[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 59 (Monday, March 28, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 17019-17022]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-7102]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 59 / Monday, March 28, 2011 / Rules
and Regulations
[[Page 17019]]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Part 72
[NRC-2011-0007]
RIN 3150-AI90
List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: HI-STORM Flood/Wind
Addition
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Direct final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the
Commission) is amending its regulations to add the HI-STORM Flood/Wind
cask system to the ``List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks.'' This
direct final rule allows the holders of power reactor operating
licenses to store spent fuel in this approved cask system under a
general license.
DATES: The final rule is effective June 13, 2011, unless significant
adverse comments are received by April 27, 2011. A significant adverse
comment is a comment where the commenter explains why the rule would be
inappropriate, including challenges to the rule's underlying premise or
approach, or would be ineffective or unacceptable without a change. If
the rule is withdrawn, timely notice will be published in the Federal
Register.
ADDRESSES: You can access publicly available documents related to this
document using the following methods:
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and
search for documents filed under Docket ID [NRC-2011-0007]. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher 301-492-3668; e-mail
[email protected].
NRC's Public Document Room (PDR): The public may examine and have
copied for a fee publicly available documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O-
1F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS):
Publicly available documents created or received at the NRC are
available electronically at the NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this page, the public can gain
entry into ADAMS, which provides text and image files of NRC's public
documents. If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems
in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC's PDR
Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to
[email protected]. An electronic copy of the proposed Certificate of
Compliance (CoC), Technical Specifications (TS), and preliminary safety
evaluation report (SER) can be found under ADAMS Package Accession
Number ML103020135. The ADAMS Accession Number for the Holtec
international, Inc. (Holtec) application, dated September 18, 2009, is
ML092650747.
CoC No. 1032, the TS, the preliminary SER, and the environmental
assessment are available for inspection at the NRC's PDR, Room O-1F21,
One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.
Single copies of these documents may be obtained from Gregory Trussell,
Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management
Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, telephone 301-415-6445, e-mail [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gregory Trussell, Office of Federal
and State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone 301-415-
6445, e-mail [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 218(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982, as
amended, requires that ``the Secretary [of the U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE)] shall establish a demonstration program, in cooperation
with the private sector, for the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel at
civilian nuclear power reactor sites, with the objective of
establishing one or more technologies that the [Nuclear Regulatory]
Commission may, by rule, approve for use at the sites of civilian
nuclear power reactors without, to the maximum extent practicable, the
need for additional site-specific approvals by the Commission.''
Section 133 of the NWPA states, in part, that ``the Commission shall,
by rule, establish procedures for the licensing of any technology
approved by the Commission under Section 218(a) for use at the site of
any civilian nuclear power reactor.''
To implement this mandate, the NRC approved dry storage of spent
nuclear fuel in NRC-approved casks under a general license by
publishing a final rule in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
(10 CFR) part 72, which added a new Subpart K within 10 CFR part 72,
entitled ``General License for Storage of Spent Fuel at Power Reactor
Sites'' (55 FR 29181; July 18, 1990). This rule also established a new
Subpart L within 10 CFR part 72, entitled ``Approval of Spent Fuel
Storage Casks,'' which contains procedures and criteria for obtaining
NRC approval of spent fuel storage cask designs.
Discussion
This rule will add the Holtec HI-STORM Flood/Wind (FW) cask system
to the list of approved spent fuel storage casks in 10 CFR 72.214.
Following the procedures specified in 10 CFR 72.230 of Subpart L,
Holtec submitted an application for NRC approval, together with the
Safety Analysis Report (SAR) entitled ``Safety Analysis Report on the
HI-STORM FW System.'' The NRC evaluated the Holtec submittal and issued
a preliminary SER and a proposed CoC for the HI-STORM FW System.
The HI-STORM FW System provides the following: (1) The ability to
store and transport Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) fuel with high initial
enrichment (up to 4.8 weight percent uranium-235 planer average)
without reliance on burnup or gadolinium credit; (2) the ability to
load and store spent nuclear fuel from the longest to the shortest
currently, and expected to be produced, in the United States without
requiring site crane upgrades; (3) a reduction in the 10 CFR part 71
burnup credit requirement for the Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR)
basket allowing transportation of 5 weight percent uranium-235 fuel
with moderate
[[Page 17020]]
burnup; (4) enlarged storage cell opening sizes in both PWR and BWR
multipurpose canisters (MPC) to ensure distorted irradiated fuel will
fit without difficulty and to permit canisterized fuel to be stored in
certain designated locations; (5) greater heat rejection capacity with
lower peak fuel cladding temperature than the HI-STORM 100 cask system,
CoC No. 1014; and (6) a variable weight (HI-TRAC VW) transfer cask that
will allow use of the full capacity of a facility's cask crane. The HI-
STORM FW System consists of the following major components: HI-STORM FW
Overpack, PWR MPC-37, BWR MPC-89, and HI-TRAC VW Transfer Cask.
