Nuclear Regulatory Commission approves changes to Fort Calhoun nuclear plant’s emergency preparedness plan

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently granted a request from the Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) to modify the emergency preparedness plan for the Fort Calhoun Station nuclear power plant in Washington County, Nebraska to reflect the facility’s decommissioning status.

Under the changes, will not have a dedicated offsite radiological emergency response plan, and the facility’s license will not identify a 10-mile emergency planning zone.

Once OPPD implements these exemptions, state and local governments may rely on comprehensive emergency management planning for off-site emergency response to incidents at Fort Calhoun. The plant will continue to maintain an onsite emergency plan and response capabilities.

An OPPD analysis, which NRC staff confirmed, showed that the risk of an offsite radiological release is lower and the types of possible accidents are significantly fewer at a nuclear power reactor that has permanently ceased operations and removed fuel from the reactor vessel as compared to an operating reactor.

Fort Calhoun ceased operations Oct. 24, 2016, and all spent fuel has been permanently moved from the reactor vessel into the spent fuel pool for storage.

OPPD may not implement the alterations until April 7, 2018, based on the company’s evaluation of applicable accidents.