In this issue:
NRC CHAIR WANTS SAFETY REFORMS BY 2016; BLUE RIBBON COMMISSION REPORTS ISSUED
In remarks delivered to an audience at the National Press Club last month, Gregory B. Jaczko, Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), called on the NRC and the nuclear industry to commit to a complete adoption by 2016 of the process of learning and applying the lessons of the Fukushima accident. Signaling the need for a significant reevaluation of what nuclear safety and security requires, Chairman Jaczko said “This is not an NRC problem or a nuclear industry problem. This is an imperative for nuclear safety.”
His remarks came just one week after the Task Force appointed to conduct a systematic and methodical review of the NRC’s nuclear safety program in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daichi nuclear disaster issued its 90-day review findings. The Task Force developed a comprehensive set of 12 recommendations—many with both short- and long- term elements—needed to strengthen nuclear safety. The Task Force did not find any imminent risk to public health and safety from the continued operation of the nation’s nuclear power plants. The Task Force was clear, however, that any accident involving core damage and uncontrolled radioactive releases of the magnitude of Fukushima – even one without significant health consequences – is inherently unacceptable.
Not everyone in Congress and the nuclear industry share Chairman Jaczko’s sense of urgency. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield (R-KY), Environment and the Economy Subcommittee Chairman John Shimkus (R-IL), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Stearns (R-FL) are spearheading a committee effort to ensure that Jaczko follows proper commission procedures when considering task force recommendations. These leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee are concerned that the regular NRC procedures for full and deliberate review may be circumvented, depriving the commission of the full information necessary to properly do its work. On the other side of the aisle, Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Henry A. Waxman (D-CA), Bobby L. Rush (D-IL), and Gene Green (D-TX) have requested a committee hearing on the recently released task force report “as soon as possible.”
The text of Chairman Jaczko’s speech can be found at: http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1119/ML11199A148.pdf
The 96-page NRC task force report, “Recommendations for Enhancing Reactor Safety in the 21st Century,” is also available at: http://pbadupws.nrc.gov/docs/ML1118/ML111861807.pdf
Meanwhile on July 29, the Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on America’s Nuclear Future submitted its report to the Administration, which initially consisted of three preliminary subcommittee reports focused on the issues of transportation and storage, disposal, and reactor and fuel cycle technology, especially given the Administration’s decision to no longer support Yucca Mountain. Since the cancellation of Yucca Mountain, a number of lawmakers in the House have convened hearings questioning the legality of the decision. Both Secretary Chu and Chairman Jaczko have maintained that they operated within the law.
To review the BRC report, please visit: http://brc.gov/
Robert Rains handles public policy-related energy issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
SENATE COMMITTEE APPROVES REACTOR BILL, WHILE DOE MAKES THE CASE FOR "GAME CHANGING" SMALL MODULAR REACTORS
Recently, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee approved S. 512, a bill amending the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Secretary of Energy to carry out programs to develop and demonstrate two small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) designs. The bill was approved by voice vote and is now eligible for consideration by the full Senate. For additional information on S. 512, go to: http://thomas.loc.gov, and search by bill number.
Specifically, the bill instructs the Secretary of Energy to implement, through cooperative agreements with private sector partners, programs to:
- Develop a standard design for each of two small modular reactors, at least one of which has a rated capacity of not more than 50 electrical megawatts;
- Obtain a design certification from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for each of the designs by January 1, 2018; and;
- Demonstrate the licensing of small modular reactors by developing applications for a combined license for each of the designs so certified, and obtaining a combined license from the NRC for each of the certified designs by January 1, 2021.
In a related development, Department of Energy (DOE) officials recently touted SMRs as a way to “change the game” in nuclear technology in presentations to the Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board. Vic Reis from DOE’s Office of Science and John Kelly from DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy laid out the Department’s plans to invest more than $450 million in developing two designs for small reactors.
In part, the presentation included a quote from DOE Secretary Steven Chu from a Wall Street Journal article printed in March 2010: “One of the most promising areas is small modular reactors (SMRs). If we can develop this technology in the U.S. and build these reactors with American workers, we will have a key competitive edge… If commercially successful, SMRs would significantly expand the options for nuclear power and its applications. Their small size makes them suitable to small electric grids, so they are a good option for locations that cannot accommodate large-scale plants. The modular construction process would make them more affordable by reducing capital costs and construction times.”
