Vogtle Electric Generating Station, Units 3 and 4; Southern Nuclear Operating Company; Control Rod Drive Mechanism Motor Generator Set Field Relay Change, 12134-12136 [2016-05133]
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12134
Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 45 / Tuesday, March 8, 2016 / Notices
under the provisions of this act shall be
deposited with the State treasurer in a
separate account for reclamation
purposes.’’ Under Wyoming Department
of Environmental Quality (WDEQ)
financial assurance requirements,
WDEQ holds permit bonds in a
fiduciary fund called an agency fund. If
a bond is forfeited, the forfeited funds
are moved to a special revenue account.
Although the Wyoming special revenue
account is not an STA, the special
revenue account serves a similar
purpose in that forfeited funds are not
deposited into the State treasury for
general fund use but instead are set
aside in the special revenue account to
be used exclusively for reclamation (i.e.,
decommissioning purposes).
The NRC has the discretion, under 10
CFR 40.14(a), to grant an exemption
from the requirements of a regulation in
10 CFR part 40 upon request or on its
own initiative, if the NRC determines
the exemption is authorized by law and
will not endanger life or property or the
common defense and security and is
otherwise in the public interest. The
NRC is issuing an exemption to Cameco
from the STA requirements in 10 CFR
part 40, appendix A, Criterion 9, for the
current surety arrangement until March
26, 2017, for Ruth, September 30, 2017,
for Smith Ranch-Highland, and
November 7, 2017, for Gas Hills to allow
the NRC an opportunity to evaluate
whether the State of Wyoming’s
separate account requirements for
financial assurance instruments it holds
is consistent with the NRC’s STA
requirements.
III. Discussion
A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law
The proposed exemption is
authorized by law as 10 CFR 40.14(a)
expressly allows for an exemption to the
requirements in 10 CFR part 40,
Appendix A, Criterion 9, and the
proposed exemption would not be
contrary to any provision of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, as amended.
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
B. The Exemption Presents No Undue
Risk to Public Health and Safety
The exemption is related to the
financial surety. The requirement that
the licensee provide adequate financial
assurance through an approved
mechanism (e.g., a surety bond or an
irrevocable letter of credit) would
remain unaffected by the exemption.
Rather, the exemption would only
pertain to the establishment of a
dedicated trust in which funds could be
deposited in the event that the financial
assurance mechanism needed to be
liquidated. The requirement in 10 CFR
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part 40, Appendix A, Criterion 9(d),
allows for the financial or surety
arrangements to be consolidated within
a State’s similar financial assurance
instrument. The NRC has determined
that while the State of Wyoming does
not require an STA, the special revenue
account may serve a similar purpose in
that forfeited funds are not deposited
into the State treasury for general fund
use but, instead, are set aside in the
special revenue account to be used
exclusively for site-specific reclamation
(i.e., decommissioning purposes).
Because the licensee remains obligated
to establish an adequate financial
assurance mechanism for its licensed
sites, and the NRC has approved such a
mechanism, sufficient funds are
available in the event that the site
would need to be decommissioned. A
temporary delay in establishing an STA
does not impact the present availability
and adequacy of the actual financial
assurance mechanism. Therefore, the
limited exemption being issued by the
NRC herein presents no undue risk to
public health and safety.
C. The Exemption Is Consistent With the
Common Defense and Security
The proposed exemption would not
involve or implicate the common
defense or security. Therefore, granting
the exemption will have no effect on the
common defense and security.
D. The Exemption Is in the Public
Interest
The proposed exemption would
enable the NRC staff to evaluate the
State of Wyoming’s separate account
provision and the NRC’s STA
requirement to determine if they are
comparable. The evaluation process will
allow the NRC to determine whether the
licensee’s compliance with the state law
provision will satisfy the NRC
requirement as well. Therefore, granting
the exemption is in the public interest.
