[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 98 (Wednesday, May 21, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27790-27791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-13275]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-255]


In the Matter of Consumers Power Company; (Palisades Plant); 
Exemption

I
    Consumers Power Company (CPCo, the licensee) is the holder of 
Facility Operating License No. DPR-20 which authorizes operation of the 
Palisades Plant. The Palisades facility is a pressurized water reactor 
located at the licensee's site in Van Buren County, Michigan. The 
license provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to 
all rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission now or hereafter 
in effect.
II
    In 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.''
    In 10 CFR 73.55(d), ``Access Requirements,'' paragraph (1), It 
specifies that ``The licensee shall control all points of personnel and 
vehicle access into a protected area.'' Also, 10 CFR 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.'' It further states that individuals not employed by 
the licensee (e.g., contractors) may be authorized access to protected 
areas without escort provided that the individual, ``receives a picture 
badge upon entrance into the protected area which must be returned upon 
exit from the protected area * * *.''
    The licensee proposes to implement an alternative unescorted access 
system that would eliminate the need to issue and retrieve picture 
badges at the entrance/exit location to the protected area and would 
allow all individuals, including contractors, to keep their picture 
badges in their possession when departing the Palisades site.
III
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.5, ``Specific exemptions,'' the Commission 
may, upon application of any interested person or 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. According 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, that the proposed measures meet 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.
    Currently, unescorted access into the protected area of Palisades 
for both employee and contractor personnel is controlled through the 
use of picture badges. Positive identification of personnel who are 
authorized and request access into the protected area is established by 
security personnel making a visual comparison of the individual 
requesting access and that individual's picture badge. In accordance 
with 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5), contractor personnel are not allowed to take 
their picture badges off site. In addition, in accordance with the 
plant's physical security plan, the licensee's employees are also not 
allowed to take their picture badges off site.
    The proposed system will require that all individuals with 
authorized unescorted access have the physical characteristics of their 
hand (hand geometry) registered with their picture badge number in a 
computerized access control system. Therefore, all authorized 
individuals must not only have their picture badge to gain access to 
the protected area, but must also have their hand geometry confirmed. 
All individuals, including contractors, who have authorized unescorted 
access into the protected area will be allowed to keep their picture 
badges in their possession when departing the Palisades site.
    All other access processes, including search function capability 
and access revocation, will remain the same. A security officer 
responsible for access control will continue to be positioned within a 
bullet-resistant structure. A numbered picture badge identification 
system will continue to be used for all individuals who are authorized 
access to the protected area without escorts. Badges will continue to 
be displayed by

[[Page 27791]]

all individuals while inside the protected area.
    It should also be noted that the proposed system is only for 
individuals with authorized unescorted access and will not be used for 
those individuals requiring escorts.
    Sandia National Laboratories conducted testing that demonstrated 
that the hand geometry equipment possesses strong performance 
characteristics. Details of the testing performed are in the Sandia 
report, ``A Performance Evaluation of Biometric Identification 
Devices,'' SAND91--0276 UC--906 Unlimited Release, June 1991. Based on 
the Sandia report and the licensee's experience using the current photo 
picture identification system, the false acceptance rate for the 
proposed hand geometry system would be at least equivalent to that of 
the current system. To assure that the proposed system will continue to 
meet the general performance requirements of 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5), the 
licensee will implement a process for testing the system. The site 
security plan will also be revised to allow implementation of the hand 
geometry system and to allow employees and contractors with unescorted 
access to keep their picture badges in their possession when leaving 
the Palisades site.
IV
    For the foregoing reasons, 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 10 CFR 73.55. In addition, the staff has 
determined that the overall level of the proposed system's performance 
will provide protection against radiological sabotage equivalent to 
that which is provided by the current system in accordance with 10 CFR 
73.55.
    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
73.5, this exemption is authorized by law, will not endanger life or 
property or the common defense and security, and is otherwise in the 
public interest. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants the following 
exemption:
    The requirement of 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) that individuals who have 
been granted unescorted access and are not employed by the licensee are 
to return their picture badges upon exit from the protected area is no 
longer necessary. Thus, these individuals may keep their picture badges 
in their possession upon leaving the Palisades site. The exemption is 
granted on the condition that the licensee implements a system testing 
process and revises the site security plan as discussed in Section III 
above.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (62 FR 22975).

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 14th day of May, 1997.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samuel J. Collins,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 97-13275 Filed 5-20-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P