Vistra Operations Company LLC.; Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Unit 1; Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact, 38926-38928 [2024-10043]
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38926
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 8, 2024 / Notices
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50–269–SLR–2, 50–270–SLR–
2, and 50–287–SLR–2; ASLBP No. 24–985–
03–SLR–BD01]
Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC;
Establishment of Atomic Safety and
Licensing Board
Pursuant to the Commission’s
regulations, see, e.g., 10 CFR 2.104,
2.105, 2.300, 2.309, 2.313, 2.318, 2.321,
notice is hereby given that an Atomic
Safety and Licensing Board (Board) is
being established to preside over the
following proceeding:
Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC (Oconee
Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2, and 3)
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
This proceeding involves an
application seeking a twenty-year
subsequent license renewal of Renewed
Facility Operating License Nos. DPR–38,
DPR–47, and DPR–55, which authorize
Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC to operate
the Oconee Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2,
and 3, located in Seneca, South Carolina
until, respectively, February 6, 2033,
October 6, 2033, and July 19, 2034. In
response to a notice published in the
Federal Register announcing the
opportunity to request a hearing, see 89
FR 10107 (Feb. 13, 2024), a hearing
request was filed on April 29, 2024 on
behalf of Beyond Nuclear and Sierra
Club.1
The Board is comprised of the
following Administrative Judges:
G. Paul Bollwerk, III, Chairman, Atomic
Safety and Licensing Board Panel,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555–0001
Dr. Sue H. Abreu, Atomic Safety and
Licensing Board Panel, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555–0001
Dr. Arielle J. Miller, Atomic Safety and
Licensing Board Panel, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555–0001
All correspondence, documents, and
other materials shall be filed in
accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule.
See 10 CFR 2.302.
Rockville, Maryland.
Dated: May 2, 2024.
Edward R. Hawkens,
Chief Administrative Judge, Atomic Safety
and Licensing Board Panel.
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
1 The Secretary of the Commission extended the
deadline for requesting a hearing to April 29, 2024.
See Order of the Secretary (Mar. 28, 2024) (ADAMS
Accession Number ML24088A303).
17:03 May 07, 2024
Jkt 262001
Vistra Operations Company LLC.;
Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Unit 1;
Independent Spent Fuel Storage
Installation; Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice; issuance.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is issuing an
environmental assessment (EA) and a
finding of no significant impact (FONSI)
for an exemption request submitted by
Energy Harbor Nuclear Corporation 1
that would permit Perry Nuclear Power
Plant (Perry) to load two Holtec 89assembly multi-purpose canisters (MPC)
with continuous basket shims (CBS) in
the HI–STORM Flood/Wind (FW) MPC
Storage System at its Perry Unit 1
Independent Spent Fuel Storage
Installation (ISFSI) in a storage
condition where the terms, conditions,
and specifications in the Certificate of
Compliance (CoC) No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5 are not met.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in
this document are available on May 8,
2024.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID
NRC–2024–0082 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–2024–0082. Address
questions about Docket IDs in
Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301–415–0624; email:
Stacy.Schumann@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
SUMMARY:
1 Effective
[FR Doc. 2024–09975 Filed 5–7–24; 8:45 am]
VerDate Sep<11>2014
[Docket Nos. 72–69 and 50–440; NRC–2024–
0082]
March 1, 2024, the facility operating
license for Perry Nuclear Power Plant was
transferred from Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation
LLC (owner) and Energy Harbor Nuclear Corp.
(operator) to Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation LLC
(owner) and Vistra Operations Company LLC. Upon
completion of this license transfer, Vistra
Operations Company LLC (VistraOps) assumed the
responsibility for all licensing actions under NRC
review at the time of the transfer and requested that
the NRC continue its review of these actions.
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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, at
301–415–4737, or by email to
PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. For the
convenience of the reader, instructions
about obtaining materials referenced in
this document are provided in the
‘‘Availability of Documents’’ section.
