USED FUEL SECURITY – PRIORITIZED ISSUES, R&D NEEDS, BEST PRACTICES, AND SECURITY RISK ANALYSIS FOR EXTENDED STORAGE

In light of the report, The Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future, lessons learned from the accident at Fukushima, and a variety of other factors, increased emphasis is being placed on extended storage of used nuclear fuel (UNF), especially dry storage, potentially for many decades. In addition to domestic security needs, the Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) stressed the importance of “active U.S. leadership in international efforts to address safety, non-proliferation and security concerns.” In FY2012, the Material Protection Accounting and Control Technologies (MPACT) Campaign in the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE/NE) Fuel Cycle Technologies (FCT) Program initiated activities related to safeguards and security (S&S) for extended storage of UNF. These efforts focus on technical analyses and guidance documents needed to assure that the security risks associated with extended storage are understood and minimized, and that reliable and technically sound information is available to address stakeholder concerns. A prioritized issues list has been developed, and current efforts focus on research and development (R&D) needs and activities. The MPACT prioritized issues extended work performed in the Used Fuel Disposition Campaign on security issues relevant to extended storage. In addition, issues from the BRC report specific to S&S of UNF as well as input from other technical experts were considered. The prioritized issues list has provided the basis for R&D needs for S&S for extended storage of used fuel in the MPACT campaign. This paper will discuss the latest efforts on security for extended storage of UNF, focusing on the prioritized issues and R&D needs.