[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 182 (Wednesday, September 21, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-23331]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: September 21, 1994]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-409; License No. DPR-45]

 

Dairyland Power Cooperative; La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor 
(LACBWR); Confirmatory Order Modifying NRC Order Authorizing 
Decommissioning of Facility

I

    The Dairyland Power Cooperative (DPC, the licensee) is the holder 
of Facility License No. DPR-45, originally issued by the Atomic Energy 
Commission, the predecessor to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC 
or Commission) pursuant to 10 CFR Part 50 on August 28, 1973. The 
licensee's authority to operate DPR-45 was terminated by license 
Amendment No. 56, dated August 4, 1987. The licensee is authorized to 
possess but not to operate the La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor (LACBWR) 
in accordance with the conditions specified therein. The facility is 
located on the licensee's site located 19 miles south of La Crosse, 
Wisconsin.

II

    In its Order (Decommissioning Order) of August 7, 1991, the NRC 
directed DPC to decommission the reactor facility in accordance with 
its Decommissioning Plan and the Commission's regulations. This action 
was taken in response to the licensee's application for authorization 
to decommission the facility, dated December 21, 1987, as revised 
February 22, 1988, September 9, 1988, September 30, 1988, January 26, 
1989, March 28, 1989, June 6, 1989, October 3, 1989, July 25, 1990, May 
10, 1991, and July 25, 1991. Neither the August 7, 1991, 
Decommissioning Order, which authorized the licensee to decommission 
the reactor facility, nor the approved Decommissioning Plan, contained 
an approved procedure that would allow the licensee to: (i) Make 
changes in the facility or procedures as described in the 
Decommissioning Plan; or (ii) conduct tests or experiments not 
described in the Decommissioning Plan, without prior NRC approval.

III

    The licensee, in its letters of August 2, and August 5, 1994, 
requested the NRC to modify the August 7, 1991, Decommissioning Order 
to allow DPC to: (i) Make changes in the facility or procedures as 
described in the Decommissioning Plan; and (ii) conduct tests and 
experiments not described in the Decommissioning Plan, without prior 
NRC approval.
    The licensee, as other licensees of both operating facilities and 
facilities in the process of being decommissioned, continues to 
discover facility improvements which, if implemented, would either 
reduce facility operating costs, improve facility safety margins, or 
are necessary for continued operation/maintenance of the facility. 
Further, a large number of these licensee-initiated facility 
improvements, if implemented, would neither increase the probability of 
an accident occurring, increase the consequences of an accident, reduce 
safety margins, or create a significant environmental impact not 
previously evaluated. Thus, in these circumstances, for the NRC to 
require a licensee to first receive NRC approval prior to the 
implementation of facility improvements that meets the above criteria 
would cause an unnecessary burden on the licensee. The NRC has included 
such change procedures in recently-issued plant specific 
decommissioning orders.
    The licensee has committed, prior to making any changes to its 
Decommissioning Plan, to apply the safety and environmental review 
procedure specified below, which is similar to the safety review 
procedure specified in 10 CFR 50.59. This commitment is consistent with 
the flexibility under Sec. 50.59 afforded to a licensee authorized to 
operate a facility and other Decommissioning Orders issued by the NRC.
    Section 50.59(a)(1) allows a holder of a license authorizing 
operation of a production or a utilization facility to: (i) Make 
changes in the facility or procedures as described in the Safety 
Analysis Report; and (ii) conduct tests or experiments not described in 
the Safety Analysis Report, without NRC approval, provided the proposed 
action does not consist of a change to the facility technical 
specifications or an unreviewed safety question.
    I find that the licensee's commitments as set forth in its letters 
of August 2, and supplemented by letter dated August 5, 1994, are 
acceptable and conclude that with these commitments the safety of the 
plant is reasonably assured. In view of the foregoing, I have 
determined that the public health, safety, and interest require that 
the licensee's commitments in its August 2, and August 5, 1994, letters 
be confirmed by this Order. The licensee has consented to the issuance 
of this Order. (59 FR 46996, September 13, 1994)

IV

    Accordingly, pursuant to sections 103, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182, and 
186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the Commission's 
regulations in 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR part 50, It Is Hereby Ordered 
That The August 7, 1991, Decommissioning Order Is Modified As Follows:
    The Order of August 7, 1991, which directed the licensee to 
decommission the reactor facility in accordance with its 
Decommissioning Plan and the Commission's regulations, is modified to 
include the following procedure by which the licensee is allowed to: 
(i) Make changes in the facility or procedures as described in the 
Decommissioning Plan; and (ii) conduct tests or experiments not 
described in the Decommissioning Plan, without prior NRC approval:

