Proposed Generic Communication; Pre-Licensing Construction Activities at Proposed Uranium Recovery Facilities, 13483-13485 [E9-6844]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 58 / Friday, March 27, 2009 / Notices
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Commission’s regulations. Therefore,
the exemption is authorized by law.
No Undue Risk to Public Health and
Safety
One of the underlying purposes of 10
CFR Part 50, Appendix R Section III.G
is to protect safe shutdown capability.
This is done by ensuring that one train
of systems necessary to achieve and
maintain hot shutdown conditions from
either the control room or emergency
control station(s) is free of fire damage.
III.G.2 provides the following means to
ensure that a redundant train of safe
shutdown equipment is free of fire
damage, where redundant trains are
located in the same fire area:
a. Separation of cables and equipment
by a fire barrier having a 3-hour rating,
b. Separation of cables and equipment
by a horizontal distance of more than 20
feet with no intervening combustibles or
fire hazards and with fire detectors and
an automatic fire suppression system in
the fire area, or
c. Enclosure of cables and equipment
in a fire barrier having a 1-hour rating
and with fire detectors and an automatic
fire suppression system in the fire area.
Entergy has indicated that the cable
trays will be separated by a minimum
distance of 17 feet–7.5 inches for a
horizontal distance of approximately 10
feet and that the remaining length of
cable trays will be separated by more
than 17 feet–7.5 inches. Entergy has also
indicated that transient combustibles
and hot work controls have been
enhanced since the exemption was
originally granted. This was
accomplished by designating Fire Zone
RB–3 as a ‘‘Level 2’’ combustible control
area, which limits combustibles to
moderate quantities and hot work
requires prior review and approval of a
fire protection engineer.
Additionally, Entergy has stated that
a pre-action automatic sprinkler system
is provided beneath the lowest level of
cable trays and above the top level of
cable trays in Fire Zone RB–3 and that
manual suppression equipment is
provided throughout Fire Zone RB–3 in
the form of accessible fire hose stations
and portable fire extinguishers. A fire
detection system is provided in the form
of Ionization-type smoke detectors.
According to Entergy, the fire
protection systems are functionally
unchanged from what was previously
included in the December 1, 1986,
evaluation. The licensee has indicated
that 1-hour 3M Interam fire barriers
were installed to protect certain
raceways in the northwest corner of
elevation 252 feet however; no credit for
the barriers has been requested as part
of this exemption.
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17:13 Mar 26, 2009
Jkt 217001
Based on the above, the exemption to
allow the reduced minimum separation
distance of 17 feet–7.5 inches in lieu of
the 20 feet dimension specified in
III.G.2 a, b, and c, does not increase the
probability of postulated accidents or
undue risk. Based on the combination of
a lack of combustible fuel loading and
ignition sources, room configuration
and the separation distance of 17 feet–
7.5 inches, the overall level of
protection and defense in depth has
been shown to meet or exceed the intent
of the requirements included in III.G.2
and equivalent with regard to safe
shutdown capability following a fire.
Therefore, there is no additional risk to
public health and safety.
Consistent With Common Defense and
Security
The proposed exemption would
permit a reduced minimum separation
distance between cable trays in a select
area in lieu of meeting the separation
requirements specified in III.G.2. This
change has no relation to security
issues. Therefore, the common defense
and security is not impacted by this
exemption.
Special Circumstances
Special circumstances, in accordance
with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), are present
whenever application of the regulation
in the particular circumstances is not
necessary to achieve the underlying
purpose of the rule. Part of the
underlying purpose of 10 CFR Part 50,
Appendix R Section III.G is to assure
safe shutdown capability. Entergy states
that the active and passive fire
protection features that were included
in the original exemption remain
functionally unchanged. This review
determined that the reduction in
minimum separation distance does not
adversely affect the level of safety at the
plant given the physical configuration of
the cable trays, existing suppression and
detection systems and the lack of
combustible fuel loading in the area.