• NRC’s PDR: The PDR, where you
may examine and order copies of
publicly available documents, is open
by appointment. To make an
appointment to visit the PDR, please
send an email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov
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:
Bernard White, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone: 301–
415–6577; email: Bernard.White@
nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is reviewing an exemption
request from Energy Harbor Nuclear
Corporation, dated February 27, 2024,
and supplemented by VistraOps on
March 22, 2024. VistraOps is requesting
an exemption, pursuant to section 72.7
of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), in paragraphs
72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3),
72.212(b)(5)(i), 72.212(b)(11), and
72.214 that require VistraOps to comply
with the terms, conditions, and
specifications of the CoC No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5. If approved, the
exemption would allow VistraOps to
load two MPCs which contain the 89assembly CBS basket (MPC–89–CBS)
beginning in August 2024 in the HI–
STORM FW Storage System at the Perry
ISFSI in a storage condition where the
terms, conditions, and specifications in
the CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5 are
not met.
II. Environmental Assessment
Background
Perry is located on a 1,100 acre site
on Lake Erie, 40 miles northeast of
Cleveland in North Perry, Ohio. Unit 1
began operating in 1987. VistraOps has
been storing spent fuel in an ISFSI at
Perry under a general license as
authorized by 10 CFR part 72, subpart
K, ‘‘General License for Storage of Spent
Fuel at Power Reactor Sites.’’ VistraOps
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 8, 2024 / Notices
currently uses the HI–STORM FW
Storage System under CoC No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5 for dry storage of
spent nuclear fuel in a specific MPC
(i.e., MPC–89) at the Perry ISFSI.
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Description of the Proposed Action
The CoC is the NRC approved design
for each dry cask storage system. The
proposed action would exempt the
applicant from the requirements of 10
CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3),
72.212(b)(5)(i), 72.212(b)(11), and
72.214 only as these requirements
pertain to the use of the MPC–89–CBS
in the HI–STORM FW Storage System
for near-term planned cask loadings.
The exemption would allow VistraOps
to load two MPC–89–CBS in the HI–
STORM FW Storage System at the Perry
ISFSI, despite the MPC–89–CBS in the
HI–STORM FW Storage System not
being in compliance with the terms,
conditions, and specifications in the
CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5.
The CoC for the HI–STORM FW
Storage System provides the
requirements, conditions, and operating
limits necessary for use of the system to
store spent fuel. Holtec International
(Holtec), the designer and manufacturer
of the HI–STORM FW Storage System,
developed a variant of the design with
CBS for the MPC–89, known as MPC–
89–CBS. Holtec originally implemented
the CBS variant design under the
provisions of 10 CFR 72.48, which
allows licensees to make changes to
cask designs without a CoC amendment
under certain conditions (listed in 10
CFR 72.48(c)). After evaluating the
specific changes to the cask designs, the
NRC determined that Holtec erred when
it implemented the CBS variant design
under 10 CFR 72.48, as this was not the
type of change allowed without a CoC
amendment. For this reason, the NRC
issued three Severity Level IV violations
to Holtec. Perry plans to load two MPC–
89–CBS canisters in the HI–STORM FW
overpacks beginning in August 2024.
This exemption considers the near-term
planned loading of the two canisters
with the CBS variant basket design.
Need for the Proposed Action
VistraOps requested this exemption in
order to allow loading of two MPC–89–
CBS in HI–STORM FW Storage System
at the Perry ISFSI for the future loading
campaign scheduled in August 2024.
Approval of the exemption request
would allow VistraOps to effectively
manage the spent fuel pool margin and
capacity to maintain full core offload
capability until its next storage cask
loading campaign in 2028. Otherwise,
after the refueling outages in 2025 and
2027, Perry would have an insufficient
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:03 May 07, 2024
Jkt 262001
number of open fuel cells (a deficit of
25 open cells) in the spent fuel pool. It
would also allow VistraOps to
effectively manage the availability of the
specialized workforce and equipment
needed to support competing fuel
loading and operational activities at the
Perry ISFSI.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
This EA evaluates the potential
environmental impacts of granting an
exemption from the terms, conditions,
and specifications in CoC No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5. The exemption
would allow two MPC–89–CBS
canisters to be loaded in the HI–STORM
FW Storage System in the near-term
loading campaign scheduled for August
2024.