E. Environmental Considerations
The NRC staff has determined that
granting of an exemption from the
requirements of 10 CFR part 40,
Appendix A, Criterion 9 belongs to a
category of regulatory actions that the
NRC, by regulation, has determined do
not individually or cumulatively have a
significant effect on the environment
and, as such, do not require an
environmental assessment. The
exemption from the requirement to have
an STA in place is eligible for
categorical exclusion under 10 CFR
51.22(c)(25)(vi)(H), which provides that
exemptions from surety, insurance, or
indemnification requirements are
categorically excluded if the exemption
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would not result in any significant
hazards consideration, change or
increase in the amount of any offsite
effluents, increase in individual or
cumulative public or occupational
radiation exposure, construction
impacts, or increase in the potential for
or consequence from radiological
accidents. The NRC staff finds that the
STA exemption involves surety,
insurance, and/or indemnity
requirements and that granting Cameco
this temporary exemption from the
requirement of establishing a standby
trust arrangement would not result in
any significant hazards or increases in
offsite effluents, radiation exposure,
construction impacts, or potential
radiological accidents. Therefore, an
environmental assessment is not
required.
IV. Conclusion
Accordingly, the NRC has determined
that, pursuant to 10 CFR 40.14(a), the
proposed temporary exemption is
authorized by law, will not present an
undue risk to the public health and
safety, is consistent with the common
defense and security, and is in the
public interest. NRC hereby grants
Power Resources, Inc., doing business as
Cameco Resources, an exemption from
the requirement in 10 CFR part 40,
Appendix A, Criterion 9 to set up a
standby trust to receive funds in the
event the NRC or the State regulatory
agency exercises is right to collect the
surety. This exemption will expire on
March 26, 2017, for Ruth, on September
30, 2017, for Smith Ranch-Highland,
and on November 7, 2017, for Gas Hills.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29 day
of February 2016.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John R. Tappert,
Director, Division of Decommissioning,
Uranium Recovery and Environmental
Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety
and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2016–05129 Filed 3–7–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 52–025 and 52–026; NRC–
2008–0252]
Vogtle Electric Generating Station,
Units 3 and 4; Southern Nuclear
Operating Company; Control Rod
Drive Mechanism Motor Generator Set
Field Relay Change
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
AGENCY:
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 45 / Tuesday, March 8, 2016 / Notices
Exemption and combined
license amendment; issuance.
ACTION:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is granting an
exemption to allow a departure from the
certification information of Tier 1 of the
generic design control document (DCD)
and is issuing License Amendment No.
38 to Combined Licenses (COLs), NPF–
91 and NPF–92. The COLs were issued
to Southern Nuclear Operating
Company, Inc., and Georgia Power
Company, Oglethorpe Power
Corporation, MEAG Power SPVM, LLC.,
MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC., MEAG
POWER SPVP, LLC., and the City of
Dalton, Georgia (together ‘‘the
licensees’’); for construction and
operation of the Vogtle Electric
Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4,
located in Burke County, Georgia.
The granting of the exemption allows
the changes to Tier 1 information asked
for in the amendment. Because the
acceptability of the exemption was
determined in part by the acceptability
of the amendment, the exemption and
amendment are being issued
concurrently.
SUMMARY:
March 8, 2016.
Please refer to Docket ID
NRC–2008–0252 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of
information regarding this document.
You may obtain publicly-available
information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
• Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2008–0252. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol
Gallagher; telephone: 301–415–3463;
email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For
technical questions, contact the
individual listed in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this
document.
• NRC’s Agencywide Documents
Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at
https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. To begin the search, select
‘‘ADAMS Public Documents’’ and then
select ‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS
Search.’’ For problems with ADAMS,
please contact the NRC’s Public
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at
1–800–397–4209, 301–415–4737, or by
email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The
ADAMS accession number for each
document referenced (if it available in
ADAMS) is provided the first time that
a document is referenced. The request
for the amendment and exemption was
submitted by letter dated January 8,
DATES:
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
ADDRESSES:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:02 Mar 07, 2016
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2015 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML15008A466).
• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and
purchase copies of public documents at
the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul
Kallan, Office of New Reactors, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555–0001; telephone:
301–415–2809; email: Paul.Kallan@
nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is granting an exemption
from paragraph B of Section III, ‘‘Scope
and Contents,’’ of Appendix D, ‘‘Design
Certification Rule for the AP1000,’’ to
part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), and issuing
License Amendment No. 38 to COLs,
NPF–91 and NPF–92, to the licensee.
