The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is wrapping up its end of the decommissioning process at a former California nuclear power plant and deemed several locations at the site safe for unrestricted use, according to a recent letter from the agency.
NRC approved three of Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) final status survey reports (FSSRs) for sections of land where Humboldt Bay Power Plant’s Unit 3 reactor once stood, according to a letter from the agency dated Nov. 2. The concentration of radiation at the sites is low enough that they can be released for unrestricted use, NRC said.
The commission’s decision comes after PG&E said Oct. 21 that it had finished the final phase of decommissioning at Humboldt 3. The utility requested at the time that NRC release the Eureka, Calif., plant for unrestricted use.
According to PG&E, Humboldt’s spent fuel inventory will remain onsite at an independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI), which holds 390 spent fuel assemblies. The ISFSI got a 40-year license extension from NRC in May 2020.
PG&E started decommissioning Humboldt 3 in 2008. The plant shut down for upgrades in 1976 and never reopened.
Meanwhile, the utility company is also preparing plans to dismantle California’s Diablo Canyon plant, whose federal operating license expires in 2025. A PG&E official said last week that more details on decommissioning work at Diablo Canyon should be available in 90 days or so.
