Shared Expectations with theLicenseeBy Michael Johnson, U.S. <strong>Nuclear</strong>Regulatory Commission.1. How is the quality of applicationsbeing submitted by the utilities? And also,to what extend are they meeting USNRC’sexpectations?We all along have said we want highquality submittals. As a matter of fact,we work with the applicant before we getthe application to try to make sure theyunderstand the process, understand whatwe expect in the application in addition tothe written requirements that we have. Iwould say not all of the applications meetour expectations on quality but we havebeen able to accept the overwhelmingmajority of applications that we’ve gottenand we have been able to get, sometimeswith additional questions, sufficientdetails to be able to set the scheduleand begin our reviews. I think it’s goingfairly well and we expect the quality ofapplications will continue to improve andin fact we’re going to work to make surethe quality of applications continue toimprove in the future.2. How many combined operating licenseapplications have been received byUSNRC?Right now I think the count is up to18 applications for 28 units. We expecta few more to trickle in. But we have amajority of those applications that wethought we were going to get in this firstwave.3. How does NRC comply with Freedomof Information Act in making the plantdocuments available to the public?Actually what we have is anelectronic system that we call ADAMS(Agency Document and ManagementSystem) and you can go into ADAMSand find each of the applications we areAn interview by Newal Agnihotri, Editor,<strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Journal</strong> at the UtilityWorking Conference in Amelia Island,Florida on August 4, 2009.reviewing. You can go electronicallyand pull up those applications and lookthrough what has been submitted in termsof the application with the exception ofportions that aren’t publicly available.But by-and-large those applications areavailable to the public to review and allyou need is access to the internet.We really rely on making it availableelectronically.4. What is the current process of publichearings in the new licensing system?The process is called a one stepprocess compared to the previous processthat was referred to as the two stepprocess. This process works like this, anapplication is submitted by the applicant,we take it in, we issue a notice that wereceived that application, we review theapplication to make sure it’s sufficientand everything is complete, and then weaccept that application. Then we willbegin our review. The other thing we doshortly thereafter is publish an opportunityto make the public aware that if they havecontentions with respect to an applicationthat there is a process they can go throughto raise those contentions. Then we havethe Atomic Safety and Licensing Boardthat will review those contentions as wereview the application. We complete ourreview of the application, and if thereMichael JohnsonMike Johnson joined the NRC in 1986and has held increasingly responsiblepositions including Deputy DivisionDirector in the Offi ce of <strong>Nuclear</strong>Reactor Regulation, Director of theOffi ce of Enforcement, and DeputyDirector of the Offi ce of Research. Hebegan his current position, as Directorof the Offi ce of New Reactors in May2008. He received a B.S. degree inOcean Engineering from the U.S. NavalAcademy and served in the nuclearsubmarine force for 7 years.are contentions those get dealt withby the licensing board. If there are nocontentions at the end of the process thereis a mandatory hearing. Following that weissue the license and that is authority forthe licensee at that point to build a plant.5. How does NRC ensure that the planthas been constructed in accordance withthe design which was submitted to theNRC and approved by NRC during thecombined operating license application?If we find that the licensee built theplant in accordance with the license byinspecting things called Inspections,Tests, Analyses & Acceptance Criteria(ITAAC) we’ll check those off, we’ll agreethat they’re finished. The process is verydisciplined. The opportunity for publicintervention happens before the licensing,once we are into construction there isn’tany additional chance for contending thatan ITAAC wasn’t met. What we’ve doneis provide ample opportunity early in theprocess for the public to be comfortableand to have their issues addressed beforethe licensing decision. It is a much moretight rigorous process up front; sameopportunity for public intervention butmuch more predictable than the previoustwo step process.(Continued on page 22)20 www.<strong>Nuclear</strong><strong>Plant</strong><strong>Journal</strong>.com <strong>Nuclear</strong> <strong>Plant</strong> <strong>Journal</strong>, September-October 2009
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