Nuclear Regulatory Commission

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied a request to let companies fund disposal of major components of shuttered nuclear plants by tapping into the plants’ decommissioning trust funds, according to a recent notice from the agency. The proposed rulemaking, which NRC rejected in a Federal Register notice published Feb. 4, would have updated federal regulations to […]

A federally-owned utility this week said that its New Nuclear Program that will prepare an application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for an advanced reactor at a Tennessee test site. The Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) New Nuclear Program, approved by the utility’s board Thursday, will “develop a Nuclear Regulatory Commission construction permit application and potentially […]

A pair of Republican legislators last week asked Congress’s investigative arm to look into whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is prepared to handle applications for future advanced nuclear reactors, according to a recent letter. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) should investigate NRC’s “preparedness to review and approve applications for advanced nuclear reactor designs,” Sen. Shelley […]

A bill making its way through the New Mexico state legislature aimed at blocking a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the state will no longer ban the storage of such waste outright, according to amendments adopted in committee Monday. A package of amendments on House Bill 127, adopted by unanimous vote […]

No existing federal law allowed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to license a proposed commercial interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in Texas, the Lone Star State’s attorney general told a federal judge Monday, rolling out his long-awaited argument in the state’s lawsuit against the agency. NRC “lacks authority” to grant a license to Interim […]

A bill making its way through the New Mexico state legislature aimed at blocking a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel in the state will no longer ban the storage of such waste outright, according to amendments adopted in committee Monday. A package of amendments on House Bill 127, adopted by unanimous vote […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied a request to let companies fund disposal of major components of shuttered nuclear plants by tapping into the plants’ decommissioning trust funds, according to a recent notice from the agency. The proposed rulemaking, which NRC rejected in a Federal Register notice published Feb. 4, would have updated federal regulations to […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management has hauled away the last of demolition debris from buildings torn down last year at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory site in Southern California, according to a Tuesday release. Trucks carrying the waste from buildings within DOE’s Energy Technology Engineering Center northwest of Los Angeles rolled out […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s current suite of safety regulations should work as intended in the event of a future cross-country nuclear waste transportation campaign, the agency’s material control chief said this week in a public meeting. “We do feel we are well positioned for any future shipments of spent fuel based on our strong regulatory […]

An anti-nuclear group still wants the The Nuclear Regulatory Commission to hold a public hearing on the recently-approved sale of a Michigan nuclear power plant, even though Holtec International effectively cut SNC-Lavalin, whose character was at the center of the anti-nuker’s demands, out of the decom job. But hearings are a matter for the commissioners […]

Banning storage of high-level nuclear waste and spent fuel in New Mexico would be like diverting a planet-killing asteroid, a New Mexico state Senator who supports a ban said this week. “This is our Don’t Look Up moment,” said state Sen. Jeff Steinborn (D) Tuesday during a New Mexico Senate Conservation Committee hearing, referencing the […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s current suite of safety regulations should work as intended in the event of a future cross-country nuclear waste transportation campaign, the agency’s material control chief said Wednesday in a public meeting. “We do feel we are well positioned for any future shipments of spent fuel based on our strong regulatory framework […]

Banning storage of high-level nuclear waste and spent fuel in New Mexico would be like diverting a planet-killing asteroid, a New Mexico state Senator who supports a ban said Tuesday. “This is our Don’t Look Up moment,” said state Sen. Jeff Steinborn (D) Tuesday during a New Mexico Senate Conservation Committee hearing, referencing the 2021 […]

An anti-nuclear group still wants the The Nuclear Regulatory Commission to hold a public hearing on the recently-approved sale of a Michigan nuclear power plant, even though Holtec International effectively cut SNC-Lavalin, whose character was at the center of the anti-nuker’s demands, out of the decom job. But hearings are a matter for the commissioners […]

Interested stakeholders will get a chance to talk to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission about a recent report reviewing the agency’s ability to regulate large-scale spent nuclear fuel transport in the U.S. NRC was scheduled host a virtual meeting Wednesday to discuss the staff report and answer stakeholder questions, according to a notice from the commission. […]

