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Thursday, September 13, 2012

US NRC Blog Update: Meeting the Challenges of the Next SONGS Meeting

U.S. NRC Blog

Meeting the Challenges of the Next SONGS Meeting

by Moderator
Planning the next public meeting in Southern California for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station has presented a challenge for the NRC.
Our last public meeting at the San Juan Capistrano Community Center on June 18 drew more than 500 people, not all of whom could be accommodated in this venue. At that meeting, members of the NRC’s Augmented Inspection Team presented the preliminary findings of a comprehensive inspection conducted after several steam generator tubes failed pressure testing in February.
Technically, that was what the NRC calls a Category 1 meeting, held with Southern California Edison Co. After the business portion of the meeting was completed, NRC staff and Edison officials responded to members of the public who were given an opportunity to ask questions about the inspection and related steam generator issues.
Interest in the agency’s response to the steam generator problems at San Onofre is extremely high. Immediately following the June 18 meeting, planning began for another meeting that would allow members of the public to meet directly with NRC staff to voice their concerns on a broader range of topics.
Another meeting was planned for August 8, with a similar venue as the June 18 meeting. As the final contracts were being signed, a large response from many members of the public asked for a much larger venue, capable of seating more than 1,000 attendees, with live web streaming for remote viewing and participation. In order to accommodate this we cancelled the August 8 meeting and began a search for a larger facility.
Anticipating a larger turnout, we also considered what kind of format would work best for such a large group. Instead of holding a Category 3 Town Hall meeting, where NRC staff would meet directly with the public, Region IV Administrator Elmo Collins proposed a meeting format designed to create an opportunity to hear from a wide range of perspectives. The meeting will include a facilitated roundtable discussion on topics of significant public interest.
We’ve chosen two experienced facilitators to ensure that the meeting is both informative and responsive to the public’s interests. The format we chose will provide community members with an opportunity to get answers to many of their questions and air their concerns. This format was selected in consultation with San Clemente Green and the San Clemente-based Residents Organized for a Safe Environment,
For the past three months, Region IV staff has been trying to find a venue large enough to accommodate such a potentially large group. After much effort we have been able to find a facility that meets all of our needs: The St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, Calif. The two-part meeting on October 9 will run from 6 to 9:30 p.m. The first part of the meeting will be a roundtable discussion with observation by members of the public, followed by a question and answer session between the NRC staff and the public. The hotel does charge a nominal parking fee, so attendees are encouraged to car pool.
Details about the meeting and how to see it via webstreaming will soon be available on our Public Meeting page.
Victor Dricks
Region IV Senior Public Affairs
Moderator | September 13, 2012 at 4:27 pm | Tags: nuclear | Categories: Operating Reactors | URL: http://wp.me/p1fSSY-NM
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