Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2; Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2; Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2; Exemption, 19105-19106 [E5-1677]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 69 / Tuesday, April 12, 2005 / Notices
22, 2005, from Nuclear Management
Company, LLC, filed pursuant to
Section 104b (DPR–20) of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and 10
CFR Part 54, to renew the operating
license for the Palisades Nuclear Plant.
Renewal of an operating license
authorizes the applicant to operate the
facility for an additional 20-year period
beyond the period specified in the
current operating license. The current
operating license for the Palisades
Nuclear Plant (DPR–20) expires on
March 24, 2011. The Palisades Nuclear
Plant is a Pressure Water Reactor
designed by Combustion Engineering.
The unit is located near Covert, MI. The
acceptability of the tendered application
for docketing, and other matters
including an opportunity to request a
hearing, will be the subject of
subsequent Federal Register notices.
Copies of the application are available
for public inspection at the
Commission’s Public Document Room
(PDR), located at One White Flint North,
11555 Rockville Pike (first floor),
Rockville, Maryland, 20582 or
electronically from the NRC’s
Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS) Public
Electronic Reading Room under
accession numberML050940429. The
ADAMS Public Electronic Reading
Room is accessible from the NRC’s Web
site at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. In addition, the application
is available at https://www.nrc.gov/
reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/
applications.html, on the NRC’s Web
site, while the application is under
review. Persons who do not have access
to ADAMS or who encounter problems
in accessing the documents located in
ADAMS should contact the NRC’s PDR
Reference staff by telephone at 1–800–
397–4209, or 301–415–4737, or by email
to pdr@nrc.gov.
A copy of the license renewal
application for the Palisades Nuclear
Plant, is also available to local residents
near the Palisades Nuclear Plant, at the
South Haven Memorial Library, 314
Broadway, South Haven, MI 49090.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day
of April, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Pao-Tsin Kuo,
Program Director, License Renewal and
Environmental Impacts Program, Division of
Regulatory Improvement Programs, Office of
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5–1676 Filed 4–11–05; 8:45 am]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50–321, 50–366, 50–348, 50–
364, 50–424, and 50–425]
Southern Nuclear Operating Company,
Inc.; Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant,
Units 1 and 2; Joseph M. Farley
Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2; Vogtle
Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and
2; Exemption
1.0
Background
The Southern Nuclear Operating
Company, Inc. (SNC or the licensee), is
the holder of Facility Operating
Licenses No. DPR–57, NPF–5, NPF–2,
NPF–8, NPF–68, and NPF–81, which
authorize operation of Edwin I. Hatch
Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 (Hatch),
Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant, Units 1
and 2 (Farley), and Vogtle Electric
Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 (Vogtle),
respectively. The licenses provide,
among other things, that these facilities
are subject to all rules, regulations, and
orders of the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC, the Commission)
now or hereafter in effect.
The facilities consist of boiling water
reactors located in Appling County in
Georgia (Hatch), and pressurized water
reactors in Houston County, Alabama
(Farley), and Burke County, Georgia
(Vogtle).
2.0
Request/Action
Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), Part 50, requires
in Appendix E, Section E, that adequate
provisions shall be made and described
for emergency facilities and equipment,
including a licensee onsite technical
support center and a licensee near-site
emergency operations facility (EOF)
from which effective direction can be
given and effective control can be
exercised during an emergency.
Additionally, 10 CFR 50.47(b)(3) states
in part, ‘‘* * * arrangements to
accommodate State and local staff at the
licensee’s near-site EOF have been made
* * *’’ The Commission issued
NUREG–0696, ‘‘Functional Criteria for
Emergency Response Facilities,’’ and
Supplement 1 to NUREG–0737,
‘‘Clarification of TMI Action Plan
Requirements,’’ to provide guidance
regarding acceptable methods for
meeting its EOF emergency
preparedness requirements. In addition,
NUREG–0654/FEMA–REP–1, ‘‘Criteria
for Preparation and Evaluation of
Radiological Emergency Response Plans
and Preparedness in Support of Nuclear
Power Plants,’’ Evaluation Criterion H.2,
states: ‘‘Each licensee shall establish an
Emergency Operations Facility from
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19105
which evaluation and coordination of
all licensee activities related to an
emergency is carried out and from
which the licensee shall provide
information to Federal, State and local
authorities responding to radiological
emergencies in accordance with
NUREG–0696, Revision 1.’’
Both NUREG–0696, Table 2 and
Supplement 1 to NUREG–0737, Table 1
specify that the EOF should be located
between 10 and 20 miles from the site,
but a primary EOF may be located closer
than 10 miles if a backup EOF is located
within 10 to 20 miles of the Technical
Support Center. For cases where the
licensee proposed an exception
involving a greater deviation, and for all
Corporate EOF (CEOF) proposals, the
NRC staff is required to obtain
Commission approval. In SNC’s
proposal dated October 16, 2003, and as
supplemented on April 15 and August
16, 2004, the licensee requested
approval to consolidate the near-site
EOFs and back-up EOFs for Hatch,
Farley, and Vogtle into a single EOF
located at SNC’s corporate location in
Birmingham, Alabama.
