NRC approves TMI-2 license transfer to EnergySolutionsRadwaste SolutionsWaste ManagementDecember 3, 2020, 11:56AM|Radwaste Solutions StaffThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the transfer of the license for Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant from FirstEnergy Companies to TMI-2 Solutions, a subsidiary of Utah-based EnergySolutions. The approval, announced on December 2, is effective immediately, and the license will be amended to reflect the new ownership once the sale of TMI-2 is completed. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has also approved the sale of TMI-2 to TMI-2 Solutions, EnergySolutions announced the same day.FirstEnergy Companies, comprising Metropolitan Edison Company, Jersey Central Power and Light, Pennsylvania Electric Company, and GPU Nuclear, requested in November 2019 the license transfer for TMI-2 Solutions to complete the decommissioning of the unit.Quote: “We are excited for the opportunity to safely decommission Unit 2 at Three Mile Island and restore the area to its natural state,” said Ken Robuck, president and chief executive officer of EnergySolutions. “We currently have four decommissioning projects, two of which will be completed by the end of the year. These four projects have provided valuable experience with best practices and lessons learned that we will incorporate into this project.”The reactor: Located near Middletown, Pa., TMI-2 experienced a partial meltdown on March 28, 1979. The reactor was placed in a safe and stable storage condition known as post-defueling monitored storage, and its nuclear fuel was moved to a storage facility at Idaho National Laboratory. The license currently authorizes only the possession of by-product and special nuclear materials remaining at the reactor.The NRC said that its review of the proposed license transfer determined that it complies with NRC regulatory requirements, provides reasonable assurance that public health and safety will be protected, and is not detrimental to the common defense and security.To perform the decommissioning work on the TMI-2 project, EnergySolutions and the New Jersey-based construction company Jingoli formed a joint venture called ES/Jingoli Decommissioning LLC.Objections: The license transfer was initially challenged by Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which filed a petition to intervene with the NRC in April. The DEP, however, reached a settlement with FirstEnergy in August that increased the state’s oversight of the project and set the terms for a decommissioning advisory panel. According to a December 1 report by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the DEP is still concerned about the adequacy of funds set aside to complete the work of decommissioning TMI-2. It was reported that it will cost $1.4 billion to decommission the reactor. TMI-2 currently has an estimated $900 million in its decommissioning trust fund.A separate petition to intervene in the license transfer proceeding submitted by Eric Epstein and Three Mile Island Alert is still pending before the NRC. Under agency regulations, the NRC commissioners can approve a license transfer while the proceeding is still being adjudicated.Tags:decommissioningenergysolutionsfirstenergynrctmi-2Share:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
DOE lists five stories to watch in 2021Despite all the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. nuclear energy community pulled out some big wins in 2020, and this year could be even bigger, according to the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy.From deep space exploration on Mars to a historic new reactor coming online in Waynesboro, Ga., 2021 will be a record-breaking year for the industry—both good and potentially bad.Find the full details on the DOE-NE website.Go to Article
The year in review 2020: Waste ManagementHere is a look back at the top stories of 2020 from our Waste Management section in Newswire and Nuclear News magazine. Remember to check back to Newswire soon for more top stories from 2020.Waste Management sectionFirst-ever cleanup of uranium enrichment plant celebrated at Oak Ridge: The completion of the decades-long effort to clean up the former Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant was celebrated on October 13, with Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette joining U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, and other state and community leaders at the East Tennessee Technology Park, where the uranium enrichment complex once stood. Read more.Go to Article
The year in review 2020: Power and OperationsHere is a look back at the top stories of 2020 from our Power and Operations section in Newswire and Nuclear News magazine. Remember to check back to Newswire soon for more top stories from 2020.Power and Operations section Defense Department invests in three microreactor designs: Three reactor developers got a boost on March 9 when they each were awarded a contract from the U.S. Department of Defense to design a reactor that can fit inside a standard shipping container for military deployment. Read more.Go to Article
Statement from the American Nuclear Society on the announced departure of NRC Chairman Kristine SvinickiOn behalf of America’s nuclear professionals, we thank Chairman Kristine Svinicki for her service and leadership at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.Go to Article
Chairman Svinicki announces she will resign on Jan. 20Chairman Kristine Svinicki announced today that she intends to leave the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on January 20. She issued a statement in a press release from the NRC.Chairman Svinicki has served as a commissioner under three administrations and is the longest serving member of the commission. She was first appointed to the commission by President Bush in 2007, was reappointed in 2012 by President Obama, and was designated chairman by President Donald J. Trump on January 23, 2017. Her term would have ended on June 30, 2022.Go to Article
When adverse action meets protected activity: Protecting employees and employers while upholding safety cultureWorkers in nuclear must be free to report potential problems without fear of retaliation. When it comes to issuing adverse actions, employers have a responsibility to ensure that protected activity rights are not infringed.Go to Article
Congress set to pass year-end funding billThe final text of the approximately 5,600-page Consolidated Appropriations Act 2021 was released on December 22. While the timing of final passage is still fluid, the Senate was expected to approve it and send it on to President Trump to sign into law, according to John Starkey, American Nuclear Society government relations director.Below are some key funding highlights from the legislation pertaining to nuclear energy.Go to Article
NRC withdraws LLW rule interpretationThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission has withdrawn a proposed interpretation of its low-level radioactive waste regulations that would have permitted licensees to dispose of waste by transferring it to persons who hold specific NRC exemptions. “The proposal is being withdrawn based on the NRC staff’s assessment that the proposed changes may not benefit the regulatory framework for the disposal of low-level radioactive waste,” the NRC said in a December 17 Federal Register notice.After releasing the proposed rule for public comment on March 6, 2020, the NRC received about 200 individual comment submissions and approximately 15,000 form letter submissions, the vast majority of which were in opposition to the proposed rule.“We have strongly disputed the argument by various groups who misrepresented the proposal as deregulation of radioactive waste disposal,” NRC spokesperson David McIntyre told the Courthouse News Service. “This would not have changed anything, just made an existing case-by-case approval process more efficient.”Go to Article
NRC issues draft decommissioning guidance for commentThe Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued the draft report, Consolidated Decommissioning Guidance, Characterization, Survey, and Determination of Radiological Criteria (NUREG-1757, Volume 2, Revision 2), with a request for comments by February 8.NUREG-1757, which is intended for use by applicants, licensees, and the NRC staff, was last updated in 2006. This latest revision addresses lessons learned and experience gained from the review of license termination plans, decommissioning plans, and final status surveys for licensees undergoing license termination since then.Notice of the draft NUREG was published in the December 8 Federal Register.Go to Article
Siphoning D&D lessons from the oil and gas industryThe Deepsea Delta oil-drilling platform in the North Sea. Photo: Wikimedia CommonsNuclear decommissioning projects can benefit from the lessons learned in the fossil fuel industry, according to a December 8 Reuters Events post that draws heavily from an article published in the ANS magazine Radwaste Solutions.Reuters reporter Paul Day interviewed the authors of “Tapping Nonnuclear Knowledge,” which appeared in the Fall 2020 issue of RS and examines research being done on cross-sector learning between nuclear and oil and gas decommissioning projects, particularly the mega projects of decommissioning nuclear power plants and offshore oil rigs.Go to Article