[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 13, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 14483-14486]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-6168]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

RIN 3150-AG67


List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: HI-STAR 100 Revision

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its 
regulations by revising the Holtec International HI-STAR 100 cask 
system listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' 
to include Amendment No. 2 to the Certificate of Compliance (CoC). 
Amendment No. 2 revises the HI-STAR 100 cask system Appendix B of the 
Technical Specifications (TS), Item 1.4.6, ``Specific Parameters and 
Analysis for the Storage Pad and Foundation'' to simplify the language 
of this specification. The current 60-g limit for cask drop and tipover 
events in TS Item 1.4.6 would remain unchanged. This amendment will 
allow the holders of power reactor operating licenses to store spent 
fuel in the HI-STAR 100 cask system, as amended, under a general 
license.

DATES: The final rule is effective May 29, 2001, unless significant 
adverse comments are received by April 12, 2001. If this rule is 
withdrawn, timely notice will be published in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001. Attention: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff.
    Deliver comments to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, 
between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays.
    You may also provide comments via the NRC's interactive rulemaking 
website (http://ruleforum.llnl.gov). This site provides the capability 
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]).
    Certain documents related to this rule, including comments received 
by the NRC, may be examined at the NRC Public Document Room located at 
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. These documents also may be viewed 
and downloaded electronically via the rulemaking website.
    Documents created or received at the NRC after November 1, 1999, 
are also available electronically at the NRC's Public Electronic 
Reading Room on the Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/index.html. From this site, the public can gain entry into the NRC's 
Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which 
provides text and image files of the NRC's public documents. An 
electronic copy of the proposed CoC and preliminary Safety Evaluation 
Report (SER) can be found in ADAMS under Accession No. ML003770774. For 
more information, contact the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) reference 
staff at 1-800-397-4209, 202-634-3273 or by email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stan Turel, telephone (301) 415-6234, 
e-mail, [email protected] of the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 
Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Section 218(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended 
(NWPA), requires that ``[t]he Secretary [of the Department of Energy] 
shall establish a demonstration program, in cooperation with the 
private sector, for the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel at civilian 
nuclear power reactor sites, with the objective of establishing one or 
more technologies the [Nuclear Regulatory] Commission may, by rule, 
approve for use at the sites of civilian nuclear power reactors 
without, to the maximum extent practicable, the need for additional 
site-specific approvals by the Commission.'' Section 133 of the NWPA 
states, in part, that ``[t]he Commission shall, by rule, establish 
procedures for the licensing of any technology approved by the 
Commission under Section 218(a) for use at the site of any civilian 
nuclear power reactor.''
    To implement this mandate, the NRC approved dry storage of spent 
nuclear fuel in NRC-approved casks under a general license, publishing 
a final rule, in 10 CFR Part 72 entitled ``General License for Storage 
of Spent Fuel at Power Reactor Sites'' (55 FR 29181, July 18, 1990). 
This rule also established a new Subpart L within 10 CFR Part 72 
entitled ``Approval of Spent Fuel Storage Casks,'' containing 
procedures and criteria for obtaining NRC approval of dry storage cask 
designs.
    The NRC subsequently issued a final rule on September 3, 1999 (64 
FR 48274), that approved the HI-STAR 100 cask design, added it to the 
list of NRC-approved cask designs in Sec. 72.214, and

[[Page 14484]]

issued Certificate of Compliance Number (CoC No.) 1008.

Discussion

    On August 4, 2000, Holtec International (the certificate holder), 
submitted an application to the NRC to amend CoC No. 1008. Amendment 
No. 2 revises the HI-STAR 100 cask system Appendix B of the Technical 
Specifications, Item 1.4.6, ``Specific Parameters and Analysis for the 
Storage Pad and Foundation'' to simplify the language of this 
specification. The current 1.4.6 states:

``In addition to the requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(b)(2)(ii), the cask 
storage pads and foundation shall include the following characteristics 
as applicable to the drop and tipover analyses:
a. Concrete Thickness:  36 inches
b. Concrete Compressive Strength: 4,200 psi at 28 days
c. Reinforcement top and bottom (both directions):
    Reinforcement area and spacing determined by analysis
    Reinforcement shall be 60 ksi yield strength ASTM material
d. Soil Effective Modulus of Elasticity:  28,000 psi
(measured prior to installation of ISFSI)
    An acceptable method of defining the soil effective modulus of 
elasticity applicable to the drop and tipover analyses is provided in 
Table 13 of NUREG/CR-6608 with soil classification in accordance with 
ASTM D2487-93, Standard Classification of Soils for Engineering 
Purposes (Unified Soil Classification System, USCS), and density 
determination in accordance with ASTM D1586-84, Standard Test Method 
for Penetration Test and Split/Barrel Sampling of Soils.''

