Environmental Impact Assessment & Analysis

  • ANS-2.35, Guideline for Conducting Socioeconomic Impact Assessments of Nuclear Facility Sites
    This standard provides guidance for suitable procedures to characterize baseline socioeconomic conditions for estimating the socioeconomic impacts of nuclear power plant and related facilities including spent nuclear fuel storage facilities or other facilities where nuclear fuel is present (hereby termed “nuclear fuel facilities”). The standard is intended to provide civilian and government professionals with methodologies that are generally acceptable to facilitate the regulatory authority review of site suitability relative to socioeconomic considerations as part of a comprehensive environmental analysis for new nuclear facility development and to inform development of environmental documents required per the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This standard is not intended to assess the impacts of license renewal or decommissioning of existing facilities in the United States. Methodologies will be ranked, as appropriate, with consideration to situation and location.

General & Monitoring

  • ANS-2.6, Guidelines for Estimating Present and Forecasting Future Population Distributions Surrounding Nuclear Facility Sites
    Scope: This standard provides guidance on suitable methodologies for developing estimates and forecasts of human population distribution around civilian and Federal nuclear facility sites. The standard is intended to provide applicants and DOE/NNSA professionals with methodologies that are generally acceptable in the demographic community and to facilitate the NRC review of site suitability relative to population considerations.
  • ANS-2.22, Environmental Radiological Monitoring at Operating Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard establishes criteria for use in developing and implementing an integrated radiological environmental monitoring program focusing on ambient air, surface water, and biota. It also provides criteria on the use of resultant environmental data collected near nuclear facilities to evaluate the impact of facility operations on the surrounding population and environment.
  • ANS-16.1, Measurement of the Leachability of Solidified Low-Level Radioactive Wastes by a Short-Term Test Procedure
    Scope: This standard, ANSI/ANS-16.1-2003, provides a uniform procedure to measure and index the release of radionuclides from waste forms as a result of leaching in demineralized water for 5 days. The results of this procedure do not apply to any specific environmental situation except through correlative studies of actual disposal site conditions. The test presented in this standard has much in common with the original International Atomic Energy Agency proposal and has by now become familiar to those working in the radioactive waste-form development field. It contains the provisions published in the original version of this standard in 1986.
  • ANS-41.5, Verification and Validation of Radiological Data for Use in Waste Management and Environmental Remediation
    Scope: This standard establishes criteria and processes for determining the validity of radioanalytical data for waste management and environmental remediation. These applications include site characterization, waste acceptance, waste certification, waste treatment design, process control, risk communication, litigation, and other applications as deemed necessary.

Siting: Atmospheric

  • ANS-2.3, Estimating Tornado, Hurricane, and Extreme Straight Line Wind Characteristics at Nuclear Facility Sites
    Scope: The purpose of this standard is to specify guidelines to determine the wind velocity, atmospheric pressure change, missile type, size and velocity that result from tornadoes, hurricanes and other extreme winds to be used in nuclear facility design. The standard does not treat forces that result from these natural events.
  • ANS-2.15, Criteria for Modeling and Calculating Atmospheric Dispersion of Routine Radiological Releases from Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard establishes criteria for use of meteorological data collected at nuclear facilities to evaluate the atmospheric effects on routine radioactive releases, inclusive of dilution, dispersion, plume rise, plume meander, aerodynamic effects of buildings, dry, deposition, and wet deposition (e.g., precipitation scavenging).
  • ANS-2.21, Criteria for Assessing Atmospheric Effects on the Ultimate Heat Sink
    Scope: This standard establishes criteria for use of meteorological data collected at nuclear facilities to evaluate the atmospheric effects from meteorological parameters (e.g., dry-bulb temperature/wet-bulb temperature differential, precipitation, wind speed, short wave radiation, incoming solar (short wave) radiation, surface water temperature, and atmospheric pressure) on ultimate heat sinks.
  • ANS-3.11, Determining Meteorological Information at Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This document provides criteria for gathering and assembling meteorological information at commercial nuclear electric generating stations, U.S. Department of Energy / National Nuclear Security Administration nuclear facilities, and other national or international nuclear facilities. Meteorological data collected, stored, and displayed through implementation of this standard are utilized to support the siting, operation, and decommissioning of nuclear facilities. The meteorological data are employed in determining environmental impacts, consequence assessments supporting routine release and design-basis accident evaluations, emergency preparedness programs, and other applications.

