ML24052A281
| ML24052A281 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Zion File:ZionSolutions icon.png |
| Issue date: | 11/08/2023 |
| From: | Office of Public Affairs |
| To: | |
| References | |
| News Release-23-073 | |
| Download: ML24052A281 (1) | |
Text
No: 23-073 November 8, 2023 CONTACT: David McIntyre, 301-415-8200 NRC Releases Zion Nuclear Power Plant Site for Unrestricted Public Use The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has released for unrestricted use most of the land on and around where the Zion Nuclear Power Station once operated. This means that any residual radiation is below NRCs limits and there will be no further regulatory controls by the NRC for that portion of the property. Only the plants spent fuel storage facility, covering about 5 acres, will remain under NRC license and oversight.
NRC staff determined ZionSolutions had satisfactorily finished decommissioning of the plant and decontamination of the site to meet the agencys radiation protection standards. This clears the way for ZionSolutions to transfer the spent fuel storage facility license to Constellation Energy Generation, which will be responsible for the security and protection of Zions spent fuel facility until an offsite storage facility or permanent disposal site becomes available.
Constellation is free to use the remainder of the former plant site for any application.
The Zion plant, located in Zion, Illinois, consisted of two pressurized-water reactors that operated from 1973 until 1997. Then-operator Commonwealth Edison certified the permanent shutdown of the plant in 1998. In 2010, the licenses were transferred to ZionSolutions, a subsidiary of radioactive waste disposal company EnergySolutions, to expedite the decommissioning process.
The NRC approved the current transfer to Constellation in 2019, conditional on ZionSolutions successful completion of the decommissioning work. Once the two companies close on their transaction, the NRC will issue amendments changing the name on the license to Constellation Energy Generation.