A Regulatory Framework for Risk-Informed Decision Making in the Nuclear Materials and Waste Arenas

摘要

The Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and Safeguards (NMSS), U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, is moving toward increasing the use of risk insights and information (i.e., risk-informing) in the nuclear materials and waste arenas. This could increase NMSS's efficiency and effectiveness in its regulatory processes: rulemaking, licensing, inspection and enforcement. The overall process for risk-informed regulatory decision in the nuclear materials and waste arenas making consists of: 1. identifying the regulatory issue or the action alternatives involved that require a risk-informed regulatory decision to be made, 2. developing needed information about the issue and then applying the screening considerations developed by the staff to determine if the issue should/can be risk informed, 3. if the issue is screened in, then performing or adapting a suitable risk assessment identifying the risk metrics, the risk-affected population, the factors contributing to uncertainties, and the scope and depth of analysis that is needed to address the issue, 4. incorporating considerations related to adequate protection, uncertainty, defense-in-depth, safety margins, and draft risk guideline aspects, and 5. assessing any information on competing risks or from related cases and studies that bears on the decision.