The proposed revision will state:
    ``The cask storage pads shall be verified by analysis to limit cask 
deceleration during both the design basis drop and the non-mechanistic 
tipover event to  60 g's at the top of the MPC fuel basket. 
Analyses shall be performed using methodologies consistent with those 
described in the HI-STAR FSAR.''
    The current 60 g limit for cask drop and tipover events in Item 
1.4.6 would remain unchanged. This amendment will allow the holders of 
power reactor operating licenses to store spent fuel in the HI-STAR 100 
cask system, as amended, under a general license. The NRC staff 
performed a safety evaluation of the amendment request and found that 
the changes provide reasonable assurance that the spent fuel can be 
stored safely and in compliance with 10 CFR Part 72. This direct final 
rule will revise the HI-STAR 100 cask system listing within the list of 
NRC-approved casks for spent fuel storage in Sec. 72.214 by adding 
Amendment No. 2 to CoC No. 1008. The amended HI-STAR 100 cask system, 
when used in accordance with the conditions specified in the CoC and 
NRC regulations, will meet the requirements of 10 CFR Part 72; thus, 
adequate protection of public health and safety will continue to be 
ensured. Amendment No. 2 applies to any HI-STAR 100 cask loaded after 
May 29, 2001.
    Amendment No. 2 to CoC No. 1008 and the underlying SER, and the 
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact are 
available for inspection and comment at the NRC Public Document Room, 
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. Single copies of the CoC and SER 
may be obtained from Stan Turel, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 
Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, 
telephone (301) 415-6234, email [email protected]. An electronic copy of the 
proposed CoC and preliminary SER can be found in the NRC's Electronic 
Reading Room in ADAMS under Accession No. ML003770774.

Discussion of Amendments by Section

Section 72.214  List of approved spent fuel storage casks.

    Certificate No. 1008 will be revised indicating the addition of 
Amendment No. 2 and its effective date.

Procedural Background

    This rule is limited to the changes contained in Amendment No. 2 to 
CoC 1008 and does not include other aspects of the HI-STAR 100 cask 
system design. Because NRC considers this amendment to its rules to be 
noncontroversial and routine, the NRC is using the direct final rule 
procedure for this rule. The amendment to the rules will become 
effective on May 29, 2001. However, if the NRC receives significant 
adverse comments by April 12, 2001, then the NRC will publish a 
document that withdraws this action and will address the comments 
received in response to the proposed amendments published elsewhere in 
this issue of the Federal Register. These comments will be addressed in 
a subsequent final rule. Absent significant modification to the 
proposed revisions requiring republication, the NRC will not initiate a 
second comment period on this action.

Agreement State Compatibility

    Under the ``Policy Statement on Adequacy and Compatibility of 
Agreement State Programs'' approved by the Commission on June 30, 1997, 
and published in the Federal Register on September 3, 1997 (62 FR 
46517), this rule is classified as compatibility Category ``NRC.'' 
Compatibility is not required for Category ``NRC'' regulations. The NRC 
program elements in this category are those that relate directly to 
areas of regulation reserved to the NRC by the Atomic Energy Act of 
1954, as amended (AEA) or the provisions of Title 10 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations. Although an Agreement State may not adopt program 
elements reserved to NRC, it may wish to inform its licensees of 
certain requirements via a mechanism that is consistent with the 
particular State's administrative procedure laws, but does not confer 
regulatory authority on the State.

Plain Language

    The Presidential Memorandum dated June 1, 1998, entitled ``Plain 
Language in Government Writing,'' directed that the Government's 
writing be in plain language. The NRC requests comments on this direct 
final rule specifically with respect to the clarity and effectiveness 
of the language used. Comments should be sent to the address listed 
under the heading ADDRESSES above.

