Proposed Agency Information Collection, 43067-43069 [2012-17876]
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Dated: July 17, 2012.
Mary Crovo,
Deputy Executive Director, National
Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), U.S.
Department of Education.
[FR Doc. 2012–17802 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy
Improvement Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101–
440).
Tentative Agenda: Receive an update
on the activities of the STEAB’s Task
Forces, review letters and resolutions
transmitted to EERE on behalf of the
STEAB, and provide an update to the
Board on routine business matters and
other topics of interest.
Public Participation: The meeting is
open to the public. Written statements
may be filed with the Board either
before or after the meeting. Members of
the public who wish to make oral
statements pertaining to agenda items
should contact Gil Sperling at the
address or telephone number listed
above. Requests to make oral comments
must be received five days prior to the
meeting; reasonable provisions will be
made to include requested topic(s) on
the agenda. The Chair of the Board is
empowered to conduct the meeting in a
fashion that will facilitate the orderly
conduct of business.
Minutes: The minutes of the meeting
will be available for public review and
copying within 60 days on the STEAB
Web site at: www.steab.org.
State Energy Advisory Board
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice of open teleconference.
Issued at Washington, DC, on July 13,
2012.
LaTanya R. Butler,
Acting Deputy Committee Management
Officer.
[FR Doc. 2012–17877 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
AGENCY:
This notice announces a
teleconference call of the State Energy
Advisory Board (STEAB). The Federal
Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–
463; 86 Stat.770) requires that public
notice of these meetings be announced
in the Federal Register.
DATES: Thursday, August 16, 2012,
3:30 p.m.–4:00 p.m. (EST). To receive
the call-in number and passcode, please
contact the Board’s Designated Federal
Officer (DFO) at the address or phone
number listed below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gil
Sperling, STEAB Designated Federal
Officer, U.S. Department of Energy,
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, 1000 Independence
Ave. SW., Washington, DC 20585.
Phone number: (202) 287–1644.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose of the Board: To make
recommendations to the Assistant
Secretary for the Office of Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy
regarding goals and objectives,
programmatic and administrative
policies, and to otherwise carry out the
Board’s responsibilities as designated in
the State Energy Efficiency Programs
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SUMMARY:
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BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
U.S. Energy Information
Administration
Proposed Agency Information
Collection
U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA), Department of
Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Agency Information Collection
Activities: Proposed Information
Collection; Notice and Request for
Comments.
AGENCY:
The EIA is soliciting
comments on the proposed
reinstatement, and three-year approval
to the Form GC–859, ‘‘Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey’’ (previously designated as the
Form RW–859, ‘‘Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey’’) that EIA is developing for
submission to the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The
Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42
U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) required that the
DOE enter into Standard Contracts with
all generators or owners of spent nuclear
fuel and high-level radioactive waste of
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
43067
domestic origin in 1983. This data
collection evolved from an Appendix to
this Standard Contract. Appendix B to
the Standard Contract required that
spent nuclear fuel discharge, storage,
and projection information be collected
annually. The annual version of the
Form RW–859 survey was collected for
the survey years from 1983 through
1995. Due to budgetary constraints, the
survey was collected periodically for
survey years 1998 and 2002, covering
multi-year periods. The survey
containing data as of December 31, 2002
was collected during 2003 and is the
most recent data on spent nuclear fuel
discharges and storage available within
DOE. Lack of funding resulted in the
form being discontinued in 2009. With
the transfer of certain functions between
Offices of the DOE and with the need to
collect data for other Offices within
DOE, the data collection authorization is
now under the auspices of the Office of
the General Counsel (GC) and the form
will be redesignated as the Form GC–
859.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether
the proposed collection of information
is necessary for the proper performance
of the functions of the agency, including
whether the information shall have
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information,
including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c)
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and (d) ways to minimize the
burden of the collection of information
on respondents, including through the
use of automated collection techniques
or other forms of information
technology.
