BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY, UTILITIES AND COMMUNICATIONS
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AJR 29 Hearing Date: 6/21/2016
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|Author: |Chávez |
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|Version: |5/27/2016 As Amended |
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|Urgency: | |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|Aaron Brieno, Jay Dickenson |
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SUBJECT: Interim Consolidated Storage Act of 2015: San Onofre
Nuclear Generating Station
DIGEST: This resolution urges Congress to pass the Interim
Consolidated Storage Act of 2015 (House Resolution (H.R. 3643),
and the United States Department of Energy (US DOE) to implement
the prompt and safe relocation of spent nuclear fuel from the
San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) to a licensed and
regulated interim consolidated storage facility.
ANALYSIS:
UNDER FEDERAL LAW: Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA) (42
U.S.C. §10101, et seq.):
1)The NWPA establishes a comprehensive federal program for the
safe, permanent disposal of radioactive wastes.
2)The NWPA requires the federal government to take possession of
and permanently dispose of spent nuclear fuel generated at
civilian nuclear reactors.
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3)Supports the use of deep geologic repositories for the safe
storage and/or disposal of radioactive waste. Establishes
procedures to evaluate and select sites for geologic
repositories and for the interaction of state and federal
governments.
4)Directs the US DOE to consider Yucca Mountain, Nevada as the
primary site for the first geologic repository.
5)Prohibits the US DOE from conducting site specific activities
at a second site unless authorized by Congress.
6)Establishes a commission to study the need and feasibility of
a monitored retrievable storage facility.
UNDER STATE LAW:
1)Prohibits any nuclear fission thermal powerplant requiring the
reprocessing of fuel rods from being permitted unless the
federal government has identified and approved, and there
exists a technology for the construction and operation of,
nuclear fuel rod reprocessing plants. (Public Resources Code
§§25524.1 - 25524.3)
2)States, pursuant to the California Nuclear Facility
Decommissioning Act of 1985, that the citizens of California
should be protected from exposure to radiation from nuclear
facilities. (Public Utilities Code §8321, et seq.)
3)Requires the California Energy Commission (CEC) to assess
existing scientific studies to determine the vulnerability of
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very large generation facilities (1,700 megawatts or greater)
to major disruptions due to aging or major earthquake and the
resulting impacts on reliability, public safety, and the
economy. Requires the CEC, in the absence of a long-term
nuclear waste storage facility, to assess the potential state
and local costs and impacts associated with accumulating waste
at California's nuclear powerplants. (Public Resources Code
§25303)
This resolution urges the passage of the Interim Consolidated
Storage Act of 2015 and urges the US DOE to implement the prompt
and safe relocation of spent nuclear fuel from SONGS to a
licensed and regulated interim consolidated storage facility.
Background
The United States Congress is currently considering a bill -
H.R. 4745 - that would amend the NWPA of 1982 to authorize the
Secretary of Energy to enter into contracts for the storage of
certain high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel and
take title to certain high-level radioactive waste and spent
nuclear fuel. As used in the House bill, the term "interim
consolidated storage facility" means a facility that possesses a
specific license issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) that authorizes storage of high-level radioactive waste or
spent nuclear fuel received from the Secretary or from two or
more persons that generate or hold title to high-level
radioactive waste or spent nuclear fuel generated at a civilian
nuclear power reactor.<1>
Federal Nuclear Waste Policy. Under the provisions of the NWPA
of 1982, the federal government has responsibility for managing
spent nuclear fuel produced by commercial reactors, and
generators are responsible for bearing the costs of permanent
disposal. The NWPA authorizes and requires the US DOE to locate
and build a permanent repository and an interim storage facility
and to develop a system to safely transport spent fuel from
nuclear power plants to the repository and interim storage
facility.
In 1987, Congress designated Yucca Mountain, a complex of
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<1> A bill to create an Interim Consolidated Storage Act 2016,
114th Cong., 2016 H.R. 4745, (accessed April 13, 2016);
available from govtrack.com.
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underground tunnels in Nevada, as a federal long-term geological
repository for nuclear waste. However, the Obama Administration
has decided not to use the site and has appointed the Blue
Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future (Commission) to
find a solution for permanent storage. The Commission
recommended that efforts be made to develop a permanent disposal
site for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste.
Plant owners thus continue to be responsible for the safe
storage of their spent fuel.
Nuclear power in California. There are four nuclear power
plants in California: the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, the
Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power Plant, the Rancho Seco Nuclear Power
Plant, and SONGS, the latter three of which have been closed or
decommissioned, including:
1) The Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power Plant, located near
Eureka, which was closed in 1976 due to seismic concerns.
