[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 48 (Thursday, March 12, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12040-12042]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-6390]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

[Docket No. PRM-72-4]


Prairie Island Coalition; Receipt of Petition for Rulemaking

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Petition for rulemaking; Notice of receipt.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received and 
requests public comment on a petition for rulemaking filed by the 
Prairie Island Coalition. The petition has been docketed by the 
Commission and has been assigned Docket No. PRM-72-4. The petitioner 
requests that NRC undertake rulemaking to examine certain issues 
addressed in the petition relating to the potential for thermal shock 
and corrosion in dry cask storage. The petitioner requests that the NRC 
amend its regulations that govern independent storage of spent nuclear 
fuel in dry storage casks to define the parameters of acceptable 
degradation of spent fuel in dry cask storage. The petitioner also 
requests an amendment to the regulations to define the parameters of 
retrievability of spent nuclear fuel in dry cask storage and to require 
licensees to demonstrate safe cask unloading ability before a cask may 
be used at an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI).

DATES: Submit comments by May 26, 1998. Comments received after this 
date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but assurance of 
consideration cannot be given except as to comments received on or 
before this date.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555, Attention: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications staff.
    Deliver comments to: 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, 
between 7:30 am and 4:15 pm on Federal workdays.
    For a copy of the petition, write: David L. Meyer, Chief, Rules and 
Directives Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of 
Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001.
    You may also provide comments via the NRC's interactive rulemaking 
website through the NRC home page (http://www.nrc.gov). This site 
provides the availability to upload comments as files (any format), if 
your web browser supports that function. For information about the 
interactive rulemaking website, contact Ms. Carol Gallagher, (301) 415-
5905 (e-mail: [email protected]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David L. Meyer, Office of 
Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555. Telephone: 301-415-7163 or Toll Free: 1-800-368-5642 or E-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission received a petition for 
rulemaking submitted by George Crocker on behalf of the Prairie Island 
Coalition (PIC) in the form of a letter and an attached document 
addressed to L. Joseph Callan, Executive Director for Operations, NRC, 
dated August 26, 1997. Most of the issues presented in Mr. Crocker's 
letter and the attached document pertain to a petition filed under 10 
CFR 2.206 regarding dry storage cask regulations that has been reviewed 
by the NRC Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR). See 62 FR 53031. 
The resolution of these issues is presented in a decision published by 
the Director, NRR (DD-98-02; 2/11/98). This notice pertains to 
paragraphs 13, 14, and 15 on page 3 of the document attached to the 
August 26, 1997, letter from PIC. These paragraphs contain a request 
for rulemaking under 5 U.S.C. 553(e) of the Administrative Procedure 
Act (APA).
    The NRC has determined that the issues presented in paragraphs 13, 
14, and 15 of the PIC document constitute a petition for rulemaking 
under 10 CFR 2.802. Paragraph 13 requests NRC to solicit and review 
information regarding thermal shock and corrosion inherent in dry cask 
storage and usage and to define the parameters of degradation of spent 
nuclear fuel in dry cask storage acceptable under 10 CFR 72.122(h). 
Paragraph 14 requests NRC to define the parameters of retrievability 
required

[[Page 12041]]

under 10 CFR 72.122(l). Paragraph 15 requests NRC to require 
demonstration of a safe cask unloading ability before a cask may be 
used at an ISFSI. These requests do meet the sufficiency requirements 
for a petition for rulemaking under 10 CFR 2.802. The petition, 
consisting of paragraphs 13, 14, and 15, has been docketed as PRM-72-4.
    As set forth in the petition, the petitioner is the Prairie Island 
Coalition (PIC), a consortium of environmental, business, citizen, and 
religious groups, and tribal and urban Indian organizations. PIC is 
involved in locating and disseminating information regarding dry cask 
storage of spent nuclear fuel, and opposes Northern States Power 
Company's (NSP) plans to construct and operate an ISFSI at the Prairie 
Island Nuclear Generating Station (PI). PIC has participated in various 
Minnesota and NRC proceedings that pertain to operational and waste 
issues at the Prairie Island facility.
    The NRC is soliciting public comment on the petition for rulemaking 
submitted by the Prairie Island Coalition that requests the changes to 
the regulations in 10 CFR part 72 discussed below.

Discussion of the Petition

    The petitioner notes that the regulations in 10 CFR Part 72 
establish requirements and criteria for spent fuel dry cask storage and 
usage. The petitioner has requested a rulemaking proceeding to examine 
issues regarding degradation, retrieval, and unloading of spent nuclear 
fuel in dry storage casks.

