
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC9703]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
  CHAPTER 104--NUCLEAR SAFETY RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION
 
Sec. 9703. Research, development, and demonstration program; 
        establishment; purposes; implementation
        
    (a) The Secretary shall establish a research, development, and 
demonstration program to carry out the purpose of this chapter. As part 
of such program, the Secretary shall at a minimum--
        (1) refine further the assessment of risk factors associated 
    with the generic design and operation of nuclear powerplants to 
    determine the degree and consequences of propagation of failures of 
    systems, subsystems, and components, including consideration of the 
    interaction between the primary and secondary systems;
        (2) develop potentially cost-beneficial changes in the generic 
    design and operation of nuclear powerplants that can (A) 
    significantly reduce the risks from unintentional release of 
    radioactive material from the various engineered barriers of nuclear 
    powerplants and (B) reduce the radiation exposure to workers during 
    plant operation and maintenance;
        (3) develop potentially cost-beneficial generic methods and 
    designs that will significantly improve the performance of operators 
    of nuclear powerplants under routine, abnormal, and accident 
    conditions;
        (4) identify the effect of total or partial automation of 
    generic plant systems on reactor safety, operation, reliability, 
    economics, and operator performance;
        (5) conduct further experimental investigations under abnormal 
    operational and postulated accident conditions primarily for light 
    water reactors to determine the consequences of such conditions. 
    These investigations shall include, but not be limited to, the 
    following:
            (A) fuel failure at higher than standard burn-up levels;
            (B) fuel-cladding interactions;
            (C) fuel and cladding interactions with coolant under 
        various temperatures and pressures;
            (D) thermohydraulic behavior in the reactor core;
            (E) mechanisms to suppress and control the generation of 
        hydrogen gas;
            (F) improved instrumentation for monitoring reactor cores;
            (G) engineered-barrier failure modes; and
            (H) fission product release and transport from failed fuel;

        (6) provide for the examination and analysis of any nuclear 
    powerplant fuel, component, or system which the Secretary deems to 
    offer significant benefit in safety analysis and which is made 
    available to the Secretary for a nominal cost, such as $1: Provided, 
    however, That the Secretary shall accept only the number of samples 
    of such fuel, component, or system necessary to carry out such 
    examination and analysis; and
        (7) identify the aptitudes, training, and manning levels which 
    are necessary to assure reliable operator performance under normal, 
    abnormal, and emergency conditions.

    (b) In carrying out the generic safety research, development, and 
demonstration program established under this chapter, the Secretary--
        (1) shall coordinate with the Commission and, to the extent 
    necessary, enter into a new memorandum of understanding or revise 
    existing memoranda for the purpose of eliminating unnecessary 
    duplication and avoiding programmatic conflict with any reactor 
    safety research program of the Commission, including the Improved 
    Safety Systems Research program;
        (2) shall, to the extent practical, coordinate his activities 
    with such other Government agencies, foreign governments, and 
    industry as he deems appropriate to utilize their expertise, to 
    minimize duplication of effort, and to ensure that information 
    useful for improved concepts applicable to nuclear powerplant safety 
    can be applied in a timely manner. The Secretary may enter into 
    agreements and memoranda of understanding to accomplish these ends, 
    but no such agreement shall have the effect of delaying the 
    development and implementation of programs authorized under this 
    chapter;
        (3) shall utilize, to the extent feasible, underutilized 
    federally owned research reactors and facilities, along with the 
    associated personnel, to maintain existing capabilities and to 
    ensure that the research is generic in nature; and
        (4) shall make such recommendations as are practical to minimize 
    the complexity of nuclear powerplant systems, including secondary 
    systems, and operations.

(Pub. L. 96-567, Sec. 4, Dec. 22, 1980, 94 Stat. 3330.)

                          Transfer of Functions

    For transfer of certain functions from Nuclear Regulatory Commission 
to Chairman thereof, see Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1980, 45 F.R. 40561, 94 
Stat. 3585, set out as a note under section 5841 of this title.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 9707 of this title.
