STP Nuclear Operating Company; South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2, 27924-27926 [2023-09373]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 3, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27924-27926]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09373]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-498 and 50-499; NRC-2023-0095]


STP Nuclear Operating Company; South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued an 
exemption in response to an April 13, 2023, request, as supplemented 
(replaced in its entirety) by letter dated April 17, 2023, from STP 
Nuclear Operating Company that requested a one-time exemption that 
would allow for the reporting of Radiation Exposure Information and 
Reporting System data from South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2 (STP) to 
be extended from the required date of April 30, 2023, until August 31, 
2023.

DATES: The exemption was issued on April 27, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0095 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 Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0095. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 
telephone: 301-415-0624; email: [email protected]. 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 ``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 [email protected]. The request for the exemption was 
submitted by letter dated April 13, 2023, as supplemented (replaced in 
its entirety) by letter dated April 17, 2023, and are available in 
ADAMS under Accession Nos. ML23103A432 and ML23107A251, respectively.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents, by appointment, at the NRC's PDR, Room P1 B35, One White 
Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. To make 
an appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to 
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Galvin, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-6256; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the exemption is attached.

    Dated: April 28, 2023.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Thomas J. Wengert,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch IV, Division of 
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

Attachment--Exemption

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Docket Nos. 50-498 and 50-499

South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company South Texas Project, 
Units 1 and 2

Exemption

I. Background

    STP Nuclear Operating Company (STPNOC, the licensee) is the holder 
of Renewed Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80, which 
authorize operation of South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2 (STP), 
respectively. The licenses provide, among other things, that the 
facility is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) now or hereafter in 
effect. The facility consists of two pressurized-water reactors located 
in Matagorda County, Texas.

II. Request/Action

    By application dated April 13, 2023 (Agencywide Documents Access 
and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML23103A432), as 
supplemented (replaced in its entirety) on April 17, 2023 
(ML23107A251), STPNOC requested an exemption from the reporting 
requirement in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 
20.2206(c). Specifically, the licensee's requested one-time exemption 
would allow for the reporting of Radiation Exposure Information and 
Reporting System (REIRS) data from STP to be extended from the required

[[Page 27925]]

date of April 30, 2023, until August 31, 2023. The licensee requested 
the exemption because its vendor that is processing the 2022 STPNOC 
dosimetry has not yet provided the data necessary for submittal of an 
annual report of the results of individual monitoring in accordance 
with 10 CFR 20.2206(c) and the licensee does not have confidence that 
the vendor will provide the data by April 30, 2023.
    The regulation in 10 CFR 20.2206, ``Reports of individual 
monitoring,'' requires the annual submittal to the NRC of a report of 
the results of radiation dose monitoring conducted by licensees under 
the provisions of 10 CFR 20.1502, ``Conditions requiring individual 
monitoring of external and internal occupational dose,'' covering the 
preceding year; the report is to be submitted on or before April 30 of 
each year. The regulations in 10 CFR 20.1502 provide the conditions 
that require individual monitoring of external and internal 
occupational radiation doses. The regulations in 10 CFR 20.2106, 
``Records of individual monitoring results,'' require, in part, that 
each licensee maintain records of radiation doses received by all 
individuals for whom radiation dose monitoring was required by 10 CFR 
20.1502, and records of doses received during planned special 
exposures, accidents, and emergency conditions.

III. Discussion

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 20.2301 ``Applications for exemptions,'' the 
Commission may, upon application by a licensee or upon its own 
initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 20, 
``Standards for Protection Against Radiation,'' if it determines that 
the exemptions are authorized by law and would not result in undue 
hazard to life or property.

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law

    There are no provisions in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended (or in any other Federal statute) that impose a requirement for 
submitting reports of the results of required radiation dose monitoring 
by April 30 of each year to the NRC; rather, this requirement appears 
in 10 CFR part 20, which also allows the NRC to issue exemptions from 
those requirements. Therefore, the NRC staff concludes that there is no 
statutory or regulatory prohibition on the issuance of the requested 
exemption and the NRC is authorized to grant the exemption by law, upon 
finding that the exemption is otherwise acceptable.

B. The Exemption Presents no Undue Hazard to Life or Property

    In determining that granting the exemption would not result in 
undue hazard to life,\1\ the NRC staff conducted a risk-informed 
assessment of the impact of the exemption on the purpose of the NRC's 
standards for protection against radiation, as stated in 10 CFR 
20.1001(b). Specifically, the regulation in 10 CFR 20.1001(b) states, 
in part:
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    \1\ The NRC staff determined that the exemption as requested and 
evaluated by the NRC does not impact property.

