental, and security regulations
- Evaluates license applications and amendments, and issues licenses
- Evaluates emergency preparedness and response
- Inspects applicants and licensees
- Advises the Commission on safety, environmental, and security matters
- Conducts research
- Investigates possible violations of Commission requirements and addresses violations through enforcement action
- Communicates with the public 7
NRCs Role in Storage of Spent Fuel
- Independent regulator
- Primary mission to protect public health and safety, protect the environment, and provide for common defense and security
- Must decide whether to grant or deny a license for construction and operation of an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI)
- If license is granted and facility begins operation, NRC will inspect and oversee its operations to assure that the facility complies with safety and security requirements 8
NRCs Decision Process for Licensing Applicant Submits License Application NRC Accepts License Application NRC Begins NRC Begins Environmental Safety Review Review NRC Adjudicatory NRC Issues Hearings NRC Issues Safety Environmental Evaluation Report Impact Statement ASLB Issues Findings NRC license 9
NRCs Safety Review
- NRC staff reviews the applicants Safety Analysis Report and other parts of the application.
- NRC uses experienced technical staff and independent contractors to review and evaluate the application
- As part of the review process, NRC staff may:
- Request additional information from the applicant
- Conduct independent confirmatory analyses, as needed
- NRC staff documents its conclusions in a publicly available Safety Evaluation Report (SER) 10
NRCs Safety Review:
What is required?
- NRC regulations require an ISFSI to meet safety requirements, such as:
- maintain confinement of radioactive material,
- provide adequate radiation shielding for workers and the public,
- prevent nuclear criticality, and
- maintain retrievability of spent fuel
- The ISFSI applicant must demonstrate that the proposed storage system design, when used at the proposed location, meets the safety requirements under all of the following conditions:
- Normal conditions of storage
- Off-normal (Unusual) Events (includes temperature and pressure extremes)
- Accidents (includes earthquakes, fires, floods, lightning, tornado, complete air flow blockage, and cask drop and tip-over) 11
NRCs Safety Review
- For a specifically-licensed ISFSI, NRC regulations require that the license application must also contain the following:
- A discussion of the applicants financial qualifications;
- An Emergency Plan;
- A Quality Assurance Program;
- A Physical Protection Plan;
- A Decommissioning Funding Plan; and
- A Training and Qualifications Program 12
NRCs Environmental Review
- As required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and NRC regulations in 10 CFR Part 51, NRC must prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for an away-from-reactor ISFSI.
- The EIS is a comprehensive assessment of the environmental impacts of the proposed action.
- The NRCs environmental review is a public process that provides opportunities for the public to participate, comment, and provide input.
13
NRC Hearings
- NRC will provide an opportunity to request an adjudicatory hearing before a 3-judge licensing board of NRC's Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel (ASLBP).
- ASLBP is an independent adjudicatory arm of NRC that conducts hearings for the Commission.
- Potential parties may request a hearing on contested aspects of the license application, including safety, security, and environmental issues.
14
NRCs Final Licensing Decision
- If there is a hearing, NRC staff awaits the Licensing Boards initial decision before issuing the license
- If the Licensing Board finds in favor of the applicant, once the boards decision becomes effective, NRC staff may proceed to issue the storage license for an initial term not to exceed 40 years
- Upon issuance of the final license and technical specifications, licensee may begin construction and operation of the facility 15
Expected Timelines for NRCs Decision Process NRC Decision Stage Estimated Timeline for Completion Acceptance Review Approximately 60 days NRC Safety Review and Approximately 3 years Environmental Review NRC Hearings Depends on hearing procedures, number and scope of contested issues License Issuance Within 10 days after initial ASLB decision becomes effective 16
NRCs Spent Fuel Transportation Responsibilities
- NRC and US Department of Transportation co-regulate transportation of commercial spent nuclear fuel
- NRC/DOT Memorandum of Understanding lays out the agencies' responsibilities
- DOT regulates carriers, modes of transport (rail, road, air, etc.)
- NRC establishes design standards for spent fuel transportation packages
- Under NRC regulations, any entity licensed to possess commercial spent nuclear fuel is granted a general license to transport licensed material in a NRC-approved package
- Spent fuel is transported in very robust packages that must withstand hypothetical accident conditions, including:
- free-drop onto hard surface, and puncture impact;
- fire and water immersion 17
NRCs Spent Fuel Transportation Responsibilities (cont.)
- NRC establishes regulations for:
- Package design standards for spent fuel transportation packages
- Physical security requirements for transportation of spent fuel
- NRC evaluates applications for initial and amended transportation package designs; issues certificates
- NRC approves routes for shipment of commercial spent nuclear fuel
- NRC inspects and oversees certificate holders, package fabricators, licensee shippers, and carriers 18
Spent Fuel Security
- ISFSI security is maintained as part of the overall reactor security program during plant operations.
- During decommissioning, security at the site is focused on the Spent Fuel Pool and the ISFSI.
- After decommissioning, security of the ISFSI is maintained.
19
Conclusions
- NRC has an established regulatory framework in place for licensing spent fuel storage facilities and for transportation of spent nuclear fuel.
- Any NRC decision on any proposed storage facility will only be made after:
- A comprehensive safety, security, and environmental review, and;
- An opportunity for public adjudicatory hearing
- NRC expects to complete its detailed review and make a licensing decision in approximately three years 20