Transport safety record and measures taken for the United States Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel Acceptance Program

The United States Department of Energy (DOE), in consultation with the Department of State (DOS), adopted the Nuclear Weapons Non-proliferation Policy Concerning Foreign Research Reactor Spent Nuclear Fuel in May 1996. As of January 2003, the Foreign Research Reactor (FRR) Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) Acceptance Program has completed 25 shipments. Over 5,500 spent fuel assemblies from eligible research reactors throughout the world have been accepted into the United States under this program. Shipments are continuing on schedule, amidst a climate of heightened vigilance following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Recent guidance and an associated Order from the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) pertaining to security and safeguards issues deals directly with the transport of irradiated nuclear fuel. As the Acceptance Program consistently worked above and beyond basic regulatory requirements to provide additional safety enhancements in transporting spent nuclear fuel, the new guidance did not adversely effect the Program. Other global SNF shipping campaigns and the recent recommendation to proceed with the licensing application process for Yucca Mountain as the geologic repository for spent fuel have increased media and public interest in SNF transport. The Acceptance Policy is planned to expire in May 2006, per the 1996 Programmatic Record of Decision on the Policy, but some shipments will continue until May 2009. Currently, there are no plans to renew the Acceptance Policy. This paper examines the safety record of the Acceptance Program, and discusses the measures that have been taken to ensure future shipments are safe and uneventful. (author)