Reactor Licensing & Regulation

Perma-Fix Environmental Services has applied for a license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to ship low-level radioactive waste back to Mexico after treatment. The two-reactor Laguna Verde nuclear power plant near Veracruz is expected to send radioactively contaminated metals, wood, paper, concrete, and other materials for treatment and processing at Perma-Fix facilities in Richland, Wash., and […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has decided to move ahead with completing a key document on disposal of Greater-Than-Class-C (GTCC) low-level radioactive waste rather than waiting on an upcoming milestone in another proceeding. The regulator had previously planned to issue a draft regulatory basis for a potential rulemaking on GTCC waste disposal six months after publishing […]

The Department of Energy said Tuesday it is considering sending the nation’s stock of Greater-Than-Class C (GTCC) and GTCC-like low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) for disposal at the Waste Control Specialists facility in West Texas. The proposal is addressed in a site-specific environmental assessment of shipping and holding the waste at the Federal Waste Facility on […]

Representatives from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Holtec International are scheduled to meet Tuesday to discuss the energy technology company’s license application for a planned spent nuclear reactor fuel storage facility in New Mexico. The meeting will specifically address the regulator’s request for additional information (RAI) following Holtec’s initial application filing in March 2017. On […]

“Multiple performance deficiencies” contributed to a mishap in transfer of spent reactor fuel at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) in California, and could have led to a storage container being dropped nearly 20 feet, according to initial findings from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Agency personnel are investigating the incident, including a site […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has tentatively determined there would be no environmental impact from renewing the license for a storage pad for waste from reactor Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The Department of Energy has requested a 20-year renewal of the license for the independent spent fuel […]

By John Stang Staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has recommended that two environmental organizations be allowed to intervene in deliberations over Holtec International’s license application to build and operate a used reactor fuel storage site in southeastern New Mexico. However, staff also determined several watchdog organizations and spent fuel storage container manufacturer NAC […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has tentatively determined there would be no environmental impact from renewing the license for a storage pad for radioactive waste from reactor Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The Department of Energy has requested a 20-year renewal of the license for the independent spent […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Sept. 28 it expects to need at least a couple extra weeks to issue its decision on the license transfer for the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. “[W]e have been saying we anticipated issuing a decision by the end of the third quarter,” NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said by email. […]

A nuclear watchdog organization and two private oil and gas entities are contesting the stance from the staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission that they cannot request dismissal of license applications for facilities to store tens of thousands of tons of spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico. Beyond Nuclear and the teaming […]

A nuclear watchdog organization and two private oil and gas entities are contesting the position from staff at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission that they cannot request dismissal of license applications for facilities to store spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico. Beyond Nuclear and the teaming of Fasken Land & Minerals and Permian […]

Staff at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is recommending rejection of two separate motions calling for dismissal of license applications for facilities to store spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico. The motion from the advocacy group Beyond Nuclear and a joint filing from energy firm Fasken Land and Minerals and the Permian Basin […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Tuesday handed off some authority for regulation of radioactive materials in Wyoming to the state government. The five-person federal commission approved establishing Wyoming as an NRC agreement state, though details of its decision were not immediately available. Agency Chairman Kristine Svinicki and Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead signed the agreement. […]

Staff at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is recommending rejection of two separate motions for dismissal of license applications for facilities to store spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico. The commission should dismiss the motion from the advocacy group Beyond Nuclear and a joint filing from Fasken Land and Minerals and Permian Basin […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has submitted the first of what is likely to be several requests for additional information on Holtec International’s license application to build and operate a facility for storage of used fuel from commercial nuclear power reactors. The agency’s Sept. 13 letter to Holtec encompasses more than 90 distinct requests, primarily […]

While not much has appeared to happen for the majority of the past year, there is still reason for optimism that the federal government will find a way forward to establish a means for permanent disposal of the most radioactive form of low-level waste, an industry executive said. Congress did not address the issue of […]

By John Stang Southern California Edison apparently became confused on how soon it should alert the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to an Aug. 3 mishap in transferring spent fuel at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) in California. Contractor Holtec International has been moving the spent fuel at the retired nuclear power plant in San Diego […]

Two very different groups have called on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to dismiss separate license applications for storage of spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico, arguing the proceedings constitute a violation of federal law. This is the most aggressive action yet to block the projects in their early stages, but a larger […]

Duke Energy has terminated the low-level emergency notice at its Brunswick nuclear power plant in North Carolina, but on Wednesday declined to say when the site’s two reactors would resume operations. The utility took the facility, located about 4 miles inland from the Atlantic Coast, offline as Hurricane Florence approached the state on Friday. Brunswick […]

Southern California Edison apparently became confused on how soon it should alert the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to an Aug. 3 mishap in transferring spent fuel at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) in California. Contractor Holtec International has been moving the spent fuel at the retired nuclear power plant in San Diego County facility from […]

Two groups have called on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to dismiss separate license applications for storage of spent nuclear reactor fuel in Texas and New Mexico, arguing the proceedings constitute a violation of federal law. The two motions were filed Friday by the nongovernmental group Beyond Nuclear and jointly by Fasken Land and Minerals Ltd. […]

Flood waters and damage from tropical storm Florence restricted access to the Brunswick nuclear power plant in North Carolina over the weekend, leading operator Duke Energy to issue a “notice of unusual event,” according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Such a notice is the lowest emergency classification at the nuclear industry regulator. Duke Energy on […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and nuclear utilities said they took steps this week to ensure that power plants in the Carolinas and Virginia were ready for possible impact by Hurricane Florence, which made landfall Friday morning on the Atlantic Coast. Duke Energy by Thursday afternoon had already begun shutting down its Brunswick nuclear power […]

A longtime consultant to the nuclear industry is scheduled to step into an executive position at the Nuclear Energy Institute on Sept. 24. The Washington, D.C.-based trade group for the nuclear power industry said Douglas True would succeed John Pitesa as chief nuclear officer and executive vice president. In his new role, True will oversee […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and nuclear utilities said Wednesday they are taking steps to ensure that power plants in the Carolinas and Virginia are ready for possible impact by Hurricane Florence later this week. Preparations include inspections of cooling pools and dry storage casks for spent reactor fuel, to identify any potential dangers if the […]

Less than one year before its scheduled closure, the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts remains in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s lowest safety ranking allowed for an atomic energy plant to remain operational. The NRC made the determination in its latest quarterly performance evaluation for the single-reactor facility in Plymouth, made public on Thursday. It […]

By John Stang The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Petition Review Board recently agreed to review a request to determine whether FirstEnergy Solutions should be found in breach of its federal requirement to ensure it can fund decommissioning of three nuclear power plants scheduled for closure in coming years. The NRC sent a memo to that effect […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Petition Review Board recently agreed to review a request to determine whether FirstEnergy Solutions should be found in breach of its federal requirement to ensure it can fund decommissioning of three nuclear power plants scheduled for closure in coming years. The NRC sent a memo to that effect on Aug. 2 […]

Exelon and Holtec international plan by Friday to submit their application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the transfer of the license for the Oyster Creek Generating Station in New Jersey. The Chicago-based power company aims to sell the single-reactor facility in Lacey Township to Holtec, which would then be responsible for decommissioning and spent […]

FirstEnergy Solutions (FES) said Wednesday it has submitted to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission its plans for training workers to supervise the removal and storage of spent nuclear fuel at three nuclear power reactors facing shutdown in 2020 and 2021. This is a necessary step for FES to decommission its four reactors at three sites […]