DATES: Comments regarding this
proposed information collection must
be received by September 21, 2012. If
you anticipate difficulty in submitting
comments within that period, contact
the person listed in ADDRESSES as soon
as possible.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to Marta
Gospodarczyk. To ensure receipt of the
comments by the due date, submission
by Fax (202–586–3045) or email
(marta.gospodarczyk@eia.gov) is
recommended. The mailing address is
Office of Electricity, Coal, Nuclear, and
Renewables Analysis, EI–34, Forrestal
Building, U.S. Department of Energy,
1000 Independence Ave. SW.,
Washington, DC 20585. Alternatively,
Ms. Gospodarczyk may be contacted by
telephone at 202–586–0527.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of any forms and instructions
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mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
43068
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 141 / Monday, July 23, 2012 / Notices
should be directed to Ms. Gospodarczyk
at the address listed above.
Additionally, forms and instructions
may be viewed at https://www.eia.gov/
survey/#GC-859.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
information collection request contains:
(1) OMB No. 1901–0287;
(2) Information Collection Request
Title: Form GC–859, ‘‘Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey’’;
(3) Type of Request: Reinstatement
with changes of a previously approved
collection for which approval has been
discontinued;
(4a) Purpose:
The Federal Energy Administration
Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93–275, 15 U.S.C.
761 et seq.) and the DOE Organization
Act (Pub. L. 95–91, 42 U.S.C. 7101 et
seq.) require the EIA to carry out a
centralized, comprehensive, and unified
energy information program. This
program collects, evaluates, assembles,
analyzes, and disseminates information
on energy resource reserves, production,
demand, technology, and related
economic and statistical information.
This information is used to assess the
adequacy of energy resources to meet
near and longer term domestic
demands.
The EIA, as part of its effort to comply
with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (Pub. L. 104–13, 44 U.S.C. chapter
35), provides the general public and
other Federal agencies with
opportunities to comment on collections
of energy information conducted by or
in conjunction with the EIA. Any
comments received help the EIA to
prepare data requests that maximize the
utility of the information collected, and
to assess the impact of collection
requirements on the public. Also, the
EIA will later seek approval by the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) under Section 3507(a) of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982
(42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) required that
the DOE enter into Standard Contracts
with all generators or owners of spent
nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive
waste of domestic origin. Form GC–859
evolved from an appendix to this
Standard Contract.
Appendix B to the Standard Contract,
originally titled ‘‘Ten Year Discharge
Forecast,’’ became the Form RW–859
‘‘Nuclear Fuel Data Survey.’’ The Form
RW–859 survey was collected annually
for survey years from 1983 through
1995. It was again collected for survey
years 1998 and 2002, covering a multiyear period. The Form RW–859 was last
collected in 2003 and was discontinued
on November 10, 2009. The survey
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19:21 Jul 20, 2012
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containing data as of December 31, 2002
was the last collected and is the most
recent data on nuclear fuel discharges
and storage available within EIA. The
EIA has collected the Form RW–859
survey for the DOE Office of Civilian
Radioactive Waste Management
(OCRWM). In 2009, the Obama
Administration determined that all
funding for OCRWM be eliminated from
the Federal budget, leading to the
dissolution of the OCRWM. Many of the
activities previously performed by the
OCRWM had to continue in lieu of these
political developments. Activities were
transferred to the Office of Standard
Contract Management, which has been
created within the Office of the General
Counsel (GC). Thus, the form number
was changed from the Form RW–859 to
the Form GC–859.
Form RW–859 Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey form has been used to collect
information on nuclear fuel use and
spent fuel discharges from all utilities
that operate commercial nuclear
reactors and from all others that possess
irradiated fuel from commercial nuclear
reactors. The data collection provides
stakeholders with detailed information
concerning the spent nuclear fuel
generated by the respondents
(commercial utility generators of spent
nuclear fuel and other owners of spent
nuclear fuel within the U.S.). The new
Form GC–859 will represent a change
from previous versions of the Nuclear
Fuel Data Survey. Recommendations
developed by the president’s Blue
Ribbon Commission on America’s
Nuclear Energy Future have resulted in
a need for more detailed data than that
collected in previous surveys in order
that personnel from the DOE Offices of
Nuclear Energy (NE) and Environmental
Management (EM), the national
laboratories, and other data users can
meet their research obligations.