The exemption is required by paragraph
A.4 of Section VIII, ‘‘Processes for
Changes and Departures,’’ Appendix D,
to 10 CFR part 52 to allow the licensee
to depart from Tier 1 information. With
the requested amendment, the licensee
sought proposed changes that specifies
the use of latching control relays in lieu
of breakers to de-energize the control
rod drive mechanism (CRDM) motor
generator (MG) set generator field on a
diverse actuation system (DAS) reactor
trip signal. The replacement of the
CRDM MG set generator field breakers
with field control relays requires a
UFSAR Tier 2 departure that involves
changes to COL Appendix C, Tables
2.5.1–4, ‘‘Inspections, Tests, Analyses,
and Acceptance Criteria,’’ and 3.7–1,
‘‘Risk-Significant Components,’’ along
with corresponding departures from
plant-specific DCD Tier 1 information.
Part of the justification for granting
the exemption was provided by the
review of the amendment. Because the
exemption is necessary in order to issue
the requested license amendment, the
NRC granted the exemption and issued
the amendment concurrently, rather
than in sequence. This included issuing
a combined safety evaluation containing
the NRC staff’s review of both the
exemption request and the license
amendment. The exemption met all
applicable regulatory criteria set forth in
10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 52.7, and Section
VIII.A.4 of Appendix D to 10 CFR part
52. The license amendment was found
to be acceptable as well. The combined
safety evaluation is available in ADAMS
under Accession No. ML15187A361.
Identical exemption documents
(except for referenced unit numbers and
license numbers) were issued to the
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12135
licensee for VEGP Units 3 and 4 (COLs
NPF–91 and NPF–92). The exemption
documents for VEGP Units 3 and 4 can
be found in ADAMS under Accession
Nos. ML15187A297 and ML15187A325,
respectively. The exemption is
reproduced (with the exception of
abbreviated titles and additional
citations) in Section II of this document.
The amendment documents for COLs
NPF–91 and NPF–92 are available in
ADAMS under Accession Nos.
ML15187A281 and ML15187A285,
respectively. A summary of the
amendment documents is provided in
Section III of this document.
II. Exemption
Reproduced below is the exemption
document issued to Vogtle Units 3 and
Unit 4. It makes reference to the
combined safety evaluation that
provides the reasoning for the findings
made by the NRC (and listed under Item
1) in order to grant the exemption:
1. In a letter dated January 08, 2015,
the licensee requested from the
Commission an exemption from the
provisions of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix
D, Section III.B, as part of license
amendment request 15–002, ‘‘Control
Rod Mechanism Motor Generator Set
Field Relay Change (LAR–15–002).’’
For the reasons set forth in Section
3.1, ‘‘Evaluation of Exemption,’’ of the
NRC staff’s Safety Evaluation, which
can be found in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML15187A361, the
Commission finds that:
A. the exemption is authorized by
law;
B. the exemption presents no undue
risk to public health and safety;
C. the exemption is consistent with
the common defense and security;
D. special circumstances are present
in that the application of the rule in this
circumstance is not necessary to serve
the underlying purpose of the rule;
E. the special circumstances outweigh
any decrease in safety that may result
from the reduction in standardization
caused by the exemption; and
F. the exemption will not result in a
significant decrease in the level of safety
otherwise provided by the design.
2. Accordingly, the licensee is granted
an exemption from the certified DCD
Tier 1, COL Appendix C, Table 2.5.1–4,
and Table 3.7–1, as described in the
licensee’s request dated January 08,
2015. This exemption is related to, and
necessary for the granting of License
Amendment No. 38, which is being
issued concurrently with this
exemption.
3. As explained in Section 5.0,
‘‘Environmental Consideration,’’ of the
NRC staff’s Safety Evaluation (ADAMS
E:\FR\FM\08MRN1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 45 / Tuesday, March 8, 2016 / Notices
Accession No. ML15187A361), this
exemption meets the eligibility criteria
for categorical exclusion set forth in 10
CFR 51.22(c)(9). Therefore, pursuant to
10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental
impact statement or environmental
assessment needs to be prepared in
connection with the issuance of the
exemption.