The combination of these safeguards is
sufficient to maintain safe shutdown
capability in the event of a fire even at
the reduced separation distance of 17
feet–7.5 inches. Since the underlying
purpose of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R
Section III.G to protect safe shutdown
capability is achieved, the special
circumstances required by 10 CFR
50.12(a)(2)(ii) for the granting of an
exemption from 10 CFR Part 50,
Appendix R Section III.G.2 exist.
4.0 Conclusion
Accordingly, the Commission has
determined that special circumstances
are present and that, pursuant to 10 CFR
PO 00000
Frm 00089
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
13483
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 levels intended by the rule
for Nuclear Power Plants. Therefore, the
Commission hereby grants Entergy an
exemption from the requirements of
III.G.2 b of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R,
which is required by 10 CFR 50.48(b) for
plants licensed to operate before January
1, 1979, to VY.
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 (74 FR 11612).
This exemption is effective upon
issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day
of March 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert A. Nelson,
Acting Director, Division of Operating Reactor
Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. E9–6845 Filed 3–26–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[NRC–2009–0138]
Proposed Generic Communication;
Pre-Licensing Construction Activities
at Proposed Uranium Recovery
Facilities
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of opportunity for public
comment.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is proposing to issue
a regulatory issue summary (RIS) to
present its interpretation of the
regulations governing the
commencement of construction found
in 10 CFR 40.32(e). This Federal
Register notice is available through the
NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access
and Management System (ADAMS)
under accession number ML083470668.
DATES: Comment period expires April
27, 2009. Comments submitted after this
date will be considered if it is practical
to do so, but assurance of consideration
cannot be given except for comments
received on or before this date.
ADDRESSES: Submit written
comments to the Chief, Uranium
Recovery Licensing Branch, Division of
Waste Management and Environmental
Protection, Office of Federal and State
Materials and Environmental
Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear
E:\FR\FM\27MRN1.SGM
27MRN1
13484
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 58 / Friday, March 27, 2009 / Notices
Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop T–
8F5, Washington, DC 20555–0001, and
cite the publication date and page
number of this Federal Register notice.
Written comments may also be
delivered to NRC Headquarters, 11545
Rockville Pike (Room T–8F5), Rockville,
Maryland, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15
p.m. on Federal workdays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Stephen J. Cohen at 301–415–7182 or by
e-mail at stephen.cohen@nrc.gov.
Draft Regulatory Issue Summary 2009–
XX, ‘‘Pre-Licensing Construction
Activities at Proposed Uranium
Recovery Facilities’’
Addressees
All holders of operating licenses for
uranium recovery facilities and all
companies that have submitted
applications to construct new uranium
recovery facilities of all types
(conventional mills, heap leach, and in
situ recovery (ISR) facilities) or letters of
intent to submit such applications.
Intent
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is issuing this
regulatory issue summary (RIS) to
inform addressees of the NRC’s policy
regarding pre-licensing construction
activities at proposed uranium recovery
facilities. The NRC is issuing this RIS in
response to industry inquiries regarding
the activities that applicants may
undertake prior to receiving a license.
Background
In relation to the applications for new
uranium recovery facilities currently
under review and those applications
expected over the next several years, the
NRC has been queried by the uranium
recovery industry about those
construction activities that would be
permissible at proposed uranium
recovery facilities before a license is
granted. The industry has requested
information on such pre-licensing
construction activities, including the
potential use of limited work
authorizations (LWAs) as provided in
the reactor program, in the interest of
minimizing the lead time from receipt of
a license to the initiation of uranium
recovery operations.
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Summary of Issue
The NRC’s regulations in 10 CFR
40.32(e) state that ‘‘commencement of
construction’’ of a uranium recovery
facility prior to issuance of a license is
grounds for license denial. The term
‘‘commencement of construction’’
means ‘‘any clearing of land, excavation,
or other substantial action that would
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17:13 Mar 26, 2009
Jkt 217001
adversely affect the environment of a
site.’’ The term does not mean ‘‘site
exploration, roads necessary for site
exploration, borings to determine
foundation conditions, or other
preconstruction monitoring or testing to
establish background information
related to the suitability of the site or
the protection of environmental values.’’
