Nuclear Regulatory Commission October 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is correcting a notice that was published in the Federal Register (FR) on October 24, 2018, regarding the review of an export license application (XW019), submitted by Perma-Fix Northwest Richland, Inc. (PFNW). This action is necessary to correct the Regulations.gov Docket ID provided to the public for obtaining information and submitting comments through the Federal rulemaking website. In addition, the NRC is extending the period for commenting, requesting a hearing, and petitioning for leave to intervene.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is granting an exemption for prior NRC approval of any departure from Tier 2* information or any departure from Tier 2 information that involves a change to or departure from Tier 2* information, provided that specified criteria are not met, and is issuing License Amendment Nos. 142 and 141 to Combined Licenses (COLs) NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. 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 (collectively SNC); 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 imposition of License Condition 2.D.13 asked for in the amendment request. Because the acceptability of the exemption was determined in part by the acceptability of the amendment, the exemption and amendment are being issued concurrently.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is requesting comments on its training and experience (T&E) requirements. Specifically, the NRC would like input on whether it should establish tailored T&E requirements for different categories of radiopharmaceuticals for which a written directive is required in accordance with its regulations. The input will be used to determine whether significant regulatory changes to the NRC's T&E requirements for authorized users (AUs) are warranted.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) invites public comment on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an existing collection of information. The information collection is entitled, ``Physical Protection of Category 1 and Category 2 Quantities of Radioactive Material.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing License Amendment Nos. 145 and 144 to Combined Licenses (COL), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. The COLs were issued to Southern Nuclear Operating Company, 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 (collectively SNC); for construction and operation of the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (VEGP) Units 3 and 4, located in Burke County, Georgia. The amendment authorizes changes in the form of departures to the VEGP Units 3 and 4 plant specific Design Control Document (PS-DCD) Tier 2 information contained within the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report and plant-specific Tier 1 information, with corresponding changes to Appendix C of the COL removing the fire protection system (FPS) nonsafety-related containment cable spray and installing passive fire stops and radiant energy shields. Specifically, the changes were for the removal of the FPS containment open nozzle water spray suppression system for the open nonsafety-related cable trays in fire zone 1100 AF 11300B and for installing passive fire stops and radiant energy shields. The exemption allows changes that impact Tier 1 of the PS-DCD and associated COL Appendix C of the Facility COL as specified in LAR 18- 015. This exemption is related to, and necessary for, the granting of the amendment which is being issued concurrently.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued exemptions in response to a request from Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon or the licensee) regarding certain emergency planning (EP) requirements. The exemptions eliminate the requirements to maintain an offsite radiological emergency preparedness plan and reduce the scope of onsite EP activities at the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (Oyster Creek), based on the reduced risks of accidents that could result in an offsite radiological release at a decommissioning nuclear power reactor.

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 Nos. 140 and 139 to Combined Licenses (COLs), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. 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 (collectively SNC); 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.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the NAC International NAC- UMS[supreg] listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to include Amendment No. 6 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1015. Amendment No. 6 revises the CoC's technical specifications (TSs) to: Remove a redundant requirement for inspection of the concrete cask and canister; revise a limiting condition of operation (LCO) for heat removal to clarify that ``LCO not met'' means that the concrete heat removal system is inoperable; remove an inspection requirement that is already covered by LCO surveillance requirements for off- normal, accident, or natural phenomenon events; and clarify that ``immediate'' restoration of a concrete cask's heat removal capabilities means ``within the design-basis time limit'' in Section 11.2.13 of the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), ``or within the time limit for a less than design-basis heat load case, as evaluated.'' Amendment No. 6 also clarifies that an LCO for loaded cask surface dose rates applies prior to storage conditions, when dose rates will be highest.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received and is considering approval of an application filed by Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon), Oyster Creek Environmental Protection, LLC (OCEP), and Holtec Decommissioning International, LLC (HDI) on August 31, 2018. The application seeks NRC approval of the direct transfer of Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-16 for Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (Oyster Creek), as well as the general license for the Oyster Creek Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI), from the current holder, Exelon, to OCEP as the licensed owner and to HDI as the licensed operator. The NRC is also considering amending the renewed facility operating license and ISFSI general license for administrative purposes to reflect the proposed transfer. The application contains sensitive unclassified non-safeguards information (SUNSI).