4. This exemption is effective as of
September 8, 2015.
III. License Amendment Request
By letter dated January 8, 2015, the
licensee requested that the NRC amend
the COLs for VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs
NPF–91 and NPF–92. The proposed
amendment is described in Section I of
this Federal Register notice.
The Commission has determined for
these amendments that the application
complies with the standards and
requirements of the Atomic Energy Act
of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the
Commission’s rules and regulations.
The Commission has made appropriate
findings as required by the Act and the
Commission’s rules and regulations in
10 CFR Chapter I, which are set forth in
the license amendment.
A notice of consideration of issuance
of amendment to facility operating
license or combined license, as
applicable, proposed no significant
hazards consideration determination,
and opportunity for a hearing in
connection with these actions, was
published in the Federal Register on
February 3, 2015 (80 FR 5798). No
comments were received during the 30day comment period.
The Commission has determined that
these amendments satisfy the criteria for
categorical exclusion in accordance
with 10 CFR 51.22. Therefore, pursuant
to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental
impact statement or environmental
assessment need be prepared for these
amendments.
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
IV. Conclusion
Using the reasons set forth in the
combined safety evaluation, the staff
granted the exemption and issued the
amendment that the licensee requested
on January 8, 2015. The exemption and
amendment were issued on September
8, 2015, as part of a combined package
to the licensee (ADAMS Accession No.
ML15187A258).
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day
of March 2016.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John McKirgan,
Acting Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division
of New Reactor Licensing, Office of New
Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2016–05133 Filed 3–7–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
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Jkt 238001
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Advisory Committee on Reactor
Safeguards (ACRS); Meeting of the
ACRS Subcommittee on Metallurgy
and Reactor Fuels
The ACRS Subcommittee on
Metallurgy & Reactor Fuels will hold a
meeting on March 22, 2016, Room T–
2B1, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland.
The meeting will be open to public
attendance.
The agenda for the subject meeting
shall be as follows:
Tuesday, March 22, 2016—8:30 a.m.
until 12:00 p.m.
The Subcommittee will discuss
Regulatory Guide 1.229, ‘‘Risk-Informed
Approach for Addressing the Effects of
Debris on Post-Accident Long-Term
Core Cooling.’’ The Subcommittee will
hear presentations by and hold
discussions with the NRC staff and
other interested persons regarding this
matter. The Subcommittee will gather
information, analyze relevant issues and
facts, and formulate proposed positions
and actions, as appropriate, for
deliberation by the Full Committee.
Members of the public desiring to
provide oral statements and/or written
comments should notify the Designated
Federal Official (DFO), Christopher
Brown (Telephone 301–415–7111 or
Email: Christopher.Brown@nrc.gov) five
days prior to the meeting, if possible, so
that appropriate arrangements can be
made. Thirty-five hard copies of each
presentation or handout should be
provided to the DFO thirty minutes
before the meeting. In addition, one
electronic copy of each presentation
should be emailed to the DFO one day
before the meeting. If an electronic copy
cannot be provided within this
timeframe, presenters should provide
the DFO with a CD containing each
presentation at least thirty minutes
before the meeting. Electronic
recordings will be permitted only
during those portions of the meeting
that are open to the public. Detailed
procedures for the conduct of and
participation in ACRS meetings were
published in the Federal Register on
October 21, 2015, (80 FR 63846).
Detailed meeting agendas and meeting
transcripts are available on the NRC
Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/readingrm/doc-collections/acrs. Information
regarding topics to be discussed,
changes to the agenda, whether the
meeting has been canceled or
rescheduled, and the time allotted to
present oral statements can be obtained
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from the Web site cited above or by
contacting the identified DFO.
Moreover, in view of the possibility that
the schedule for ACRS meetings may be
adjusted by the Chairman as necessary
to facilitate the conduct of the meeting,
persons planning to attend should check
with these references if such
rescheduling would result in a major
inconvenience.
If attending this meeting, please enter
through the One White Flint North
building, 11555 Rockville Pike,
Rockville, MD. After registering with
security, please contact Mr. Theron
Brown (Telephone 240–888–9835) to be
escorted to the meeting room.
