Journal of Critical Infrastructure Policy: Volume 3, Number 2, Fall / Winter 2023

It is increasingly evident that the development of microreactors, small modular reactors (SMRs), and other advanced reactor designs will be needed to produce the least cost plan to decarbonize the nation’s energy sources by 2050. Much of this JCIP issue supports the view that the deployment of these small reactors should be moved to the forefront of national policy.A reduction in nuclear plant size is essential to decrease capital costs and to increase plant safety. Small reactors in the US fleet would be factory-assembled with advanced quality control. They would incorporate passive safety systems as well as safer 10-year refueling cycles, faster component production, and greater economies of scale. Moreover, microreactors could power individual industrial plants, military bases, remote communities, and be rapidly deployed to natural disaster areas. These smaller units could also contribute to renewable heating. And with many nations jockeying for primacy in what is anticipated to be a market exceeding a trillion dollars, it is essential that the US maintain technological leadership and manufacturing capacity in the advanced nuclear sector.More rapid deployment of this promising technology will require adequate federal R&D support, an increased domestic nuclear fuel supply (both LEU and HALEU), with solid progress in streamlining regulatory barriers. In particular, the total time required for development and regulatory reviews must be reduced in a smart fashion.Previous issues of the Journal have addressed how SMRs could enhance electric grid and critical infrastructure resilience. They included the development of resilient nuclear power plants, resilient critical infrastructure islands and the ability of SMRs to function as grid black start units.4 We recently published a cornerstone article by Decker and Rauhut on incentivizing good governance beyond regulatory minimums in the civil nuclear sector.Table of ContentsEditor-in-Chief ’s LetterRichard M. KriegSmall Nuclear Reactors Essential to the US Energy & Climate Change FutureEditor-in-Chief’s Interview with NEI President & CEO Maria KorsnickNuclear Policy in the States: A National ReviewDaniel SheaHow Advanced Nuclear Generation Technologies Support Electric Grid ResilienceRichard MrozEditorial: The Energy Transition: Advanced Nuclear Needed but Address Climate Vulnerabilities NowAndrew BochmanThe Post-Industrial and Appalachia (PIMA) Nuclear AllianceJean-Paul Allain and Sandra AllainChallenges to Implementing Microreactor Technologies in Rural & Tribal CommunitiesHillary Fishler, Nahuel Guaita, Dawn Davis, and Joshua FishlerStormwater Capital Improvement Planning: A Framework for Project Identification and Prioritization for Pluvial Flood MitigationJuhann WallerPractice Advances: Outcomes of the 2022 InfraGard National Disaster Resilience Council SummitMary LaskyThe Electromagnetic Threat to the US: Recommendations for Resilience StrategiesSamuel Averitt, Erik Dahl, Daniel Eisenburg Read more