Small Modular Reactors

NRC awaits public comment on spent fuel study Companies mentioned: NRC, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation, Brunswick NPP, and Carolina Power & Light

Nuclear Energy Insider Policy and Commission Update 16 Dec – 4 January 2012

NRC awaits public comment on spent fuel study

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission seeks public comment on a report updating preliminary assumptions for an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) the agency will develop to analyse the effects of storing spent nuclear fuel from the nation’s commercial power reactors for as much as 200 years.

The EIS will be part of the agency’s effort to update its Waste Confidence Decision and Rule, last updated in 2010.

The report being made available for comment is an early effort to obtain public input about the general scope of the EIS before the NRC formally initiates the EIS “scoping” process.

The EIS will include analyses of environmental impacts that are directly related to the long-term handling, storage and transportation of commercial spent fuel and high-level waste.

The report discusses several storage scenarios, including at nuclear power plants, regional or centralized storage sites or a combination of storage and reprocessing of spent fuel.

A key assumption is that extended storage would be managed under a regulatory program similar to current regulation of spent fuel.

ENEC submits Fukushima evaluation report

The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) submitted in late December its evaluation of the lessons learned from last year’s accident at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, to the UAE’s independent nuclear energy regulator, the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), said a Khaleej Times report.

The review represents an additional assessment of the safety of its proposed nuclear energy plant. The Enec has previously presented a comprehensive safety case for the plant, which is detailed in its Construction Licence Application (CLA).

The CLA was submitted to the FANR in December 2010.

The CLA involved a rigorous 12-month review and safety analysis of the design of the plant and the proposed site, Braka, in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi, said the news report.

The is based substantially on the analysis done for, and licences granted by the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) to the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) for Shin Kori 3 and 4 units in Korea, the “reference plant” for the UAE programme, the report said.

Brunswick NPP diesel generators not protected from floods

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has determined that fuel oil tank rooms serving the North Carolina-based Brunswick nuclear plant’s emergency diesel generators were not properly protected from possible flooding, a finding of “low to moderate safety significance” that will result in increased NRC inspection and oversight of the facility.

The NRC concluded that the violation at Brunswick involved the failure to identify and correct conditions in the fuel oil tank rooms that made them susceptible to flooding during hurricanes is “white,” having “low to moderate safety significance.”

In response to the finding, Brunswick officials have installed new sealant material to close the openings on the oil tank rooms, and barriers have also been erected to limit possible wave run-up to the facilities.

The white inspection finding will result in increased NRC oversight at Brunswick, which includes a supplemental inspection.

The two-unit plant is operated by Carolina Power & Light.

RIS requested for SMR designs

The NRC has issued a regulatory issue summary (RIS) to obtain new or updated information on the scheduling and status of potential submittals for CP, ESP, COL, DC, DA, or ML applications related to SMR designs.

These designs include integral pressurized-water reactors (iPWRs), high-temperature gas-cooled reactors, liquid-metal-cooled reactors, and other small- or medium-sized reactor designs.

The purpose of this RIS is to allow the NRC staff to gain enough information regarding addressee plans to support the NRC budget development process.