Please refer to the proposed forms and
instructions for more information about
the purpose, who must report, when to
report, where to submit, the elements to
be reported, detailed instructions,
provisions for confidentiality, and uses
(including possible non-statistical uses)
of the information. For instructions on
obtaining materials, see the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
(4b) Proposed Changes to Information
Collection:
The current Form GC–859 redesign
effort and associated changes has
several fundamental goals and
objectives:
—Maintain the fidelity of collection of
the information required by
stakeholders, by continuing to collect
quality data on reactors, historical
PO 00000
Frm 00024
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
spent fuel discharges, projections of
spent fuel discharges, pool capacities
and inventories, and special fuel and
non-fuel forms relevant to user needs;
—Simplify the process of data collection
and validation, by enhancing the
ability of respondents to provide data
through electronic data transfer in any
available format (spreadsheet,
database, etc.);
The major changes to the Form GC–
859 survey from the last data collection
in 2003 include the following:
The EIA has modified the structure of
the Form GC–859 survey into separate
schedules for the collection of utility,
reactor, fuel, storage facility, non-fuel,
and greater than class C (GTCC) lowlevel radioactive waste data. The
redesign increases the visibility of
storage facilities as individual entities,
clarifies the collection of data on special
fuel forms and non-fuel components,
updates historical cycle assembly data,
and collects new data on GTCC lowlevel waste.
Instructions for responding to each
schedule of the survey form, along with
appropriate references and definitions,
have been moved into the schedules.
Instructions were previously detailed in
an Appendix to the survey form.
Appropriate data from the Standard
Contract has also been included within
the form schedules. The new form
allows for multiple contact personnel,
so that respondents may choose to
submit reactor and storage facility data
separately. Drop-down menus have been
added throughout the form to aid the
respondents. The Glossary has been
revised and expanded. Respondents to
this data collection are provided with
data submitted on previous Nuclear
Fuel Data surveys so that they may
update historical data. The DOE last
collected the survey containing data as
of December 31, 2002. Current
respondents will be provided with this
2002 survey data to update. Additional
data from prior versions of the form will
also be supplied where appropriate.
Respondents will be allowed to modify,
update, or correct historical data or
supply complete historical data in any
readily available format.
The consolidation of all fuel data
(metal content, enrichment, discharge
burnup, cycle numbers and dates, fuel
vendor, lattice type, assembly status
code, storage location, special fuel
forms) in a single survey schedule
ensures consistent, non-repetitive data.
Data on special fuel forms (consolidated
fuel, fuel in canisters, fuel rods, fuel
pieces) now supplements the basic fuel
data, rather than being collected in
separate sections as in previous surveys.
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 141 / Monday, July 23, 2012 / Notices
A major change to the spent fuel data is
that respondents are no longer required
to report assembly type codes for every
discharged assembly. Previous surveys
contained an Appendix of almost 300
different assembly codes from which the
respondent had to choose, based on
assembly manufacturer, design
considerations, and characteristics.
Respondents are now required to only
report manufacturer and lattice (array)
type, greatly reducing the time required
to fill out this section.
The fuel section now includes a
requirement to collect complete fuel
cycle history for every discharged
assembly. Previously collected fuel data
included fresh fuel assembly insertions
and spent fuel discharges, so much of
this historical data is already available
and will be provided to the respondents.
Data collection for pool storage and
dry storage has been consolidated from
two sections on the Form RW–859
survey to one on the Form GC–859
survey. Previous requirements to supply
information on individual assemblies
stored at all storage sites has been
replaced by the addition of a column for
storage site identifier in the fuel data
section. A new requirement to report
assemblies in multi-canister dry storage
modules has been added.
Non-fuel components data collection
has been moved to a separate schedule.