The potential environmental impacts
of storing spent nuclear fuel in NRCapproved storage systems have been
documented in previous assessments.
On July 18, 1990, the NRC amended 10
CFR part 72 to provide for the storage
of spent fuel under a general license in
cask designs approved by the NRC. The
EA for the 1990 final rule analyzed the
potential environmental impacts of
using NRC-approved storage casks. The
EA for the HI–STORM FW Storage
System, CoC No. 1032, Amendment No.
5, published in 2020, tiers off of the EA
issued for the July 18, 1990, final rule.
‘‘Tiering’’ off earlier EAs is a standard
process encouraged by the regulations
implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA) that entails the use of impact
analyses of previous EAs to bound the
impacts of a proposed action where
appropriate. The Holtec HI–STORM FW
Storage System is designed to mitigate
the effects of design basis accidents that
could occur during storage. Considering
the specific design requirements for the
accident conditions, the design of the
cask would prevent loss of containment,
shielding, and criticality control. If there
is no loss of containment, shielding, or
criticality control, the environmental
impacts would not be significant.
The exemptions requested by
VistraOps at the Perry site as they relate
to CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5 for
the HI–STORM FW Storage System are
limited to the near-term planned
loading of two storage systems utilizing
the CBS variant basket design. The staff
determined that this change in the
basket would not result in either
radiological or non-radiological
environmental impacts that significantly
differ from the environmental impacts
evaluated in the environmental
assessment supporting the issuance of
CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5. If the
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38927
exemption is granted, there would be no
significant change in the types or
amounts of any effluents released, no
significant increase in individual or
cumulative public or occupational
radiation exposure, and no significant
increase in the potential for or
consequences from radiological
accidents. Accordingly, the Commission
concludes that there would be no
significant environmental impacts
associated with the proposed action.
Alternative to the Proposed Action
The staff considered the no-action
alternative. The no-action alternative
(denial of the exemption request) would
require VistraOps to delay the near-term
planned loading of spent fuel in the
MPC–89–CBS in the HI–STORM FW
Storage System at the Perry ISFSI.
Delaying the loading of spent fuel into
the two casks in August 2024 could
affect VistraOps’s ability to effectively
manage pool capacity, reactor fuel
offloading, and refueling. It could also
pose challenges to spent fuel heat
removal and impact the availability of
the specialized workforce and
equipment needed to support competing
fuel loading and operational activities at
Perry and other VistraOps sites. The
NRC determined that the no-action
alternative would result in undue
potential human health and safety
impacts that could be avoided by
proceeding with the proposed
exemption, especially given that the
staff has concluded in NRC’s Safety
Determination Memorandum, issued
with respect to the enforcement action
against Holtec regarding these
violations, that fuel can be stored safely
in the MPC–89–CBS casks.
Agencies Consulted
The NRC provided the Ohio
Emergency Management Agency (OH–
EMA) a copy of this draft EA for review
by an email dated April 25, 2024. On
April 25, 2024, OH–EMA stated via
email that it had no comments on the
draft EA and FONSI.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The environmental impacts of the
proposed action have been reviewed in
accordance with the requirements in 10
CFR part 51, which implement NEPA.
Based upon the foregoing environmental
assessment, the NRC finds that the
proposed action of granting the
exemption from the regulations in 10
CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3),
72.212(b)(5)(i), 72.212(b)(11) and
72.214, which require the licensee to
comply with the terms, conditions, and
specifications of the CoC, in this case
limited to specific future loading of two
E:\FR\FM\08MYN1.SGM
08MYN1
38928
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 8, 2024 / Notices
canisters with the 89-assembly CBS
variant design basket beginning August
2024, would not significantly impact the
quality of the human environment.
Accordingly, the NRC has determined
that a FONSI is appropriate, and an
environmental impact statement is not
warranted.
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the
following table are available to
interested persons through ADAMS, as
indicated.
ADAMS accession No. or
Federal Register notice
Document description
Issuance of order for license transfer, dated September 28, 2023 ...............................................................................
VistraOps and Energy Harbor Nuclear Corporation letter providing Notice of Planned Closing of Transaction and
Provision of Documents to Satisfy Order Conditions, dated February 23, 2024.
