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Overview of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Its Regulatory Process for the Nuclear Fuel Cycle for Light Water Reactors

This paper provides a brief description of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and its regulatory process for the current nuclear fuel cycle for light water power reactors (LWRs). It focuses on the regulatory framework for the licensing of facilities in the fuel cycle. The first part of the paper provides an overview of the NRC and its regulatory program including a description of its organization, function, authority, and responsibilities.

Screening Analysis of Criticality Features, Events, and Processes for License Application

The purpose of this analysis report is to evaluate the features, events, and processes (FEPs) associated with criticality and document the screening decision for either inclusion or exclusion of criticality in the Total System Performance Assessment for License Application (TSPA-LA). The FEPs associated with criticality address scenarios that include initiators of sequences of events or processes that could lead to configurations that have potential for criticality in the repository.

Closing Yucca Mountain: Litigation Associated with Attempts to Abandon the Planned Nuclear Waste Repository

Passed in 1982, the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) was an effort to establish an explicit statutory basis for the Department of Energy (DOE) to dispose of the nation’s most highly radioactive nuclear waste. The NWPA requires DOE to remove spent nuclear fuel from commercial nuclear power plants, in exchange for a fee, and transport it to a permanent geologic repository or an interim storage facility before permanent disposal. Defense-related high-level<br>waste is to go into the same repository.

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