    It is the purpose of the regulations in this part to control the 
receipt, possession, use, transfer, and disposal of licensed 
material by any licensee in such a manner that the total dose to an 
individual (including doses resulting from licensed and unlicensed 
radioactive material and from radiation sources other than 
background radiation) does not exceed the standards for protection 
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against radiation prescribed in the regulations in this part.

    This risk-informed assessment considered the impact of the 
exemption on reports of exposure information to individuals and the 
NRC.
Reports to Individuals
    The regulation in 10 CFR 19.13, ``Notifications and reports to 
individuals,'' provides requirements for notifications and reports of 
radiation dose data to individuals. For example, 10 CFR 19.13(b) 
requires licensees to make records maintained under the provisions of 
10 CFR 20.2106 available to workers and to provide an annual report to 
each individual monitored under the provisions of 10 CFR 20.1502 if the 
individual's occupational dose exceeds a total effective dose 
equivalent (TEDE) of 100 millirem (mrem) (1 millisievert (mSv)), or 100 
mrem (1 mSv) to any individual organ or tissue, or upon request of the 
individual.
    As stated in 10 CFR 20.1001, the ultimate purpose of the 
requirements in 10 CFR part 20 are to ensure that doses to individuals 
do not exceed the NRC's radiation protection standards. The monitoring, 
recording, and reporting of radiation dose data for occupationally 
exposed individuals as required by 10 CFR part 20 is essential in 
ensuring that radiation protection standards are not exceeded for any 
individual worker, because it allows licensees to track doses and, if 
necessary, take action before applicable limits are exceeded. The 
recording of this information is also necessary to ensure that workers 
who transition from one employer to another are adequately protected in 
that the total annual dose to workers from all employers is kept within 
applicable limits.
    In its exemption request, the licensee described three methods of 
obtaining personnel radiation dose data. First, doses from radiation 
exposures can be estimated using information collected from electronic 
dosimeters that are issued to workers. Second, the dose data can be 
determined by conducting exposure investigations. Lastly, data from 
individually issued thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) can be obtained 
from the licensee's contracted dosimetry service provider. The first 
and second methods are currently available to the licensee; however, 
the licensee prefers to submit TLD-based data in part to remain 
consistent with previous years' reports. This is consistent with long-
standing industry practice that passive dosimetry, like TLDs, are used 
as dosimetry of legal record. However, the licensee states that the 
TLD-based data has not yet been provided to the licensee by its 
contracted dosimetry service provider and the licensee does not have 
confidence that it will obtain the data in time to meet the April 30 
reporting deadline.
    The licensee states that it is awaiting TLD-based data for over 800 
personnel. Conducting exposure investigations and reconciling 
electronic dosimeter data to establish a final record of doses for this 
magnitude of individuals is a resource intensive activity that would 
impose an undue burden on the licensee to achieve before April 30. Nor 
does there appear to be any safety benefit in assembling those data 
before the contractor provides the dosimetry results. In this regard, 
the licensee reviewed the electronic dosimeter data and determined that 
no individual's annual dose reached regulatory limits, and no 
irregularities are expected between the electronic dosimeter data and 
the final record data that is to be submitted.
    The NRC staff expects that the reports required per 10 CFR 
19.13(b)(1) will be provided by the licensee to the applicable 
individuals, after the licensee establishes its final record of doses, 
which is expected on or before August 31, 2023. However, because the 
licensee maintains electronic dosimeter data and can perform exposure 
investigations, it is able to satisfy the purpose of 10 CFR part 20, to 
ensure that the annual doses to individuals do not exceed the NRC's 
radiation protection standards. Additionally, the licensee is able to 
meet its obligations per 10 CFR 19.13, to provide exposure information 
to individuals upon request.