Energy Harbor Nuclear Corporation request for specific exemption, dated February 27, 2024 ...................................
NRC authorization of license transfer amendment, dated March 1, 2024 ....................................................................
VistraOps supplement to request for exemption, dated March 22, 2024 ......................................................................
NRC issuance of Certificate of Compliance No. 1032, Amendment 5, dated June 25, 2020 ......................................
Holtec International, Inc.—Notice of Violation; The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Inspection Report No.
07201014/2022–201, EA–23–044, dated January 30, 2024.
10 CFR part 72 amendment to allow spent fuel storage in NRC-approved casks, dated July 18, 1990 .....................
EA for part 72 amendment to allow spent fuel storage in NRC-approved casks, dated March 8, 1989 ......................
Final rule for List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: Holtec International HI–STORM Flood/Wind Multipurpose Canister Storage System CoC No. 1032, Amendment 5, dated May 13, 2020.
NRC Safety Determination of a Potential Structural Failure of the Fuel Basket During Accident Conditions for the
HI–STORM 100 and HI–STORM Flood/Wind Dry Cask Storage Systems, dated January 31, 2024.
NRC email to OH–EMA, ‘‘State’s review of EA/FONSI for Perry Exemption,’’ dated April 25, 2024 ...........................
Email from OH–EMA regarding request for State review of the Perry exemption request environmental assessment, dated April 26, 2024.
Dated: May 3, 2024.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Yoira Diaz-Sanabria,
Chief, Storage and Transportation Branch,
Division of Fuel Management, Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
II. Docketed Proceeding(s)
I. Introduction
[FR Doc. 2024–10043 Filed 5–7–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. MC2024–264 and CP2024–270;
MC2024–265 and CP2024–271; MC2024–266
and CP2024–272]
New Postal Products
Postal Regulatory Commission.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The Commission is noticing a
recent Postal Service filing for the
Commission’s consideration concerning
a negotiated service agreement. This
notice informs the public of the filing,
invites public comment, and takes other
administrative steps.
DATES: Comments are due: May 9, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments
electronically via the Commission’s
Filing Online system at https://
www.prc.gov. Those who cannot submit
comments electronically should contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section by
telephone for advice on filing
alternatives.
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
SUMMARY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
David A. Trissell, General Counsel, at
202–789–6820.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:03 May 07, 2024
Jkt 262001
The Commission gives notice that the
Postal Service filed request(s) for the
Commission to consider matters related
to negotiated service agreement(s). The
request(s) may propose the addition or
removal of a negotiated service
agreement from the Market Dominant or
the Competitive product list, or the
modification of an existing product
currently appearing on the Market
Dominant or the Competitive product
list.
Section II identifies the docket
number(s) associated with each Postal
Service request, the title of each Postal
Service request, the request’s acceptance
date, and the authority cited by the
Postal Service for each request. For each
request, the Commission appoints an
officer of the Commission to represent
the interests of the general public in the
proceeding, pursuant to 39 U.S.C. 505
(Public Representative). Section II also
establishes comment deadline(s)
pertaining to each request.
The public portions of the Postal
Service’s request(s) can be accessed via
the Commission’s website (https://
www.prc.gov). Non-public portions of
the Postal Service’s request(s), if any,
can be accessed through compliance
PO 00000
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Sfmt 4703
ML23237B448 (Package).
ML24054A498.
ML24058A180.
ML24057A092 (Package).
ML24082A132.
ML20163A701 (Package).
ML24016A190.
55 FR 29181.
ML051230231.
85 FR 28479.
ML24018A085.
ML24120A321.
ML24120A322.
with the requirements of 39 CFR
3011.301.1
The Commission invites comments on
whether the Postal Service’s request(s)
in the captioned docket(s) are consistent
with the policies of title 39. For
request(s) that the Postal Service states
concern Market Dominant product(s),
applicable statutory and regulatory
requirements include 39 U.S.C. 3622, 39
U.S.C. 3642, 39 CFR part 3030, and 39
CFR part 3040, subpart B. For request(s)
that the Postal Service states concern
Competitive product(s), applicable
statutory and regulatory requirements
include 39 U.S.C. 3632, 39 U.S.C. 3633,
39 U.S.C. 3642, 39 CFR part 3035, and
39 CFR part 3040, subpart B. Comment
deadline(s) for each request appear in
section II.