Siting: Hydrogeologic

  • ANS-2.8, Probabilistic Evaluation of External Flood Hazards for Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard provides criteria for evaluating external flooding hazards at nuclear facilities and sites in the United States. An external flood hazard at a nuclear facility can result from a number of sources. This standard describes a framework and a process for conducting probabilistic analysis of external flood hazards, including guidance for gathering site and regional data, and conducting screening analyses.
  • ANS-2.9, Evaluation of Ground Water Supply for Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard provides criteria for the determination of the availability of ground water supplies for nuclear facilities with respect to both safety and non-safety related aspects.
  • ANS-2.13, Evaluation of Surface-Water Supplies for Nuclear Power Sites
    Scope: This standard presents criteria for determining: The availability of a surface water supply for plant operation with respect to both safety and nonsafety-related aspects. Water supply related effects of low flows and low levels on plant operation with respect to both safety and nonsafety-related systems.
  • ANS-2.17, Evaluation of Subsurface Radionuclide Transport at Commercial Nuclear Power Plants
    Scope: This standard provides criteria for the determination of the concentration of radionuclides in the ground water resulting from both postulated accidents and routine releases from nuclear facilities.
  • ANS-2.18, Evaluating Radionuclide Transport in Surface Water for Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard aims at establishing the requirements and providing a framework and recommended methodologies for the evaluation of the surface water transport and dilution of radionuclides in liquid effluent releases from nuclear power sites and nuclear facilities to demonstrate regulatory compliance of the dose limits. The approach can also be used to evaluate transport and migration of radionuclides from other reactor facilities that do not need to meet 10CFR20 dose limits.
  • ANS-2.19, Guidelines for Establishing Site-Related Parameters for Site Selection and Designs of ISFSIs (Water Pool Type)
    Scope: This standard presents guidelines for establishing site-related parameters for site selection and design of an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI). This installation provides storage of spent light water reactor (LWR) fuel that has aged a minimum of one year after discharge from the reactor core in a water basin type structure. Such an installation may be independent of both a nuclear power station and a reprocessing facility, or located adjacent to these facilities in order to share selected support systems. Aspects considered include flooding, geology, seismology, ground water, foundation engineering, earthwork engineering, and extreme wind conditions. These guidelines identify the basic site-related parameters to be considered in site evaluation, and in the design, construction, and operation of the ISFSI.
  • ANS-2.32, Remediation of Radioactive Contamination in the Subsurface at Nuclear Power Plants
    Scope: This standard describes actions and documentation that facilitate remedy decisions for radionuclide contamination in the subsurface at nuclear power plants. The content includes operational, infrastructure, and contaminant considerations with respect to how they impact the strategy for subsurface remediation. This standard builds from the existing ANS-2.17 standard (evaluating subsurface contamination) by providing a description of the elements of subsurface remediation, from determining the need for remediation, to selection, to implementation, and through closure.