Such activities may thus be conducted
before a license is granted.
In a Staff Requirements Memorandum
(SRM)-M081211, the Commission
directed the staff to budget resources to
develop a proposed rulemaking to revise
10 CFR 40.32(e) to determine whether a
limited work authorization provision is
appropriated for in-situ uranium
facilities. Information gathered through
the process described in this RIS will be
used to support development of such a
proposed rulemaking.
ISR Industry representatives, through
their legal counsel, presented their
opinions to staff regarding the
applicability of 10 CFR 40.32(e) to ISR
facilities during a meeting on November
18, 2008. Industry’s position is that 10
CFR 40.32(e) is not applicable to ISR
facilities, based on the rulemaking
history of this regulation as reflected in
the 1980 Federal Register notice
publishing the final rule. In a November
18, 2008 White Paper, the ISR industry
argues as follows:
This 1980 final rule promulgated and
finalized a number of UMTRCA-specific
regulations, including what the Commission
referred to as ‘‘siting and design criteria’’ for
newly proposed conventional uranium
milling facilities (October 3, 1980; 45 FR
65521). One of these regulations was a newly
proposed 10 CFR 40.32(e) that dealt directly
with the extent to which a proposed
conventional uranium mill project site could
be developed and constructed pursuant to
these ‘‘siting and design criteria’’ prior to the
issuance of a uranium milling license. This
new 10 CFR 40.32(e) imposed a requirement
on the Director of NRC’s then-named Office
of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
(NMSS) (now Office of Federal and State
Materials and Environmental Management
Programs) to make ‘‘a positive finding on an
applicant’s proposed plans as meeting the
requirements and objectives in Appendix A
prior to commencement of construction of a
mill which produces byproduct material.’’
Industry further stated the following:
Based on this requirement, the
Commission concluded in the regulation that
‘‘[c]ommencement of construction prior to
this conclusion is grounds for denial of a
license to possess and use source and
byproduct material in the plant or facility.’’
(10 CFR 40.32(e)). Therefore, ‘‘the denial of
applications for licenses where construction
is started before the appropriate
environmental appraisals are completed and
documented’’ is required.
PO 00000
Frm 00090
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
However, it is crystal-clear from
NRC’s accompanying explanatory
language that this requirement is to be
imposed only on a conventional ‘‘mill
which produces byproduct material’’ as
tailings, where it states: ‘‘Construction
activities are likely to result in
significant and long lasting
environmental impacts, the propriety of
which cannot be ascertained until these
environmental appraisals are completed
and documented.’’
In addition, to support its claim that
10 CFR 40.32(e) applies only to
conventional mills, the ISR industry
paper states:
Given that each mill tailings pile
constitutes a low-level waste burial site
containing long lived radioactive materials,
* * * prudence requires that specific
methods of tailings disposal, mill
decontamination, site reclamation, surety
arrangements, and arrangements to allow for
transfer of site and tailings ownership be
worked out and approved before a license is
granted.
(October 3, 1980; 45 FR 65521).
According to industry, ISR applicants,
therefore, should be allowed to build
out most of the facilities in three tiers.
Tier 1 includes activities over which
NRC would have no jurisdiction, such
as:
• Laying foundations and
construction of all support structures;
• Laying of foundations for
processing facilities;
• Construction of ancillary facilities
(i.e., roads, parking lots, access controls,
power lines);
• Installation of water and sanitary
systems;
• Drilling of disposal wells.
Tier 2 activities would include those
requiring NRC approval, but not a
license, such as the following:
• Construction of processing
facilities;
• Drilling of injection and production
wells;
• Installation of wellfield pipelines.
