Ekin Senlet, Regulatory Practice Area co-chair and Nuclear Energy Team co-leader, was quoted in the Law.com article “As NY Advances Plans for New Nuclear Reactors, Lawyers See Untested Regulatory Questions.” The article looks at how New York’s siting rules will work alongside federal licensing as the state pursues at least 5 gigawatts of new nuclear generation.
Ekin explained that Article 10, New York’s siting law for major electric generating facilities, does include provisions that address nuclear generation. However, the law was written during a different era of state energy policy. “The law is written, and the law contemplated nuclear,” she said, but when it was enacted, “the state was not thinking about nuclear energy.”
She said one key challenge will be making Article 10 work with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s licensing process. Federal authority over radiological safety is well established. Environmental impacts, economics, ratepayer considerations, and project need stay with the state. Because those areas can overlap in practice, Ekin stressed that early coordination between federal and state regulators matters. One possible solution, she said, would be for New York to clarify which Article 10 requirements apply separately to nuclear projects and where information in an NRC application could also satisfy state requirements. That would help avoid duplicative or inconsistent applications.
Ekin also noted that smaller reactors raise a different set of issues. Article 10 applies only to facilities above 25 megawatts, so smaller projects would generally fall back on local zoning and State Environmental Quality Review Act review. “For a microreactor . . . the local government could end up having more of an overseeing role,” she said.
For communities that are considering hosting a project, she offered a reality check: “Raising your hand for hosting a nuclear plant is very different than being ready for it.” She said prospective hosts will need to consider not only a site but also infrastructure, workforce and housing demands, utilities, and an economic arrangement that works for the community.
Law.com subscribers can read the full article here.