Prior requests by other licensees to
relocate EOFs to a location greater than
20 miles from associated reactor sites
did not result in the NRC staff requiring
an exemption to 10 CFR Part 50
Appendix E, and 10 CFR 50.47.
However, the licensee’s proposal to
locate the EOFs in Birmingham, AL, is
11⁄2 to 21⁄2 times farther than any
previous NRC-approved distance. At
this distance, the SNC common EOF can
not reasonably be considered to be
‘‘near-site.’’ Therefore, the NRC staff
determined that an exemption to the
regulations that require an EOF to be
near-site is required prior to
implementation of the SNC CEOF. In
order to ensure that NRC actions are
timely, effective, and efficient, the staff
is initiating this exemption request
under 10 CFR 50.12.
3.0 Discussion
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the
Commission may, upon application by
any interested person or upon its own
initiative, grant exemptions from the
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50 when (1)
the exemptions are authorized by law,
will not present an undue risk to public
health or safety, and are consistent with
the common defense and security; and
(2) when special circumstances are
present. Under 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii),
special circumstances are present when
application of the regulation in the
particular circumstances would not
serve the underlying purpose of the rule
or is not necessary to achieve the
underlying purpose of the rule.The
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 69 / Tuesday, April 12, 2005 / Notices
underlying purpose of the 10 CFR Part
50, Appendix E and 10 CFR 50.47(b)(3)
is to provide reasonable assurance that
adequate protective measures can and
will be implemented in the event of a
radiological emergency. Specifically,
adequate protective measures are those
that provide effective direction and
control, protective actions for the
public, and coordination of the
emergency response effort with Federal,
State, and local agencies.
The staff relied upon the licensee’s
submittals to evaluate whether the
licensee’s proposal to consolidate the
EOF’s for Hatch, Vogtle, and Farley
meets the underlying purpose of 10 CFR
Part 50, Appendix E and 10 CFR
50.47(b)(3). Advancements in
communications, monitoring
capabilities, computer technology, the
familiarity of the NRC staff with the use
of common EOFs, and the SNC’s
emergency response strategies will
continue to provide reasonable
assurance that adequate protective
measures can and will be implemented
in the event of a radiological emergency.
The common EOF in Birmingham,
AL, meets the functional and
availability characteristics for carrying
out the functions of a ‘‘near-site’’ EOF.
The remote location of the common EOF
could aid in response to a security event
as the licensee can effectively mobilize
and manage its resources and
communicate effectively with the site,
Federal, State, and local emergency
management. However, the former nearsite EOFs or equivalent ‘‘near-site’’
facilities may be needed to
accommodate an NRC site team.
Therefore, as a condition of this
exemption, SNC must provide a
functional working space of
approximately 75 square feet per person
for up to 10 people; including NRC,
State, and FEMA representatives at the
former EOFs or equivalent ‘‘near-site’’
facilities. In addition, the licensee will
maintain telecommunications and
habitability provisions (i.e., standard
office lighting, furniture, heating and
ventilating systems, and electrical
power outlets) at these facilities to
support the 10 people.
The NRC staff observed a dual-site
drill on July 14, 2004, involving Farley
and Hatch. The staff observed the
licensee’s notification process, staffing,
communication, technical support, dose
assessment, protective action
recommendation process, coordination
with offsite officials, and overall
command and control. The licensee
demonstrated the capability to respond
to a dual-site emergency event. EOF
staffing was in accordance with the
SNC’s procedures. The offsite agencies
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received timely and accurate
information, and adequate protective
measures were recommended to protect
the public health and safety.
In summary, the licensee’s proposal to
consolidate the near-site EOFs for
Hatch, Farley, and Vogtle to SNC’s
corporate location in Birmingham,
Alabama meets the underlying purpose
of the rule, see 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii). As
evinced in SNC’s submittals the new
EOF location can perform all of the
functions of a ‘‘near-site’’ location as
contemplated by the regulations.
Relocation of the EOFs to the proposed
site will continue to provide reasonable
assurance that adequate protective
measures can and will be implemented
in the event of a radiological emergency.
Therefore, SNC has demonstrated that
special circumstances exist such that an
exemption is warranted.
4.0
Conclusion
Accordingly, the Commission has
determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR
50.12(a), the exemption is authorized by
law, will not present an undue risk to
the public health and safety, and is
consistent with the common defense
and security. Also, special
circumstances are present. Therefore, as
specified herein, the Commission
hereby grants Southern Nuclear
Operating Company, Inc., an exemption
from the ‘‘near-site’’ requirements of 10
CFR Part 50, Appendix E, Section E.8.
and 10 CFR 50.47(b)(3), subject to
maintaining the functionality of the
former near-site EOF or equivalent nearsite facilities.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the
Commission has determined that the
granting of this exemption will not have
a significant effect on the quality of the
human environment (70 FR 10417).
