Tagged: nuclear regulatory commission

An appeals court has ruled that public participation, nearly all the time, must be included when federal regulators consider granting safety exemptions to nuclear power plants. Monday’s ruling has to do with a fire-safety exemption that was granted for Indian Point 3. The case is Brodsky versus the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and it falls under the National Environmental Policy Act.  Former New York State Assemblyman Richard Brodsky argued the case on behalf of a group of plaintiffs, including the Sierra Club-Atlantic Chapter, and Westchester’s Citizens Awareness Network. In this week’s ruling, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals vacated part of a district court ruling involving an exemption to fire-safety rules. Here’ Nuclear Regulatory Commission Spokesman Neil Sheehan:

The states of Vermont and New York are calling on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to do a more thorough study of the impacts of storing spent nuclear fuel on the grounds of nuclear power plants.

The Wednesday federal court filing from the two states is part of a process by the NRC that is soliciting comments on nuclear waste storage.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has made it official: It sees no need for stepped-up inspections at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant.

That word comes in a letter from William Dean, Northeast regional administrator for the NRC, to Vermont Public Service Commissioner Elizabeth Miller.

Miller has written to the NRC twice this year to raise concerns about what she has termed human performance problems at the plant.

An administrator says federal regulators are researching whether nuclear plants can be licensed to run beyond the current limit of 60 years. WAMC’s Dave Lucas reports…

The comment came as representatives of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission discussed the two Indian Point plants in the New York City suburbs.

Indian Point's owner is seeking new licenses that would extend the plants' life to 60 years. Regional administrator Bill Dean said Wednesday the NRC is looking into whether additional extensions could be granted. None of the nation's plants is more than 45 years old.