ISU’s nuclear reactor is decommissioned, but only on paper.

In the eyes of the federal government, what is now a concrete floor still holds potential hazards that need to be insured, said Dan Bullen, associate professor of mechanical engineering and the director of the reactor facility.

Iowa State pays $2,000 for nuclear liability insurance each year, he said.

The insurance is required as part of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission license that was issued when the nuclear engineering program used the ten-kilowatt reactor, Bullen said.

The nuclear engineering program was discontinued in 1990 for undergraduates. In 1996 the graduate program closed.

After these programs closed, there was no use for the reactor because it is small and too low-powered for use in other disciplines, Bullen said.

The reactor, all contaminants and the concrete shield that was in the Nuclear Engineering Building basement were completely removed two years ago and the license is the only thing that remains, Bullen said.

Because of the commission’s licensing policies, Iowa State must continue to pay insurance until the decommissioning is finalized on paper.

“In theory, there’s still a possibility of liability,” said Warren Madden, vice president of business and finance.

Any claim against the policy would be a “false claim,” as there are “no radiological remains” on campus, Bullen said.

Madden said the university has been working on the decommissioning project for several years, but the length of time is not unusual.

The license is still in effect until the Nuclear Regulatory Commission deems the reactor is decommissioned and the area is released for use. Then the license will be terminated.

Bullen said at Iowa State it will take two years, rather than the usual 18 months.

The decommissioning process has been slow for a number of reasons.

“Sept. 11 has caused the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to focus more on active reactors that are a “higher terrorism threat,” Madden said. Soon after the attack, the commission stepped up security at all reactor locations, including Iowa State.

Because the location where the reactor once stood is now a floor in the Nuclear Engineering Building, the official decommissioning is “pretty far down on the federal priority list,” Madden said.

The progress recently gained more attention from the National Regulatory Commission, because an article last month “sparked interest,” Bullen said.

After talking to them, “we hope they finish up by the end of the summer,” Bullen said.

Meanwhile, the mechanical engineering department “proceeded at risk,” and is now using the space where the reactor once stood for storage until Iowa State can return the license to the NRC for a “complete release of the site,” Bullen said.