Tier 3 activities would not occur until
a license is issued and would include
construction of the evaporation ponds
and engaging in uranium recovery
operations.
NRC staff does not agree with
industry’s interpretation of 10 CFR
40.32(e). This regulation uses the terms
‘‘uranium milling’’ and ‘‘byproduct
material,’’ each of which is specifically
defined in 10 CFR 40.4. The term
‘‘uranium milling’’ means ‘‘any activity
that results in the production of
byproduct material as defined in this
part.’’ The term ‘‘byproduct material’’
means ‘‘the tailings or wastes produced
by the extraction or concentration of
uranium or thorium from any ore
E:\FR\FM\27MRN1.SGM
27MRN1
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 58 / Friday, March 27, 2009 / Notices
processed primarily for its source
material content, including discrete
surface wastes resulting from uranium
solution extraction processes.’’ These
definitions were added to 10 CFR Part
40 in a 1979 final rulemaking that the
ISR industry paper does not discuss.
The NRC’s regulations in 10 CFR Part
50 (Domestic Licensing of Production
and Utilization Facilities) include an
LWA process that allows the NRC to
approve the conduct of certain
construction activities in advance of the
issuance of a construction permit or
combined license. However, there are
no similar provisions in 10 CFR Part 40
for the use of LWAs in the licensing of
uranium recovery facilities. Therefore, if
an applicant wishes to perform prelicensing construction activities apart
from those permitted under 10 CFR
40.32(e), an exemption request must be
submitted for the staff’s review. The
exemption request must specify the
particular activity, the purpose and
need for the activity, the duration of the
activity, and the potential impacts to
human health and the environment. The
request should include drawings that
provide construction details and the
location of the proposed activity.
Depending on the specific activities
included in the exemption request, the
staff’s review may include an
environmental assessment pursuant to
the requirements of 10 CFR Part 51
(Environmental Protection Regulations
for Domestic Licensing and Related
Regulatory Functions), consistent with
the guidance in NUREG–1748
(Environmental Review Guidance for
Licensing Actions Associated with
NMSS Programs). Exemption requests
will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis
and the granting of any exemptions does
not ensure subsequent approval of a
license. As such, any construction
activities performed by the applicant
under an exemption and prior to the
issuance of a license are performed at
the applicant’s risk.
Voluntary Response Requested
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
All addressees and the public are
requested to voluntarily submit
comments regarding the pre-licensing
policy presented in this RIS. To be of
use to the NRC, responses should be
submitted within 30 days of the date of
this summary.
Congressional Review Act
This RIS is not a rule as designated in
the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C.
801–886) and, therefore, is not subject to
the Act.
VerDate Nov<24>2008
17:13 Mar 26, 2009
Jkt 217001
Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
This draft RIS does not contain new
or amended information collection
requirements subject to the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.). Existing requirements were
approved by the Office of Management
and Budget, approval numbers 3150–
0020 and 3150–0021.
Public Protection Notification
The NRC may not conduct or sponsor,
and a person is not required to respond
to, a request for information or an
information collection unless the
requesting document displays a
currently valid OMB clearance number.
Contact
This RIS requires no specific action or
written response. If you have any
questions about this summary, please
contact the technical contact listed
below.
Technical Contact: Stephen J. Cohen,
DWMEP/URLB, (301) 415–7182, e-mail:
stephen.cohen@nrc.gov.
Note: The NRC’s generic communications
may be found on the NRC public Web site,
https://www.nrc.gov, under Electronic
Reading Room/Document Collections.
End of Draft Regulatory Issue Summary
Documents may be examined, and/or
copied for a fee, at the NRC’s Public
Document Room at One White Flint
North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor),
Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available
records will be accessible electronically
from the Agencywide Documents
Access and Management System
(ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading
Room on the Internet at the NRC Web
site, https://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/
index.html. If you do not have access to
ADAMS or if you have problems in
accessing the documents in ADAMS,
contact the NRC Public Document Room
(PDR) reference staff at 1–800–397–4209
or 301–415–4737 or by e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day
of March 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Keith I. McConnell, Deputy Director,
Decommissioning and Uranium Recovery
Licensing Directorate, Division of Waste
Management, and Environmental Protection,
Office of Federal and State Materials, and
Environmental Management Programs.