Dated: March 2, 2016.
Mark L. Banks,
Chief, Technical Support Branch, Advisory
Committee on Reactor Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2016–05135 Filed 3–7–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Advisory Committee on Reactor
Safeguards (ACRS), Meeting of the
ACRS Subcommittee on Metallurgy &
Reactor Fuels, Notice of Meeting
The ACRS Subcommittee on
Metallurgy & Reactor Fuels will hold a
meeting on March 23–24, 2016, Room
T–2B1, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland.
The meeting will be open to public
attendance.
The agenda for the subject meeting
shall be as follows:
Wednesday, March 23, 2016—8:30 a.m.
Until 5:00 p.m.; Thursday, March 24,
2016, 8:30 a.m. Until 12:00 p.m.
The Subcommittee will discuss
framework for Storage and
Transportation of Spent Fuel. The
Subcommittee will hear presentations
by and hold discussions with the NRC
staff and other interested persons
regarding this matter. The
Subcommittee will gather information,
analyze relevant issues and facts, and
formulate proposed positions and
actions, as appropriate, for deliberation
by the Full Committee.
Members of the public desiring to
provide oral statements and/or written
comments should notify the Designated
Federal Official (DFO), Christopher
Brown (Telephone 301–415–7111 or
Email: Christopher.Brown@nrc.gov) five
days prior to the meeting, if possible, so
that appropriate arrangements can be
made. Thirty-five hard copies of each
presentation or handout should be
provided to the DFO thirty minutes
E:\FR\FM\08MRN1.SGM
08MRN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 45 (Tuesday, March 8, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12134-12136]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05133]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 52-025 and 52-026; NRC-2008-0252]
Vogtle Electric Generating Station, Units 3 and 4; Southern
Nuclear Operating Company; Control Rod Drive Mechanism Motor Generator
Set Field Relay Change
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
[[Page 12135]]
ACTION: Exemption and combined license amendment; issuance.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an
exemption to allow a departure from the certification information of
Tier 1 of the generic design control document (DCD) and is issuing
License Amendment No. 38 to Combined Licenses (COLs), NPF-91 and NPF-
92. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc.,
and Georgia Power Company, Oglethorpe Power Corporation, MEAG Power
SPVM, LLC., MEAG Power SPVJ, LLC., MEAG POWER SPVP, LLC., and the City
of Dalton, Georgia (together ``the licensees''); for construction and
operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4,
located in Burke County, Georgia.
The granting of the exemption allows the changes to Tier 1
information asked for in the amendment. Because the acceptability of
the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the
amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently.
DATES: March 8, 2016.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0252 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0252. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and
then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS,
please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at
1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it available in
ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is referenced. The
request for the amendment and exemption was submitted by letter dated
January 8, 2015 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15008A466).
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Kallan, Office of New Reactors,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001;
telephone: 301-415-2809; email: Paul.Kallan@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is granting an exemption from paragraph B of Section III,
``Scope and Contents,'' of Appendix D, ``Design Certification Rule for
the AP1000,'' to part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(10 CFR), and issuing License Amendment No. 38 to COLs, NPF-91 and NPF-
92, to the licensee. The exemption is required by paragraph A.4 of
Section VIII, ``Processes for Changes and Departures,'' Appendix D, to
10 CFR part 52 to allow the licensee to depart from Tier 1 information.
With the requested amendment, the licensee sought proposed changes that
specifies the use of latching control relays in lieu of breakers to de-
energize the control rod drive mechanism (CRDM) motor generator (MG)
set generator field on a diverse actuation system (DAS) reactor trip
signal. The replacement of the CRDM MG set generator field breakers
with field control relays requires a UFSAR Tier 2 departure that
involves changes to COL Appendix C, Tables 2.5.1-4, ``Inspections,
Tests, Analyses, and Acceptance Criteria,'' and 3.7-1, ``Risk-
Significant Components,'' along with corresponding departures from
plant-specific DCD Tier 1 information.
