Current through all regulations passed and filed through March 18, 2024
(A) Each specific license expires at the end
of the day on the expiration date stated in the license unless the licensee has
filed an application for renewal under rule
3701:1-38-02
of the Administrative Code not less than ninety days before the expiration date
stated in the existing license. If an application for renewal has been filed at
least ninety days before the expiration date stated in the existing license,
the existing license expires at the end of the day on which the director makes
a final determination to deny the renewal application or, if the determination
states an expiration date, the expiration date stated in the
determination.
(B) Each specific
license revoked by the director expires at the end of the day on the date of
the director's final determination to revoke the license, or on the expiration
date stated in the determination, or as otherwise provided by a director's
order.
(C) Each specific license
continues in effect, beyond the expiration date if necessary, with respect to
possession of special nuclear material until the director notifies the licensee
in writing that the license is terminated. During this time, the licensee
shall:
(1) Limit actions involving special
nuclear material to those related to decommissioning; and
(2) Continue to control entry to restricted
areas until they are suitable for release in accordance with department
requirements.
(D) Within
sixty days of the occurrence of any of the following, consistent with the
administrative directions in rule
3701:1-56-12 of
the Administrative Code, each licensee shall provide notification to the
director in writing and either begin decommissioning its site, or any separate
building or outdoor area that contains residual radioactivity, so that the
building or outdoor area is suitable for release in accordance with department
requirements, or submit within twelve months of notification a decommissioning
plan, if required by paragraph (G)(1) of this rule, and begin decommissioning
upon approval of that plan if:
(1) The license
has expired pursuant to paragraph (A) or (B) of this rule;
(2) The licensee has decided to permanently
cease principal activities at the entire site or in any separate building or
outdoor area;
(3) No principal
activities under the license have been conducted for a period of twenty-four
months; or
(4) No principal
activities have been conducted for a period of twenty-four months in any
separate building or outdoor area that contains residual radioactivity such
that the building or outdoor area is unsuitable for release in accordance with
department requirements.
(E) Coincident with the notification required
by paragraph (D) of this rule, the licensee shall maintain in effect all
decommissioning financial assurances established by the licensee pursuant to
rule
3701:1-56-20
of the Administrative Code in conjunction with a license issuance or renewal or
as required by this rule. The amount of the financial assurance must be
increased, or may be decreased, as appropriate, to cover the detailed cost
estimate for decommissioning established pursuant to paragraph (G)(4)(e) of
this rule. Following approval of the decommissioning plan, a licensee may
reduce the amount of the financial assurance as decommissioning proceeds and
radiological contamination is reduced at the site with the approval of the
director.
(F) The director may
grant a request to delay or postpone initiation of the decommissioning process
if the director determines that such relief is not detrimental to the public
health and safety and is otherwise in the public interest. The request must be
submitted no later than thirty days before notification pursuant to paragraph
(D) of this rule. The schedule for decommissioning set forth in paragraph (D)
of this rule may not commence until the director has made a determination on
the request.
(G)
(1) A decommissioning plan must be submitted
if required by license condition or if the procedures and activities necessary
to carry out decommissioning of the site or separate building or outdoor area
have not been previously approved by the director and these procedures could
increase potential health and safety impacts to workers or to the public, such
as in any of the following cases:
(a)
Procedures would involve techniques not applied routinely during cleanup or
maintenance operations;
(b) Workers
would be entering areas not normally occupied where surface contamination and
radiation levels are significantly higher than routinely encountered during
operation;
(c) Procedures could
result in significantly greater airborne concentrations of radioactive
materials than are present during operation; or
(d) Procedures could result in significantly
greater releases of radioactive material to the environment than those
associated with operation.
(2) The director may approve an alternate
schedule for submittal of a decommissioning plan required pursuant to paragraph
(D) of this rule if the director determines that the alternative schedule is
necessary to the effective conduct of decommissioning operations and presents
no undue risk from radiation to the public health and safety and is otherwise
in the public interest.
(3) The
procedures listed in paragraph (G)(1) of this rule may not be carried out prior
to approval of the decommissioning plan.
