Nuclear Regulatory Commission September 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is noticing the completion of remediation activities at the Salmon River Uranium Development Site, near North Fork, Idaho. Background: The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) issued Source Material License P-4001 to Salmon River Uranium Development, Inc. (SRUD) on October 10, 1958. This license authorized SRUD to possess and transfer source material. On March 30, 1959, the AEC issued Source Material License No. R-0230 to SRUD. This license authorized the receipt and possession of source material for processing. Source Material License No. R-0230 expired on June 30, 1959 and Source Material License No. P-4001 expired on October 31, 1959. Both uranium and thorium ores were processed at the site. Processing of source material occurred at two separate times, the late- 1950s and the late-1970s. Processing operations were conducted in the late-1950s in accordance with the AEC licenses. During the late-1970s, pilot plant operations were conducted at the site to determine the viability of experimental ore processing techniques. The SRUD site was placed on the NRC's Site Decommissioning Management Plan (SDMP) list in 1994. In May 2001, NRC staff visited the SRUD site and identified thorium contamination in the form of partially processed ore. In 2003, the NRC and the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education conducted scoping surveys of the site. During 2004 and 2005, NRC staff worked with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an approach for remediation of the site. EPA agreed to perform remediation activities at the SRUD site in accordance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 9601(14) and (33). A Removal Action Work Plan (ADAMS No. ML072880344), which specified its step-by- step process for conducting cleanup activities at the SRUD site, was developed by the EPA and approved by the NRC. The EPA's Removal Action Work Plan included the removal and disposal of hazardous chemical and radiological contaminants that may pose a threat to workers, public health and welfare, and the environment. EPA's radiological release criteria was based on a recreational use scenario for the site. Implementation of the EPA's work plan began on October 23, 2007, and was completed on June 3, 2008. Contaminated waste material above the unrestricted release criteria was shipped to licensed disposal sites. EPA's work activities summary report is documented in the Final Removal Action Report, dated September 12, 2008 (ADAMS No. ML082590288). The NRC staff conducted confirmatory radiological surveys of site structures and land areas and collected soil samples for analysis by the NRC's independent laboratory contractor to verify results obtained by EPA. Confirmatory surveys consisted of surface scans for alpha, beta and gamma radiation, direct measurements for total alpha and beta activity, collection and analysis of soil samples for thorium and uranium, and collection of smear samples for determining removable radioactivity levels. The survey information and sample results are documented in Inspection Reports 040-03400/07-01 (ADAMS No. ML080320117) and 040-03400/08-01 (ADAMS No. ML082180190). The NRC performed an independent dose assessment using the recreational scenario employed by the EPA to evaluate the EPA's cleanup criteria and evaluate the condition of the SRUD site. Based on the considerations discussed above, the Commission has concluded that: (1) Radioactive material above release limits has been properly disposed; (2) reasonable effort has been made to eliminate residual radioactive contamination; and (3) FSSs and associated documentation demonstrate that the site is suitable for unrestricted release in accordance with the criteria in 10 CFR Part 20, Subpart E. Therefore, the Salmon River site near North Fork, Idaho is suitable for unrestricted use.

The Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, (AEA) requires the NRC to adjust the maximum total and annual standard deferred premiums specified in the Price-Anderson Act for inflation at least once during each 5-year period following August 20, 2003. The NRC is amending its regulations to satisfy this requirement.

On September 12, 2008, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which establishes a framework for early coordination and participation among the agencies. The MOU is an effort to facilitate the timely review of proposed nuclear power plant applications and it establishes a commitment to early agency involvement; proactive participation and informal communication throughout the review process; sharing of information gathered, considered and relied upon by each agency; and, if requested, interagency participation in public hearings. Interagency cooperation under the MOU will facilitate each agency's compliance with its review responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act and other related statutes with respect to the authorizations required to construct and operate nuclear power plants licensed by the NRC. It is anticipated that the Corps will act as a cooperating agency in most circumstances; however, the MOU does not preclude different forms of coordination (e.g., Corps participation as a consulting agency).

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its regulations to resolve an administrative issue raised in a petition for rulemaking (PRM) submitted by the Strategic Teaming and Resource Sharing (STARS) Integrated Regulatory Affairs Group (PRM-50-91). In this final rule, the NRC is restoring the original paragraph designations as existed in 10 CFR 50.36 before the 2007 Part 52 final rulemaking. This final rule eliminates the need for licensees to expend resources on administrative redesignations that have no safety benefit.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is denying a petition for rulemaking submitted by Mr. David Lochbaum on behalf of the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) on February 23, 2007. The petitioner requested that the NRC amend its regulations governing domestic licensing of production and utilization facilities to require periodic demonstrations by applicable local, State, and Federal entities to ensure that nuclear power plants can be adequately protected against radiological sabotage by adversaries with capabilities that exceed those posed by the design basis threat (DBT).

