Regulatory Effectiveness of the Station Blackout Rule (NUREG-1776)

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Publication Information

Manuscript Completed: August 2000
Date Published: August 2003

Prepared by
W.S. Raughley

Division of Systems Analysis and Regulatory Effectiveness
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555-0001

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Abstract

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research is reviewing selected regulations, starting with the station blackout (SBO) rule, to determine if the requirements are achieving the desired outcomes. This initiative is part of an evolving program to make NRC activities and decisions more effective, efficient, and realistic. This report evaluates the effectiveness of the SBO rule by comparing regulatory expectations to outcomes. A set of baseline expectations was established from the SBO rule and related regulatory documents in the areas of coping capability, risk reduction, emergency diesel generator reliability, and value-impact. The report concludes that although there are opportunities to improve the clarity of SBO related regulatory documents, the SBO rule is effective and the industry and the NRC costs to implement the SBO rule were reasonable considering the outcome.