The California Coastal Commission Special Meeting on San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) spent nuclear fuel storage installation on Thursday July 16 2020 at 9:00am(pst).
The Public is Encouraged to participate.
California Coastal Commission SONGS Meeting July 16 2020 Agenda is Online
SONGS At Issue is Long Term Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel
The California Coastal Commission States, “The interim storage of spent nuclear fuel at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), located on Camp Pendleton in San Diego County, has been a controversial topic for years.
Because of the lack of a long-term repository for spent nuclear fuel, SONGS—like other nuclear power plants in the United States—has had to resort to interim storage of spent nuclear fuel on site, in what is termed an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI).”
SONGS at Issue is Safety to People and Coastal Safety
The California Coastal Commission States,”Although the Commission has approved two ISFSI installations at SONGS, it also has expressed concern regarding storing spent nuclear fuel at SONGS because of the facility’s location adjacent to the Pacific Ocean and Interstate-5, proximity to major population centers, and site topography and potential effects from coastal hazards.
In 2015, the Commission approved Coastal Development Permit (CDP) 9-15-0228, which authorized construction of an ISFSI to store spent nuclear fuel from SONGS Units 2 and 3.
To address concerns related to coastal hazards and to ensure that fuel storage canisters would remain transportable, the Commission required that Southern California Edison (SCE) submit an Inspection and Maintenance Program (IMP) for Commission review and approval.
The IMP was required to ensure that canisters remain in a physical condition sufficient to allow both on-site transfer and off-site transport for the duration of the approval, until October 6, 2035.
The IMP specifically required SCE to describe the cask inspection, monitoring, and maintenance techniques, as well as potential canister remediation measures if necessary, that would be implemented.
In its 2019 review and approval of an application for the decommissioning of SONGS (CDP 9-19-0194), the Commission required SCE to fund an independent, third-party review of the IMP, and it set March 31, 2020 as the deadline for submittal of the IMP.
SONGS Inspection and Maintenance Program Third Party Review
The California Coastal Commission States, “The result of the review of the IMP is that it contains the required measures in Special Condition 7 of CDP 9-15-0228:
1) the cask inspection, monitoring and maintenance techniques that will be implemented, including prospective non-destructive examination techniques and remote surface inspection tools
(2) data that will be collected and how often the results of the inspection and maintenance program will be reported to the Commission
(3) all available evidence related to the physical condition of the casks and their susceptibility to degradation processes such as stress corrosion cracking
(4) remediation measures that will be implemented, including the submission of a coastal development permit amendment if the results of the cask inspection and maintenance do not ensure that the fuel storage casks remain transportable.
SONGS Community Engagement
Applicants and the public will be able to listen to and watch the meeting and comment by Zoom conference or by telephone.
California Coastal Commission Virtual Hearings Procedures Are Online
Applicants and the public will be able to listen to and watch the meeting and comment by Zoom conference or by telephone.
Email the Commission in Advance to Speak at the Meeting
You can speak for up to (2) Minutes
Email by 5:00pm on July 15 2020 to speakerrequest@coastal.ca.gov
In the body of the email, please provide:
Your name
Your email address
Who you represent (i.e., self, another person, an organization)
The number and name of the agenda item you wish to speak on
(e.g., Item W14b, Smith)
Whether you are speaking for or against the proposed item
Whether you intend to provide a PowerPoint or video (see special
instructions below).
PowerPoint or Video Presentations Special Instructions
Your PowerPoint or video file cannot exceed 2 minutes in length for General Public Comments, and no more than 3 minutes in length for public testimony on a specific agenda item.
The Commission is unable to accept files larger than 25MB.
Any PowerPoint or video must be submitted by 5:00 pm the day before the hearing item.
If you are submitting PowerPoint or a video file separate from your speaker request email, please include agenda item number and a note that it is related to an earlier request to speak.
Zoom Meeting Link Will Be Emailed to You Prior to the Meeting
Monitor the webcast of the meeting and call in to the meeting or start your Zoom connection a few minutes before your agenda item starts to make sure that you can fix any technical issues before the meeting on your item starts.
Please exit the virtual meeting once you have spoken or your item is completed to free up space for others who wish to provide comments on other items.
You can continue Watching the Meeting Live on Cal Span.
Call Staff Prior to Meeting If You Wish To Participate By Phone
Call Staff at (415) 904-5202.
Commission staff will provide a telephone call-in number to be used on the day of the meeting and can answer questions about how to participate in the meeting by phone.
California Coastal Commission Mission
The mission of the California Coastal Commission is to protect, conserve, restore, and enhance environmental and human-based resources of the California coast and ocean for environmentally sustainable and prudent use by current and future generations.
The Commission holds monthly public meetings of three to five days in length in different locations throughout the state.
The Commission meetings provide an opportunity for the Coastal Commissioners to take public testimony and to make permit, planning, and other policy decisions.
Prior to each meeting, Commission staff collects and analyzes information pertinent to meeting agenda items and prepares written staff reports with recommendations for Commission action.
These staff reports are available for public review, by contacting the appropriate Commission office. Some
elected staff reports are also available electronically by means of a link from the Commission’s
Meeting Notice.
For more information please visit California Coastal Commission.
* Any announcements regarding Commission actions will be made in public after the conclusion of the closed session.
Any announcements will also be posted on the Commission’s online agenda.
California Coastal Commission Scheduled Meetings
Wednesday August 12 2020 thru Friday August 14 2020: South Central California Location TBD
Wednesday September 9 2020 thru Friday September 11 2020: San Luis Obispo
Location TBD
Wednesday October 7 2020 thru Friday October 9 2020: California Northern Coast TBD
Wednesday November 4 2020 thru Friday November 6 2020: San Diego
Location TBD
Wednesday December 9 2020 thru Friday December 11 2020: California North Central District
Location TBD
