United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs

Washington, DC 20555

Phone 301-415-8200 Fax 301-415-2234

Internet:opa@nrc.gov

No. 96-106 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Tuesday, July 30, 1996)

NRC REVISES REQUIREMENTS FOR

DECOMMISSIONING NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is amending its

regulations for decommissioning nuclear power plants to bring

increased efficiency and uniformity to the process. The

revisions also clear up ambiguities in NRC's regulations, codify

practices that have been used on a case-by-case basis, and

increase public participation.

The primary change allows no major decommissioning

activities to be undertaken, once a reactor permanently ceases

operation, until after certain information has been provided to

the NRC and the public. After that, if NRC has no objections,

decommissioning may begin.

A proposed rule published for comment last July resulted in

these final requirements:

A licensee must certify to the NRC that the reactor has

ceased operations permanently and that the nuclear fuel has been

permanently removed from the reactor vessel. The licensee also

must submit a post-shutdown decommissioning activities report

within two years after expressing intent to cease operations.

This report must describe the licensee's planned

decommissioning activities, detailed schedule, and cost estimate,

as well as a statement as to whether environmental impacts of

decommissioning have been covered in previous environmental

impact statements or reports. If not, a license amendment is

required to address environmental concerns.

A 90-day hold is required on the post-shutdown

decommissioning report to allow NRC review, together with public

discussion of the licensee's plans, at a meeting to be held near

the plant. Afterwards, if NRC has no objections, the licensee

may begin major decommissioning activities. These may include

permanent removal of the reactor vessel, steam generators, and

large pumps, valves, and piping systems, without specific NRC

approval.
The revised regulations require that before completing

decommissioning, the licensee must submit an application to the

NRC to terminate the license. The application must be

accompanied by a plan that describes any radioactivity on the

site; remaining dismantlement activities; site cleanup plans and

final radiation survey; updated cost analysis; planned end-use of

the site; and any new environmental information.

NRC will publish the license termination plan for public

comment, hold a public meeting near the plant to discuss the

licensee's plans, and provide an opportunity for a public

hearing.

Revisions to the regulations also allow licensees to use up

to 23 percent of their decommissioning trust funds for legitimate

decommissioning activities provided that there are sufficient

funds to maintain the reactor in a safe storage condition and

that such use does not inhibit the licensees's ability to fund

ultimate release of the site and termination of the license. The

new rule further specifies that an expired license cannot be

terminated until the NRC notifies the licensee in writing.

Some of the changes in the final regulations also apply to

university research reactors and other non-power reactors.

Details of the final regulations are contained in a notice

in the July 29 edition of the Federal Register.

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