Voluntary Consensus Standards

    The National Technology Transfer Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-113), 
requires that Federal agencies use technical standards that are 
developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies unless the 
use of such a standard is inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise 
impractical. In this direct final rule, the NRC will revise the Holtec 
International HI-STAR 100 cask system listing within the list of NRC 
approved casks for spent fuel storage in 10 CFR 72.214. This action 
does not constitute the establishment of a standard that establishes 
generally-applicable requirements.

Finding of No Significant Environmental Impact: Availability

    Under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, 
and the NRC regulations in Subpart A of 10 CFR Part 51, the NRC has 
determined that this rule, if adopted, would not be a major Federal 
action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment 
and, therefore, an environmental impact statement is not required. The 
rule will add Amendment No. 2 to the HI-STAR 100 cask system to the 
list of approved spent fuel storage casks that power reactor licensees 
can use to store spent fuel under a general

[[Page 14485]]

license at reactor sites without additional site-specific approvals by 
the NRC. Amendment No. 2 will revise Appendix B of the Technical 
Specifications, Item 1.4.6, ``Specific Parameters and Analysis for the 
Storage Pad and Foundation'' to simplify the language of this 
specification. The current 60-g limit for cask drop and tipover events 
in Item 1.4.6 would remain unchanged. The environmental assessment and 
finding of no significant impact on which this determination is based 
are available for inspection at the NRC Public Document Room, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. Single copies of the environmental 
assessment and finding of no significant impact are available from Stan 
Turel, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, Telephone (301) 415-6234, 
email [email protected].

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

    This direct final rule does not contain a new or amended 
information collection requirement subject to the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Existing requirements were 
approved by the Office of Management and Budget, Approval Number 3150-
0132.

Public Protection Notification

    If a means used to impose an information collection does not 
display a currently valid OMB control number, the NRC may not conduct 
or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, the information 
collection.

Regulatory Analysis

    On July 18, 1990 (55 FR 29181), the NRC issued an amendment to 10 
CFR Part 72 to provide for the storage of spent nuclear fuel under a 
general license in cask system designs approved by the NRC. Any nuclear 
power reactor licensee can use NRC-certified casks to store spent 
nuclear fuel if it notifies the NRC in advance, spent fuel is stored 
under the conditions specified in the cask's CoC, and the conditions of 
the general license are met.
    A list of NRC-approved cask system designs is contained in 
Sec. 72.214. On September 3, 1999 (64 FR 48274), the NRC issued an 
amendment to Part 72 that approved the HI-STAR 100 cask design, added 
it to the list of NRC-approved cask designs in Sec. 72.214, and issued 
CoC No. 1008. On August 4, 2000, Holtec International (the certificate 
holder), submitted an application to the NRC to amend CoC No. 1008. 
Amendment No. 2 revises the HI-STAR 100 cask system Appendix B of the 
Technical Specifications, Item 1.4.6, ``Specific Parameters and 
Analysis for the Storage Pad and Foundation'' to simplify the language 
of this specification. The current 60-g limit for cask drop and tipover 
events in Item 1.4.6 would remain unchanged. This amendment will allow 
the holders of power reactor operating licenses to store spent fuel in 
the HI-STAR 100 cask system under a general license.
    This rule will permit manufacture of casks under the revisions in 
Amendment 2. The alternative to this action is to withhold approval of 
this amended cask system design and give a site-specific license to 
each utility that proposes to use the casks. This alternative would 
cost both the NRC and the utilities more time and money in that each 
utility would have to pursue a new site-specific license. Conducting 
site-specific reviews would be in conflict with NWPA direction to the 
NRC to approve technologies for the use of spent fuel storage at the 
sites of civilian nuclear power reactors without, to the maximum extent 
practicable, the need for additional site-specific approvals by the 
NRC. This alternative does not foster competition because it would tend 
to favor new vendors without cause and would arbitrarily limit the 
choice of cask system designs available to power reactor licensees.
    Approval of the direct final rule would eliminate the above 
problems and is consistent with previous NRC actions. Further, the 
direct final rule will have no adverse effect on public health and 
safety. This direct final rule has no significant identifiable impact 
or benefit on other Government agencies. Based on the above discussion 
of the benefits and impacts of the alternatives, the NRC concludes that 
the requirements of the direct final rule are commensurate with the 
NRC's responsibilities for public health and safety and the common 
defense and security. No other available alternative is believed to be 
as satisfactory, and thus, this action is recommended.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act

    In accordance with the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 
Fairness Act of 1996, the NRC has determined that this action is not a 
major rule and has verified this determination with the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget.

