POLICY ISSUE 

INFORMATION 

May 21, 2012 SECY-12-0074

FOR: The Commissioners 

FROM: Eric J. Leeds, Director 

 Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 

SUBJECT: SCHEDULING A FOLLOW-UP INTEGRATED REGULATORY REVIEW 

SERVICE (IRRS) MISSION IN THE UNITED STATES 

PURPOSE: 

The purpose of this paper is to inform the Commission of the staff’s intention to request a 

follow-up Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) mission in 2014. This paper does not 

address a new commitment. 

BACKGROUND: 

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) IRRS program sends teams of specialized 

technical and regulatory experts to perform peer reviews of nuclear regulatory bodies around 

the world. Missions are conducted at the request of the host country and are organized into 

topical modules. Countries have flexibility in determining the scope of the missions. In 

October 2010, the United States hosted an IRRS mission focused on the Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission’s (NRC’s) operating reactor program. The IAEA’s guidelines for IRRS missions 

suggest that countries request a follow-up mission within 18-24 months; however, 3 years is 

more typical considering IAEA resources, the number of missions being performed, and the 

need to provide sufficient time for the host country to address the mission’s findings. 

DISCUSSION: 

The following provides information about the benefits of inviting a follow-up IRRS mission and 

the staff’s high-level plans for hosting the mission. 

CONTACT: Jon B. Hopkins, NRR/DIRS 

 301-415-3027 

SECY NOTE: THIS SECY PAPER WILL BE RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC 5 WORKING 

DAYS AFTER DISPATCH OF THE LETTER. 
The Commissioners 2 

Benefits of a Follow-up IRRS Mission 

The United States played an important role in the advancement of the IRRS program by leading 

by example in hosting a mission in 2010. The mission was beneficial to the NRC in requiring 

the staff to undertake a rigorous self-assessment, which identified a number of potential areas 

for improvement that were elaborated upon during the IRRS team’s 2-week visit. In part, 

because of the willing participation of major nuclear regulatory bodies, more countries that need 

international guidance to improve their programs are requesting and hosting IRRS missions. 

Follow-up missions are important because they provide countries with an opportunity to 

demonstrate their efforts to address the IRRS recommendations. This is similar to the review of 

country challenges at the triennial Convention of Nuclear Safety (CNS) Review Meetings. In 

addition, the Operational Safety Review Team missions that IAEA conducts of nuclear plant 

operators at the plant site also have follow-up missions. The staff believes that peer review 

programs are more effective with this demonstration review step. 

The IAEA’s Action Plan on Nuclear Safety (Action Plan), which was developed in response to 

the Fukushima accident in Japan, encourages countries to avail themselves of peer review 

services and invite follow-up missions to demonstrate progress in areas in which improvement 

was recommended. In contributing to the development of the Action Plan, the United States 

has been a strong proponent of the IAEA’s peer review programs and of transparency in 

publicly sharing their results. The Fukushima accident also prompted the IAEA to include 

additional review specifically to address how regulatory bodies have identified and addressed 

lessons learned due to the accident. This new review area has been deployed in several 

missions so far, including the Republic of Korea and a follow-up mission to Canada. 

The staff believes that the follow-up IRRS mission should have the same scope as the original 

mission, with the addition of the new reviews pertaining specifically to Fukushima lessons 

learned. 

From a policy perspective, the staff believes it is important for the United States to request and 

schedule a follow-up IRRS mission to further demonstrate its commitment to the program, and 

through example, to encourage other countries to follow suit. The staff believes that the 

Extraordinary Meeting of the Convention on Nuclear Safety, which will take place at the IAEA 

from August 27-31, 2012, would be an appropriate venue for announcing that the United States 

has officially requested an IAEA IRRS follow-up mission. The CNS currently has 74 contracting 

party countries. 

Inviting a follow-up IRRS mission will have the following benefits: 

• Provide additional demonstration of U.S. support for peer review programs, 

• Encourage other countries to invite a follow-up mission, 

• Demonstrate support for IAEA’s Action Plan on Nuclear Safety, 
The Commissioners 3 

• Demonstrate the NRC’s approach to the IRRS mission recommendations and 

suggestions, and 

• Provide an in-depth international senior regulator peer review of the NRC’s response to 

Fukushima. 