[FR Doc. E9–6844 Filed 3–26–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
PO 00000
Frm 00091
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13485
OVERSEAS PRIVATE INVESTMENT
CORPORATION
Submission for OMB Review
AGENCY: Overseas Private Investment
Corporation (OPIC).
ACTION: Request for comments.
SUMMARY: Under the provision of the
Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35), agencies are required to
publish a Notice in the Federal Register
notifying the public, that the Agency is
revising an information collection
request for OMB review, approval, and
request public review and comment on
the submission. Comments are being
solicited on the need for the
information; the accuracy of the
Agency’s burden estimate; the quality,
practical utility and clarity of the
information to be collected; and ways to
minimize the reporting burden,
including automated collection
techniques by using other forms of
technology. The proposed form under
review is summarized below.
DATES: Comments must be received
within 60 calendar days of publication
of this notice.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the subject form
and the request for review prepared for
submission to OMB may be obtained
from the Agency submitting officer.
Comments on the form should be
submitted to the Agency Submitting
Officer.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
OPIC Agency Submitting Officer: Essie
S. Bryant, Records Management Officer,
Overseas Private Investment
Corporation, 1100 New York Avenue,
NW., Washington, DC 20527; 202–336–
8563.
OMB Contact: Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs, U.S. Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget,
Attention: Ms. Wendy Liberante, 725
17th Street, Room 10102, NW.,
Washington, DC 20503; (202) 395–3647.
Summary Form Under Review:
Type of Request: Reinstatement, with
changes, of a previously approved
collection for which approval is
expiring.
Title: Sponsor Disclosure Report.
Form Number: OPIC–129.
Frequency of Use: Once per major
sponsor, per project.
Type of Respondents: Business or
other institutions.
Standard Industrial Classification
Codes: All.
Description of Affected Public: U.S.
Companies sponsoring projects
overseas.
E:\FR\FM\27MRN1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 58 (Friday, March 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13483-13485]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-6844]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2009-0138]
Proposed Generic Communication; Pre-Licensing Construction
Activities at Proposed Uranium Recovery Facilities
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of opportunity for public comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to
issue a regulatory issue summary (RIS) to present its interpretation of
the regulations governing the commencement of construction found in 10
CFR 40.32(e). This Federal Register notice is available through the
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) under
accession number ML083470668.
DATES: Comment period expires April 27, 2009. Comments submitted after
this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but assurance
of consideration cannot be given except for comments received on or
before this date.
ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to the Chief, Uranium Recovery
Licensing Branch, Division of Waste Management and Environmental
Protection, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental
Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear
[[Page 13484]]
Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop T-8F5, Washington, DC 20555-0001, and
cite the publication date and page number of this Federal Register
notice. Written comments may also be delivered to NRC Headquarters,
11545 Rockville Pike (Room T-8F5), Rockville, Maryland, between 7:30
a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Stephen J. Cohen at 301-415-7182
or by e-mail at stephen.cohen@nrc.gov.
Draft Regulatory Issue Summary 2009-XX, ``Pre-Licensing Construction
Activities at Proposed Uranium Recovery Facilities''
Addressees
All holders of operating licenses for uranium recovery facilities
and all companies that have submitted applications to construct new
uranium recovery facilities of all types (conventional mills, heap
leach, and in situ recovery (ISR) facilities) or letters of intent to
submit such applications.
Intent
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this
regulatory issue summary (RIS) to inform addressees of the NRC's policy
regarding pre-licensing construction activities at proposed uranium
recovery facilities. The NRC is issuing this RIS in response to
industry inquiries regarding the activities that applicants may
undertake prior to receiving a license.