Based on discussions with industry
personnel and comments submitted on
previous surveys, data will now be
collected by storage location:
Components that are an integral part of
an assembly, components stored in a
single-element canister or container,
and components stored separate from an
assembly and uncanistered in the
storage pool. Data on non-fuel
components integral to an assembly are
being collected for the first time.
Another new addition to the Form
GC–859 is a schedule for greater than
class C (GTCC) low level radioactive
waste (LLRW). This schedule will
collect both packaged and projected
inventory information for activated
metals and process waste. This schedule
is not mandatory, and only respondents
who have readily available access to this
data should report.
Approximately 20 questions, tables,
or sections have been deleted from this
version of the form. Data on reinserted
fuel, canister closure, and shipments
and transfers of discharged fuel have
been removed in the new version of the
survey. The revised form eliminates the
collection of duplicative information.
A three-year clearance is being
requested for this survey since no
definitive plans have been made on
when the next Form GC–859 survey will
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19:21 Jul 20, 2012
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be collected. Respondents will be
notified prior to the next data collection.
(5) Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: 138 Surveys are expected
to be filed for approximately 138
facilities. These facilities include 104
operating nuclear reactors, 16
permanently shut down nuclear
reactors, 8 storage facilities, and 10
research/test reactors. Respondents
other than operating nuclear reactors are
only required to respond to the sections
of the survey applicable to them;
(6) Annual Estimated Number of
Total Responses: Current plans call for
the survey to be collected once every
five years, so respondents will only file
the Form GC–859 once over the threeyear approval period, for an average of
1⁄3 of a response per year from each
respondent. Dividing the numbers in (5)
by 3, EIA estimates an average of 34.667
responses annually from operating
nuclear reactors, 5.333 responses
annually from permanently shut down
nuclear reactors, 2.667 responses
annually from storage facilities, and
3.333 responses annually from research/
test stations. For the three-year approval
period, the annual estimate is 46
responses;
(7) Estimated Number of Annual
Burden Hours: 3106.7. The estimate by
respondent category is 80 hours per
response for operating nuclear reactors,
40 hours per response for permanently
shut down nuclear reactors, and 20
hours per response for storage facilities
and research/test reactors. The total of
3106.7 hours per year is obtained by
multiplying the burden per response for
each category by the corresponding
annual responses in (6) and adding the
burden estimates for each category.
(8) Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: $0; EIA
estimates that there are no additional
costs to respondents associated with the
burden hours.
Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the
Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974,
Pub. L. 93–275, codified at 15 U.S.C. 772(b);
Section 302 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act
of 1982, codified at 42 U.S.C. 10101.
Issued in Washington, DC, on July 11,
2012.
Stephanie Brown,
Director, Office of Survey Development and
Statistical Integration, U.S. Energy
Information Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012–17876 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
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43069
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Combined Notice of Filings #1
Take notice that the Commission
received the following electric corporate
filings:
Docket Numbers: EC12–117–000.
Applicants: Mission Funding Alpha.
Description: Application for
Authorization for Disposition of
Jurisdictional Facilities and Request for
Expedited Action of Mission Funding
Alpha.
Filed Date: 7/13/12.
Accession Number: 20120713–5194.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 8/3/12.
Take notice that the Commission
received the following exempt
wholesale generator filings:
Docket Numbers: EG12–87–000.
Applicants: Los Vientos Windpower
IA, LLC.
Description: Self-Certification of
Exempt Wholesale Generator of Los
Vientos Windpower IA, LLC.
Filed Date: 7/13/12.
Accession Number: 20120713–5139.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 8/3/12.
Docket Numbers: EG12–88–000.
Applicants: Los Vientos Windpower
IB, LLC.
Description: Self-Certification of
Exempt Wholesale Generator Status of
Los Vientos Windpower IB, LLC.
Filed Date: 7/13/12.
Accession Number: 20120713–5140.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 8/3/12.
Take notice that the Commission
received the following electric rate
filings:
Docket Numbers: ER12–2002–001.
Applicants: PJM Interconnection,
L.L.C.
Description: Errata to Original Service
Agreement No. 3327 Queue Position
T126 to be effective 5/11/2012.
Filed Date: 7/13/12.
