[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 187 (Thursday, September 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60702-60703]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-24439]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION


Workshop on Key Issues Related to the Licensing of Future Non-
Light Water Reactors

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of public workshop.

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SUMMARY: The NRC has underway preapplication reviews of advanced 
reactor designs. The purpose of these preapplication reviews is to 
identify, early in the design process, key safety issues and a path to 
their resolution. For advanced non-light water reactors, several such 
key issues were identified and described in SECY-02-0139. The purpose 
of this workshop is to discuss the issues described in SECY-02-139, 
including options for their resolution.

DATES: The workshop will be held on October 22-23, 2002--1 p.m. to 5 
p.m. on October 22, 2002; 9 to 5 p.m. on October 23, 2002.

ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held at the Double Tree Hotel, 12500 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Farouk Eltawila, Director, 
Division of Systems Analysis and Regulatory Effectiveness, Office of 
Nuclear Regulatory Research, Mail Stop T-10 E32, telephone (301) 415-
7499; Internet: [email protected], U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001.
    For material related to the meeting, please contact U.S. NRC Public 
Affairs Office (301) 415-8200.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In a paper dated July 22, 2002, (SECY-02-0139, ``Plan for Resolving 
Policy Issues Related to Licensing Non-Light Water Reactors'') the 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ( NRC) staff identified seven issues with 
potential policy implications resulting from work to date reviewing 
non-light water reactors. These seven issues are:
    [sbull] How should the Commission's expectations for enhanced 
safety be implemented for future non-LWRs?
    [sbull] Should specific defense-in-depth attributes be defined for 
non-LWRs?
    [sbull] How should NRC requirements for future non-LWR plants 
relate to international safety standards and requirements?
    [sbull] To what extent should a probabilistic approach be used to 
establish the plant licensing basis?
    [sbull] Under what conditions, if any, should scenario-specific 
accident source terms be used for licensing decisions regarding 
containment and site suitability?
    [sbull] Under what conditions, if any, can a plant be licensed 
without a pressure-retaining containment building?
    [sbull] Under what conditions, if any, can emergency planning zones 
be reduced, including a reduction to the site exclusion area boundary?

Discussion

    Options for resolving these issues are under development and 
recommendations on their resolution are due to the Commission in 
December 2002. The options under consideration are listed in the agenda 
along with key considerations for discussion. To assist in developing 
and evaluating options and preparing recommendations, the NRC staff is 
planning to hold a workshop to discuss and solicit feedback on the 
issues and options for their resolution, including advantages and 
disadvantages.

Key Considerations for Discussion

    Feedback is sought specifically on:

--Are the options for resolution being considered appropriate?
--Are there other options which should be considered?
--Which option(s) should be pursued and why?
--Which options should not be pursued and why?

Workshop Agenda

October 22, 2002

1-1:15 p.m. Introduction (NRC staff)
1:15-1:45 Overview of the Seven Issues and Options for Their 
Resolution (NRC staff) Discussion of Issues and Options:
1:45-3:45 Issue 1: Expectations for Safety
    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Maintain current level of safety
    [sbull] Require an enhanced level of safety
    [sbull] Require an enhanced level of confidence in the design
    --Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Should the Commission's Safety Goal Policy apply on a 
site or a per plant basis?
    [sbull] Should safety be improved for future plants to ensure 
the population of plants that maintain safety?

[[Page 60703]]

3:45-4 p.m. Break
4-5 p.m. Issues 2: Defense-in-Depth
    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Case-by-case determination
    [sbull] Develop a description of defense-on-depth attributes
    [sbull] Develop a process for determining defense-in-depth 
measures
    --Key Considerations
    [sbull] IAEA description

October 23, 2002

9-10 a.m. Issue 3: Use of International Codes and Standards
    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Review and endorse international codes and standards 
only as needed to review an application
    [sbull] Review and endorse existing international codes and 
standards, whenever practical to fill gaps in the NRC infrastructure
    [sbull] Participate in the development of and endorse 
international codes and standards, whenever practical to fill gaps 
in the NRC infrastructure
    [sbull] Harmonize, as much as possible, NRC licensing 
requirements with other regulatory bodies
    --Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Cost and schedule

10-10:15 a.m. Break

10:15-11:15 a.m. Issue 4: Event Selection and Safety Classification

    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Deterministic selection of events to be considered in 
the design and safety classification
    [sbull] Probabilistic selection of events to be considered in 
the design and safety classification.
    [sbull] Combination of deterministic and probabilistic
    --Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Probabilistic risk assessment quality and completeness

11:15-12:30 p.m. Lunch

12:30-1:30 p.m. Issue 5: Licensing Source Term

    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Use a bounding source term representative of core damage 
accident (LWR practice)
    [sbull] Use a range of source terms corresponding to the design 
basis accident scenerios
    [sbull] Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Ensuring plant and fuel performance over the life of the 
plant

1:30-2:30 p.m. Issue 6: Containment vs. Confinement

    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Require non-LWRs to have a pressure retaining 
containment building
    [sbull] Allow a design without a pressure retaining containment 
provided certain performance criteria are met
    --Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Confidence in accident selection and source term
2:30-2:45 p.m. Break
2:45-3:45 p.m. Issue 7: Emergency Preparedness
    --Options for Resolution:
    [sbull] Retain current requirements and emergency planning zone 
size
    [sbull] Allow a reduction in emergency planning zone size
    --Key Considerations:
    [sbull] Confidence in accident selection and source term
3:45-5 p.m. General Discussion and Wrapup

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of September 2002.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Farouk Eltawila,
Director, Division of Systems Analsis and Regulatory Effectiveness, 
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 02-24439 Filed 9-25-02; 8:45 am]
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