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an order approving the direct transfer of Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-28 for the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VY), and its general license for the VY Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI), from the currently licensed operator, Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (ENOI), and currently licensed owner, Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC (ENVY), to NorthStar Nuclear Decommissioning Company, LLC (NorthStar NDC), and to ENVY's successor NorthStar Vermont Yankee, LLC (NorthStar VY). This order also approves the indirect transfer of control of the license from ENVY's Entergy parent holding and investment companies to NorthStar Decommissioning Holdings, LLC and its parents NorthStar Group Services, Inc. (NorthStar), LVI Parent Corp., and NorthStar Group Holdings, LLC. The NRC is also issuing a conforming amendment for the facility operating license for administrative purposes to reflect the approved license transfer. The NRC confirmed that NorthStar NDC, and the entity to be named NorthStar VY, met the regulatory, legal, technical, and financial obligations necessary to qualify them as a transferee and determined that the transferee is qualified to be the holder of the license; and the transfer of the license is otherwise consistent with the applicable provisions of law, regulations, and orders issued by the Commission. The Order approving the direct transfer of the VY license to NorthStar NDC and NorthStar VY and the indirect transfer to NorthStar Decommissioning Holdings, LLC and its parents became effective on October 11, 2018.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for public comment draft regulatory guide (DG), DG-4019, ``Environmental Dosimetry-Performance Specifications, Testing, and Data Analysis.'' This proposed revision (Revision 2) to Regulatory Guide (RG) 4.13 provides updated guidance that the NRC staff considers acceptable for performing surveys and evaluations of public dose in the unrestricted area and the controlled area of a licensed facility from direct radiation using environmental dosimetry. The DG endorses the American National Standards Institute/Health Physics Society (ANSI/HPS) N13.37- 2014, ``Environmental DosimetryCriteria for System Design and Implementation.''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing Revision 1 to Regulatory Guide (RG), ``Applications for Nuclear Power Plants.'' This update of RG 1.206, ``Combined License Applications for Nuclear Power Plants (LWR Edition),'' dated June 2007, provides updated guidance for prospective applicants regarding the format and content of applications for new nuclear power plants. The revision reflects the lessons learned regarding the review of nuclear power plant applications since 2007. Two significant changes include: (1) The addition of new guidance to applicants for standard design certifications (DCs) and early site permits (ESPs), and (2) the removal of detailed technical information for a combined license (COL) that was highly redundant with information in NUREG-0800, ``Standard Review Plan for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR Edition'' (SRP). The NRC is additionally withdrawing four interim staff guidance documents due to the incorporation of their guidance into RG 1.206, Revision 1.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a standard design approval (SDA) to Korea Electric Power Corporation and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd (KEPCO/KHNP) for the advanced power reactor 1400 (APR1400) standard design. The SDA allows the APR1400 standard design to be referenced in an application for a construction permit or operating license, or an application for a combined license or manufacturing license under its regulations.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) invites public comment on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an existing collection of information. The information collection is entitled, ``NRC Form 398, `Personal Qualification StatementLicensee.'''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) invites public comment on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an existing collection of information. The information collection is entitled, ``NRC Form 396, `Certification of Medical Examination by Facility Licensee.' ''

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering issuance of an exemption in response to a May 25, 2018, request from NorthStar Group Services, Inc. (NorthStar), on behalf of Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee, LLC (ENVY, to be known as NorthStar Vermont Yankee, LLC or NorthStar VY). The exemption would allow NorthStar VY to use up to $20 million in funds from the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VY) nuclear decommissioning trust fund (NDT), on a revolving basis, for irradiated fuel management activities should the request for the direct and indirect transfer of the VY Facility License No. DPR-28 to NorthStar VY be approved by the NRC. The staff is issuing a final Environmental Assessment (EA) and final Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) associated with the proposed exemption.

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 Nos. 143 and 142 to Combined Licenses (COLs), NPF-91 and NPF-92, respectively. 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 (collectively SNC); 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.

Pursuant to Section 189a.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is publishing this regular biweekly notice. The Act requires the Commission to publish notice of any amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, and grants the Commission the authority to issue and make immediately effective any amendment to an operating license or combined license, as applicable, upon a determination by the Commission that such amendment involves no significant hazards consideration, notwithstanding the pendency before the Commission of a request for a hearing from any person. This biweekly notice includes all notices of amendments issued, or proposed to be issued, from September 11, 2018, to September 24, 2018. The last biweekly notice was published on September 25, 2018.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing Revision 3 to Regulatory Guide (RG) 3.71, ``Nuclear Criticality Safety Standards for Nuclear Materials Outside Reactor Cores.'' Revision 3 endorses guidance in multiple American National Standards Institute/ American Nuclear Society (ANSI/ANS)-8 standards, as well as a specific International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Standard. In addition, the scope of this guide is expanded to include packaging and transportation and certain storage facilities because many of the standards are based on broad principles that are not limited solely to fuel processing facilities.