A lawsuit filed in federal court last week aims to force the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to turn over more records related to a 2018 spent-fuel handling mishap at a California nuclear power plant under decommissioning, according to court records. The suit, filed Jan. 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California […]

A company in charge of decommissioning three former nuclear power plants in the U.S., with two more on the way, recently absorbed a joint venture with a Canadian engineering services company, a spokesperson said this week. Consolidated Decommissioning International (CDI), part-owned by Holtec International and SNC-Lavalin, was formally taken over by Holtec Jan. 19, a […]

A federal court will rule on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s request to toss a state lawsuit over a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel “as soon as possible,” according to minutes from a hearing held last week. The Jan. 20 hearing was the latest turn in New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas’s lawsuit […]

International efforts to develop strategies for disposing of nuclear waste have made strides recently, the U.N.’s nuclear energy organization said in a report published last week. “It is evident that significant progress has been made globally in formulating national policies and strategies and in implementing legal and regulatory systems that define responsibilities for the ongoing […]

Holtec International owes the feds another $50,000 stemming from security-related violations at a New Jersey nuclear plant under decommissioning, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced this week. According to a Wednesday press release from the agency, Holtec, which is dismantling Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station, will undertake “a series of corrective actions” designed to address this […]

Holtec International owes the feds another $50,000 stemming from security-related violations at a New Jersey nuclear plant under decommissioning, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Wednesday. According to a Thursday press release from the agency, Holtec, which is dismantling Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station, will undertake “a series of corrective actions” designed to address this newest […]

A bill introduced in New Mexico’s state legislature last week, and backed by the governor, aims to block a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel by banning the storage of high-level nuclear waste and spent fuel in the Land of Enchantment. If it became law, Senate Bill (SB) 54, introduced Jan. 19 by […]

After an environmental group’s complaints, the company in charge of decommissioning a Michigan nuclear plant said in a Tuesday regulatory filing that it plans to switch the contractor for the job. Comprehensive Decommissioning International (CDI), part-owned by SNC-Lavalin and responsible for dismantling Palisades Nuclear Generating Station, will no longer be the project’s general contractor, Holtec […]

A lawsuit filed in federal court last week aims to force the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to turn over more records related to a 2018 spent-fuel handling mishap at a California nuclear power plant under decommissioning, according to court records. The suit, filed Jan. 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California […]

A federal court will rule on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s request to toss a state lawsuit over a proposed interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel “as soon as possible,” according to minutes from a hearing held last week. The Jan. 20 hearing was the latest turn in New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas’s lawsuit […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s chief executive manager is retiring from the agency after nearly 40 years of service, the commission said in a press release last week. Annette Vietti-Cook, who became NRC’s secretary in 1982, is retiring from her role effective this spring, according to a press release dated Jan. 11. Brooke Clark, NRC’s deputy […]

A Nuclear Regulatory Commission team tasked with reviewing the agency’s environmental justice efforts plans soon to submit its recommendations to the commissioners, a spokesperson said this week. NRC’s environmental justice task force, spearheaded by head of the agency’s operating reactor licensing division, Gregory Suber, is “busy drafting its recommendations in a staff paper,” a spokesperson […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s chief executive manager is retiring from the agency after nearly 40 years of service, the commission said in a press release last week. Annette Vietti-Cook, who became NRC’s secretary in 1982, is retiring from her role effective this spring, according to a press release dated Jan. 11. Brooke Clark, NRC’s deputy […]

Happy Friday, nuke-watchers. Here are some other stories from around the civilian nuclear power space that RadWaste Monitor was tracking this week. NRC Conference to go All-Virtual Amid Omicron Surge After the COVID-19 Omicron variant spread rapidly across the country this winter, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has decided to host an annual spring conference virtually, […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will allow its employees to work remotely on a limited basis after the recent spike in omicron-variant COVID-19 cases, according to a recent memo from the agency’s operations department. NRC extended “additional flexibilities for project-based telework” to Feb. 26 from Jan. 15, according to a Jan. 6 memo to staff from […]