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Weaver NRC reappointment gets OK, Senate vote next
The U.S. Senate’s Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee has recommended Douglas Weaver be reappointed to a full five-year term on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission after his current term expires on June 30.
The committee voted 15-4 in support of Weaver’s nomination on Wednesday, clearing the way for a final vote on the Senate floor. If the Senate votes to confirm Weaver, he would serve on the NRC through June 30, 2031.
J. M. Leblanc
Nuclear Technology | Volume 61 | Number 3 | June 1983 | Pages 416-422
Technical Paper | New Directions in Nuclear Energy with Emphasis on Fuel Cycles / Nuclear Fuel | doi.org/10.13182/NT83-A33164
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Taking into account the strategic aspects of nuclear energy such as availability and sufficiency of resources and independence of energy supply, most countries planning to use plutonium look mainly to its use in fast reactors. However, by recycling the recovered uranium and plutonium in light water reactors, the saving of the uranium that would otherwise be required could already be higher than 35%. Therefore, until fast reactors are introduced, for macro- or microeconomic reasons, the plutonium recycle option seems to be quite valuable for countries having the plutonium technology. In Belgium, Belgonucleaire has been developing the plutonium technology for more than 20 yr and has operated a mixed oxide fuel fabrication plant since 1973. The past ten years of plant operation have provided for many improvements and relevant new documented experiences establishing a basis for new modifications that will be beneficial to the intrinsic quality, overall safety, and economy of the fuel.