II. Docketed Proceeding(s)
1. Docket No(s).: MC2024–264 and
CP2024–270; Filing Title: USPS Request
to Add Priority Mail & USPS Ground
Advantage Contract 237 to Competitive
Product List and Notice of Filing
Materials Under Seal; Filing Acceptance
Date: May 1, 2024; Filing Authority: 39
U.S.C. 3642, 39 CFR 3040.130 through
3040.135, and 39 CFR 3035.105; Public
Representative: Kenneth R. Moeller;
Comments Due: May 9, 2024.
2. Docket No(s).: MC2024–265 and
CP2024–271; Filing Title: USPS Request
to Add Priority Mail & USPS Ground
Advantage Contract 238 to Competitive
1 See Docket No. RM2018–3, Order Adopting
Final Rules Relating to Non-Public Information,
June 27, 2018, Attachment A at 19–22 (Order No.
4679).
E:\FR\FM\08MYN1.SGM
08MYN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38926-38928]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-10043]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 72-69 and 50-440; NRC-2024-0082]
Vistra Operations Company LLC.; Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Unit
1; Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation; Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice; issuance.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an
environmental assessment (EA) and a finding of no significant impact
(FONSI) for an exemption request submitted by Energy Harbor Nuclear
Corporation \1\ that would permit Perry Nuclear Power Plant (Perry) to
load two Holtec 89-assembly multi-purpose canisters (MPC) with
continuous basket shims (CBS) in the HI-STORM Flood/Wind (FW) MPC
Storage System at its Perry Unit 1 Independent Spent Fuel Storage
Installation (ISFSI) in a storage condition where the terms,
conditions, and specifications in the Certificate of Compliance (CoC)
No. 1032, Amendment No. 5 are not met.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Effective March 1, 2024, the facility operating license for
Perry Nuclear Power Plant was transferred from Energy Harbor Nuclear
Generation LLC (owner) and Energy Harbor Nuclear Corp. (operator) to
Energy Harbor Nuclear Generation LLC (owner) and Vistra Operations
Company LLC. Upon completion of this license transfer, Vistra
Operations Company LLC (VistraOps) assumed the responsibility for
all licensing actions under NRC review at the time of the transfer
and requested that the NRC continue its review of these actions.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
May 8, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2024-0082 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-2024-0082. 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, at 301-415-4737,
or by email to [email protected]. For the convenience of the reader,
instructions about obtaining materials referenced in this document are
provided in the ``Availability of Documents'' section.
NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. 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: Bernard White, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone: 301-415-6577; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is reviewing an exemption request from Energy Harbor
Nuclear Corporation, dated February 27, 2024, and supplemented by
VistraOps on March 22, 2024. VistraOps is requesting an exemption,
pursuant to section 72.7 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(10 CFR), in paragraphs 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3), 72.212(b)(5)(i),
72.212(b)(11), and 72.214 that require VistraOps to comply with the
terms, conditions, and specifications of the CoC No. 1032, Amendment
No. 5. If approved, the exemption would allow VistraOps to load two
MPCs which contain the 89-assembly CBS basket (MPC-89-CBS) beginning in
August 2024 in the HI-STORM FW Storage System at the Perry ISFSI in a
storage condition where the terms, conditions, and specifications in
the CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5 are not met.
II. Environmental Assessment
Background
Perry is located on a 1,100 acre site on Lake Erie, 40 miles
northeast of Cleveland in North Perry, Ohio. Unit 1 began operating in
1987. VistraOps has been storing spent fuel in an ISFSI at Perry under
a general license as authorized by 10 CFR part 72, subpart K, ``General
License for Storage of Spent Fuel at Power Reactor Sites.'' VistraOps
[[Page 38927]]
currently uses the HI-STORM FW Storage System under CoC No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5 for dry storage of spent nuclear fuel in a specific MPC
(i.e., MPC-89) at the Perry ISFSI.