Accession Number: 20120713–5171.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 8/3/12.
Docket Numbers: ER12–2241–000.
Applicants: Carolina Power & Light
Company.
Description: Service Agreement No.
134 under Carolina Power and Light
Company Joint OATT to be effective 7/
1/2012.
Filed Date: 7/13/12.
Accession Number: 20120713–5151.
Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 8/3/12.
Docket Numbers: ER12–2242–000.
Applicants: Midwest Independent
Transmission System Operator, Inc.
Description: SA 2455 DEGS WindMETC J056 GIA 7–13–2012 to be
effective 7/14/2012.
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 141 (Monday, July 23, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43067-43069]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17876]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
U.S. Energy Information Administration
Proposed Agency Information Collection
AGENCY: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Department of
Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Information
Collection; Notice and Request for Comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The EIA is soliciting comments on the proposed reinstatement,
and three-year approval to the Form GC-859, ``Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey'' (previously designated as the Form RW-859, ``Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey'') that EIA is developing for submission to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.)
required that the DOE enter into Standard Contracts with all generators
or owners of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste of
domestic origin in 1983. This data collection evolved from an Appendix
to this Standard Contract. Appendix B to the Standard Contract required
that spent nuclear fuel discharge, storage, and projection information
be collected annually. The annual version of the Form RW-859 survey was
collected for the survey years from 1983 through 1995. Due to budgetary
constraints, the survey was collected periodically for survey years
1998 and 2002, covering multi-year periods. The survey containing data
as of December 31, 2002 was collected during 2003 and is the most
recent data on spent nuclear fuel discharges and storage available
within DOE. Lack of funding resulted in the form being discontinued in
2009. With the transfer of certain functions between Offices of the DOE
and with the need to collect data for other Offices within DOE, the
data collection authorization is now under the auspices of the Office
of the General Counsel (GC) and the form will be redesignated as the
Form GC-859.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents,
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other
forms of information technology.
DATES: Comments regarding this proposed information collection must be
received by September 21, 2012. If you anticipate difficulty in
submitting comments within that period, contact the person listed in
ADDRESSES as soon as possible.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to Marta Gospodarczyk. To ensure receipt of
the comments by the due date, submission by Fax (202-586-3045) or email
(marta.gospodarczyk@eia.gov) is recommended. The mailing address is
Office of Electricity, Coal, Nuclear, and Renewables Analysis, EI-34,
Forrestal Building, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave.
SW., Washington, DC 20585. Alternatively, Ms. Gospodarczyk may be
contacted by telephone at 202-586-0527.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
copies of any forms and instructions
[[Page 43068]]
should be directed to Ms. Gospodarczyk at the address listed above.
Additionally, forms and instructions may be viewed at https://www.eia.gov/survey/#GC-859.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This information collection request
contains:
(1) OMB No. 1901-0287;
(2) Information Collection Request Title: Form GC-859, ``Nuclear
Fuel Data Survey'';
(3) Type of Request: Reinstatement with changes of a previously
approved collection for which approval has been discontinued;
(4a) Purpose:
The Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-275, 15
U.S.C. 761 et seq.) and the DOE Organization Act (Pub. L. 95-91, 42
U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) require the EIA to carry out a centralized,
comprehensive, and unified energy information program. This program
collects, evaluates, assembles, analyzes, and disseminates information
on energy resource reserves, production, demand, technology, and
related economic and statistical information. This information is used
to assess the adequacy of energy resources to meet near and longer term
domestic demands.
The EIA, as part of its effort to comply with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35), provides
the general public and other Federal agencies with opportunities to
comment on collections of energy information conducted by or in
conjunction with the EIA. Any comments received help the EIA to prepare
data requests that maximize the utility of the information collected,
and to assess the impact of collection requirements on the public.
Also, the EIA will later seek approval by the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) under Section 3507(a) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995.
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.)
required that the DOE enter into Standard Contracts with all generators
or owners of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste of
domestic origin. Form GC-859 evolved from an appendix to this Standard
Contract.
