Thoughts on spent fuel storage

An area where additional safety margins at nuclear power plants can be gained involves additional efforts to move spent nuclear fuel from pools to dry cask storage. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) should develop new regulations that require spent fuel to be moved to dry cask storage after it has been allowed to cool for five years. The NRC is formally addressing the security of dry cask storage through a rulemaking, which will seek to codify the protective measures in the Orders issued after September 11, 2001, and resolve regulatory differences between specifically and generally licensed ISFSCIs (independent spent fuel storage installations). The probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) developed by the NRC provides additional supporting evidence of the benefits of having more of the spent fuel held in dry storage. Licensees have an opportunity to proactively submit technical data and analyses that demonstrate a continued adequate safety margin.