This exemption is effective upon
issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day
of April 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Ledyard B. Marsh,
Director, Division of Licensing Project
Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5–1677 Filed 4–11–05; 8:45 am]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50–368]
Entergy Operations, Inc.; Arkansas
Nuclear One, Unit 2; Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of an exemption from Title 10
of the Code of Federal Regulations (10
CFR) Part 50, Appendix A, ‘‘General
Design Criteria For Nuclear Power
Plants,’’ General Design Criteria (GDC)
57, ‘‘Closed system isolation valves,’’ for
Facility Operating License No. NPF–6,
issued to Entergy Operations, Inc. (the
licensee), for operation of the Arkansas
Nuclear One, Unit 2 (ANO–2), located
in Pope County, Arkansas. Therefore, as
required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is
issuing this environmental assessment
and finding of no significant impact.
Environmental Assessment
Identification of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would provide
an exemption from the requirements of
10 CFR Part 50, Appendix A, GDC 57,
which requires that certain lines that
penetrate containment have at least one
containment isolation valve (CIV) which
shall either be automatic, locked closed,
or capable of remote manual operation.
The licensee requests an exemption in
order to operate at power with certain
valves in the open position.
Specifically, the proposed exemption
would allow ANO–2 to operate at power
with the applicable manual upstream
CIVs associated with the emergency
feedwater (EFW) steam trap and the
atmospheric dump valve (ADV) drain
steam trap (i.e., one applicable CIV per
steam trap) in the open position.
The proposed action is in accordance
with the licensee’s application dated
October 30, 2003, as supplemented by
letters dated July 1, November 15, and
December 3, 2004, and March 3, 2005.
The Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed action is needed to
ensure the operability of the steamdriven EFW pump and to prevent
inoperability due to condensate
buildup, and to ensure that
waterhammer does not damage the
piping associated with the ADV due to
condensate buildup.
GDC 57 states, ‘‘Each line that
penetrates primary reactor containment
and is neither part of the reactor coolant
pressure boundary nor connected
directly to the containment atmosphere
shall have at least one containment
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[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 69 (Tuesday, April 12, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19105-19106]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-1677]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-321, 50-366, 50-348, 50-364, 50-424, and 50-425]
Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.; Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear
Plant, Units 1 and 2; Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2;
Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2; Exemption
1.0 Background
The Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc. (SNC or the licensee),
is the holder of Facility Operating Licenses No. DPR-57, NPF-5, NPF-2,
NPF-8, NPF-68, and NPF-81, which authorize operation of Edwin I. Hatch
Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 (Hatch), Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant,
Units 1 and 2 (Farley), and Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1
and 2 (Vogtle), respectively. The licenses provide, among other things,
that these facilities are subject to all rules, regulations, and orders
of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) now or
hereafter in effect.
The facilities consist of boiling water reactors located in Appling
County in Georgia (Hatch), and pressurized water reactors in Houston
County, Alabama (Farley), and Burke County, Georgia (Vogtle).
2.0 Request/Action
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Part 50,
requires in Appendix E, Section E, that adequate provisions shall be
made and described for emergency facilities and equipment, including a
licensee onsite technical support center and a licensee near-site
emergency operations facility (EOF) from which effective direction can
be given and effective control can be exercised during an emergency.
Additionally, 10 CFR 50.47(b)(3) states in part, `` * * * arrangements
to accommodate State and local staff at the licensee's near-site EOF
have been made * * *'' The Commission issued NUREG-0696, ``Functional
Criteria for Emergency Response Facilities,'' and Supplement 1 to
NUREG-0737, ``Clarification of TMI Action Plan Requirements,'' to
provide guidance regarding acceptable methods for meeting its EOF
emergency preparedness requirements. In addition, NUREG-0654/FEMA-REP-
1, ``Criteria for Preparation and Evaluation of Radiological Emergency
Response Plans and Preparedness in Support of Nuclear Power Plants,''
Evaluation Criterion H.2, states: ``Each licensee shall establish an
Emergency Operations Facility from which evaluation and coordination of
all licensee activities related to an emergency is carried out and from
which the licensee shall provide information to Federal, State and
local authorities responding to radiological emergencies in accordance
with NUREG-0696, Revision 1.''
Both NUREG-0696, Table 2 and Supplement 1 to NUREG-0737, Table 1
specify that the EOF should be located between 10 and 20 miles from the
site, but a primary EOF may be located closer than 10 miles if a backup
EOF is located within 10 to 20 miles of the Technical Support Center.