The NRC finds that the HI-STORM FW System, as designed and when
fabricated and used under the conditions specified in its CoC, meets
the requirements of 10 CFR part 72. Thus, use of the HI-STORM FW
System, as approved by the NRC, will provide adequate protection of
public health and safety. With this final rule, the NRC is approving
the use of the HI-STORM FW System under the general license in 10 CFR
part 72, subpart K, by holders of power reactor operating licenses
under 10 CFR part 50. Simultaneously, the NRC is issuing a final SER
and CoC that will be effective on June 13, 2011. Single copies of the
CoC and SER are available for public inspection and/or copying for a
fee at the NRC's Public Document Room, Room O-1F21, One White Flint
North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland.
This direct final rule amends 10 CFR 72.214 by adding CoC No. 1032
to the list of approved spent fuel storage casks.
The HI-STORM FW System, when used under the conditions specified in
CoC No. 1032, the TS, and NRC regulations, will meet the requirements
of part 72; thus, adequate protection of public health and safety will
continue to be ensured.
Discussion of Amendments by Section
Sec. 72.214 List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks
CoC No. 1032 is added to the list of approved spent fuel storage
casks.
Procedural Background
The NRC is using the ``direct final rule procedure'' to add CoC No.
1032 to the list of approved storage casks because the Holtec HI-STORM
FW cask system is considered to be similar to other previously approved
storage casks and, therefore, is expected to be noncontroversial.
Adequate protection of public health and safety continues to be
ensured. The amendment to the rule will become effective on June 13,
2011. However, if the NRC receives significant adverse comments on this
direct final rule by April 27, 2011, then the NRC will publish a
document that withdraws this action and will subsequently address the
comments received in a final rule as a response to the companion
proposed rule published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal
Register. Absent significant modifications to the proposed revisions
requiring republication, the NRC will not initiate a second comment
period on this action.
A significant adverse comment is a comment where the commenter
explains why the rule would be inappropriate, including challenges to
the rule's underlying premise or approach, or would be ineffective or
unacceptable without a change. A comment is adverse and significant if:
(1) The comment opposes the rule and provides a reason sufficient
to require a substantive response in a notice-and-comment process. For
example, a substantive response is required when:
(a) The comment causes the NRC staff to reevaluate (or reconsider)
its position or conduct additional analysis;
(b) The comment raises an issue serious enough to warrant a
substantive response to clarify or complete the record; or
(c) The comment raises a relevant issue that was not previously
addressed or considered by the NRC staff.
(2) The comment proposes a change or an addition to the rule, and
it is apparent that the rule would be ineffective or unacceptable
without incorporation of the change or addition.
(3) The comment causes the NRC staff to make a change (other than
editorial) to the rule, CoC, or TS.
For detailed instructions on filing comments, please see the
companion proposed rule published elsewhere in this issue of the
Federal Register.
Voluntary Consensus Standards
The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (Pub.
L. 104-113) requires that Federal agencies use technical standards that
are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies unless
the use of such a standard is inconsistent with applicable law or
otherwise impractical. In this direct final rule, the NRC is adding the
HI-STORM FW System to the list of NRC-approved cask systems for spent
fuel storage in 10 CFR 72.214. This action does not constitute the
establishment of a standard that contains generally applicable
requirements.
Agreement State Compatibility
Under the ``Policy Statement on Adequacy and Compatibility of
Agreement State Programs'' approved by the Commission on June 30, 1997,
and published in the Federal Register on September 3, 1997 (62 FR
46517), this rule is classified as Compatibility Category ``NRC.''
Compatibility is not required for Category ``NRC'' regulations. The NRC
program elements in this category are those that relate directly to
areas of regulation reserved to the NRC by the Atomic Energy Act of
1954, as amended, or the provisions of Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations. Although an Agreement State may not adopt program elements
reserved to NRC, it may wish to inform its licensees of certain
requirements via a mechanism that is consistent with the particular
State's administrative procedure laws but does not confer regulatory
authority on the State.
Plain Language
The Presidential Memorandum, ``Plain Language in Government
Writing,'' published June 10, 1998 (63 FR 31883), directed that the
Government's documents be in clear and accessible language. The NRC
requests comments on this direct final rule specifically with respect
to the clarity and effectiveness of the language used. Comments should
be sent to the address listed under the heading ADDRESSES, above.
