Enhancing Nuclear Regulation in the Post-Fukushima World

Transcription

1 Enhancing Nuclear Regulation in the Post-Fukushima World Robert Lojk Regulatory Program Director Directorate of Power Reactor Regulation Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Presentation to the 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum August 27-31, 2012, Seoul, Korea nuclearsafety.gc.ca

2 Overview Introduction to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) CNSC regulatory framework Fukushima-driven initiatives Status of actions Lessons learned Conclusions Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 2

3 Introduction to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) Regulates the use of nuclear energy and materials to protect the health, safety and security of Canadians and the environment, and to implement Canada s international commitments on the peaceful use of nuclear energy Canada s nuclear watchdog Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 3

4 Independent Commission Tribunal Quasi-judicial administrative tribunal Commission members are independent Commission hearings are public and Webcast Decisions can only be reviewed by Federal Court Transparent, science-based decision making Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 4

5 CNSC Staff Located Across Canada HQ in Ottawa 5 site offices at power reactors 1 site office at Chalk River 4 regional offices Staff: ~ 840 Resources: $161.5 m (70% cost-recovered) Licensees: 2,500 Total Licences: 3, licences under the Class II Nuclear Facilities and Prescribed Equipment Regulations 2,430 licences under the Nuclear Substances and Radiation Devices Regulations Calgary, Western Regional Office Saskatoon, Uranium Mines and Mills Division Regional Office HQ Gentilly-2 Point Lepreau Chalk River Bruce A & B Darlington Laval Eastern Regional Office Mississauga Southern Regional Office Pickering A & B Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 5

6 CNSC Regulates All Nuclear-related Facilities and Activities Uranium mines and mills Uranium fuel fabricators and processing Nuclear power plants Waste management facilities Nuclear substance processing Industrial and medical applications Nuclear research and educational Export/import controls From cradle to grave Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 6

7 Regulatory Oversight CNSC Regulatory Framework Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 7

8 CNSC s Overall Regulatory Approach CNSC sets high-level safety objectives CNSC sets performance objectives related to Capacity of systems to control reactivity Capacity of systems to shutdown reactor in a timely manner Reliability of the control and shutdown functions CNSC has no set requirements for reactivity feedback, positive or negative but magnitude is important Requirements meet international best practice including IAEA Peer reviewed and internationally accepted (CNS) Robust regulatory approach, while permitting flexibility in how to achieve safety objectives Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 8

9 CNSC Fukushima Timeline March 11 - April 20, 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami CNSC issued order to all nuclear facilities CNSC Task Force established October, 2011 March, 2012 Multiple rounds of consultation IRRS Follow-up Mission April 12, 2012 External Advisory Committee report May 3, 2012 Proposed Action Plan, approved in principle August & October 2012, updates Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 9

10 CNSC Post-Fukushima Findings Recommendations in Several Areas: Strengthening defence-in-depth Station design for external hazards Impact of beyond design basis events Severe accident management measures Enhancing emergency preparedness Offsite emergency response Multiple jurisdictions Improving regulatory framework and processes Nuclear Safety and Control Act, regulations and regulatory documents Compliance and licensing processes Improving Communications Public needs a reliable source of information Technical information must be available in understandable language Transparency is key to building trust with the public Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 10

11 Post-Fukushima Action Plan 3-year implementation horizon Industry on side Site-specific action Principles Consistent with international reviews and benchmarks Best practices Evolving standards Enhancing the safety case Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 11

12 Status of Actions: Strengthening Defence-in-Depth (1/2) Licensee Actions Improved capabilities to withstand prolonged loss of power and heat sinks Additional means for water make-up for beyond design basis accidents Temporary connections for services (electrical and water) Improved response to containment challenge/performance Emergency filtered containment venting Installation of filtered containment vent system under consideration Control capabilities for hydrogen concentration Installation of passive hydrogen recombiners (PARS) in progress Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 12

13 Status of Actions: Strengthening Defence-in-Depth (2/2) Licensee Actions Implementation of severe accident management program Evaluation of the structural integrity of the spent fuel pools at temperatures in excess of design temperature in progress Provision of alternate sources of water inventory Fire water system Assessments of instrument and equipment survivability for severe accidents in progress Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 13

14 Status of Actions: Enhancing Emergency Preparedness (1/2) Licensee Actions Emergency mitigating equipment and resources Back-up power requirements to primary and alternate emergency facilities, and to emergency response equipment and critical loads Interim storage (onsite) of emergency mitigating equipment (portable generators) Automated real-time station boundary radiation monitoring systems Drills Huron Challenge Exercise, October 2012 Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 14

15 Status of Actions: Enhancing Emergency Preparedness (2/2) CNSC and Federal/Provincial Actions Establish national-level oversight process for offsite nuclear emergency plans, programs and performance Objectives and requirements for effective and integrated emergency management Review planning basis of offsite arrangements in view of multiunit accident scenarios Revise federal and provincial plan Expedite revision of plans and establish the frequency of exercises Prioritization of full scale exercises Federal (planned Fall 2013) Provincial (New Brunswick/NBPN [completed March 2012]; Ontario/BP [planned October 2012]; Quebec/G-2 [Spring 2015]) Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 15

16 Status of Actions: Improving Regulatory Framework and Processes CNSC Actions Class I Facilities Regulations Submission of offsite emergency plans Radiation Protection Regulations Applicability of operational versus emergency dose limits Updating key regulatory and guidance documents Omnibus project to amend existing documents Applicable to operating reactors and New Builds Proposed new licence conditions Severe accident management (SAM) Program Public information program Periodic safety review (PSR) process Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 16

17 Fukushima Nuclear Accident: Overall Lessons Learned (1/2) Adequacy of station design for external hazards Need to preserve key safety functions in beyond design basis accidents and address: Hydrogen mitigation Irradiated fuel bay (IFB) cooling and/or inventory Emergency water and power systems availability Severe Accident Management measures efficacy Adequacy of emergency planning and response Consider complications arising from multi-unit sites and coupling of hazards Expect the unexpected Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 17

18 Fukushima Nuclear Accident: Overall Lessons Learned (2/2) Risk of a major nuclear accident is very low but real Public concerns about the safety of nuclear reactors worldwide Increased level of regulatory expectations and scrutiny in current and new reactor designs Must re-think safety goals (RD-337) Current safety goals are derived from the health impacts only Large releases are socially unacceptable and have environmental and socio-economic impacts Need for a fundamental change in overall safety thinking: from prevention of accidents to prevention and mitigation Environmental and socio-economic impacts Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 18

19 Conclusions: General (1/2) Findings from CNSC Task Force Report issued Oct 28, 2011 confirmed that Canadian nuclear power plants are robust and rely on multiple layers of defence No impact from credible external hazard Review of the Fukushima event and subsequent actions will further enhance the safety of nuclear power in Canada Enhanced safety leads to increased public confidence Canadian nuclear power plants are safe Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 19

20 Conclusions: General (2/2) CNSC Action Plan Focus on mitigation as well as prevention Improved compliance activities Enhanced stakeholder and public participation Industry s comprehensive response Performed reviews to identify gaps and opportunities for improvement Made progress in implementing safety upgrades Physical improvement implementation International initiatives and cooperation There is a need for greater cooperation at both the industry and regulatory levels and between the two Making Canadian nuclear power plants even safer Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission 2012 INPRO Dialogue Forum - 20

21 Thank you for your attention! nuclearsafety.gc.ca nuclearsafety.gc.ca