[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 120 (Thursday, June 22, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32565-32566]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-15292]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-498 and 499]


Houston Lighting & Power Company, City Public Service Board of 
San Antonio, Central Power and Light Company, City of Austin, Texas, 
(South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2); Exemption

I

    Houston Lighting & Power Company, (the licensee) is the holder of 
Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-76 and NPF-80, which authorizes 
operation of the South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2 (STP). The 
operating license provides, among other things, that the licensee is 
subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission now and 
hereafter in effect.
    The facilities consists of two pressurized water reactors at the 
licensee's site in Matagorda County, Texas.

II

    Title 10 CFR 73.55, ``Requirements for physical protection of 
licensed activities in nuclear power reactors against radiological 
sabotage,'' paragraph (a), in part, states that ``The licensee shall 
establish and maintain an onsite physical protection system and 
security organization which will have as its objective to provide high 
assurance that activities involving special nuclear material are not 
inimical to the common defense and security and do not constitute an 
unreasonable risk to the public health and safety.''
    10 CFR 73.55(d), ``Access Requirements,'' paragraph (1), specifies 
that ``The licensee shall control all points of personnel and vehicle 
access into a protected area.'' 10 CFR [[Page 32566]] 73.55(d)(5) 
requires that ``A numbered picture badge identification system shall be 
used for all individuals who are authorized access to protected areas 
without escort.'' 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) also states that an individual not 
employed by the licensee (i.e., contractors) may be authorized access 
to protected areas without escort provided the individual ``receives a 
picture badge upon entrance into the protected area which must be 
returned upon exit from the protected area * * *''
    The licensee proposed to implement an alternative unescorted access 
control system which would eliminate the need to issue and retrieve 
badges at each entrance/exit location and would allow all individuals 
with unescorted access to keep their badge with them when departing the 
site.
    An exemption from 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) is required to allow 
contractors who have unescorted access to take their badges offsite 
instead of returning them when exiting the site. By letter dated March 
27, 1995, the licensee requested an exemption from certain requirements 
of 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) for this purpose.

III

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.5, ``Specific exemptions,'' the Commission 
may, upon application of any interested person on upon its own 
initiative, grant such exemptions from the requirements of the 
regulations in this part as it determines are authorized by law and 
will not endanger life or property or the common defense and security, 
and are otherwise in the public interest.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.55, the Commission may authorize a licensee 
to provide alternative measures for protection against radiological 
sabotage provided the licensee demonstrates that the alternative 
measures have ``the same high assurance objective'' and meet ``the 
general performance requirements'' of the regulation, and ``the overall 
level of system performance provides protection against radiological 
sabotage equivalent'' to that which would be provided by the 
regulation.
    At STP, unescorted access into protected areas is controlled 
through the use of a photograph on a combination badge and keycard 
(hereafter referred to as a badge). The security officers at each 
entrance station use the photograph on the badge to visually identify 
the individual requesting access. The badges for both licensee 
employees and contractor personnel, who have been granted unescorted 
access, are issued upon entrance at each entrance/exit location and are 
returned upon exit. The badges are stored and are retrievable at each 
entrance/exit location. In accordance with 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5), 
contractor individuals are not allowed to take badges offsite. In 
accordance with the plants' physical security plans, neither licensee 
employees nor contractors are allowed to take badges offsite.
    Under the proposed system, each individual who is authorized for 
unescorted entry into protected areas would have the physical 
characteristics of their hand (hand geometry) registered with their 
badge number in the access control system. When an individual enters 
the badge into the card reader and places the hand on the measuring 
surface, the system would record the individual's hand image. The 
unique characteristics of the extracted hand image would be compared 
with the previously stored template in the access control system to 
verify authorization for entry. Individuals, including licensee 
employees and contractors, would be allowed to keep their badge with 
them when they depart the site and thus eliminate the process to issue, 
retrieve and store badges at the entrance stations to the plant. Badges 
do not carry any encoded information other than a unique identification 
number.
    All other access processes, including search function capability, 
would remain the same. This system would not be used for persons 
requiring escorted access, i.e., visitors.
    Based on a Sandia report entitled, ``A Performance Evaluation of 
Biometric Identification Devices'' (SAND91--0276 UC--906 Unlimited 
Release, Printed June 1991), and on its experience with the current 
photo-identification system, the licensee concludes that the biometric 
access control system will provide the same high assurance objective 
regarding onsite physical protection that is achieved by the current 
system. The biometric system is now in use at other NRC-licensed 
nuclear generating facilities. The licensee will implement a process 
for testing the proposed system to ensure a continued overall level of 
performance equivalent to that specified in the regulation. The 
Physical Security Plans for STP will be revised to include 
implementation and testing of the hand geometry access control system 
and to allow licensee employees and contractors to take their badges 
offsite.
    The licensee will control all points of personnel access into a 
protected area under the observation of security personnel through the 
use of a badge and verification of hand geometry. A numbered picture 
badge identification system will continue to be used, once inside the 
protected area, for all individuals who are authorized unescorted 
access to protected areas. Badges will continue to be displayed by all 
individuals while inside the protected area.

IV

    Since both the badge and hand geometry would be necessary for 
access into the protected area, the proposed system would provide for a 
positive verification process. In addition, potential loss of a badge 
by an individual, as a result of taking the badge offsite, would not 
enable an unauthorized entry into protected areas.
    For the foregoing reasons, pursuant to 10 CFR 73.55, the NRC staff 
has determined that the proposed alternative measures for protection 
against radiological sabotage meet ``the same high assurance 
objective,'' and ``the general performance requirements'' of the 
regulation and that ``the overall level of system performance provides 
protection against radiological sabotage equivalent'' to that which 
would be provided by the regulation.
    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
73.5, an exemption is authorized by law, will not endanger life or 
property or common defense and security, and is otherwise in the public 
interest. Therefore, as long as the licensee uses the hand geometry 
access control system, the Commission hereby grants Houston Lighting 
and Power Company an exemption from these requirements of 10 CFR 
73.55(d)(5) relating to the returning of picture badges upon exit from 
the protected area such that individuals not employed by the licensee, 
i.e., contractors, who are authorized unescorted access into the 
protected area, can take their badges offsite.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will have no significant impact on the 
quality of the human environment (60 FR 30117). This exemption is 
effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 14th day of June 1995.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John N. Hannon,
Acting Deputy Director, Division of Reactor Projects III/IV, Office of 
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 95-15292 Filed 6-21-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M