Appendix B to the Standard Contract, originally titled ``Ten Year
Discharge Forecast,'' became the Form RW-859 ``Nuclear Fuel Data
Survey.'' The Form RW-859 survey was collected annually for survey
years from 1983 through 1995. It was again collected for survey years
1998 and 2002, covering a multi-year period. The Form RW-859 was last
collected in 2003 and was discontinued on November 10, 2009. The survey
containing data as of December 31, 2002 was the last collected and is
the most recent data on nuclear fuel discharges and storage available
within EIA. The EIA has collected the Form RW-859 survey for the DOE
Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM). In 2009, the
Obama Administration determined that all funding for OCRWM be
eliminated from the Federal budget, leading to the dissolution of the
OCRWM. Many of the activities previously performed by the OCRWM had to
continue in lieu of these political developments. Activities were
transferred to the Office of Standard Contract Management, which has
been created within the Office of the General Counsel (GC). Thus, the
form number was changed from the Form RW-859 to the Form GC-859.
Form RW-859 Nuclear Fuel Data Survey form has been used to collect
information on nuclear fuel use and spent fuel discharges from all
utilities that operate commercial nuclear reactors and from all others
that possess irradiated fuel from commercial nuclear reactors. The data
collection provides stakeholders with detailed information concerning
the spent nuclear fuel generated by the respondents (commercial utility
generators of spent nuclear fuel and other owners of spent nuclear fuel
within the U.S.). The new Form GC-859 will represent a change from
previous versions of the Nuclear Fuel Data Survey. Recommendations
developed by the president's Blue Ribbon Commission on America's
Nuclear Energy Future have resulted in a need for more detailed data
than that collected in previous surveys in order that personnel from
the DOE Offices of Nuclear Energy (NE) and Environmental Management
(EM), the national laboratories, and other data users can meet their
research obligations.
Please refer to the proposed forms and instructions for more
information about the purpose, who must report, when to report, where
to submit, the elements to be reported, detailed instructions,
provisions for confidentiality, and uses (including possible non-
statistical uses) of the information. For instructions on obtaining
materials, see the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
(4b) Proposed Changes to Information Collection:
The current Form GC-859 redesign effort and associated changes has
several fundamental goals and objectives:
--Maintain the fidelity of collection of the information required by
stakeholders, by continuing to collect quality data on reactors,
historical spent fuel discharges, projections of spent fuel discharges,
pool capacities and inventories, and special fuel and non-fuel forms
relevant to user needs;
--Simplify the process of data collection and validation, by enhancing
the ability of respondents to provide data through electronic data
transfer in any available format (spreadsheet, database, etc.);
The major changes to the Form GC-859 survey from the last data
collection in 2003 include the following:
The EIA has modified the structure of the Form GC-859 survey into
separate schedules for the collection of utility, reactor, fuel,
storage facility, non-fuel, and greater than class C (GTCC) low-level
radioactive waste data. The redesign increases the visibility of
storage facilities as individual entities, clarifies the collection of
data on special fuel forms and non-fuel components, updates historical
cycle assembly data, and collects new data on GTCC low-level waste.
Instructions for responding to each schedule of the survey form,
along with appropriate references and definitions, have been moved into
the schedules. Instructions were previously detailed in an Appendix to
the survey form. Appropriate data from the Standard Contract has also
been included within the form schedules. The new form allows for
multiple contact personnel, so that respondents may choose to submit
reactor and storage facility data separately. Drop-down menus have been
added throughout the form to aid the respondents. The Glossary has been
revised and expanded. Respondents to this data collection are provided
with data submitted on previous Nuclear Fuel Data surveys so that they
may update historical data. The DOE last collected the survey
containing data as of December 31, 2002. Current respondents will be
provided with this 2002 survey data to update. Additional data from
prior versions of the form will also be supplied where appropriate.
Respondents will be allowed to modify, update, or correct historical
data or supply complete historical data in any readily available
format.
