Senate supports continuation of nuclear safety program (07/27/97)

Senate supports continuation of nuclear safety program

by Eugene M. Iwanciw

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Energy program to conduct a comprehensive, cooperative program to reduce risks at Soviet-designed nuclear power plants has received a reprieve in the United States Senate. In two separate actions, the Senate and a Senate Committee provided support for continuation of the program.

The administration had requested $50 million for the program for fiscal year 1998. Last month, the House Committee on National Security authorized the program at $25 million, while the Senate Committee on Armed Services provided no authorization in their respective versions of the Fiscal Year 1998 Defense Authorization bill. On July 9 the Senate accepted an amendment offered by Sens. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and Carl Levin (D-Mich.) to the Department of Defense Authorization Bill, which restored authorization for a number of programs including Nunn-Lugar and the International Nuclear Safety Program. Thus, the Senate authorized INSP at the request level of $50 million. The difference between the provisions in the defense authorization bills will be resolved by a House-Senate Conference Committee.

A day earlier, on July 8, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development marked up the Fiscal Year 1998 Energy Appropriations Bill and provided the full $50 million for the INSP program. Two days later, the full Senate Appropriations Committee supported the actions of the subcommittee. On July 11, the House Appropriations Subcommittee marked up its version of the Energy Appropriations bill, providing funding for INSP at only $25 million. The issue may be revisited by the full House Appropriations Committee when it considers the bill.

The International Nuclear Safety Program (INSP) originated from U.S. commitments made at the G-7 conference in 1992 when world leaders agreed to collaborate with host countries to reduce risks at certain Soviet-designed reactors. Since that time, the program's scope has expanded to include safety-related activities at 20 nuclear power plants with 64 operating reactors. The program has established partnerships with eight countries - Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania and Slovakia - to improve the physical conditions of plants, train plant operators, and establish modern safety technologies and methods. The U.S. effort is conducted in close cooperation with similar programs initiated by Western European countries, Canada and Japan, with the U.S. taking the lead in the former Soviet Union and the European taking the lead in Central Europe.

The U.S. program focused much of its attention on the nuclear reactors in Russia during the early years of the program. As the program is beginning to wind down in Russia, the focus of the INSP program is now shifting to Ukraine and Armenia.

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