General Atomics (State of California)
This site description was provided by the cognizant Agreement State, and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) makes no claim regarding the validity of the information provided. See our Site Disclaimer for more information.
1.0 Site Identification
| Type of Site: | Unknown |
| Location: | San Diego ,CA |
| License No.: | 0145 |
| Docket No.: | |
| License Status: | Unknown |
| Project Manager: | Kim Conway (NRC Decommissioning Contact) |
2.0 Site Status Summary
Founded in 1955 as a division of General Dynamics, General Atomics is now privately owned. The company developed nuclear power reactor systems and TRIGA® research reactors, and has conducted extensive nuclear research and development for the United States government and private industry. The company's main facilities are located in San Diego, CA. General Atomics continues to provide certain services, research and development, and manufacture and distribution of devices that use radioactive materials. General Atomics holds a Broad Scope Type A license from State of California, which was renewed in 2006. A large decommissioning effort, however, has been ongoing during the past 15 years. A broad spectrum of radioactive materials had been used at those facilities that have undergone decommissioning. Criteria for release to unrestricted use are dependent upon the specific radionuclide. Criteria are provided for surface contamination, volumetric contamination, and exposure rate. The main site occupies approximately 60 acres. Eighty percent of the site has been decommissioned and released for unrestricted use. Another ten percent of the site has been decommissioned, but has not yet been released for unrestricted use by the State of California.
3.0 Major Technical or Regulatory Issues
In addition to its State of California license, General Atomics holds an NRC SNM license. The SNM license only authorizes activities related to decommissioning. In 1999, an agreement was reached between State of California and NRC regarding potentially overlapping regulation of decommissioning activities. NRC plans to terminate the SNM license in 2008; however, one major facility needs to be released from the State of California license before the SNM license can be terminated.
