Nuclear Plant Journal, May-June 2014 NuclearPlantJournal.com
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Ray Kuyler
Ray Kuyler is a senior associate in
Morgan Lewis’s Energy Practice. Mr.
Kuyler counsels clients
on nuclear regulatory
issues, including
NRC licensing
proceedings, safety
and regulatory
compliance, and
related matters. He
has advised and
represented utilities
on all aspects of
their applications
to renew nuclear
plant operating
licenses, including
highly contested
proceedings.
manage age-related degradation during
the first license renewal term can continue
to ensure safety during a subsequent
license renewal term.
The NRC’s rules and safety
requirements for license renewal in
Part 54 are based on two fundamental
principles. The first principle is that the
existing regulatory process governing
all operating plants in 10 CFR Part 50 is
adequate to ensure that the plant-specific
licensing basis for all plants provides and
maintains an acceptable level of safety.
The second principle is that the plant-
specific licensing basis established under
Part 50 must be maintained during the
license renewal term in the same manner
and to the same extent as during the
original licensing term (See “Final Rule,
Nuclear Power Plant License Renewal;
Revisions,” 60 Fed. Reg. 22,461, 22,464
(May 8, 1995). The only additional safety
measures necessary for license renewal
are those required to manage the effects
of age-related degradation in long-lived
structures, systems, and components
that perform or support the performance
of certain functions defined in the Part
54 regulations during the period of
extended operation. These principles
apply equally to both first and subsequent
license renewals.
The Part 54 rules focus on aging ef-
fects, as manifested in degraded perfor-
mance or material condition over time,
rather than the underlying aging mecha-
nisms. Aging effects, such as cracking,
embrittlement, or wall-thinning of com-
ponents, can be monitored to identify
the need to take corrective actions at the
appropriate
time.
The focus on aging
effects ensures that
the NRC’s safety
review
primarily
evaluates whether
applicant programs
are adequate to
monitor
perfor-
mance and correct
age-related degra-
dation in a timely
manner. Further-
more, consideration
of measureable ag-
ing effects, rather
than theoretical or
particular observed
mechanisms,
en-
sures that the regulatory process does not
transform into an “open-ended research
project,” which the NRC sought to avoid
when it created the license renewal rule.
Research into materials, aging mecha-
nisms, and aging management techniques
will not stop. The industry can and will
continue to improve its aging manage-
ment techniques based on both labora-
tory research and operating experience.
However, emphasizing measurable aging
effects allows licensees to develop effec-
tive aging management programs based
on existing research and operating expe-
rience. The Part 54 rules already provide
a framework that allows licensees to take
advantage of improvements over time,
based on new research and operating ex-
perience.
Aside from the robust technical
nuclear safety review process established
in Part 54, the NRC has a well-
established environmental review process
for license renewal. Recognizing that
the environmental impacts of license
renewal are much smaller than for
initial construction because the more
significant impacts of constructing the
plants have already occurred, and that
the environmental impacts of continuing
to operate for 20 additional years are
often similar across plants, the NRC Staff
has developed a Generic Environmental
Impact Statement (GEIS). This GEIS
evaluates the environmental impacts of
license renewal on a generic basis for the
vast majority of issues. The GEIS and its
associated rules relegate the remaining
impacts for evaluation on a site-specific
basis. As part of each license renewal
review, the NRC evaluates those site-
specific environmental impacts, considers
new and significant information related
to the generically evaluated impacts,
and publishes a supplement to the GEIS
for that plant. The GEIS is periodically
Source: Figure 11. U.S. Net Electric Generation by Energy Source, 2003-2012,
NRC Information Digest (2013), available at
doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1350/v25/sr1350v25.pd
f.