Background
In relation to the applications for new uranium recovery facilities
currently under review and those applications expected over the next
several years, the NRC has been queried by the uranium recovery
industry about those construction activities that would be permissible
at proposed uranium recovery facilities before a license is granted.
The industry has requested information on such pre-licensing
construction activities, including the potential use of limited work
authorizations (LWAs) as provided in the reactor program, in the
interest of minimizing the lead time from receipt of a license to the
initiation of uranium recovery operations.
Summary of Issue
The NRC's regulations in 10 CFR 40.32(e) state that ``commencement
of construction'' of a uranium recovery facility prior to issuance of a
license is grounds for license denial. The term ``commencement of
construction'' means ``any clearing of land, excavation, or other
substantial action that would adversely affect the environment of a
site.'' The term does not mean ``site exploration, roads necessary for
site exploration, borings to determine foundation conditions, or other
preconstruction monitoring or testing to establish background
information related to the suitability of the site or the protection of
environmental values.'' Such activities may thus be conducted before a
license is granted.
In a Staff Requirements Memorandum (SRM)-M081211, the Commission
directed the staff to budget resources to develop a proposed rulemaking
to revise 10 CFR 40.32(e) to determine whether a limited work
authorization provision is appropriated for in-situ uranium facilities.
Information gathered through the process described in this RIS will be
used to support development of such a proposed rulemaking.
ISR Industry representatives, through their legal counsel,
presented their opinions to staff regarding the applicability of 10 CFR
40.32(e) to ISR facilities during a meeting on November 18, 2008.
Industry's position is that 10 CFR 40.32(e) is not applicable to ISR
facilities, based on the rulemaking history of this regulation as
reflected in the 1980 Federal Register notice publishing the final
rule. In a November 18, 2008 White Paper, the ISR industry argues as
follows:
This 1980 final rule promulgated and finalized a number of
UMTRCA-specific regulations, including what the Commission referred
to as ``siting and design criteria'' for newly proposed conventional
uranium milling facilities (October 3, 1980; 45 FR 65521). One of
these regulations was a newly proposed 10 CFR 40.32(e) that dealt
directly with the extent to which a proposed conventional uranium
mill project site could be developed and constructed pursuant to
these ``siting and design criteria'' prior to the issuance of a
uranium milling license. This new 10 CFR 40.32(e) imposed a
requirement on the Director of NRC's then-named Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS) (now Office of Federal and
State Materials and Environmental Management Programs) to make ``a
positive finding on an applicant's proposed plans as meeting the
requirements and objectives in Appendix A prior to commencement of
construction of a mill which produces byproduct material.''
Industry further stated the following:
Based on this requirement, the Commission concluded in the
regulation that ``[c]ommencement of construction prior to this
conclusion is grounds for denial of a license to possess and use
source and byproduct material in the plant or facility.'' (10 CFR
40.32(e)). Therefore, ``the denial of applications for licenses
where construction is started before the appropriate environmental
appraisals are completed and documented'' is required.
However, it is crystal-clear from NRC's accompanying explanatory
language that this requirement is to be imposed only on a conventional
``mill which produces byproduct material'' as tailings, where it
states: ``Construction activities are likely to result in significant
and long lasting environmental impacts, the propriety of which cannot
be ascertained until these environmental appraisals are completed and
documented.''
In addition, to support its claim that 10 CFR 40.32(e) applies only
to conventional mills, the ISR industry paper states:
Given that each mill tailings pile constitutes a low-level waste
burial site containing long lived radioactive materials, * * *
prudence requires that specific methods of tailings disposal, mill
decontamination, site reclamation, surety arrangements, and
arrangements to allow for transfer of site and tailings ownership be
worked out and approved before a license is granted.
(October 3, 1980; 45 FR 65521).
According to industry, ISR applicants, therefore, should be allowed
to build out most of the facilities in three tiers. Tier 1 includes
activities over which NRC would have no jurisdiction, such as:
Laying foundations and construction of all support
structures;
Laying of foundations for processing facilities;
Construction of ancillary facilities (i.e., roads, parking
lots, access controls, power lines);
Installation of water and sanitary systems;
Drilling of disposal wells.