Part of the justification for granting the exemption was provided
by the review of the amendment. Because the exemption is necessary in
order to issue the requested license amendment, the NRC granted the
exemption and issued the amendment concurrently, rather than in
sequence. This included issuing a combined safety evaluation containing
the NRC staff's review of both the exemption request and the license
amendment. The exemption met all applicable regulatory criteria set
forth in 10 CFR 50.12, 10 CFR 52.7, and Section VIII.A.4 of Appendix D
to 10 CFR part 52. The license amendment was found to be acceptable as
well. The combined safety evaluation is available in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML15187A361.
Identical exemption documents (except for referenced unit numbers
and license numbers) were issued to the licensee for VEGP Units 3 and 4
(COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92). The exemption documents for VEGP Units 3 and
4 can be found in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML15187A297 and
ML15187A325, respectively. The exemption is reproduced (with the
exception of abbreviated titles and additional citations) in Section II
of this document. The amendment documents for COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92
are available in ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML15187A281 and
ML15187A285, respectively. A summary of the amendment documents is
provided in Section III of this document.
II. Exemption
Reproduced below is the exemption document issued to Vogtle Units 3
and Unit 4. It makes reference to the combined safety evaluation that
provides the reasoning for the findings made by the NRC (and listed
under Item 1) in order to grant the exemption:
1. In a letter dated January 08, 2015, the licensee requested from
the Commission an exemption from the provisions of 10 CFR part 52,
Appendix D, Section III.B, as part of license amendment request 15-002,
``Control Rod Mechanism Motor Generator Set Field Relay Change (LAR-15-
002).''
For the reasons set forth in Section 3.1, ``Evaluation of
Exemption,'' of the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation, which can be found
in ADAMS under Accession No. ML15187A361, the Commission finds that:
A. the exemption is authorized by law;
B. the exemption presents no undue risk to public health and
safety;
C. the exemption is consistent with the common defense and
security;
D. special circumstances are present in that the application of the
rule in this circumstance is not necessary to serve the underlying
purpose of the rule;
E. the special circumstances outweigh any decrease in safety that
may result from the reduction in standardization caused by the
exemption; and
F. the exemption will not result in a significant decrease in the
level of safety otherwise provided by the design.
2. Accordingly, the licensee is granted an exemption from the
certified DCD Tier 1, COL Appendix C, Table 2.5.1-4, and Table 3.7-1,
as described in the licensee's request dated January 08, 2015. This
exemption is related to, and necessary for the granting of License
Amendment No. 38, which is being issued concurrently with this
exemption.
3. As explained in Section 5.0, ``Environmental Consideration,'' of
the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation (ADAMS
[[Page 12136]]
Accession No. ML15187A361), this exemption meets the eligibility
criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9).
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact
statement or environmental assessment needs to be prepared in
connection with the issuance of the exemption.
4. This exemption is effective as of September 8, 2015.
III. License Amendment Request
By letter dated January 8, 2015, the licensee requested that the
NRC amend the COLs for VEGP, Units 3 and 4, COLs NPF-91 and NPF-92. The
proposed amendment is described in Section I of this Federal Register
notice.
The Commission has determined for these amendments that the
application complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules
and regulations. The Commission has made appropriate findings as
required by the Act and the Commission's rules and regulations in 10
CFR Chapter I, which are set forth in the license amendment.
A notice of consideration of issuance of amendment to facility
operating license or combined license, as applicable, proposed no
significant hazards consideration determination, and opportunity for a
hearing in connection with these actions, was published in the Federal
Register on February 3, 2015 (80 FR 5798). No comments were received
during the 30-day comment period.
The Commission has determined that these amendments satisfy the
criteria for categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22.
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact
statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for these
amendments.
IV. Conclusion
Using the reasons set forth in the combined safety evaluation, the
staff granted the exemption and issued the amendment that the licensee
requested on January 8, 2015. The exemption and amendment were issued
on September 8, 2015, as part of a combined package to the licensee
(ADAMS Accession No. ML15187A258).
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day of March 2016.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John McKirgan,
Acting Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of New Reactor Licensing,
Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2016-05133 Filed 3-7-16; 8:45 am]
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