Finding of No Significant Environmental Impact: Availability
Under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended,
and the NRC regulations in Subpart A of 10 CFR part 51, the NRC has
determined that this rule, if adopted, would not be a major Federal
action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment
and, therefore, an environmental impact statement is not required. The
NRC has prepared an environmental assessment and, on the basis of this
environmental assessment, has made a finding of no significant impact.
The rule will add the CoC for the HI-STORM FW System, CoC No. 1032, to
the list of approved spent fuel storage casks that power reactor
licensees can use to store spent fuel at reactor sites under a general
license. The HI-STORM FW System provides the following: (1) The ability
to store and transport BWR fuel with high initial enrichment (up to 4.8
weight percent uranium-235 planer average) without reliance on burnup
or gadolinium credit; (2) the ability to load and store spent nuclear
fuel from the longest to
[[Page 17021]]
the shortest currently, and expected to be produced, in the United
States without requiring site crane upgrades; (3) a reduction in the 10
CFR part 71 burnup credit requirement for the PWR basket allowing
transportation of 5 weight percent uranium-235 fuel with moderate
burnup; (4) enlarged storage cell opening sizes in both PWR and BWR
MPCs to ensure distorted irradiated fuel will fit without difficulty
and to permit canisterized fuel to be stored in certain designated
locations; (5) greater heat rejection capacity with lower peak fuel
cladding temperature than the HI-STORM 100 cask system, CoC No. 1014;
and (6) a variable weight (HI-TRAC VW) transfer cask that will allow
use of the full capacity of a facility's cask crane. The HI-STORM FW
System consists of the following major components: HI-STORM FW
Overpack, PWR MPC-37, BWR MPC-89, and HI-TRAC VW Transfer Cask.
The environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact
on which this determination is based are available for inspection at
the NRC Public Document Room, Room O-1F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland. Single copies of the environmental
assessment and finding of no significant impact are available from
Gregory Trussell, Office of Federal and State Materials and
Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-6445, e-mail:
[email protected].
Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
This rule does not contain any information collection requirements
and, therefore, is not subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Existing requirements were approved by the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Approval Number 3150-0132.
Public Protection Notification
The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a request for information or an information collection
requirement unless the requesting document displays a currently valid
OMB control number.
Regulatory Analysis
On July 18, 1990 (55 FR 29181), the Commission issued an amendment
to 10 CFR part 72. The amendment provided for the storage of spent
nuclear fuel in cask systems with designs approved by the NRC under a
general license. Any nuclear power reactor licensee can use cask
systems with designs approved by the NRC to store spent nuclear fuel if
it notifies the NRC in advance, the spent fuel is stored under the
conditions specified in the cask's CoC, and the conditions of the
general license are met. In that rule, four spent fuel storage casks
were approved for use at reactor sites and were listed in 10 CFR
72.214. That rule envisioned that storage casks certified in the future
could be routinely added to the listing in 10 CFR 72.214 through the
rulemaking process. Procedures and criteria for obtaining NRC approval
of new spent fuel storage cask designs were provided in 10 CFR part 72,
subpart L.
The alternative to this action is to withhold approval of this new
design and issue a site-specific license to each utility that proposes
to use the casks. This alternative would cost both the NRC and
utilities more time and money for each site-specific license.
Conducting site-specific reviews would ignore the procedures and
criteria currently in place for the addition of new cask designs that
can be used under a general license, and would be in conflict with NWPA
direction to the Commission to approve technologies for the use of
spent fuel storage at the sites of civilian nuclear power reactors
without, to the maximum extent practicable, the need for additional
site reviews. This alternative also would tend to exclude new vendors
from the business market without cause and would arbitrarily limit the
choice of cask designs available to power reactor licensees. This final
rule will eliminate the above problems and is consistent with previous
Commission actions. Further, the rule will have no adverse effect on
public health and safety.
The benefit of this rule to nuclear power reactor licensees is to
make available a greater choice of spent fuel storage cask designs that
can be used under a 10 CFR part 50 general license. The new cask
vendors with casks to be listed in 10 CFR 72.214 benefit by having to
obtain NRC certificates only once for a design that can then be used by
more than one power reactor licensee. The NRC also benefits because it
will need to certify a cask design only once for use by multiple
licensees. Casks approved through rulemaking are to be suitable for use
under a range of environmental conditions sufficiently broad to
encompass multiple nuclear power plants in the United States without
the need for further site-specific approval by NRC. Vendors with cask
designs already listed may be adversely impacted because power reactor
licensees may choose a newly listed design over an existing one.