Degradation of Spent Nuclear Fuel

    The petitioner requests an amendment of the regulations in 10 CFR 
part 72 to define the parameters of spent fuel degradation that are 
acceptable to the NRC under 10 CFR 72.122(h). Section 72.122(h) 
provides that spent fuel cladding must be protected during storage 
against degradation or that the fuel must be configured such that 
degradation will not pose an operational safety concern. The petitioner 
is concerned about the potential effect of spent fuel degradation on 
the ability to safely unload a dry storage cask. The petitioner 
believes that factors such as thermal shock will cause spent fuel to 
degrade in the course of unloading and expose onsite personnel and the 
environment to radioactive emissions. The petitioner states that no 
procedures have been developed to protect operational safety and to 
assess worker or offsite radiation exposure in such a situation. The 
petitioner cites a February 25, 1997, letter from Dr. Gail H. Marcus, 
NRC, to PIC in support of the petition. PIC asserts, based on the 
letter, that temperature differences between spent fuel and coolant 
create the potential for thermal shock and spent fuel degradation.
    PIC also believes the TN-40 cask is subject to failed welds and to 
fuel degradation due to cask seal failure as a result of helium gas 
release. PIC cites as support for the petition a letter dated April 15, 
1997, from Dr. Susan Frant Shankman, NRC, to Sierra Nuclear, and 
contends that cladding degradation during storage is unacceptable 
because it could lead to future fuel handling and retrievability 
problems. The petitioner also cites the Safety Analysis Report 
submitted by NSP for the ISFSI at the PI facility that requires the 
licensee to replace cask seals to prevent a helium leak and fuel 
degradation. Copies of the supporting documents referenced above are 
attached to the petition.
    PIC contends that NRC has not adequately addressed the possibility 
of damage caused by thermal shock when cool water from a storage pool 
is placed in a cask that contains spent nuclear fuel. The petitioner 
also contends that NRC had not adequately addressed degradation of 
spent nuclear fuel due to the loss of helium from failed seals or due 
to the passage of time.

Retrievability of Spent Nuclear Fuel

    The petitioner also requests an amendment to the regulations in 10 
CFR Part 72 that govern storage of spent nuclear fuel in dry storage 
casks to define the parameters of retrievability of spent fuel required 
by the NRC under 10 CFR 72.122(l). Section 72.122(l) provides that 
spent fuel storage systems must be designed to allow ready 
retrievability of the spent fuel for future processing or disposal.
    PIC is concerned that the NRC has not taken into account the 
potential problems that may be encountered in unloading a cask to 
retrieve spent fuel. In support of its claim, PIC cites an April 16, 
1997, memorandum from Jack Roe, NRC, to Cynthia Pederson, NRC Region 
III, and asserts that this memorandum is evidence that NRC has not 
taken into account possible problems with retrieval of spent fuel.
    The petitioner also cites a study of the TN-24 cask conducted by 
the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in 1990, which 
involved opening TN-24 casks that contained canisters of spent fuel 
assemblies that had been stored for several years. The petitioner 
contends that the INEL study found the thermal damage so great that 
some canisters containing spent nuclear fuel could not be retrieved 
from the cask. The petitioner believes that the INEL study and the 
cited NRC memorandum, copies of which are attached to the petition, 
demonstrate that spent nuclear fuel cannot be reliably retrieved from 
dry storage casks.

Unloading of Spent Nuclear Fuel

    Lastly, the petitioner requests an amendment to the regulations to 
require licensees to demonstrate the ability to unload spent nuclear 
fuel safely from a dry storage cask before a cask may be used at an 
ISFSI. The petitioner contends that if a licensee can demonstrate 
ability to unload spent nuclear fuel safely from a cask in a pool after 
long-term storage, then the public will have assurance that a spent 
fuel storage cask can be unloaded.
    PIC contends that a cask may need to be unloaded for various 
reasons. The petitioner notes that Minnesota law in, In the Matter of 
Spent Fuel Storage Installation, 501 N.W.2d 638 (Minn. Ct. App. 1993), 
requires a licensee to move casks after eight years of temporary 
storage. The petitioner believes that the 1990 NRC Waste Confidence 
Decision also contemplates that casks will need to be unloaded before 
transport to a Federal interim site or repository.
    PIC believes that although NRC regulations do not require a 
licensee to be able to immediately unload a cask, NRC clearly requires 
a licensee to be able to unload the spent fuel at some point. The 
petitioner also believes that because in-pool unloading of spent fuel 
from a dry storage cask that has contained the fuel for a protracted 
time period has not been completed, there is sufficient reason to 
require a licensee to demonstrate the ability to actually unload a dry 
storage cask underwater. PIC states that it would be satisfied if a 
licensee can demonstrate the ability to unload spent nuclear fuel from 
a dry storage cask at some reasonable point in time.

The Petitioner's Conclusions

    The petitioner has concluded that NRC regulations in 10 CFR Part 72 
that govern independent storage of spent nuclear fuel in dry storage 
casks must be amended. PIC has concluded that thermal shock and 
associated degradation of spent nuclear fuel during the unloading of 
dry storage casks has not been adequately addressed in NRC regulations. 
The petitioner requests an amendment to the regulations to define the 
parameters of acceptable degradation of spent nuclear fuel in dry 
storage under 10 CFR 72.122(h).
    The petitioner has also concluded that NRC regulations do not 
adequately

[[Page 12042]]

address issues related to the retrieval of spent nuclear fuel from dry 
storage casks. The petitioner requests an amendment to the regulations 
to define the parameters of retrievability of spent fuel from dry 
storage casks required under 10 CFR 72.122(l).
    Lastly, the petitioner has concluded that NRC regulations do not 
adequately address issues pertaining to unloading of spent nuclear fuel 
from dry storage casks. The petitioner requests an amendment to the 
regulations to require licensees to demonstrate the ability to unload 
spent nuclear fuel safely from a dry storage cask before the cask may 
be used at an ISFSI.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day of March, 1998.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John C. Hoyle,
Secretary of the Commission.
[FR Doc. 98-6390 Filed 3-11-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P