Take action on Fukushima lessons learned

Submit comments and questions to the scientific panel or attend the DC meeting!

Next Thursday, July 19, 2012, at an initial meeting of a National Academy of Sciences panel, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission will discuss its actions following the Fukushima disaster in Japan. NRC is paying for this NAS study. There will be time for public comment and those wishing to attend should contact NAS at fukushima@nas.edu. NAS is taking comments on the committee membership for the next few days ONLY, and general questions on the study can be submitted by the email above. NAS is expecting to release the report in early 2014. Beyond Nuclear will keep you updated as much as possible. No further meetings have been scheduled.

Background: At the recommendation of the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future, the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Committee directed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to contract with the National Academy of Sciences [NAS] for a study of the lessons learned from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. According to the Senate report, the following areas should be examined:

--the lessons that can be learned;

--the lessons' implications for conclusions reached in earlier NAS studies on the safety and security of current storage arrangements for "spent" [emphasis added] nuclear fuel and high-level waste in the United States, including an assessment of whether the amount of "spent" fuel currently stored in reactor pools should be reduced;

--the lessons' implications for commercial nuclear reactor safety and security regulations; and

--the potential to improve design basis threats assessment.

This study shall build upon the 2004 NAS study of storage issues and complement the other efforts to learn from Fukushima that have already been launched by the NRC and industry. The study should be conducted in coordination with the Department of Energy and, if possible, the Japanese Government. The Committee expects the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, and the Department of State to assist the National Academy of Sciences in obtaining the information it needs to complete this study in a timely manner.