(4) The proposed decommissioning plan for the
site or separate building or outdoor area must include:
(a) A description of the conditions of the
site or separate building or outdoor area sufficient to evaluate the
acceptability of the plan;
(b) A
description of planned decommissioning activities;
(c) A description of methods used to ensure
protection of workers and the environment against radiation hazards during
decommissioning;
(d) A description
of the planned final radiation survey;
(e) An updated detailed cost estimate for
decommissioning, comparison of that estimate with present funds set aside for
decommissioning, and a plan for assuring the availability of adequate funds for
completion of decommissioning; and
(f) For decommissioning plans calling for
completion of decommissioning later than twenty-four months after plan
approval, a justification for the delay based on the criteria in paragraph (I)
of this rule.
(5) The
proposed decommissioning plan will be approved by the director if the
information therein demonstrates that the decommissioning will be completed as
soon as practicable and that the health and safety of workers and the public
will be adequately protected.
(H)
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (I) of this rule, licensees shall complete
decommissioning of the site or separate building or outdoor area as soon as
practicable but no later than twenty-four months following the initiation of
decommissioning.
(2) Except as
provided in paragraph (I) of this rule, when decommissioning involves the
entire site, the licensee shall request license termination as soon as
practicable but no later than twenty-four months following the initiation of
decommissioning.
(I) The
director may approve a request for an alternate schedule for completion of
decommissioning of the site or separate building or outdoor area, and license
termination if appropriate, if the director determines that the alternative is
warranted by consideration of the following:
(1) Whether it is technically feasible to
complete decommissioning within the allotted twenty-four month
period;
(2) Whether sufficient
waste disposal capacity is available to allow completion of decommissioning
within the allotted twenty-four month period;
(3) Whether a significant volume reduction in
wastes requiring disposal will be achieved by allowing short-lived
radionuclides to decay;
(4) Whether
a significant reduction in radiation exposure to workers can be achieved by
allowing short-lived radionuclides to decay; and
(5) Other site-specific factors which the
director may consider appropriate on a case-by-case basis, such as the
regulatory requirements of other government agencies, lawsuits, ground-water
treatment activities, monitored natural ground-water restoration, actions that
could result in more environmental harm than deferred cleanup, and other
factors beyond the control of the licensee.
(J) As the final step in decommissioning, the
licensee shall:
(1) Certify the disposition of
all licensed material, including accumulated wastes, by submitting a completed
form HEA 5119 or equivalent information; and
(2) Conduct a radiation survey of the
premises where the licensed activities were carried out and submit a report of
the results of this survey, unless the licensee demonstrates in some other
manner that the premises are suitable for release in accordance with the
criteria for decommissioning in rule
3701:1-38-22 of
the Administrative Code. The licensee shall, as appropriate:
(a) Report levels of gamma radiation in units
of millisieverts (microroentgen) per hour at one meter from surfaces, and
report levels of radioactivity, including alpha and beta, in units of
megabecquerels (disintegrations per minute or microcuries) per one hundred
square centimeters removable and fixed for surfaces, megabecquerels
(microcuries) per milliliter for water, and becquerels (picocuries) per gram
for solids such as soils or concrete; and
(b) Specify the survey instrument(s) used and
certify that each instrument is properly calibrated and tested.
(K) Specific licenses,
including expired licenses, will be terminated by written notice to the
licensee when the director determines that:
(1) Special nuclear material has been
properly disposed;
(2) Reasonable
effort has been made to eliminate residual radioactive contamination, if
present; and
(3)
(a) A radiation survey has been performed
which demonstrates that the premises are suitable for release in accordance
with the criteria for decommissioning in rule
3701:1-38-22 of
the Administrative Code; or
(b)
Other information submitted by the licensee is sufficient to demonstrate that
the premises are suitable for release in accordance with the criteria for
decommissioning in rule
3701:1-38-22 of
the Administrative Code.
(4) Records required by paragraph (B)(5) of
rule
3701:1-56-10
of the Administrative Code have been received.
(L) As used in this rule, "principal
activities" means activities authorized by the license which are essential to
achieving the purpose(s) for which the license was issued or amended. Storage
during which no licensed material is accessed for use or disposal and
activities incidental to decontamination or decommissioning are not principal
activities.