In a huge regulatory win for fusion energy development, the US Government codified the permanent separation of fusion energy regulations from those for nuclear fission. On June 18, in a bipartisan 88-2 vote, the Senate passed S.870, the Fire Grants and Safety Act, which included the Fusion Energy Act, and President Biden signed it into law July 9th. This Act amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to add a new definition of “fusion machines” as particle accelerators. That clarification confirms a previous decision by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, making it US law.
The US government has long defined” nuclear energy” to mean energy derived from the fission chain reaction. However, until recently it had been unclear how fusion energy would be regulated. The significant threat was that economic interests that stood to lose from the development of fusion energy, such as the fossil fuel industry, might influence the regulation process to improperly lump fusion energy with fission energy, slowing fusion development and deployment.
But now that threat has been averted before fusion energy is even ready for deployment. By classifying fusion energy devices with “particle accelerators” the new law ensures that the US will not use any improper regulations for fusion, but just the standard safety regulations that govern any machine that generates high-energy particles. Given the US weight in the world economy and its influence in world regulations, this decision will probably set a precedent for regulators elsewhere.
This big victory did not come about by accident. Since its founding, the Fusion Industry Association, headed by Andrew Holland, has been informing regulators at the NRC and legislators in the Fusion Energy Caucus, their staffs and many others about the need for separate regulation of fusion energy. This work has now born fruit by clearing out of the way what could have been a big potential obstacle to fusion energy for all.
