Reactor Licensing & Regulation

A coalition of environmental organizations on Wednesday petitioned a federal appeals court to overturn a Nuclear Regulatory Commission decision against challenges to a proposed consolidated interim used nuclear fuel installation in New Mexico. On April 23, the commission rejected nearly all appeals from several organizations to a 2019 decision by an NRC Atomic Safety and […]

A draft federal environmental impact statement (EIS) for a proposed used nuclear fuel storage site in New Mexico only looks at the next 40 years, and does not sufficiently consider that the radioactive material might remain there long past that point, opponents of the project argued Tuesday. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission held a public meeting […]

International Isotopes’ failure to adequately address the 2018 breach of a radioactive source at its Idaho headquarters contributed to a similar, larger event months later in Seattle, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Following a routine inspection earlier this year, the agency on Monday cited the Idaho Falls-based nuclear medicine company with apparent violations of […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has again pushed back the deadline for the public to comment on its draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for Holtec International’s planned spent fuel storage facility in New Mexico. The 60-day extension now allows comments though Sept. 22. The previous deadline was July 22, which was already a 60-day extension from […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is continuing to weigh licensees’ requests for temporary exemptions from regulations during the COVID-19 pandemic while its staff begins to return to their offices after months of telework. Ninety-eight percent of the regulator’s nearly 3,000 full-time employees began teleworking in the middle of March, a measure intended to help curb the spread […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commissioning said Wednesday it will conduct a technical review of an Energy Department proposal to dispose of certain vitrified low-activity radioactive waste at the Hanford Site in Washington state. Speaking at an online public meeting, NRC Senior Risk Analyst David Esh said the agency is acting in a consulting role as the […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will prepare a full environmental impact statement (EIS) on Westinghouse’s application to renew the license for its Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility in South Carolina. The EIS would replace a draft environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) issued last October by the federal regulator. The agency changed course after […]

Staff at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will next week begin returning to their offices after months of near-total telework due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ninety-eight percent of the federal agency’s nearly 3,000 full-time employees have been working remotely since mid-March to curb the potential spread of the viral disease. That left a small number of […]

Staff at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will next week begin returning to their offices after months of near-total telework due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ninety-eight percent of the federal agency’s nearly 3,000 full-time employees have been working remotely since March to curb the potential spread of the viral disease. As of late May, only three […]

One new and one returning member were sworn in Monday to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Serving Commissioner David Wright now gets a full five-year term, through June 30, 2025. Commissioner Christopher Hanson fills a vacancy left by the April 2019 retirement of Stephen Burns, with his term lasting through June 30, 2024. NRC Chairman Kristine […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Friday it will prepare a full environmental impact statement (EIS) on Westinghouse’s application to renew the license for its Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility in South Carolina. The EIS would replace a draft environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact issued last October by the federal regulator. The agency changed […]

By John Stang The activist organization Beyond Nuclear filed an appeal Thursday in federal court in hopes of overturning two orders from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that have kept a proposed spent fuel storage facility on track in New Mexico. Beyond Nuclear’s filing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is allowing an Oregon utility during the COVID-19 pandemic to delay mandatory physical requalifications for security personnel at the spent fuel storage pad for a decommissioned nuclear power plant. Portland General Electric Co. received notice from the regulator on May 28. The document was posted to the NRC website on Tuesday. […]

Organizations with drastically different views on the value and future of nuclear power are debating whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should revive a moribund update to regulations for recycling of spent reactor fuel. Staff at the NRC expect early next year to recommend a potential path forward for a limited spent fuel reprocessing rulemaking, which […]

The American Nuclear Society is urging the federal government to proceed with a moribund update to regulations on recycling of spent fuel from nuclear power plants. “While no new reprocessing facilities are planned in the United States at this time, this in itself should not be the rationale for suspending rulemaking,” ANS Executive Director and […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is allowing an Oregon utility during the COVID-19 pandemic to delay mandatory physical requalifications for security personnel at the spent fuel storage pad for a decommissioned nuclear power plant. Portland General Electric Co. received notice from the regulator on May 28. The document was posted to the NRC website on Tuesday. […]

A longtime federal attorney was sworn in Wednesday as inspector general for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Robert Feitel succeeds Hubert Bell, who retired in December 2018 after 22 years in the position. As inspector general, Feitel now leads an office with a yearly budget of about $13 million and a mission to conduct audits and […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is moving ahead with a set of updates to its oversight of storage pads for spent nuclear fuel, including downshifting the frequency for standard inspections to once every three years. The agency intends this year to complete the revisions to its independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) inspection program, with all […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is making preparations for bringing staff back to their offices amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a spokesman said Tuesday. Ninety-eight percent of the federal regulator’s personnel have been working remotely since March to help prevent the spread of novel coronavirus 2019 during the national public health emergency. The agency’s “COVID Task Force […]

The United Steelworkers union is sharply opposing a proposal to ease Nuclear Regulatory Commission rules for disposal of “very low-level” (VLLW) radioactive waste in landfills. “The United Steelworkers asks the NRC to withhold issuing this proposed rule and strongly urge you to reconsider. The minimal monetary costs this rule may reduce is not worth the […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is moving ahead with a set of updates to its oversight of dry-storage pads for spent nuclear fuel, including downshifting the schedule for standard inspections to once every three years. The agency intends this year to complete the revisions to its independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) inspection program, with all […]

A longtime federal attorney was sworn in Wednesday as inspector general for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Robert Feitel succeeds Hubert Bell, who retired in December 2018 after 22 years in the position. As inspector general, Feitel now leads an office with a yearly budget of about $13 million and a mission to conduct audits and […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is continuing preparations for bringing staff back to their offices amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a spokesman said Tuesday. Ninety-eight percent of the federal regulator’s personnel have been working remotely since March to help prevent the spread of novel coronavirus 2019. The agency’s “COVID Task Force continues to review plans for a […]

The Senate on Thursday confirmed two nominations that will return the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to its full five-person membership. Serving Commissioner David Wright and Senate Appropriations Committee staffer Christopher Hanson were both confirmed en bloc, via voice vote from the Senate floor. There was no word at deadline Friday regarding the schedule for Wright and Hanson […]

The state of South Carolina wants the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to prepare a full environmental impact statement before deciding whether to renew the license for Westinghouse’s Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility (CFFF). The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) made the request in an April 27 letter regarding the federal regulator’s 2019 draft […]

The state of South Carolina wants the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to prepare a full environmental impact statement before deciding whether to renew the license for Westinghouse’s Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility (CFFF). The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) made the request in an April 27 letter regarding the federal regulator’s draft environmental […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has renewed the license of Honeywell’s Metropolis Works uranium source conversion plant in Illinois for 40 years. The license now expires on March 24, 2060, according to an April 15 notice in the Federal Register. Metropolis Works has been largely idled since November 2017, due to an oversupply in the product […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has renewed the license of Honeywell’s Metropolis Works uranium source conversion plant in Illinois for 40 years. The license now expires on March 24, 2060, according to an April 15 notice in the Federal Register. Metropolis Works has been largely idled since November 2017, due to an oversupply in the product […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is giving the public additional time to comment on a proposed regulatory update that would ease the path for disposal of very low-level radioactive waste (VLLW) in commercial landfills. The deadline has been pushed back from April 20 to July 20, agency spokesman David McIntyre said by email this week. Very […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved its first exemption authorizing a nuclear power plant to exceed federal limits on work hours to ensure it remains operational during the COVID-19 pandemic. The April 3 approval was filed one day after Exelon Generation submitted the request for its Limerick Generating Station in Montgomery County, Pa. The document […]