Regulatory Flexibility Certification

    In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 
605(b)), the NRC certifies that this rule will not, if promulgated, 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. This direct final rule affects only the licensing and 
operation of nuclear power plants, independent spent fuel storage 
facilities, and Holtec International. The companies that own these 
plants do not fall within the scope of the definition of ``small 
entities'' set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility Act or the Small 
Business Size Standards set out in regulations issued by the Small 
Business Administration at 13 CFR Part 121.

Backfit Analysis

    The NRC has determined that the backfit rule (10 CFR 50.109 or 10 
CFR 72.62) does not apply to this direct final rule because this 
amendment does not involve any provisions that would impose backfits as 
defined. Therefore, a backfit analysis is not required.

List of Subjects In 10 CFR Part 72

    Criminal penalties, Manpower training programs, Nuclear materials, 
Occupational safety and health, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Security measures, Spent fuel.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization 
Act of 1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 553; the NRC is adopting the 
following amendments to 10 CFR Part 72.

PART 72--LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INDEPENDENT STORAGE OF 
SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL AND HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE

    1. The authority citation for Part 72 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  Secs. 51, 53, 57, 62, 63, 65, 69, 81, 161, 182, 183, 
184, 186, 187, 189, 68 Stat. 929, 930, 932, 933, 934, 935, 948, 953, 
954, 955, as amended, sec. 234, 83 Stat. 444, as amended (42 U.S.C. 
2071, 2073, 2077, 2092, 2093, 2095, 2099, 2111, 2201, 2232, 2233, 
2234, 2236, 2237, 2238, 2282); sec. 274, Pub. L. 86-373, 73 Stat. 
688, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2021); sec. 201, as amended, 202, 206, 88 
Stat. 1242, as amended, 1244, 1246 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842, 5846); 
Pub. L. 95-601, sec. 10, 92 Stat. 2951 as amended by Pub. L. 10d-
48b, sec. 7902, 10b Stat. 31b3 (42 U.S.C. 5851); sec. 102, Pub. L. 
91-190, 83 Stat. 853 (42 U.S.C. 4332); secs. 131, 132, 133, 135, 
137, 141, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2229, 2230, 2232, 2241, sec. 148, 
Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10151, 10152, 10153, 
10155, 10157, 10161, 10168).

    Section 72.44(g) also issued under secs. 142(b) and 148(c), (d), 
Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-232, 1330-236 (42 U.S.C. 10162(b), 
10168(c), (d)). Section 72.46 also issued under sec. 189, 68 Stat. 
955 (42 U.S.C.

[[Page 14486]]

2239); sec. 134, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2230 (42 U.S.C. 10154). 
Section 72.96(d) also issued under sec. 145(g), Pub. L. 100-203, 101 
Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10165(g)). Subpart J also issued under 
secs. 2(2), 2(15), 2(19), 117(a), 141(h), Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 
2202, 2203, 2204, 2222, 2244 (42 U.S.C. 10101, 10137(a), 10161(h)). 
Subparts K and L are also issued under sec. 133, 98 Stat. 2230 (42 
U.S.C. 10153) and sec. 218(a), 96 Stat. 2252 (42 U.S.C. 10198).


    2. Section 72.214, Certificate of Compliance (CoC) 1008 is revised 
to read as follows:


Sec. 72.214  List of approved spent fuel storage casks.

* * * * *
Certificate Number: 1008.
Initial Certificate Effective Date: October 4, 1999.
Amendment Number 1 Effective Date: December 26, 2000.
Amendment Number 2 Effective Date: May 29, 2001.
SAR Submitted by: Holtec International.
SAR Title: Final Safety Analysis Report for the HI-STAR 100 Cask 
System.
Docket Number: 72-1008.
Certificate Expiration Date: October 4, 2019.
Model Number: HI-STAR 100.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day of March, 2001.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
William D. Travers,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 01-6168 Filed 3-12-01; 8:45 am]
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