    (a)(1) The licensee may (i) make changes in the facility or 
procedures as described in the Decommissioning Plan, and (ii) 
conduct tests or experiments not described in the Decommissioning 
Plan, without prior NRC approval, unless the proposed change, test 
or experiment involves a change in technical specifications (TS) 
incorporated in the license, an unreviewed safety question, or 
results in a significant environmental impact not previously 
evaluated in the Environmental Assessment in support of the August 
7, 1991, Decommissioning Order or the Final Environmental Statement 
(FES) related to operation of LACBWR, dated April 21, 1980 (NUREG-
0191). Notwithstanding the above, a reduction in site staffing 
levels below the minimum number for any group or area shown on the 
organization chart (Fig. 6.1) in the LACBWR Decommissioning Plan, or 
a change in the reporting relationships for the Plant Manager must 
be submitted to the NRC as specified in 10 CFR 50.4, and receive NRC 
approval prior to implementation.
    (2) A proposed change, test or experiment shall be deemed to 
involve an unreviewed safety question (i) if the probability of 
occurrence or the consequences of an accident or malfunction of 
equipment necessary for SAFSTOR previously evaluated in either the 
Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR) or the Decommissioning Plan may 
be increased, or (ii) if a possibility for an accident or 
malfunction of a different type than evaluated previously in the 
FSAR or Decommissioning Plan may be created, or (iii) if the margin 
of safety as defined in the basis for any TS is reduced.
    (b)(1) The licensee shall maintain records of changes in the 
facility and of changes in procedures made pursuant to this 
procedure, to the extent that these changes constitute changes in 
the facility or procedures as described in either the FSAR or the 
Decommissioning Plan. The licensee shall also maintain records of 
tests and experiments performed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this 
section. These records must include a written safety evaluation 
containing the basis for the determination that the changes, tests 
or experiments do not involve an unreviewed safety question, or a 
significant environmental impact not previously evaluated.
    (2) The licensee shall annually submit, as specified in 10 CFR 
50.4, a report containing a brief description of any changes, tests, 
and experiments, including a summary of the safety evaluation of 
each.
    (3) The licensee shall maintain records of changes in the 
facility until the date of termination of the license and shall 
maintain the records of changes in procedures and records of tests 
and experiments for a period of three years.
    (c) If the licensee desires (1) a change in the TS, or (2) to 
make a change in the facility or procedures described in the 
Decommissioning Plan or conduct tests or experiments not described 
in the Decommissioning Plan, which involve an unreviewed safety 
question, a change in the TS, or a significant environmental impact 
not previously evaluated, the licensee shall submit an application 
for amendment of its license pursuant to 10 CFR 50.90.

V

    Any person adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order, other 
than the licensee, may request a hearing within 20 days of its 
issuance. Any request for a hearing shall be submitted to the 
Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Attn: Chief, Docketing 
and Service Section, Washington, DC 20555. Copies of the hearing 
request shall also be sent to the Director, Office Nuclear Material 
Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, 
DC 20555, to the Assistant General Counsel for Hearings and Enforcement 
at the same address, to the Regional Administrator, NRC Region III, 801 
Warrenville Road, Lisle, IL 60532-4351, and to the licensee. If such a 
person requests a hearing, that person shall set forth with 
particularity the manner in which his interest is adversely affected by 
this Confirmatory Order and shall address the criteria set forth in 10 
CFR 2.714(d).
    If the hearing is requested by a person whose interest is adversely 
affected, the Commission will issue an Order designating the time and 
place of any hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered 
at such hearing shall be whether this Confirmatory Order should be 
sustained.
    In the absence of any request for hearing, the provisions specified 
in Section IV shall be final 20 days from the date of this Order 
without further proceedings.
    For further details with respect to this action, see: (1) The 
Commission's order authorizing decommissioning of facility, dated 
August 7, 1991; (2) the licensee's application for authorization to 
decommission the facility, dated December 21, 1987, as revised February 
22, 1988, September 9, 1988, September 30, 1988, January 26, 1989, 
March 28, 1989, June 6, 1989, October 3, 1989, July 25, 1990, May 10, 
1991, and July 25, 1991; (3) Amendment No. 66 to License No. DPR-45, 
SAFSTOR TS; (4) the Commission's related Safety Evaluation; and (5) the 
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact. These 
documents are available for public inspection at the Commission's 
Public Document Room, 2120 L Street, NW., Washington, DC 20555, and at 
the La Crosse Public Library, 800 Main Street, La Crosse, Wisconsin 
54601. Copies of items (1), (3), (4), and (5) may be obtained upon 
request addressed to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555, Attention: Director, Division of Waste 
Management.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of September 1994.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Malcolm R. Knapp,
Director, Division of Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material 
Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 94-23331 Filed 9-20-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M