Description of the Proposed Action
The CoC is the NRC approved design for each dry cask storage
system. The proposed action would exempt the applicant from the
requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3), 72.212(b)(5)(i),
72.212(b)(11), and 72.214 only as these requirements pertain to the use
of the MPC-89-CBS in the HI-STORM FW Storage System for near-term
planned cask loadings. The exemption would allow VistraOps to load two
MPC-89-CBS in the HI-STORM FW Storage System at the Perry ISFSI,
despite the MPC-89-CBS in the HI-STORM FW Storage System not being in
compliance with the terms, conditions, and specifications in the CoC
No. 1032, Amendment No. 5.
The CoC for the HI-STORM FW Storage System provides the
requirements, conditions, and operating limits necessary for use of the
system to store spent fuel. Holtec International (Holtec), the designer
and manufacturer of the HI-STORM FW Storage System, developed a variant
of the design with CBS for the MPC-89, known as MPC-89-CBS. Holtec
originally implemented the CBS variant design under the provisions of
10 CFR 72.48, which allows licensees to make changes to cask designs
without a CoC amendment under certain conditions (listed in 10 CFR
72.48(c)). After evaluating the specific changes to the cask designs,
the NRC determined that Holtec erred when it implemented the CBS
variant design under 10 CFR 72.48, as this was not the type of change
allowed without a CoC amendment. For this reason, the NRC issued three
Severity Level IV violations to Holtec. Perry plans to load two MPC-89-
CBS canisters in the HI-STORM FW overpacks beginning in August 2024.
This exemption considers the near-term planned loading of the two
canisters with the CBS variant basket design.
Need for the Proposed Action
VistraOps requested this exemption in order to allow loading of two
MPC-89-CBS in HI-STORM FW Storage System at the Perry ISFSI for the
future loading campaign scheduled in August 2024.
Approval of the exemption request would allow VistraOps to
effectively manage the spent fuel pool margin and capacity to maintain
full core offload capability until its next storage cask loading
campaign in 2028. Otherwise, after the refueling outages in 2025 and
2027, Perry would have an insufficient number of open fuel cells (a
deficit of 25 open cells) in the spent fuel pool. It would also allow
VistraOps to effectively manage the availability of the specialized
workforce and equipment needed to support competing fuel loading and
operational activities at the Perry ISFSI.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
This EA evaluates the potential environmental impacts of granting
an exemption from the terms, conditions, and specifications in CoC No.
1032, Amendment No. 5. The exemption would allow two MPC-89-CBS
canisters to be loaded in the HI-STORM FW Storage System in the near-
term loading campaign scheduled for August 2024.
The potential environmental impacts of storing spent nuclear fuel
in NRC-approved storage systems have been documented in previous
assessments. On July 18, 1990, the NRC amended 10 CFR part 72 to
provide for the storage of spent fuel under a general license in cask
designs approved by the NRC. The EA for the 1990 final rule analyzed
the potential environmental impacts of using NRC-approved storage
casks. The EA for the HI-STORM FW Storage System, CoC No. 1032,
Amendment No. 5, published in 2020, tiers off of the EA issued for the
July 18, 1990, final rule. ``Tiering'' off earlier EAs is a standard
process encouraged by the regulations implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) that entails the use of impact
analyses of previous EAs to bound the impacts of a proposed action
where appropriate. The Holtec HI-STORM FW Storage System is designed to
mitigate the effects of design basis accidents that could occur during
storage. Considering the specific design requirements for the accident
conditions, the design of the cask would prevent loss of containment,
shielding, and criticality control. If there is no loss of containment,
shielding, or criticality control, the environmental impacts would not
be significant.
The exemptions requested by VistraOps at the Perry site as they
relate to CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5 for the HI-STORM FW Storage
System are limited to the near-term planned loading of two storage
systems utilizing the CBS variant basket design. The staff determined
that this change in the basket would not result in either radiological
or non-radiological environmental impacts that significantly differ
from the environmental impacts evaluated in the environmental
assessment supporting the issuance of CoC No. 1032, Amendment No. 5. If
the exemption is granted, there would be no significant change in the
types or amounts of any effluents released, no significant increase in
individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure, and
no significant increase in the potential for or consequences from
radiological accidents. Accordingly, the Commission concludes that
there would be no significant environmental impacts associated with the
proposed action.
