U.S. nuclear industry approach to severe accident management guidance, development and implementation

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the US nuclear industry activities, occurring under the auspices of Nuclear Management and Resources Council (NUMARC), to define, develop and implement enhancements to utility accident management capabilities. This effort consists of three major parts: (1) Development of a practical framework for evaluation of plant-specific accident management capabilities and the subsequent implementation of selected enhancements. (2) Development of specific technical guidance that address arresting core damage if it begins, either in-vessel or ex-vessel, and maintaining containment integrity. Preventing inadequate core cooling or minimizing the consequences of offsite releases, while considered to be candidate areas for accident management enhancements, have been the subject of intense previous study and development. (3) Plant-specific implementation of accident management enhancements in three areas: (a) personnel resources (organization, training, communications); (b) systems and equipment (restoration and repair, instrumentation, use of alternatives); and (c) information resources (procedures and guidance, technical information, process information)