The presentation also included a list of “obvious” potential barriers to the development of SMRs, including:
- Post Fukushima Anti-Nuclear Sentiment;
- Perceived U.S. Government Policy Uncertainty;
- Climate Politics;
- U.S. Economic Climate;
- Natural Gas “Boom”;
- Utility “Prudence”; and,
- NRC work load/expertise.
Although the SMR program managed to secure almost $100 million in funding in the House-backed Energy and Water Appropriations bill (H.R. 2354), not everyone remains so committed to SMRs. Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Subcommittee Chair Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) voiced some skepticism at a hearing for the committee on June 14. Sen. Feinstein’s skepticism was for the cost-sharing portion of the proposed SMR program, a 50/50 split with industry, as well as waste disposal, a perpetual issue for nuclear energy.
The DOE power point presentation may be viewed at: http://www.energy.gov/media/DOE_SMR_SEAB.pdf
Robert Rains handles public policy-related energy issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
HOUSE COMMITTEE EXAMINES NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION'S MERIT REVIEW PROCESS
The House Research and Science Education Subcommittee held a hearing last week entitled, “The Merit Review Process: Ensuring Limited Federal Resources are Invested in the Best Science.” The hearing served both as an educational tool for members of the committee and public, and as follow-up to a recent report criticizing research funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) from Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK).
In his opening remarks, Subcommittee Chairman Mo Brooks (R-AL) stated, “As we know, a large number of potentially fundable proposals are declined each year. The NSF received over 55,000 proposals for funding in Fiscal Year 2010 and funded nearly 13,000, or 23 percent, of them. Many of the proposals received were not worthy of federal funding, but it is also true that many were not funded because federal funds are limited. So, given that those limited dollars should go to the very best scientific research, NSF must maintain a robust and transparent merit review process.”
The hearing featured testimony from Dr. Cora Marrett, Deputy Director at NSF, who described how the process works and answered questions about NSF’s compliance with federal law and additional steps the agency takes to ensure transparency, impartiality, and scientific integrity in the review process. Additional witnesses offered high praise for NSF’s merit review process and offered suggestions on how Congress can support broad national research goals while maintaining the scientific integrity of merit review.
Senator Coburn recently released a report, ‘The National Science Foundation: Under the Microscope,’ highlighting several NSF research projects deemed to be of questionable value. In contrast to the Senate’s approach, the House Minority staff conducted follow-up interviews with the researchers whose work was criticized in Senator Coburn’s report, allowing them the option to provide comments on their research and the report.
Senator Coburn’s report on the NSF is available at: http://coburn.senate.gov/public//index.cfm?a=Files.Serve&File_id=2dccf06d-65fe-4087-b58d-b43ff68987fa
The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee’s minority staff report on Senator Coburn’s NSF findings is available at: http://democrats.science.house.gov/sites/democrats.science.house.gov/files/coburn%20memo.pdf
An archived webcast and full witness testimony for the Research and Science Education Subcommittee’s NSF Merit Review hearing is available at: http://science.house.gov/hearing/research-and-science-education-subcommittee-hearing-merit-review-process-federal-funding
Paul Fakes handles public-policy related research and development issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
fakesp@asme.org
HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE PUSHES OUT PIPELINE BILL
In an acrimonious 112th Session of Congress, a rare bipartisan bill has taken its first step toward being law.
The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power took the first step in moving legislation to strengthen safety, and provide additional resources for the nation’s pipelines last week. Chaired by Representative Ed Whitfield (R-KY), the Subcommittee approved two pieces of legislation, “The Pipeline Infrastructure and Community Protection Act,” and “The Energy and Revenue Enrichment Act,” by voice vote. The pipeline bill is designed to raise fines for pipeline violations, permit more frequent inspections of pipelines, and provide oversight for the nation’s 2 million miles of pipelines. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee holds primary jurisdiction over the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA); therefore, the Energy and Commerce Committee would like to combine measures with T&I later this year before bringing the bill to the floor for a vote. The full Committee is expected to try to pass this measure in September.
