Itinerary
Day One: Thursday, August 21, 2008
6p.m. Reception
Day Two: Friday, August 22, 2008
7:30a.m. Registration
Breakfast
8:30a.m. Opening Session
David E. Rivers, Director, Public Information and Community Outreach Program (PICO), Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC
Welcome
Dr. Raymond S. Greenberg, President, Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), Charleston, SC
Dr. Leonard Mcintyre, Interim President, South Carolina State University (SCSU), Orangeburg, SC
Opening Remarks
The Honorable James E. Clyburn (SC-6), Majority Whip, U.S. House of Representatives
The Honorable Lindsey O. Graham (SC), U.S. Senate, Invited
The Honorable Henry E. Brown, Jr., (SC-l), U.S. Congress, Invited
The Honorable Mark Sanford, Governor, SC, Invited
The Honorable Joseph P. Riley, Jr., Mayor, City of Charleston, SC, Invited
Introduction of Keynote Speaker
Dr. Reinhardt G. Brown, Director for the Environmental Policy Institute, James E. Clyburn Transportation Research and Conference Center, SCSU, Orangeburg, SC
9:15 a.m. Keynote Address
Admiral Frank L. “Skip” Bowman. President and
Chief Executive Officer, Nuclear Energy Institute, Washington, DC
Topic: The role of nuclear energy as part of a comprehensive national energy policy crafted to reduce America's dependence on foreign oil and its impact on the global environment.
10 a.m. BREAK
10:15 a.m. Panel One:
The Nuclear Regulatory Process as a Function of Government
Overview: A variety of Federal, State and Local regulatory agencies review and approve plans to license, construct and operate a commercial nuclear facility. Panelists will provide a descriptive roadmap of the regulatory process as it currently stands, then offer suggestions for improving the process without compromising public involvement and safety.
Moderator: Mr. Michael E. Rowe, Director, Planning and Research, Office of Environmental Quality Control, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC), Columbia, SC
Panelist: David B. Matthews, Director of New Reactor Licensing, Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Office of New Reactors, Rockville, MD
Panelist: Ms. Karrie-Jo Robinson-Shell, Environmental Engineer, United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Region 4, Atlanta, GA
Panelist: Ms. Shelly Sherritt, Federal Facilities Liaison, Environmental Quality Control, SCDHEC, Columbia, SC
Questions and Answers
11 :15 a.m. Panel Two:
A utility Industry Perspective on the Nuclear Regulatory Process
Overview: As energy producers and providers, our nation's utilities are major
decision-makers regarding the viability of commercial nuclear energy as a safe, clean and cost-effective means of generating electricity. Panelists will offer the industry's perspective on commercial nuclear power, describe issues utilities must address before moving forward with nuclear projects, and offer recommendations.
Moderator: Mr. Robert L. Harris, Former Vice President, Environmental Affairs, Pacific Gas & Electric Co., San Francisco, CA
Panelist: Mr. John Simmons, Senior Vice President, Commercial Nuclear Operations, URS Washington Division, Princeton, NJ
Panelist: Mr. Bill McCall, Jr., Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer,
Santee-Cooper, Moncks Corner, SC
Panelist: TBA
Questions and Answers
12:30 p.m. Luncheon Speaker:
The Honorable James E. Clyburn (SC-6)
Majority Whip, U.S. House of Representatives
Topic: A legislative overview of our national energy policy, where it currently stands and where it may be heading.
1:45 p.m. Panel Three: A Wall Street Perspective on the Financial Realities of Nuclear Energy
Overview: Experts suggest that developing a commercial nuclear energy plant may take up to 10 years and cost billions of dollars. The uncertainty of key timeline and cost numbers gives pause to those financiers whose investment is a "must" for projects to move forward. Panelists will address the economic realities of bringing the next generation of commercial nuclear power on-line.
Moderator: Mr. Julius Hollis, President, Hollis & Company, LLC, Atlanta, GA
Panelist: Mr. Sesh Raghavan, Executive Director, Energy Financing, JP Morgan Chase, New York, NY
Panelist: Mr. John E. Matthews, Partner, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, Washington, D.C.
