[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 3, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42153-42154]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19857]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-237 and 50-249]


In the Matter of Commonwealth Edison Company; Dresden Nuclear 
Power Station, Units 2 and 3; Exemption

I

    Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd, the licensee) is the holder of 
Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-19 and DPR-25 for the Dresden 
Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 3. The licenses provide, among other 
things, that the licensee is subject to all rules, regulations, and 
orders of the Commission now or hereafter in effect.
    Dresden Nuclear Power Station consists of two boiling water 
reactors located in Grundy County, Illinois.

II

    Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section 
50.71, ``Maintenance of records, making of reports,'' paragraph (e)(4) 
states, in part, that ``[s]ubsequent revisions [to the Updated Final 
Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR)] must be filed annually or 6 months 
after each refueling outage provided the interval between successive 
updates [to the UFSAR] does not exceed 24 months.'' Dresden Nuclear 
Power Station, Units 2 and 3, share a common FSAR. Therefore, this rule 
requires the licensee to update the same document annually or within 6 
months after each unit's refueling outage (approximately every 9 
months).

III

    Section 50.12(a) of 10 CFR, ``Specific exemptions,'' states:

    The Commission may, upon application by any interested person or 
upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of 
the regulations of this part, which are--(1) Authorized by law, will 
not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and are 
consistent with the common defense and security. (2) The Commission 
will not consider granting an exemption unless special circumstances 
are present.

    Section 50.12(a)(2)(ii) of 10 CFR states that special circumstances 
are present when ``[a]pplication of the regulation in the particular 
circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is 
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.'' The 
licensee has proposed updating the unified Dresden UFSAR no later than 
24 calendar months from the date of the previous UFSAR revision. The 
underlying purpose of the rule was to relieve licensees of the burden 
of filing annual UFSAR revisions while assuring that such revisions are 
made at least every 24 months. The Commission reduced the burden, in 
part, by permitting a licensee to submit its UFSAR revisions 6 months 
after refueling outages for its facility, but did not provide in the 
rule for multiple unit facilities sharing a common UFSAR. Rather, the 
Commission stated that ``[w]ith respect to . . . multiple facilities 
sharing a common UFSAR, licensees will have maximum flexibility for 
scheduling updates on a case-by-case basis' (57 FR 39355 (1992)).
    As noted In the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation, the licensee's 
proposed schedule for the Dresden UFSAR updates will ensure that the 
UFSAR will be maintained current for both units within 24 months of the 
last revision. The proposed schedule satisfies the maximum 24-month 
interval between UFSAR revisions specified by 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4). The 
requirement to revise the UFSAR annually or within 6 months after 
refueling outages for each unit, therefore, is not necessary to achieve 
the underlying purpose of the rule. Accordingly, the Commission has 
determined that special circumstances are present as defined in 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(ii). The Commission has further determined that, pursuant 
to 10 CFR 50.12, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present 
an undue risk to the public health and safety and is consistent with 
the common defense

[[Page 42154]]

and security, and is otherwise in the public interest.
    The Commission hereby grants the licensee an exemption from the 
requirement of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4) to submit updates to the Dresden 
UFSAR annually or within 6 months of each unit's refueling outage. The 
licensee will be required to submit updates to the Dresden UFSAR within 
24 months of the previous UFSAR revision submittal.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that 
granting of this exemption will have no significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (64 FR 39177).
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day of July 1999.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John A. Zwolinski,
Director, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 99-19857 Filed 8-2-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P