Tier 2 activities would include those requiring NRC approval, but
not a license, such as the following:
Construction of processing facilities;
Drilling of injection and production wells;
Installation of wellfield pipelines.
Tier 3 activities would not occur until a license is issued and
would include construction of the evaporation ponds and engaging in
uranium recovery operations.
NRC staff does not agree with industry's interpretation of 10 CFR
40.32(e). This regulation uses the terms ``uranium milling'' and
``byproduct material,'' each of which is specifically defined in 10 CFR
40.4. The term ``uranium milling'' means ``any activity that results in
the production of byproduct material as defined in this part.'' The
term ``byproduct material'' means ``the tailings or wastes produced by
the extraction or concentration of uranium or thorium from any ore
[[Page 13485]]
processed primarily for its source material content, including discrete
surface wastes resulting from uranium solution extraction processes.''
These definitions were added to 10 CFR Part 40 in a 1979 final
rulemaking that the ISR industry paper does not discuss.
The NRC's regulations in 10 CFR Part 50 (Domestic Licensing of
Production and Utilization Facilities) include an LWA process that
allows the NRC to approve the conduct of certain construction
activities in advance of the issuance of a construction permit or
combined license. However, there are no similar provisions in 10 CFR
Part 40 for the use of LWAs in the licensing of uranium recovery
facilities. Therefore, if an applicant wishes to perform pre-licensing
construction activities apart from those permitted under 10 CFR
40.32(e), an exemption request must be submitted for the staff's
review. The exemption request must specify the particular activity, the
purpose and need for the activity, the duration of the activity, and
the potential impacts to human health and the environment. The request
should include drawings that provide construction details and the
location of the proposed activity.
Depending on the specific activities included in the exemption
request, the staff's review may include an environmental assessment
pursuant to the requirements of 10 CFR Part 51 (Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions), consistent with the guidance in NUREG-1748 (Environmental
Review Guidance for Licensing Actions Associated with NMSS Programs).
Exemption requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and the
granting of any exemptions does not ensure subsequent approval of a
license. As such, any construction activities performed by the
applicant under an exemption and prior to the issuance of a license are
performed at the applicant's risk.
Voluntary Response Requested
All addressees and the public are requested to voluntarily submit
comments regarding the pre-licensing policy presented in this RIS. To
be of use to the NRC, responses should be submitted within 30 days of
the date of this summary.
Congressional Review Act
This RIS is not a rule as designated in the Congressional Review
Act (5 U.S.C. 801-886) and, therefore, is not subject to the Act.
Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
This draft RIS does not contain new or amended information
collection requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Existing requirements were approved by the
Office of Management and Budget, approval numbers 3150-0020 and 3150-
0021.
Public Protection Notification
The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a request for information or an information collection
unless the requesting document displays a currently valid OMB clearance
number.
Contact
This RIS requires no specific action or written response. If you
have any questions about this summary, please contact the technical
contact listed below.
Technical Contact: Stephen J. Cohen, DWMEP/URLB, (301) 415-7182, e-
mail: stephen.cohen@nrc.gov.
Note: The NRC's generic communications may be found on the NRC
public Web site, https://www.nrc.gov, under Electronic Reading Room/
Document Collections.
End of Draft Regulatory Issue Summary
Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's
Public Document Room at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike
(first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be
accessible electronically from the Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading Room on the
Internet at the NRC Web site, https://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/.
If you do not have access to ADAMS or if you have problems in accessing
the documents in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public Document Room (PDR)
reference staff at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of March 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Keith I. McConnell, Deputy Director,
Decommissioning and Uranium Recovery Licensing Directorate, Division of
Waste Management, and Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and
State Materials, and Environmental Management Programs.
[FR Doc. E9-6844 Filed 3-26-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P