Ranking Member Henry Waxman (D-CA) indicated broad support for the bill, as did former full committee chairman John Dingell (D-MI). Although this bill has departed the Subcommittee, the markup indicated that work remained to be done in order to secure the support of the full committee. Rep. Gene Green (D-TX), and Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE) indicated that they would seek changes in the bill before the full committee mark up. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) also outlined two hoped-for changes to the bill, including a mandate that PHMSA implement new regulations for the transport of Canadian oil sands crude.
As reported in the May 9, 2011 Edition of Capitol Update, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation marked up S. 275, the “Pipeline Transportation Safety Improvement Act of 2011 (PTSI Act),” on May 5. PTSI Act would reauthorize PHMSA within the Department of Transportation (DOT) for fiscal years (FYs) 2011 through 2014. The Administration has indicated that they will support whichever proposal is approved by both chambers of Congress.
Robert Rains handles public policy-related standards issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
THE WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCES NEW FUEL STANDARDS FOR VEHICLES
The White House late last week announced that it had reached agreement with the nation’s largest automakers to increase the vehicle fuel-economy standards to 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Some environmental groups lobbied for the Administration to raise the current vehicle standard of 35.5 miles per gallon to 62 mpg by 2025. Manufacturers balked at the figure, citing the high cost of compliance, and initially pushed for a standard in the 45 mpg range.
Raising the corporate average fuel economy (CAFÉ) standards for vehicles was once politically anathema, but the passage of the Energy Independence and Security Act (P.L. 110-140) in 2007 brought up the standards for the first time in three decades to an average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. The law also increased the biofuels mandate to 36 billion gallons by 2022 (please see the December 20, 2007 Edition of Capitol Update for more information).
Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) also sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging implementation of “maximum feasible” fuel economy standards, as called for in the Feinstein-Snowe Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act, which was signed into law as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. A total of 20 senators signed the letter.
The full text of the Senate letter, and the list of signatories, may be viewed at: http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?Fuseaction=Files.View&FileStore_id=6bb6aca8-74a2-471e-8764-a83b15e75487
Also, some senior House members have also urged the Administration to move in this direction. To read their letter to President Obama, please visit: http://markey.house.gov/docs/obama.vehiclestandards.2011.7.27.pdf
Robert Rains handles public policy-related energy issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
SENATE PANEL HOLDS CONFIRMATION HEARING ON NOMINEE TO HEAD DOE OFFICE OF FOSSIL ENERGY
The Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee (ENR) Committee recently held a hearing to consider the nomination of Charles McConnell, to be an Assistant Secretary of Energy for Fossil Energy. If ultimately confirmed by vote of the full Senate, McConnell would oversee DOE’s carbon capture and storage efforts, as well as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. He currently serves as the chief operating officer for the 1,000 person office.
Prior to joining DOE earlier this year, McConnell spent two years as a vice president in charge of carbon management at Battelle Energy Technology and previously spent three decades at Praxair Inc., an international industrial gas supplier. In 2009, Praxair was one of a dozen U.S. companies to received stimulus funds to test technologies for capturing and storing carbon dioxide emissions.
McConnell has also served as an adviser for many foundations and boards, including the Gasification Technologies Council and the Clean Coal Technology Foundation of Texas. He has served on the FutureGen Advisory Board in Texas, the Gulf Coast Carbon Center, T&P Syngas Co., the Pittsburgh Coal Conference and the Coal Utilization Research Council.
In addition to overseeing the carbon capture and storage projects and Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the Fossil Energy program also manages the government's coal, oil and natural gas research programs.
Additional information on the hearing is available at: http://energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.Hearing&Hearing_ID=4e72417e-949b-83a6-8d95-7dabf9f4c012
Robert Rains handles public policy-related energy issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
DAVID DANIELSON TAPPED TO LEAD DOE EERE
Last week, President Obama officially nominated David Danielson to be assistant secretary for the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), a post that was vacated earlier this year by the departure of Cathy Zoi. EERE’s main function is demonstration projects for renewable energy, the weatherization program, and renewable energy research.