[[Page 27926]]

Reports to the NRC
    The regulation in 10 CFR 20.2206(a) provides a list of categories 
of NRC licensees that are required to provide reports of individual 
radiation dose monitoring to the NRC. The regulation in 10 CFR 
20.2206(b) states that licensees who fit a category listed in 10 CFR 
20.2206(a), such as STPNOC, shall submit to the NRC reports of the 
results of individual radiation dose monitoring carried out by the 
licensee during the prior year for individuals for whom monitoring was 
required by 10 CFR 20.1502. Additionally, the regulation in 10 CFR 
20.2206(c) requires that these reports, covering the preceding year, be 
submitted on or before April 30 each year. The NRC collects radiation 
dose data to support decision-making in its oversight of radiation 
protection performance of its licensees. The preface to NUREG-0713, 
Volume 42, ``Occupational Radiation Exposure at Commercial Nuclear 
Power Reactors and Other Facilities 2020,'' dated September 2022 
(ML22276A269), states that the NRC uses these data, in combination with 
other information, to provide facts regarding routine occupational 
exposures to radiation and radioactive material that occur in 
connection with certain NRC-licensed activities, for use in making 
decisions that impact public health and safety. The Preface to NUREG-
0713 provides examples of how the NRC uses these data, including:
    1. The evaluation of trends, both favorable and unfavorable, from 
the viewpoint of the effectiveness of overall NRC/licensee radiation 
protection and as low as is reasonably achievable (ALARA) efforts by 
licensees.
    2. The evaluation of the radiological risk associated with certain 
categories of NRC-licensed activities and the comparative analysis of 
radiation protection performance by country, reactor type, civilian/
military, facility, and industry.
    3. Use of the data in the NRC Reactor Oversight Process for 
inspection planning and in the Significance Determination Process.
    4. Use of the data in making evidence-based decisions regarding the 
radiation exposure to transient individuals.
    5. Use of the data to establish priorities for the use of NRC 
health physics resources: research, standards development, regulatory 
program development, and inspections conducted at NRC-licensed 
facilities.
    6. Use of the data in answering Congressional and administrative 
inquiries as well as responding to questions raised by the public.
    7. Use of the data to provide radiation exposure histories to 
individuals who were exposed to radiation at NRC-licensed facilities.
    8. Use of the data in conducting epidemiologic studies.
    As may be seen in the above description, the NRC's use of radiation 
dose data for occupationally exposed individuals serves various long-
term initiatives that necessarily depend on data spanning multiple 
years in broad categories of licensees. Therefore, while the continued 
collection of this data is essential to the NRC's mission as it 
pertains to radiation protection, a licensee's delay by several months 
in reporting the data for its facility would have minimal impact on the 
NRC's ability to ensure adequate protection of public health and 
safety, and would not impact individual worker safety since the data 
pertaining to each worker would be readily available at the facility 
despite the requested delay in reporting to the NRC. Therefore, the NRC 
staff concludes that granting the exemption would not result in undue 
hazard to life or property.

C. Environmental Considerations

    The NRC staff determined that the exemption discussed herein meets 
the eligibility criteria for the categorical exclusion set forth in 10 
CFR 51.22(c)(25), and there are no extraordinary circumstances present 
that would preclude reliance on this exclusion. The NRC staff 
determined, per 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(B), that the requirements from 
which the exemption is sought involve reporting requirements.
    The NRC staff also determined that approval of this one-time 
exemption involves no significant hazards consideration because it does 
not authorize any physical changes to the facility or any of its safety 
systems and does not involve modifications that could alter the manner 
in which facility structures, systems, and components are operated and 
maintained.
    There is no significant change in the types or significant increase 
in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite because 
this exemption does not affect the types, characteristics, or 
quantities of effluents discharged to the environment. There is no 
significant increase in individual or cumulative public or occupational 
radiation exposure because this exemption does not affect limits on the 
release of any radioactive material, or the limits provided in 10 CFR 
part 20 for radiation exposure to workers or members of the public. 
There is no significant construction impact because this exemption does 
not involve any physical changes to the facility. There is no 
significant increase in the potential for or consequences from 
radiological accidents because the exemption does not alter any of the 
assumptions or limits in the licensee's safety analysis. In addition, 
the NRC staff determined that there would be no significant impacts to 
biota, water resources, historic properties, cultural resources, or 
socioeconomic conditions in the region. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 
51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment 
need be prepared in connection with the approval of the requested 
exemption.

IV. Conclusions

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
20.2301, the exemption is authorized by law, and will not present an 
undue hazard to life and property. Therefore, the Commission hereby 
grants STPNOC a one-time exemption from 10 CFR 20.2206 to delay the 
reporting of its REIRS data as required on April 30, 2023, until August 
31, 2023.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day of April 2023.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Gregory F. Suber,

Deputy Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of 
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 2023-09373 Filed 5-2-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P