A new U.S. Senate bill could remove some regulations around building materials in nuclear plants.
It’s just one example of federal officials trying to recraft regulations around nuclear power as they try to reduce costs and speed up development to meet energy demands.
The Build Nuclear with Local Materials Act would allow commercial grade steel and concrete in non safety-related parts of plants, rather than more expensive nuclear-grade materials.
“That means more opportunities for local manufacturers, suppliers, and skilled workers to participate in nuclear projects while reducing unnecessary costs,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) said, leading a May 20 hearing on the bill.
Sen. Mark Kelly is also sponsoring the bill, which is backed by industry and public policy groups. That includes C3 Solutions, which advocates for free market solutions. Nick Loris is the president there.
“The cost of nuclear-grade concrete can be 50% higher than non-nuclear concrete and, in some cases, components can be more than 50 times more expensive,” Loris told lawmakers.
Supporters of the bill, such as Loris, say allowing commercial-grade materials won’t make reactors less safe, but the Union for Concerned Scientist’s Nuclear Power Safety Director Edwin Lyman isn’t so sure.
“ You can protest till you turn blue that you're not gonna compromise safety, but all these rules were in place to ensure a very high level of safety,” Lyman said. “And if you're bending those rules or you're weakening them, that is gonna have safety consequences.”
He said the Nuclear Regulatory Commission already allows some plants to use commercial-grade materials in parts of their building. However, he said he worries safety could be compromised when it comes to retrofitting plants like the one in Kemmerer, Wyoming being built by TerraPower.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Boise State Public Radio, Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Northern Colorado, KANW in New Mexico, Colorado Public Radio and KJZZ in Arizona as well as NPR, with support from affiliate newsrooms across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Eric and Wendy Schmidt.