However, the NRC is required by its regulations and NWPA direction to
certify and list approved casks. This rule has no significant
identifiable impact or benefit on other Government agencies.
Based on the above discussion of the benefits and impacts of the
alternatives, the NRC concludes that the requirements of the final rule
are commensurate with the Commission's responsibilities for public
health and safety and the common defense and security. No other
available alternative is believed to be as satisfactory, and thus, this
action is recommended.
Regulatory Flexibility Certification
Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 605(b)), the
NRC certifies that this rule will not, if issued, have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This direct
final rule affects only nuclear power plant licensees and Holtec. These
entities do not fall within the scope of the definition of ``small
entities'' set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility Act or the size
standards established by the NRC (10 CFR 2.810).
Backfit Analysis
The NRC has determined that the backfit rule (10 CFR 72.62) does
not apply to this direct final rule because this amendment does not
involve any provisions that would impose backfits as defined in 10 CFR
Chapter 1. Therefore, a backfit analysis is not required.
Congressional Review Act
Under the Congressional Review Act of 1996, the NRC has determined
that this action is not a major rule and has verified this
determination with the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget.
List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 72
Administrative practice and procedure, Hazardous waste, Nuclear
materials, Occupational safety and health, Radiation protection,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Security measures, Spent
fuel, Whistle blowing.
For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization
Act of 1974, as amended; the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as
amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553; the NRC is adopting the following
amendments to 10 CFR part 72.
[[Page 17022]]
PART 72--LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INDEPENDENT STORAGE OF
SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL, HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE, AND REACTOR-
RELATED GREATER THAN CLASS C WASTE
0
1. The authority citation for part 72 continues to read as follows:
Authority: Secs. 51, 53, 57, 62, 63, 65, 69, 81, 161, 182, 183,
184, 186, 187, 189, 68 Stat. 929, 930, 932, 933, 934, 935, 948, 953,
954, 955, as amended, sec. 234, 83 Stat. 444, as amended (42 U.S.C.
2071, 2073, 2077, 2092, 2093, 2095, 2099, 2111, 2201, 2232, 2233,
2234, 2236, 2237, 2238, 2282); sec. 274, Pub. L. 86-373, 73 Stat.
688, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2021); sec. 201, as amended, 202, 206, 88
Stat. 1242, as amended, 1244, 1246 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842, 5846);
Pub. L. 95-601, sec. 10, 92 Stat. 2951 as amended by Pub. L. 102-
486, sec. 7902, 106 Stat. 3123 (42 U.S.C. 5851); sec. 102, Pub. L.
91-190, 83 Stat. 853 (42 U.S.C. 4332); secs. 131, 132, 133, 135,
137, 141, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2229, 2230, 2232, 2241, sec. 148,
Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10151, 10152, 10153,
10155, 10157, 10161, 10168); sec. 1704, 112 Stat. 2750 (44 U.S.C.
3504 note); sec. 651(e), Pub. L. 109-58, 119 Stat. 806-10 (42 U.S.C.
2014, 2021, 2021b, 2111).
Section 72.44(g) also issued under secs. 142(b) and 148(c), (d),
Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-232, 1330-236 (42 U.S.C. 10162(b),
10168(c),(d)). Section 72.46 also issued under sec. 189, 68 Stat.
955 (42 U.S.C. 2239); sec. 134, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2230 (42
U.S.C. 10154). Section 72.96(d) also issued under sec. 145(g), Pub.
L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10165(g)). Subpart J also
issued under secs. 2(2), 2(15), 2(19), 117(a), 141(h), Pub. L. 97-
425, 96 Stat. 2202, 2203, 2204, 2222, 2244 (42 U.S.C. 10101,
10137(a), 10161(h)). Subparts K and L are also issued under sec.
133, 98 Stat. 2230 (42 U.S.C. 10153) and sec. 218(a), 96 Stat. 2252
(42 U.S.C. 10198).
0
2. In Sec. 72.214, Certificate of Compliance 1032 is added to read as
follows:
Sec. 72.214 List of approved spent fuel storage casks.
* * * * *
Certificate Number: 1032.
Initial Certificate Effective Date: June 13, 2011.
SAR Submitted by: Holtec International, Inc.
SAR Title: Safety Analysis Report on the HI-STORM FW System.
Docket Number: 72-1032.
Certificate Expiration Date: June 13, 2031.
Model Numbers: MPC-37, MPC-89.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of February 2011.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
R.W. Borchardt,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2011-7102 Filed 3-25-11; 8:45 am]
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