Hosting Follow-up IRRS Mission 

Follow-up missions typically consist of a smaller team, mainly composed of team members from 

the original mission to promote continuity. The staff estimates that a follow-up mission focused 

on the NRC’s actions to address the original mission’s recommendations and suggestions and 

on the NRC’s actions in response to the Fukushima accident should have approximately eight to 

ten members for one week. In addition, there will be a preparatory meeting for three members 

for one day. 

The NRC staff will form three teams for the follow-up mission, as for the original mission. These 

teams will be a technical team led by the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, a liaison team 

led by the Office of International Programs, and a communications team led by the Office of 

Public Affairs. Additional NRC offices will also provide support for follow-up mission activities 

concerning information technology, conference meeting space, and ensuring a complete NRC 

response on the follow-up mission review areas. 

The follow-up mission will only take place at NRC headquarters and will not involve travel to a 

region or plant site. Safeguards information will not be discussed with the follow-up team. 

The staff will provide a status of its preparation activities and progress to address the mission 

recommendations and suggestions to the Commission within one year. 

Resources 

The staff has been planning for a follow-up IRRS mission and estimates that it will involve the 

following resources: 

• fiscal year (FY) 2013: 1.7 full-time equivalents (FTEs), and 

• FY 2014: 1.44 FTE. 

The staff’s budgeted international resources can support this effort. 

CONCLUSION: 

The staff’s planned actions include the following: 

(1) Request a follow-up IRRS mission in the United States in 2014 (draft letter enclosed). 

(2) Inform the Commission of the status of the staff’s preparation activities and progress to 

address the 2010 mission recommendations and suggestions within one year. 
The Commissioners 4 

COORDINATION: 

The Office of the General Counsel has reviewed this paper and has no legal objection. The 

Office of International Programs has reviewed this paper and concurs. The Office of the Chief 

Financial Officer has reviewed this paper and concurs. 

/RA by Bruce A. Boger for/

Eric J. Leeds, Director 

 Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 

Enclosure: 

Draft Request Letter 

 
The Commissioners 4 

COORDINATION: 

The Office of the General Counsel has reviewed this paper and has no legal objection. The 

Office of International Programs has reviewed this paper and concurs. The Office of the Chief 

Financial Officer has reviewed this paper and concurs. 

 /RA by Bruce A. Boger for/

Eric J. Leeds, Director 

 Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation 

Enclosure: 

Draft Request Letter 

 

ADAMS Accession No: ML12114A167 SECY-012 *via email 

OFFICE NRR/DIRS/IFIB Tech Editor* NRR/DIRS/IFIB OGC OIP 

NAME JHopkins JDougherty CRegan MSpencer 

(NLO) MDoane 

DATE 05/09/2012 04/18/2012 05/09/2012 05/10/2012 05/10/2012 

OFFICE OPA NRR/DIRS CFO* NRR 

NAME EBrenner 

(HHarrington for) HNieh DPelton ELeeds (BBoger for) 

DATE 05/09/2012 05/18/2012 05/04/2012 05/21/2012 

OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
ENCLOSURE 

Mr. Denis Flory 

Deputy Director General 

Department of Nuclear Safety and Security 

International Atomic Energy Agency 

Wagramer Strasse 5, P.O. Box 100 

A-1400 Vienna, Austria 

Dear Deputy Director General Flory: 

I am writing to inform you that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) formally 

requests the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to conduct a follow-up integrated 

regulatory review service (IRRS) mission in the United States in 2014. The NRC hosted an 

IRRS mission in October 2010 focused on the operating power reactor program. The follow-up 

mission will focus on the NRC’s actions in response to the recommendations and suggestions 

contained in the October 2010 mission report, and on the NRC’s actions in response to the 

accident at the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant site. 

The NRC contact for coordinating the details of the follow-up mission is Bruce A. Boger, Deputy 

Director for Reactor Safety Programs, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. 

The NRC is pleased to participate in the IRRS program and to provide continued support to 

other IRRS missions. 

Sincerely, 

Gregory B. Jaczko