News & Events

Thank you. It's a pleasure to be here and to be invited back to the PSA conference. I see many familiar faces from last year's meeting in New York.

As most of you are aware, the past year has been marked by positive change in the way federal regulators approach nuclear plant oversight.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has undertaken the historic task of reforming both its oversight procedures and its regulations. This new course will allow the agency to focus resources more effectively on safety.

Probabilistic safety assessments are playing a key role in this process.

This is a remarkable achievement, considering that until now federal regulators have relied on policies that date to the birth of the atomic age—policies that lacked insights from plant operating experience. Today, the NRC recognizes the value of more than 2,500 reactor years of U.S. operating experience. Worldwide, the industry's collective experience amounts to 6,000 reactor years. This experience ... combined with the development of analytical tools that are familiar to all of you ... provides a sound basis for fundamental change.

In June, nine nuclear plants in every NRC region began testing the agency's new regulatory oversight process. The lessons learned from this pilot study will help bolster a full industry rollout next April.