Conference Chairwoman's opening remarks [International conference on management of spent fuel from nuclear power reactors: Learning from the past, enabling the future, Vienna (Austria), 24-28 June 2019]

The theme we chose for the week is "Learning from the Past, Enabling the Future." Each country is on its own journey with nuclear power and has its own past and future. Likewise, each individual is on his or her own journey. Whether we come from mature or emerging nuclear programs, all of us can learn from each other. This conference provides an ideal venue for these learnings to occur. We thought deeply about the theme for the conference and the type of information that would be most useful to you. We designed the tracks with a specific logic in mind – we cover high level national strategies, the storage, transportation, recycling, and disposal of spent fuel; including understanding the impacts of advanced designs on spent fuel management; and have a session about how all of these impact each other. It is an exciting time for nuclear power. As of February this year, about 11% of the world's electricity is generated by about 450 reactors. Since 2015, over 25 GW(e) have been added globally. Another 33 GW(e) are expected to be on line by 2020. Thirty countries have operational nuclear power plants. About 60 new reactors are under construction. Asia, especially China, has the newest construction; followed by Eastern Europe and Russia. In my country, the United States, nuclear energy provides over 55% of the carbon-free generating capacity. That results in a reduction of 528 million metric tons of CO2 per year! At this year's International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants over 40 nuclear associations signed the Declaration of Clean Energy which called for a doubling of public expenditures on nuclear research and development. The intent is to allow nuclear energy to make it contribution towards carbon-free energy. Every nuclear power programme must manage spent fuel. The management of spent fuel will require commitments of resources spanning decades, possible spanning centuries. There will be many aspects of spent fuel management that must be addressed, both technical and nontechnical; including safety, security, economics, political, legal and regulatory, and societal. Maintaining a high level of operational excellence will be difficult over the long lifespan of a nuclear facility. Pressure to reduce costs can lead to unwise decisions. Personnel and organizational turnover can lead to lost knowledge. Complacency could grow over time. Facilities age and could become less reliable. New, unanticipated vulnerabilities could emerge over the years, such as cyber security. Nuclear systems are often perceived as controversial. Stakeholders are many, often have opposing views, and may be a source of conflict. The impact of stakeholders must be appreciated as they may influence policy and decision makers. Stakeholders generally want frequent engagement, transparency, and influence. The relationship between a nuclear facility and its stakeholders is important, and resources must be applied to support it. Collaborating with the public, stakeholders, and local governments increases the likelihood of success. An understanding of risk is critical to properly managing a nuclear programme. Even though accident frequency estimates are extremely low, consequences could be significant, costly, and long-lasting. The systems are complex and require credible science and sophisticated engineering to ensure risks are managed properly. Technically competent leadership in the government sponsor, regulatory agency, and implementing team is a major success factor. Leaders at all levels in an organization must embrace the behaviours that foster a strong nuclear safety culture. They must accept that there will be surprises, and plan for normal and abnormal events. They must understand uncertainty, risk, margin, defence-in-depth, and resiliency. Competent people are the most important success factor for a strong, safety culture. As Admiral H.G. Rickover, the father of nuclear safety in the USA, said, "Rules are not a substitute for rational thought." There are many directions a nuclear programme could take. A country may choose an open fuel cycle and directly dispose of spent fuel. It may choose a closed fuel cycle and reprocess spent fuel. Or it may choose a hybrid model and do both. A county may implement fuel leasing where spent fuel is returned to the supplier residing in another country. A country may be a partner in an internationally shared disposal facility. For every possible direction a country could choose, there are lessons to be shared. Nuclear power systems are complex and integrated. We need to view these systems from the cradle to the grave. Nuclear power has over 17 000 reactor-years of experience! What a wealth of knowledge and expertise to help ensure nuclear power is safe and secure. Throughout the week will learn from this experience base and explore issues and successes, so we may apply these learnings and build a better future.