Siting: Seismic

  • ANS-2.2, Earthquake Instrumentation Criteria for Nuclear Power Plants
    Scope: This standard specifies the required earthquake instrumentation for the site and structures of light water cooled, land based nuclear power plants. It may be used for guidance at other types of nuclear facilities. This standard does not address the following: (a) Instrumentation to automatically shut down a nuclear power plant at a predetermined ground acceleration. (b) Procedures for evaluating records obtained from seismic instrumentation and instructions for the treatment of data. These procedures and instructions are specified in American National Standard, "Criteria for the Handling and Initial Evaluation of Records from Nuclear Power Plant Seismic Instrumentation," ANSI/ANS 2.10-2003.
  • ANS-2.10, Criteria for Retrieval, Processing, Handling, and Storage of Records from Nuclear Facility Seismic Instrumentation
    Scope: This standard provides criteria for the timely retrieval and the subsequent processing, handling, and storage of data obtained from nuclear power plant and non-power nuclear facility strong-motion analog and digital seismic instrumentation. ) Nuclear power plant seismic instrumentation requirements are specified in ANSI/ANS-2.2-2016. Non-power nuclear facility seismic instrumentation, if required, is specified in facility-specific regulations, standards, and/or guidance documents.
  • ANS-2.23, Nuclear Power Plant Response to an Earthquake
    Scope: This standard specifics actions that the owner of a nuclear power plant shall take to prepare for and respond to a felt earthquake at the plant(s), including the need for plant shutdown; actions to determine the readiness of the plant to resume operation; and those evaluations necessary to verify the long-term integrity of safety-related (SR) and important structures, systems, and components (SSCs). It also includes a consensus definition of operating basis earthquake (OBE) exceedance, beyond which U.S. regulations require plant shutdown. Application of this revised standard provides a comprehensive, balanced plan for the response of a nuclear power plant to an earthquake. This standard does not cover those operator actions that are performed in connection with safe operation and control of the nuclear power plant during and following an earthquake. These operations are specified in plant operating procedures, emergency procedures, alarm response procedures, and other conditions of the plant's license. Likewise, it does not cover required reporting and communications with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). It is not applicable to nuclear facilities other than licensed nuclear power plants.
  • ANS-2.26, Categorization of Nuclear Facility Structures, Systems, and Components For Seismic Design
    Scope: This standard provides: (a) criteria for selecting the seismic design category1) (SDC) for nuclear facility structures, systems, and components (SSCs) to achieve earthquake safety and (b) criteria and guidelines for selecting Limit States for these SSCs to govern their seismic design. The Limit States are selected to ensure the desired safety performance in an earthquake. 1) The SDCs used in this standard are not the same as the SDCs referred to in the International Building Code (IBC).
  • ANS-2.27, Criteria for Investigations of Nuclear Facility Sites for Seismic Hazard Assessments
    Scope: This standard provides requirements and recommended practices for conducting investigations and acquiring data sets needed to evaluate seismic source characterization for probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA), site response and soil structure interaction (SSI) effects, and liquefaction. These data also are used to evaluate fault rupture and associated secondary deformation, and other seismically-induced ground failure hazards (i.e., ground settlement, slope failure, and subsidence and collapse).
  • ANS-2.29, Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Analysis
    Scope: This standard provides criteria to establish the probabilistic basis for various levels of natural phenomena hazards at nuclear materials facility sites.
  • ANS-2.30, Criteria for Assessing Tectonic Surface Fault Rupture and Deformation at Nuclear Facilities
    Scope: This standard provides criteria and guidelines for assessing permanent ground deformation (PGD) hazard due to tectonic surface fault rupture and deformation at nuclear facilities. Specifically, the purpose of this standard is to provide an outline of procedures and methods for performing probabilistic fault displacement hazard analysis (PFDHA for surface rupture hazard) and probabilistic tectonic deformation hazard analysis (PTDHA for surface deformation due to displacements along blind [buried faults]). Probabilistic approaches for assessing surface fault displacement and tectonic deformation hazard are relatively new and so criteria and guidelines have not been defined previously. PGD due to fault rupture is a potential hazard for nuclear facilities founded across or near a fault. In this standard, only coseismic PGD hazard related to movement on crustal faults is addressed. Deformation in the form of creep or afterslip and uplift and subsidence during subduction zone earthquakes is not addressed.
  • ANS-2.34, Characterization and Probabilistic Analysis of Volcanic Hazards
    Scope: This standard provides criteria and guidance for performing a probabilistic volcanic hazard analysis (PVHA) for the design and construction of nuclear facilities. Criteria provided in this standard address several aspects of conducting PVHAs, including 1) selection of the methodology and level of volcanic hazard analysis appropriate for a facility, including a deterministic screening; 2) characterization of the hazards posed by existing volcanic vents and potential newly emerging volcanic vents; and 3) characterization of the unique hazards posed by several volcanic phenomena including ashfall, lava flows, lahars, and asphyxiating gases.