Nuclear Safety Research and Development (NSR&D) Program

About Us

As part of its May 2011 re-organization, the Office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) created the Nuclear Safety Research and Development (NSR&D) Program within the Office of Nuclear Safety to provide corporate-level leadership supporting nuclear safety research and development throughout the Department of Energy (DOE).

HSS's NSR&D Program will work with National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the DOE Program Offices to (1) develop mechanisms for effectively sharing information on nuclear safety research and development activities and results and (2) seek cost effective means to perform nuclear safety research and development that may have benefit DOE-wide and/or to multiple Program Offices. The NSR&D Program will also solicit input from the Nuclear Safety and Security Council (chaired by Associate Deputy Secretary Melvin Williams with membership of senior management from each of the Program Offices).

NSR&D Program Manager (Acting): Joe Olencz
NSR&D Staff contact: Chris Chaves

NSR&D Program Objectives:

• Establish an enduring Departmental commitment and capability to utilize NSR&D in preventing and reducing the hazards and risks posed by DOE/NNSA nuclear facilities;
• Foster a Departmental culture that embraces NSR&D as a standard business practice for effecting continuous improvement in nuclear facility safety consistent with Integrated Safety Management (ISM) principles;
• Optimize NSR&D resources in resolving existing and emerging nuclear facility safety concerns; and
• Implement the Department's commitments on NSR&D as contained in Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) Recommendation 2004-1, Oversight of Complex, High-Hazard Nuclear Operations.

Background:

On May 21, 2004, the DNFSB issued Recommendation 2004-1, Oversight of Complex, High-Hazard Nuclear Operations. In this Recommendation, the DNFSB identified that, as part of DOE/NNSA efforts to understand, minimize and control the likelihood of a low-probability, high-consequence nuclear accident DOE/NNSA should take steps to "ensure continued integration and support of research, analysis, and testing in nuclear safety technologies." Accordingly, the Department addressed these concerns on nuclear safety research and development in an Implementation Plan (October 12, 2006), which identified the following steps it would take to provide better integration of NSR&D activities: (1) Provide critical information to enhance decision-making relative to high-hazard nuclear operations; and (2) Coordinate NSR&D needs across DOE/NNSA. Specifically, the Department made the following commitments:

• Commitment 7: Develop processes to identify needed safety research and development needs across the DOE/NNSA and to determine if and to what extent those research needs are being addressed through current plans and budgets; and
• Commitment 8: Develop a method to ensure that nuclear safety research and development needs are identified and integrated into DOE/NNSA programming, planning, budgeting, and execution processes including methods to share the results of completed research and development.

For questions regarding the Nuclear Safety Research and Development Program, please contact Joe Olencz.