For cases where the licensee proposed an exception involving a greater
deviation, and for all Corporate EOF (CEOF) proposals, the NRC staff is
required to obtain Commission approval. In SNC's proposal dated October
16, 2003, and as supplemented on April 15 and August 16, 2004, the
licensee requested approval to consolidate the near-site EOFs and back-
up EOFs for Hatch, Farley, and Vogtle into a single EOF located at
SNC's corporate location in Birmingham, Alabama.
Prior requests by other licensees to relocate EOFs to a location
greater than 20 miles from associated reactor sites did not result in
the NRC staff requiring an exemption to 10 CFR Part 50 Appendix E, and
10 CFR 50.47. However, the licensee's proposal to locate the EOFs in
Birmingham, AL, is 1\1/2\ to 2\1/2\ times farther than any previous
NRC-approved distance. At this distance, the SNC common EOF can not
reasonably be considered to be ``near-site.'' Therefore, the NRC staff
determined that an exemption to the regulations that require an EOF to
be near-site is required prior to implementation of the SNC CEOF. In
order to ensure that NRC actions are timely, effective, and efficient,
the staff is initiating this exemption request under 10 CFR 50.12.
3.0 Discussion
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon application by
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from
the requirements of 10 CFR Part 50 when (1) the exemptions are
authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to public health or
safety, and are consistent with the common defense and security; and
(2) when special circumstances are present. Under 10 CFR
50.12(a)(2)(ii), special circumstances are present when application of
the regulation in the particular circumstances would not serve the
underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the
underlying purpose of the rule.The
[[Page 19106]]
underlying purpose of the 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix E and 10 CFR
50.47(b)(3) is to provide reasonable assurance that adequate protective
measures can and will be implemented in the event of a radiological
emergency. Specifically, adequate protective measures are those that
provide effective direction and control, protective actions for the
public, and coordination of the emergency response effort with Federal,
State, and local agencies.
The staff relied upon the licensee's submittals to evaluate whether
the licensee's proposal to consolidate the EOF's for Hatch, Vogtle, and
Farley meets the underlying purpose of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix E and
10 CFR 50.47(b)(3). Advancements in communications, monitoring
capabilities, computer technology, the familiarity of the NRC staff
with the use of common EOFs, and the SNC's emergency response
strategies will continue to provide reasonable assurance that adequate
protective measures can and will be implemented in the event of a
radiological emergency.
The common EOF in Birmingham, AL, meets the functional and
availability characteristics for carrying out the functions of a
``near-site'' EOF. The remote location of the common EOF could aid in
response to a security event as the licensee can effectively mobilize
and manage its resources and communicate effectively with the site,
Federal, State, and local emergency management. However, the former
near-site EOFs or equivalent ``near-site'' facilities may be needed to
accommodate an NRC site team. Therefore, as a condition of this
exemption, SNC must provide a functional working space of approximately
75 square feet per person for up to 10 people; including NRC, State,
and FEMA representatives at the former EOFs or equivalent ``near-site''
facilities. In addition, the licensee will maintain telecommunications
and habitability provisions (i.e., standard office lighting, furniture,
heating and ventilating systems, and electrical power outlets) at these
facilities to support the 10 people.
The NRC staff observed a dual-site drill on July 14, 2004,
involving Farley and Hatch. The staff observed the licensee's
notification process, staffing, communication, technical support, dose
assessment, protective action recommendation process, coordination with
offsite officials, and overall command and control. The licensee
demonstrated the capability to respond to a dual-site emergency event.
EOF staffing was in accordance with the SNC's procedures. The offsite
agencies received timely and accurate information, and adequate
protective measures were recommended to protect the public health and
safety.
In summary, the licensee's proposal to consolidate the near-site
EOFs for Hatch, Farley, and Vogtle to SNC's corporate location in
Birmingham, Alabama meets the underlying purpose of the rule, see 10
CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii). As evinced in SNC's submittals the new EOF
location can perform all of the functions of a ``near-site'' location
as contemplated by the regulations. Relocation of the EOFs to the
proposed site will continue to provide reasonable assurance that
adequate protective measures can and will be implemented in the event
of a radiological emergency. Therefore, SNC has demonstrated that
special circumstances exist such that an exemption is warranted.
4.0 Conclusion
Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR
50.12(a), the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue
risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common
defense and security. Also, special circumstances are present.
Therefore, as specified herein, the Commission hereby grants Southern
Nuclear Operating Company, Inc., an exemption from the ``near-site''
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix E, Section E.8. and 10 CFR
50.47(b)(3), subject to maintaining the functionality of the former
near-site EOF or equivalent near-site facilities.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the
granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on the
quality of the human environment (70 FR 10417).
This exemption is effective upon issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day of April 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Ledyard B. Marsh,
Director, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5-1677 Filed 4-11-05; 8:45 am]
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