Alternative to the Proposed Action
The staff considered the no-action alternative. The no-action
alternative (denial of the exemption request) would require VistraOps
to delay the near-term planned loading of spent fuel in the MPC-89-CBS
in the HI-STORM FW Storage System at the Perry ISFSI. Delaying the
loading of spent fuel into the two casks in August 2024 could affect
VistraOps's ability to effectively manage pool capacity, reactor fuel
offloading, and refueling. It could also pose challenges to spent fuel
heat removal and impact the availability of the specialized workforce
and equipment needed to support competing fuel loading and operational
activities at Perry and other VistraOps sites. The NRC determined that
the no-action alternative would result in undue potential human health
and safety impacts that could be avoided by proceeding with the
proposed exemption, especially given that the staff has concluded in
NRC's Safety Determination Memorandum, issued with respect to the
enforcement action against Holtec regarding these violations, that fuel
can be stored safely in the MPC-89-CBS casks.
Agencies Consulted
The NRC provided the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (OH-EMA) a
copy of this draft EA for review by an email dated April 25, 2024. On
April 25, 2024, OH-EMA stated via email that it had no comments on the
draft EA and FONSI.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The environmental impacts of the proposed action have been reviewed
in accordance with the requirements in 10 CFR part 51, which implement
NEPA. Based upon the foregoing environmental assessment, the NRC finds
that the proposed action of granting the exemption from the regulations
in 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3), 72.212(b)(5)(i), 72.212(b)(11)
and 72.214, which require the licensee to comply with the terms,
conditions, and specifications of the CoC, in this case limited to
specific future loading of two
[[Page 38928]]
canisters with the 89-assembly CBS variant design basket beginning
August 2024, would not significantly impact the quality of the human
environment. Accordingly, the NRC has determined that a FONSI is
appropriate, and an environmental impact statement is not warranted.
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through ADAMS, as indicated.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document description ADAMS accession No. or Federal Register notice
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Issuance of order for license transfer, dated September 28, ML23237B448 (Package).
2023.
VistraOps and Energy Harbor Nuclear Corporation letter ML24054A498.
providing Notice of Planned Closing of Transaction and
Provision of Documents to Satisfy Order Conditions, dated
February 23, 2024.
Energy Harbor Nuclear Corporation request for specific ML24058A180.
exemption, dated February 27, 2024.
NRC authorization of license transfer amendment, dated ML24057A092 (Package).
March 1, 2024.
VistraOps supplement to request for exemption, dated March ML24082A132.
22, 2024.
NRC issuance of Certificate of Compliance No. 1032, ML20163A701 (Package).
Amendment 5, dated June 25, 2020.
Holtec International, Inc.--Notice of Violation; The U.S. ML24016A190.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Inspection Report No.
07201014/2022-201, EA-23-044, dated January 30, 2024.
10 CFR part 72 amendment to allow spent fuel storage in NRC- 55 FR 29181.
approved casks, dated July 18, 1990.
EA for part 72 amendment to allow spent fuel storage in NRC- ML051230231.
approved casks, dated March 8, 1989.
Final rule for List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: 85 FR 28479.
Holtec International HI-STORM Flood/Wind Multipurpose
Canister Storage System CoC No. 1032, Amendment 5, dated
May 13, 2020.
NRC Safety Determination of a Potential Structural Failure ML24018A085.
of the Fuel Basket During Accident Conditions for the HI-
STORM 100 and HI-STORM Flood/Wind Dry Cask Storage
Systems, dated January 31, 2024.
NRC email to OH-EMA, ``State's review of EA/FONSI for Perry ML24120A321.
Exemption,'' dated April 25, 2024.
Email from OH-EMA regarding request for State review of the ML24120A322.
Perry exemption request environmental assessment, dated
April 26, 2024.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dated: May 3, 2024.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Yoira Diaz-Sanabria,
Chief, Storage and Transportation Branch, Division of Fuel Management,
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2024-10043 Filed 5-7-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P