NRC finalizes spent nuclear storage rule

August 28, 2014 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved a final rule on the environmental effects of continued storage of spent nuclear fuel and will lift its suspension of final licensing actions on nuclear power plant licenses and renewals once the rule becomes effective -- marking the end of a two-year effort to satisfy a remand by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

In June 2012, the court struck down the NRC's 2010 revision of its "waste confidence" rule, directing the agency to consider the possibility that a geologic repository for permanent disposal of spent fuel might never be built, and to do further analysis of spent fuel pool leaks and fires. In August 2012, NRC responded by suspending final licensing decisions on new reactors, reactor license renewals and spent fuel storage facility renewals, and directing the development of a new rule and supporting Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) within 24 months.

The GEIS analyzes impacts across a number of resource areas throughout each timeframe, including land use, air and water quality, and historic and cultural resources. It also contains the NRC's analysis of spent fuel pool leaks and fires in response to the Appeals Court remand.

The continued storage rule adopts the findings of the GEIS regarding the environmental impacts of storing spent fuel at any reactor site after the reactor's licensed period of operations. As a result, those generic impacts do not need to be re-analyzed in the environmental reviews for individual licenses. The GEIS analyzes the environmental impact of storing spent fuel beyond the licensed operating life of reactors over three timeframes: 60 years (short-term), 100 years (long-term), and indefinitely.

The rule does not authorize, license or otherwise permit nuclear power plant licensees to store spent fuel for any length of time.

This week's action approved the final rule and GEIS, renamed from "waste confidence" to "continued storage of spent nuclear fuel." The name was changed in response to near-unanimous public comment to more accurately reflect the nature and content of the rule.

"Issuance of this rule will maximize efficiency in the licensing and relicensing processes while ensuring the agency complies with the requirement of the National Environmental Policy Act to disclose the environmental impacts of used fuel storage. The D.C. Circuit and other courts have specifically approved this approach, which avoids duplicative and inefficient site-specific reviews," said Ellen Ginsberg, vice president, secretary and general counsel for the Nuclear Energy Institute. "In its rule, the commission concluded that 'spent fuel can be safely managed in ... dry casks during the short-term, long-term and indefinite time frames.' This conclusion confirms the safety and security of used nuclear fuel under the multilayered protective strategies used at commercial nuclear energy facilities."

The final rule and GEIS are expected to be published in September.

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http://www.fierceenergy.com/story/nrc-finalizes-spent-nuclear-storage-rule/2014-08-28