SMR: Siting & Environmental Assessment

Transcription

1 US NRC INTERNATIONAL REGULATORY DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP (IRDP) SMR: Siting & Environmental Assessment IAEA Workshop on Small Modular Reactor Safety and Licensing, held in Hammamet, Tunisia December

2 INTRODUCTION Examine how the unique features of SMRs are likely affect siting and environmental assessment for SMR designs Comparison to large scale reactors Early Site Permit application for SMR at Clinch River site near Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, was submitted in May 2016 and has been accepted for review by NRC in December 2016 Application was submitted to the NRC on January 15, 2017 for Design Certification of the NuScale SMR 2

3 INTRODUCTION Wide range of SMR designs Power level ranges 300 MWe or less Modules can be fabricated in a factory and installed onsite Some designs may be portable or even un-manned Designs can be simpler than large reactors Possibly fewer SSCs and fewer moving parts Less water use (possibly dry cooling system) 3

4 INTRODUCTION Possibly fewer complex components Passive systems to mitigate accidents Ability to remain safe longer without emergency power supply Smaller site footprint Smaller operating crew Security features that make SMR easier to secure 4

5 SITING Many utilities have used the process in Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) document, Siting Guide: Site Selection and Evaluation Criteria for an Early Site Permit Application, to select sites for new nuclear power plants in the US Prepared by McCallum-Turner, Incorporated Published final in March 2002 Combines safety and environmental selection criteria Generally applicable to SMR siting 5

6 SAFETY CRITERIA Safety Criteria for Siting Geology-Seismology Cooling System Requirements Potential for External Flooding Man-made Hazards Extreme Weather Conditions sand storm, tornado, hurricane/typhoon, heavy rain, snow, or ice Population Emergency Planning impediments to implementation of effective plan 6

7 SITING Usually the most important siting needs for a large reactor are: Large enough supply of cooling water Large enough site for all the buildings, facilities, laydown areas, and effective security plan In US, the land needs to be available to own Availability of transmission lines Low population in area Seismic hazard level that reactor design can be designed to withstand 7

8 SMR SITING In general, SMR needs: Less or no cooling water (possibly dry cooling system) Smaller site SMR has lower power level with smaller accident source term Population location and density may be less important Reduction of EPZ to size of Exclusion Area boundary is a possibility 8

9 General Guidance NRC has issued two sets of Interim Staff Guidance COL/ESP-ISG-026, Environmental Issues Associated with New Reactors, August 2014 Provides clarification of guidance for issues that arose during environmental review of several COL and ESP applications Attachments with specific guidance about: Greenhouse Gases & Climate Change Socioeconomics & Environmental Justice Historic & Cultural Resources Cumulative Impacts Need for Power Alternatives 9

10 General Guidance COL/ESP-ISG-027, Specific Environmental Guidance for Light Water Small Modular Reactor Reviews, August 2014 Provides clarification of guidance related to review of environmental applications Such as issues that arose during pre-application discussions with SMR vendors and applicants Less detailed review for lower levels of impact 10

11 General Guidance Project purpose & need for SMRs may not just be need for power broader range of uses: Providing the ability to install additional modules over time and increase capacity incrementally to follow load growth Meeting greenhouse gas emission goals Replacing existing plants Meeting State or Federal energy policy goals Enhancing energy diversity Consideration of Federal policy not related to environmental quality 11

12 General Guidance Examples: Applicant may propose to use excess heat from SMR for industrial processes or station heating Light water SMR may be proposed to provide a secure energy source for military, government, or critical industrial facilities Applicant must still submit and the staff must review alternative sites Region of interest used for the site selection process may be much smaller than is typical for LLWRs (e.g., within the confines of a military installation) 12

13 Land Use Reactor site Smaller site required Less land used means smaller land use impact Smaller plant structures Possibly fewer plant structures Less laydown space required to store construction materials Modular construction in factory and installed at site 13

14 Land Use Transmission Lines Corridors Fewer transmission lines or lines with lower capacity because of smaller electrical output from plant Possibly narrower transmission line corridors SMRs likely to sited nearer load centers Heavy Haul Roads Not clear whether impact level would be different; highly site specific 14

15 Vogtle Station - Site 15

16 Water Water Use Less water required to operate plant (maybe dry cooling) Water use conflict (such as need for potable water in region) less likely Fewer or smaller water storage facilities such as reservoirs needed Water Quality Less water treatment capacity needed including sewage from use of potable water by construction and operating staff Groundwater Less or no groundwater use (usually only for potable water and other limited uses for cooling SSCs) 16

17 Ecology Terrestrial and Wetland Impacts Smaller site and transmission line footprints Less impact on habitat Less impact on wetlands (a very important issue in the US) Still have to assess potential impact on threatened and endangered specie and critical habitat Aquatic Impacts Less water taken in from surface water (sea, lake, river) Lower intake velocities (less entrainment & impingement) Less heat released to surface water Still have to assess potential impact on threatened and endangered species and critical habitat 17

18 Socioeconomics Socioeconomic Impacts Changes in demography Additional needs on infrastructure and services Potable water supply & waste treatment Roads and transportation services Housing Schools Hospitals & other medical facilities Police & fire protection Economy and taxes Social services 18

19 Socioeconomics Level of socioeconomic impacts are dependent on number of people brought into the region for construction (shorter term impacts) and operation (longer term impacts) Modular construction and fewer or smaller structures likely to require fewer workers during construction Smaller operating crew likely for SMR Fewer workers mean smaller socioeconomic impacts 19

20 Environmental Justice Executive Order requires Federal agencies to examine whether minority or low income population will be experience disproportionate negative impact An important issue in the US May not be as important in other countries Likely that smaller overall impacts will also be smaller for minority and low income populations Highly site-specific issue 20

21 Cultural Resources Most countries have laws to protect historic and cultural resources such as historic landmarks and archaeological sites Smaller footprint of plant and transmission lines makes impact (encroachment) on these landmarks and sites less likely 21

22 Air Quality Construction impacts air quality in two ways Emissions from vehicles (cars, trucks, buses) transporting workers to and from site each day Emissions and dust from construction equipment such as bulldozers Smaller plant footprint, modular construction, and fewer structures will likely require: Fewer construction workers with fewer transport vehicles Use of less construction equipment Smaller operations staff will result in lower emissions from worker transport vehicles 22

23 Non-Rad Health Non-radiological health impacts include: Occupational injuries and fatalities Noise Disease causing agents growing in hot water Electromagnetic fields and shock Fewer workers in construction force and operating staff will likely result in fewer industrial accidents Modular construction will reduce noise Electromagnetic impacts might be reduced by fewer transmission lines 23

24 Radiological Lower power level would result in smaller radioactive source term and, therefore, lower radiological doses for : Routine liquid and gaseous effluents Design basis accident risk Severe accident risk Transportation of irradiated fuel and radioactive wastes 24

25 Exposure Pathways 25

26 Fuel Cycle Impacts Environmental impacts from the entire fuel cycle are assessed in the US: Uranium Mining and Milling Conversion to Uranium Hexafluoride Enrichment Fuel fabrication Disposal of spent fuel Lower SMR power levels will result in smaller fuel requirements; therefore, lower impacts throughout the fuel cycle May not be an issue in all countries 26

27 Cumulative Impacts in all areas from SMR project must be assessed in light of the impacts from past, present, and reasonably foreseeable other projects and actions in the region How do the SMR project impacts increase the cumulative impacts? Smaller impacts from SMR project would contribute less to the cumulative impacts 27