In December 2008, PG&E finished moving the spent nuclear
fuel into dry cask storage on site. That plant was placed
in Safe Storage (SAFSTOR) until anticipated full
decommissioning in future years. SAFSTOR is one of the
options for nuclear decommissioning of a shut-down plant
governed under the United States Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
2) The Rancho Seco Nuclear Power Plant, located about 25
miles southeast of Sacramento, was in operation until 1989
when it was closed by public referendum. In 1996, the NRC
approved a decommissioning plan for the plant. Remaining
onsite are 493 spent fuel assemblies. Since no suitable
disposal facility exists for any of the material, the
Sacramento Municipal Utility District spends $6 million per
year to safely manage it.
3) The SONGS, located midway between Los Angeles and San
Diego, went offline in January 2012 and was ordered by the
NRC to stay offline while tubing wear issues were
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investigated. Subsequently, plant owners announced in June
2013 that remaining Units 2 and 3 would be permanently
retired (Unit 1 was closed in 1992). The storage canisters
used in SONGS are designed for a lifetime of 40 years. As
of 2011, SONGS had an estimated 1,430 tons of spent nuclear
waste on-site.
The remaining operating nuclear power plant in California is
Diablo Canyon Power Plant in San Luis Obispo County. Licenses
for the two reactors expire in 2024 and 2025, respectively. The
storage canisters used at Diablo Canyon are designed for a
lifetime of 50 years. As of 2011, Diablo Canyon had
approximately 1,126 tons of spent fuel located at its facility.
Since 1976, California has banned the construction of new
nuclear plants until a federal long-term waste disposal
repository is operating.
Natural disaster. According to the 2007 State Working Group on
Earthquake Probabilities, California faces a 99.7 percent chance
of a magnitude 6.7 or larger earthquake during the next 30
years. The likelihood of an even more powerful quake of
magnitude 7.5 or greater in the next 30 years is 46 percent.
According to the powerplant's owner, SONGS is designed to
withstand a magnitude 7.0 earthquake. SONGS is located five
miles away from the Rose Canyon fault, which has the potential
to reach a magnitude 6.9 to 7.2 earthquake.
H.R. 4745 allows nuclear waste from SONGS to be temporarily
stored off site. If the bill passes, it would (1) allow the
Secretary of Energy to enter into contracts and settle
agreements with NRC - licensed nuclear reactor operators in
order to move used fuel and high level nuclear waste into an
interim consolidated storage facility; (2) provide a priority
for removal of used fuel and high-level nuclear waste for
storage at sites where there is no longer an operating nuclear
reactor (like SONGS); and (3) maintain the principal balance in
the federal Nuclear Waste Fund designated for Yucca Mountain,
and authorize the interest paid on the fund to be used for
titles fees and the safe transportation of the used fuel or
high-level nuclear waste from the decommissioned reactor to the
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interim consolidated storage facility.
Prior/Related Legislation
SJR 23 (Bates, 2016) urges Congress to pass the Interim
Consolidated Storage Act of 2016 (House of Representatives
(H.R.) 4745) and the US DOE to implement the prompt and safe
relocation of spent nuclear fuel from SONGS to a licensed and
regulated interim consolidated storage facility. The resolution
is waiting to be consideration on the Assembly Floor.
H.R. 3643 (Michael Conaway, 11th Congressional District, 2015)
amends the NWPA of 1982 to authorize the DOE to enter into new
contracts (or modify existing contracts) with the licensee of an
interim consolidated storage facility in order to take title to
and store in it either high-level radioactive waste or spent
nuclear fuel of domestic origin. The bill is waiting to be
considered in the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on
Environment and the Economy.
H.R. 4745 (Mick Mulvaney, 5th Congressional District) amends the
NWPA of 1982 to authorize the Secretary of Energy to enter into
contracts for the storage of certain high-level radioactive
waste and spent nuclear fuel and take title to certain
high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel. The bill
is waiting to be considered in the House Committee on Energy and
Commerce.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Fiscal Com.:
No Local:
SUPPORT:
None received
OPPOSITION:
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The author asserts:
The California Legislature needs to urge the Federal
government to find adequate and safe interim storage for
the spent nuclear fuel from SONGS so that residents living
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in the surrounding communities are safe from a potentially
dangerous situation if a natural disaster should occur.
Specifically, it is important to find interim storage to
remove spent nuclear fuel as soon as possible because of
the vulnerable location of the SONGS plant. The waste from
the SONGS sits near an active fault line, adjacent to the
heavily-trafficked Interstate 5 and the Pacific Ocean.
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