Date: 1 December 2004

ANSTO Reactor Operating Licence Application Public Submissions Invited

The CEO of ARPANSA, Dr John Loy, has invited public submissions on the application by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) for a licence to operate its replacement research reactor nearing completion at Lucas Heights in Sydney.

The application made available for public submissions is comprised of:

Part A: General information on the purpose and location of the reactor facility;
Part B: The plans and arrangements for managing safety for the reactor facility;
Part C: The Safety Analysis Report (SAR) for the reactor facility.

The licence application available to the public is not the complete version that has been submitted to the CEO of ARPANSA. ANSTO requested that the CEO not publish parts of the application on the grounds that certain information could compromise the security of the reactor, and that other details are commercial-in-confidence. ANSTO provided ARPANSA with a version of the application for public release. The CEO is still considering these submissions from ANSTO. However to enable the public submission process to commence he is releasing this interim version to the public.

Once the CEO of ARPANSA has finally considered all of the requests for deletion by ANSTO, he will make the final public version of the application available.

The CEO of ARPANSA said: “Considering the claims for deletion takes time. I am committed to the public having access to as much of the application as I am able to make available. Once this task has been completed, I will forward reference copies of the licence application to appropriate libraries and to environmental and community organisations interested in the reactor proposal, as well as posting reference copies onto our website.”

The interim public release version of the application excludes Parts D and E on the basis of ANSTO’s submission that this is necessary for security and commercial reasons. These parts cover operational limits and conditions, and plans and arrangements for hot commissioning respectively. If necessary after further consideration, the CEO will ask ANSTO to prepare summaries of Parts D and E, in conjunction with ARPANSA staff, to assist public understanding of the application without compromising security. He expects to release a further public version of the application early in 2005.

“The present public version is extensive and will allow the public to prepare submissions on the application. I expect to be able to release another version well before the close of the public submission period”, John Loy said.

John Loy added, “I must also stress that this is the start of the assessment process. As the assessment unfolds a great deal more information will become publicly available, including:

• The report of an international peer review team on the application
• ANSTO’s response to questions asked by ARPANSA
• The transcript and panellist reports from a public forum proposed for May/June 2005
• The work of the Nuclear Safety Committee, which I have asked to advise me on some key issues related to the proposal, including the plans for the operating organisation and the management of radioactive waste.

In addition, a second round of public submissions will be invited after the public forum.”

Dr Loy also said that he would require evidence of successful cold commissioning of the reactor before making a decision on the application. ANSTO plan to commence the cold commissioning (authorised under the ARPANSA licence to construct the RRR) in July 2005.

The interim public release version of the licence application and a guide to making submissions are included on a free CD. These discs are available on request from Mary Rajnsz at ARPANSA on 02 9541 8333 during normal business hours. All documents can also shortly be downloaded, in whole or in part, from the ARPANSA web site at: http://www.arpansa.gov.au/rrrp_operating.htm.

ENDS