Panelist: TBD
Questions and Answers
2:45 p.m. BREAK
3 p.m. Panel Four:
Disposal, Transportation and Storage of Radioactive Waste Material
Overview: Commercial nuclear energy facilities pose a complex and unique challenge in the form of radioactive waste by-products. At a time when the proposed nuclear waste repository in Nevada faces community and political opposition, commercial nuclear energy proponents must find answers to questions about the disposal, transportation and long-term storage of radioactive waste. Panelists will discuss both current and future options for resolving this issue in a safe, fair and equitable manner.
Moderator: Dr. Patricia Lee, Environmental Policy Institute Fellow, South
Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC
Panelist: Mr. William B. House, Vice President for Regulatory Affairs,
Energy Solutions, Columbia, SC
Panelist: Dr. Eric Loewen, Chief Consulting Engineer, Advanced Plants,
General Electric Hitachi Nuclear Energy, Wilmington, NC
Panelist: Mr. Rick Boyle, Director of the Office of Radioactive
Materials, United States Department of Transportation, Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Washington, D.C.
6 p.m. Reception
Day Three: Saturday, August 23,2008
8:30 a.m. Continental Breakfast
9 a.m. Keynote Address
Dr. Samuel W. Bodman, Secretary of Energy, United States Department
of Energy, Washington, DC, Invited
While there has been much talk in recent years about America's need to reduce its dependence on foreign oil, and substantial disagreement on how best to achieve that goal, most parties to the discussion agree that energy independence is a National Security issue. What is the Federal Government's perspective on commercial nuclear energy and its place in energy independence and national security discussions? What role should the government play in developing the next generation of commercial nuclear energy plants?
9:45 a.m. BREAK
10 a.m. Panel Five: 21 st Century Technology and the Nuclear Energy Industry
Overview: Decades have passed since the last new commercial nuclear power facility came on-line. Technology developed in the interim may result in cleaner, safer nuclear facilities. Panelists will describe those technologies, their impact on safety, and what it all means to workers and residents of communities located near next-generation commercial nuclear facilities.
Moderator: Mr. Jim Little, President, Washington Safety Management Solutions,
Washington Division of URS Corporation, Aiken, SC
Panelist: Dr. Travis W. Knight, Assistant Professor of the Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Nuclear Engineering Program, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC
Panelist: TBA
Panelist: TBA
Questions and Answers
11 a.m. Panel Six:
The Community/Citizen Perspective on Nuclear Energy
Overview: Having listened to the preceding five panel discussions, panelists will offer the
"community" perspective on commercial nuclear energy. Given our nation's current state of energy dependence, are Americans willing to consider commercial nuclear energy as one part of a comprehensive national energy policy? What are the community's health, safety and Environmental Justice concerns? What will it take for communities to embrace commercial nuclear facilities as neighbors? And just where will we store the radioactive waste material from commercial nuclear facilities?
Moderator: Dr. Deborah Klein Walker, Past President of the American Public Health Association, Abt Associates, Inc., Cambridge, MA
Panelist: State Representative Harold Mitchell, South Carolina Legislature (D-SC), Director of Regenesis, Spartanburg, SC
Panelist: Mr. Charles A. Acquard, Executive Director, National Association of State Consumer Advocates (NASUCA), Silver Spring, MD
Panelist: Bishop James L. Black, Executive Director/Founder, Center for Environmental & Economic Justice, Biloxi, MS
Questions and Answers
12:15 p.m. Luncheon
1:30 p.m. Panel Seven: Workforce Development
for the Nuclear Energy Industry
Overview: The next generation of commercial nuclear energy facilities will require highly-skilled and trained professionals to plan, build and operate them. Panelists will discuss ways to address a critical and national shortage of engineering and other trained professionals needed to design, construct and operate commercial nuclear facilities.
Moderator: Dr. Lonnie Sharpe, Samuel P. Massie Chair of Excellence, Tennessee State University, Nashville, TN
Panelist: Mr. Jeffrey M. Allison, Manager, Savannah River Operations Office, Department of Energy, Aiken, SC
Panelist: Mr. Alan Torres, Construction Manager for Nuclear Development, South Carolina Electric & Gas (SCANA), Jenkinsville, SC
Panelist: TBA
Questions and Answers
2:45 p.m. BREAK
3:00 p.m. Closing Session: Energy and the
Election
Topic: With the 2008 Presidential Election occurring just three months after the
conference, candidates from the two major parties will be invited to offer their positions on nuclear energy as part of a comprehensive national energy policy designed to reduce America's dependence on foreign oil.