NRC will convene a meeting of the Advisory Committee on the Medical Uses of Isotopes (ACMUI) October 27-28, 2008. A sample of agenda items to be discussed during the public session includes: (1) ACMUI subcommittee reports on cesium chloride (CsCl), permanent implant brachytherapy rulemaking, and fingerprinting; (2) Y-90 microsphere brachytherapy licensing guidance; (3) potential changes to 10 CFR Parts 20 and 35; (4) patient needs, concerns, and rights in radiation medicine; (5) infiltration of fluorine-18 (F-18) and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals as medical events; (6) status of recommendations for modifying training and experience attestation requirements; (7) status of technical basis for the Petition for Rulemaking (PRM) 35-20 (Ritenour) and follow-up; (8) Potential rulemaking and associated Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) regarding multiple RSOs on a medical-use license; (9) status of current and future 10 CFR Part 35 rulemaking; and (10) medical isotope shortages. A copy of the agenda will be available at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/acmui/agenda or by e-mailing Ms. Ashley Tull at the contact information below. Purpose: Discuss issues related to 10 CFR Part 35 Medical Use of Byproduct Material. Date and Time for Closed Sessions: October 27, 2008 from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. This session will be closed so that ACMUI can discuss internal Committee business and receive annual ethics training. Date and Time for Open Sessions: October 27, 2008, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and October 28, 2008, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Address for Public Meeting: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Two White Flint North Building, Room T-2B3, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. Public Participation: Any member of the public who wishes to participate in the meeting should contact Ms. Tull using the information below.

The NRC has recently submitted to OMB for review the following proposal for the collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). The NRC hereby informs potential respondents that an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and that a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The NRC published a Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period on this information collection on May 30, 2008. 1. Type of submission, new, revision, or extension: Extension. 2. The title of the information collection: 10 CFR Part 33 Specific Domestic Licenses of Broad Scope for Byproduct Material. 3. Current OMB approval number: 3150-0015. 4. The form number if applicable: N/A. 5. How often the collection is required: There is a one-time submittal of information to receive a license. Once a specific license has been issued, there is a 10-year resubmittal of the information for renewal of the license. 6. Who will be required or asked to report: All applicants requesting a license of broad scope for byproduct material and all current licensees requesting renewal of a broad scope license. 7. An estimate of the number of annual responses: All of the information collections in Part 33 are captured under OMB clearance number 3150-0120 for NRC Form 313. 8. The estimated number of annual respondents: See Item 7. 9. An estimate of the total number of hours needed annually to complete the requirement or request: See Item 7. 10. Abstract: 10 CFR Part 33 contains mandatory requirements for the issuance of a broad scope license authorizing the use of byproduct material. The subparts cover specific requirements for obtaining a license of broad scope. These requirements include equipment, facilities, personnel, and procedures adequate to protect health and minimize danger to life or property. A copy of the final supporting statement may be viewed free of charge at the NRC Public Document Room, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Room O-1 F21, Rockville, MD 20852. OMB clearance requests are available at the NRC worldwide Web site: https:// www.nrc.gov/public-involve/doc-comment/omb/. The document will be available on the NRC home page site for 60 days after the signature date of this notice. Comments and questions should be directed to the OMB reviewer listed below by October 20, 2008. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but assurance of consideration cannot be given to comments received after this date.

The NRC is making the proposed draft test plan, ``Project PlanFire-Induced Failure Modes and Effects Testing of Direct Current Driven Control Cables,'' available for public comment.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is revising its Enforcement Policy (Enforcement Policy or Policy) to more appropriately address the various areas that the NRC regulates, providing a framework that supports consistent implementation of the Enforcement Policy. A notice was published on January 25, 2007, announcing that the NRC was undertaking a major revision of the Enforcement Policy to clarify the use of terms and update the Policy, removing outdated information and adding information addressing enforcement issues in areas that are not currently directly addressed in the Policy. The NRC is now soliciting written comments from interested parties including public interest groups, states, members of the public and the regulated industry, i.e., reactor and materials licensees, vendors, and contractors, on the proposed revised Policy. This request is intended to assist the NRC in revising the Enforcement Policy; NRC does not intend to modify its emphasis on compliance with NRC requirements.