The consolidation of all fuel data (metal content, enrichment,
discharge burnup, cycle numbers and dates, fuel vendor, lattice type,
assembly status code, storage location, special fuel forms) in a single
survey schedule ensures consistent, non-repetitive data. Data on
special fuel forms (consolidated fuel, fuel in canisters, fuel rods,
fuel pieces) now supplements the basic fuel data, rather than being
collected in separate sections as in previous surveys.
[[Page 43069]]
A major change to the spent fuel data is that respondents are no longer
required to report assembly type codes for every discharged assembly.
Previous surveys contained an Appendix of almost 300 different assembly
codes from which the respondent had to choose, based on assembly
manufacturer, design considerations, and characteristics. Respondents
are now required to only report manufacturer and lattice (array) type,
greatly reducing the time required to fill out this section.
The fuel section now includes a requirement to collect complete
fuel cycle history for every discharged assembly. Previously collected
fuel data included fresh fuel assembly insertions and spent fuel
discharges, so much of this historical data is already available and
will be provided to the respondents.
Data collection for pool storage and dry storage has been
consolidated from two sections on the Form RW-859 survey to one on the
Form GC-859 survey. Previous requirements to supply information on
individual assemblies stored at all storage sites has been replaced by
the addition of a column for storage site identifier in the fuel data
section. A new requirement to report assemblies in multi-canister dry
storage modules has been added.
Non-fuel components data collection has been moved to a separate
schedule. Based on discussions with industry personnel and comments
submitted on previous surveys, data will now be collected by storage
location: Components that are an integral part of an assembly,
components stored in a single-element canister or container, and
components stored separate from an assembly and uncanistered in the
storage pool. Data on non-fuel components integral to an assembly are
being collected for the first time.
Another new addition to the Form GC-859 is a schedule for greater
than class C (GTCC) low level radioactive waste (LLRW). This schedule
will collect both packaged and projected inventory information for
activated metals and process waste. This schedule is not mandatory, and
only respondents who have readily available access to this data should
report.
Approximately 20 questions, tables, or sections have been deleted
from this version of the form. Data on reinserted fuel, canister
closure, and shipments and transfers of discharged fuel have been
removed in the new version of the survey. The revised form eliminates
the collection of duplicative information.
A three-year clearance is being requested for this survey since no
definitive plans have been made on when the next Form GC-859 survey
will be collected. Respondents will be notified prior to the next data
collection.
(5) Estimated Number of Survey Respondents: 138 Surveys are
expected to be filed for approximately 138 facilities. These facilities
include 104 operating nuclear reactors, 16 permanently shut down
nuclear reactors, 8 storage facilities, and 10 research/test reactors.
Respondents other than operating nuclear reactors are only required to
respond to the sections of the survey applicable to them;
(6) Annual Estimated Number of Total Responses: Current plans call
for the survey to be collected once every five years, so respondents
will only file the Form GC-859 once over the three-year approval
period, for an average of \1/3\ of a response per year from each
respondent. Dividing the numbers in (5) by 3, EIA estimates an average
of 34.667 responses annually from operating nuclear reactors, 5.333
responses annually from permanently shut down nuclear reactors, 2.667
responses annually from storage facilities, and 3.333 responses
annually from research/test stations. For the three-year approval
period, the annual estimate is 46 responses;
(7) Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 3106.7. The estimate
by respondent category is 80 hours per response for operating nuclear
reactors, 40 hours per response for permanently shut down nuclear
reactors, and 20 hours per response for storage facilities and
research/test reactors. The total of 3106.7 hours per year is obtained
by multiplying the burden per response for each category by the
corresponding annual responses in (6) and adding the burden estimates
for each category.
(8) Annual Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden: $0;
EIA estimates that there are no additional costs to respondents
associated with the burden hours.
Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the Federal Energy
Administration Act of 1974, Pub. L. 93-275, codified at 15 U.S.C.
772(b); Section 302 of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982,
codified at 42 U.S.C. 10101.
Issued in Washington, DC, on July 11, 2012.
Stephanie Brown,
Director, Office of Survey Development and Statistical Integration,
U.S. Energy Information Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012-17876 Filed 7-20-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P