1.0 Site Identification
| Decommissioning Status: |
DECON |
| Permanent Shutdown Date: |
05/31/2019 |
| Fuel Removal Date: |
06/09/2019 |
| License No.: |
DPR-35 |
| Project Manager: |
Marlayna Doell |
2.0 Site Status Summary
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (PNPS) is located on the western shore of Cape Cod Bay in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. It is 38 miles southwest of Boston, Massachusetts, and 44 miles east of Providence, Rhode Island. PNPS is a facility with a General Electric boiling water reactor nuclear steam supply system that was licensed to generate 2,028 megawatts – thermal (MWt). Power operations ceased at Pilgrim on May 31, 2019, and the fuel was permanently removed from the reactor vessel and placed in the spent fuel pool (SFP) on June 9, 2019. PNPS is also the site of the generally licensed Pilgrim Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI). The PNPS and the Pilgrim ISFSI are currently owned by Holtec International, and the licensed decommissioning operator is Holtec Decommissioning International, LLC (HDI).
The HDI decommissioning strategy is active decommissioning, also referred to as DECON. HDI estimates that it will complete radiological decommissioning and release all portions of the site for unrestricted use except for the Pilgrim ISFSI by 2063, resulting in a “partial site release” of the areas outside the boundary of the ISFSI until such time that the fuel can be removed from the site and the site’s 10 CFR Part 50 license fully terminated.
The NRC staff documented its review of the HDI-submitted Pilgrim Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR) in a letter dated October 28, 2019 (ADAMS Accession No. ML19224A540). At the end of July 2020, HDI completed Phase I of its Spent Fuel Transfer Campaign (loading 11 new casks onto the existing ISFSI pad). The licensee subsequently built a new ISFSI to hold all of the Pilgrim spent fuel casks; ISFSI-II is currently in operation and all Pilgrim spent fuel and greater-than-Class C (GTCC) waste is stored there as of the end of 2021.
The NRC continues its oversight to ensure the reactor is being decommissioned safely and that spent fuel is safely and securely stored onsite. The NRC staff will periodically inspect operations at the site, including the ISFSI, to ensure that decommissioning activities are being conducted in accordance with all applicable regulations and commitments.
3.0 Major Technical or Regulatory Issues
None.
4.0 Public Interest
There has been recent interest regarding effluent discharges from PNPS during decommissioning. The NRC has assembled the responses to several questions related to this process, which can be found on the FAQ page for Liquid Effluent Discharges at PNPS.
The NRC regulates the disposal of radioactive waste under several regulatory provisions (see 10 CFR 20.2001; 20.1301; 20.2003; 20.2004; 20.2005; 10 CFR 35.92), such as transferring the material or waste to an authorized recipient, storing it for decay (decay-in-storage), and safely releasing it into the environment (effluent release). Any disposal method may be chosen if it meets the applicable NRC regulations. The NRC regulations governing radioactive releases are based on the dose to the public, regardless of the volume of the release.
5.0 Estimated Date for Closure
Calendar year 2063.