Danielson currently serves as a program director for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). Prior to joining ARPA-E, Danielson was a clean energy venture capitalist with General Catalyst Partners, where he co-founded the firm’s clean energy practice and helped build companies in various clean energy technology areas, including solar photovoltaics, solar thermal power, wind power, advanced biofuels, bio-gas, carbon capture and storage, and advanced lighting.
Danielson received his B.S. in materials science and engineering at the University of California at Berkeley. He performed his doctoral work in clean energy materials at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he created and taught multiple courses on advanced materials for clean energy. He is the author of more than 20 scientific articles in the field of advanced materials, and is the holder of one U.S. patent licensed by industry.
To review Dr. Danielson’s ARPA-E bio, please visit: http://arpa-e.energy.gov/About/Team/DrDavidDanielson.aspx
The official White House press release is also available at: http://m.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/07/27/president-obama-announces-more-key-administration-posts
Robert Rains handles public policy-related energy issues for ASME. He can be reached at:
rainsr@asme.org
ASME CONGRESSIONAL FELLOW ACCEPTS PERMANENT POSITION WITH THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
When Andrew (Drew) Walter began serving as an ASME Congressional Fellow with the Committee on Armed Services in the U.S. House of Representatives, little did he realize he would become a permanent member of their professional staff two years later.
During his ASME Fellowship from August 2009 through June 2011, Walter found himself supporting committee Members and staff on policy, legislation, oversight, and investigations related to the U.S. Department of Defense and military. As a Fellow, Walter worked on a wide range of complex issues, including interagency national security reform efforts, interagency coordination of contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan, supply and demand for rare earth elements in defense applications, and U.S. strategy in Afghanistan.
Walter helped prepare and conduct six congressional hearings for the committee, including developing ideas for the scope of the hearing, recommending and confirming witnesses, researching and summarizing the background and major issues to be covered, developing suggested questions for witnesses, and advising the chairman during the hearing. He also drafted speeches and press releases and supported Members in writing legislation, committee reports, and conference reports. Several National Defense Authorization Acts he worked on, which authorize the activities of the Department of Defense each year, were signed into law.
“This fellowship experience has been an amazing opportunity,” said Walter. “The chance to support and advise Members of Congress on national-level issues has been incredibly rewarding, and I’m very grateful to ASME for enabling me to come to Capitol Hill and have this experience. I think having people on Capitol Hill with technical backgrounds and mindsets helps Congress make better-informed decisions, and I know I learned a lot about the policymaking process during my fellowship.”
In June, Walter was appointed as a permanent Professional Staff Member on the Armed Services Committee staff, where he will return to his roots and work on nuclear weapons issues. As a result of his appointment, Walter has resigned as an ASME Congressional Fellow and left his position at Sandia National Laboratories. As a Senior Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia, Walter had assisted lab executive leadership in exploring and defining long-term strategies as a member of the Strategic Studies Department. Among other things, his endeavors with the department included facilitating an executive-level exploration of issues, technologies and policies within the nuclear energy, nuclear weapons, and nuclear nonproliferation arenas. Before joining the Strategic Studies Department, Walter spent three years with Sandia’s Security Systems and Technology Center designing and analyzing security systems for nuclear weapons and other critical national assets.
Walter earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from the Rochester Institute of Technology. He has been an ASME member since 2008, and became a Congressional Fellow the following year.
ASME Federal Government Fellows typically spend one year in Washington, D.C., working in the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the White House, or on a Congressional Committee or in the office of a U.S. Senator or U.S. Representative. ASME Fellowships are designed to demonstrate the value of engineering-government interaction, bring technical backgrounds and external perspectives to the decision making process in the executive and legislative branch and provide a unique public policy learning experience to the Fellow. Applications for the 2012-2013 ASME Federal Government Fellowship program will be accepted from December 2011 through March 2012.
ASME Federal Fellows are “Engineering the Greater Good” by serving as advisors to the U.S. Congress and OSTP
. Additional information on the ASME Federal Government Fellowship Program is available at
http://www.asmefederalfellows.org/ and
http://www.asme.org/about-asme/advocacy-government-relations/programs/federal-fellows-program
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