NRC Struggles with Some Facets of NEPA, IG says

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Inspector General found the agency has problems implementing some parts of the National Environmental Policy Act, according to a report released yesterday. The report, titled “Assessment of the Most Serious Management and Performance Challenges Facing NRC,” looked at a variety of issues the NRC needs improvement in, including cybersecurity, acquisition procurement, and internal controls. The IG said staff has differing understandings of NEPA resulting in different ways of implementing the law. “NRC has some issues executing certain facets of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) because the agency does not have controls in place to ensure that staff is compliant,” the IG report said. “As a result, staff have varying interpretations on how to comply with NRC’s regulations Inspector General’s Assessment of the Most Serious Management and Performance Challenges Facing NRC in 10 CFR Part 51. In an effort to strengthen its internal controls, NRC has proposed to develop agency wide guidance to ensure that staff appropriately follows Part 51.”