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Nuclear Legislation in OECD Countries

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Nuclear Legislation in OECD Countries N uclear Legislation in OECD and NEA Countries Regulatory and Institutional Framework for Nuclear Activities United States Nuclear Legislation in OECD and NEA Countries © OECD 2016 United States I. General Regulatory Regime ...................................................... 3 1. Introduction ........................................................................................... 3 2. Mining regime ........................................................................................ 4 3. Radioactive substances, nuclear fuel and equipment ................................... 5 a) Special nuclear material ...................................................................... 5 b) Source material .................................................................................. 6 c) By-product material ............................................................................ 6 d) Agreement State programmes ............................................................. 7 4. Nuclear installations................................................................................ 8 a) Initial licensing ................................................................................... 8 i) “Two-Step” licensing under 10 CFR Part 50 ...................................... 8 ii) Licensing under 10 CFR Part 52 ...................................................... 9 b) Operation and inspection, including nuclear safety ................................ 11 c) Operating licence renewal .................................................................. 12 d) Decommissioning ............................................................................. 12 e) Emergency response ......................................................................... 13 5. Radiological protection .......................................................................... 14 a) Protection of workers ........................................................................ 14 b) Protection of the public ..................................................................... 15 6. Radioactive waste management ............................................................. 15 a) High-level waste ............................................................................... 16 i) Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) ................................................. 17 ii) West Valley Demonstration Project ............................................... 17 b) Low-level waste ............................................................................... 17 c) Disposal at sea ................................................................................. 18 d) Uranium mill tailings ......................................................................... 19 e) Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) ................... 20 7. Non-proliferation and exports ................................................................ 20 a) Exports of source material, special nuclear material, production or utilisation facilities and sensitive nuclear technology ............................. 21 b) Exports of components ...................................................................... 22 c) Exports of by-product material ........................................................... 23 d) Exports and imports of radiation sources ............................................. 23 e) Conduct resulting in the termination of exports or economic assistance ... 23 United States 1 © OECD 2016 Nuclear Legislation in OECD and NEA Countries f) Subsequent arrangements ................................................................. 24 g) Technology exports .......................................................................... 24 h) Information and restricted data .......................................................... 24 8. Nuclear security ................................................................................... 25 9. Transport ............................................................................................ 25 10. Nuclear third party liability .................................................................... 27 II. Institutional Framework ......................................................... 31 1. Regulatory and supervisory authorities ................................................... 32 a) Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) ............................................... 32 i) Legal status ............................................................................... 32 ii) Responsibilities .......................................................................... 32 iii) Structure ................................................................................... 33 iv) Financing ................................................................................... 39 b) Department of Energy (DOE) ............................................................. 39 i) Legal status ............................................................................... 39 ii) Responsibilities .......................................................................... 40 iii) Structure ................................................................................... 40 iv) Financing ................................................................................... 43 c) Department of Labor (DOL) ............................................................... 43 d) Department of Transportation (DOT) .................................................. 43 e) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ............................................... 44 2. Public and semi-public agencies ............................................................. 44 a) Cabinet-level departments ................................................................. 44 i) Department of Agriculture ........................................................... 44 ii) Department of Commerce ............................................................ 44 iii) Department of Defense (DOD) ..................................................... 45 iv) Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) ........................ 45 v) Department of the Interior ........................................................... 45 vi) Department of State (DOS) ......................................................... 46 b) Other federal agencies and offices ...................................................... 46 i) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) ............................ 46 ii) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) ................... 46 iii) Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) ................................................. 46 iv) White House offices .................................................................... 46 c) Semi-public agencies ........................................................................ 47 i) American National Standards Institute (ANSI) ................................ 47 ii) National Academy of Sciences (NAS) ............................................. 47 iii) National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurement (NCRP) ... 47 iv) National Nuclear Data Center ....................................................... 47 2 United States Nuclear Legislation in OECD and NEA Countries © OECD 2016 I.General Regulatory Regime 1. Introduction In the United States, there are 100 licensed nuclear power plants operating, which generate approximately 20% of the total electricity produced in the United States. Sixty-five of the reactors in operation are pressurised water reactors and 35 are boiling water reactors. The nuclear power plants are mostly privately owned and operated, although some are operated by government-owned entities such as the Tennessee Valley Authority. There are also 36 “research and test reactors” located primarily at universities. These reactors are used for research, training and testing. The United States also has uranium resources, mainly located in the western part of the country. There are four producing mills and four in situ leach plants. With regard to radioactive waste, low-level waste is stored on-site by the licensees until quantities are large enough for shipments to low-level waste disposal facilities. There are four licensed commercial low-level waste disposal facilities in the country. Finally, spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste are stored on-site until a deep geological repository is built (see under “Radioactive Waste Management”). In the United States, the federal government has assumed most responsibility for regulating nuclear energy. For example, federal legislation and administrative regulations govern nuclear facilities. The centrepiece of nuclear legislation in the United States is the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, 42 USC 2011 et seq.,1 a comprehensive federal statute that regulates possession and use of radioactive material and facilities that produce or use such material. Although the Atomic Energy Act is central to such regulation, other statutes affect the regulation of radioactive material and facilities, a number of which are mentioned in the discussion that follows this introduction. The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 marked a transition from the federal government’s monopoly over production and use of radioactive materials to a regime in which private industry would also play a role in their production and non-military use. Military uses of nuclear energy remained the domain of the federal government. Under the act, the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) initially constituted an independent agency to
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