[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 126 (Friday, June 29, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 34523-34526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-16390]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 126 / Friday, June 29, 2001 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 34523]]



NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

RIN 3150-AG75


List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: Standardized 
NUHOMS -24P and -52B Revision

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its 
regulations revising the Standardized NUHOMS -24P and -52B 
cask system listing within the ``List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage 
Casks'' to include Amendment No. 3 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) 
Number 1004. Amendment No. 3 will modify the present cask system design 
to add the -61BT dry storage canister (DSC), the storage portion of a 
dual purpose cask design intended to both store and transport spent 
fuel. The Technical Specifications are revised to add additional fuel 
parameters associated with use of the -61BT DSC. Additional 
administrative changes are made to the conditions of the CoC. However, 
the NRC is disapproving a portion of the applicant's request pertaining 
to storage of failed fuel.

DATES: The final rule is effective September 12, 2001, unless 
significant adverse comments are received by July 30, 2001. A 
significant adverse comment is a comment where the commenter explains 
why the rule would be inappropriate, including challenges to the rule's 
underlying premise or approach, or would be ineffective or unacceptable 
without a change. If the rule is withdrawn, timely notice will be 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, Attn: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff. Deliver comments to 11555 Rockville Pike, 
Rockville, MD, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays.
    Certain documents related to this rulemaking, as well as all public 
comments received on this rulemaking, may be viewed and downloaded 
electronically via the NRC's rulemaking website at http://ruleforum.llnl.gov. You may also provide comments via this website by 
uploading comments as files (any format) if your web browser supports 
that function. For information about the interactive rulemaking site, 
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, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. For more information, contact the NRC 
Public Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737 or by email to [email protected].
    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 NRC's public documents. An electronic copy of the 
proposed CoC and preliminary safety evaluation report (SER) can be 
found under ADAMS Accession No. ML010720508. If you do not have access 
to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in 
ADAMS, contact the NRC PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737 or by e-mail to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gordon Gundersen, telephone (301) 415-
6195, 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 
(DOE)] 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 that 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 by 
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 spent fuel 
storage cask designs. The NRC subsequently issued a final rule on 
December 22, 1994 (59 FR 65920), that approved the Standardized 
NUHOMS -24P and -52B cask design and added it to the list of 
NRC-approved cask designs in Sec. 72.214 as Certificate of Compliance 
Number (CoC No.) 1004.

Discussion

    On July 15, 2000, and as supplemented on September 1, 2000, the 
certificate holder Transnuclear West, Inc. submitted an application to 
the NRC to amend CoC No. 1004 to permit a Part 72 licensee to use the -
61BT dry storage canister (DSC) to store spent fuel. The -61BT is 
intended to both store and transport spent fuel. Second, conforming 
changes would be made to current Technical Specifications (TS) 1.2.1, 
1.2.3, and 1.2.4, and would add new TS 1.2.3a, 1.2.4a, and 1.2.17 to 
accommodate the -61BT DSC and the fuel types it will contain. 
Additionally, the NRC, on its own initiative, is removing CoC 
Conditions Nos. 9, 10, and 11. Conditions Nos. 9 and 11 have been 
superseded by a change to 10 CFR 72.48 (64 FR 53582; October 4, 1999) 
that permits certificate holders to make

[[Page 34524]]

certain changes to a cask design without prior NRC approval. Condition 
No. 10 has been superseded by the new 10 CFR 72.248 (64 FR 53617; 
October 4, 1999) that requires a certificate holder to periodically 
update the final safety analysis report (FSAR) associated with the cask 
design. This update must include any changes to the cask design made 
under the provisions of 10 CFR 72.48. The change to 10 CFR 72.48 became 
effective on April 5, 2001, and the addition of 10 CFR 72.248 became 
effective on February 1, 2000. Removal of Conditions Nos. 9, 10, and 11 
will remove confusion for users of the Standardized NUHOMS 
Storage System between compliance with the CoC and Part 72 regulations. 
Finally, existing Condition No. 12 is redesignated as Condition No. 6. 
The NRC notes that current Condition Nos. 6, 7, and 8 are unused. 
Additionally, a minor editorial change would be made to Condition No. 
3.b. The NRC staff performed a detailed safety evaluation of the 
proposed CoC amendment request and found that adding the -61BT DSC to 
store spent fuel in and making conforming changes to the TS to add 
additional fuel parameters associated with the use of the -61BT DSC 
does not reduce the safety margin. In addition, the NRC staff has 
determined that these changes do not pose an increased risk to public 
health and safety.
    However, the NRC is disapproving a portion of the applicant's 
request pertaining to storage of failed fuel. The NRC staff concluded 
that the applicant's request did not provide acceptable assurance of 
retrievability of the failed fuel, absent the use of a separate failed-
fuel can to store the failed fuel in the Standardized NUHOMS 
cask design.
    This direct final rule revises the Standardized NUHOMS 
Storage System cask design listing in Sec. 72.214 by adding Amendment 
No. 3 to CoC No. 1004. The particular TS that are changed are 
identified in the NRC Staff's Safety Evaluation Report for Amendment 
No. 3.
    The amended Standardized NUHOMS Storage System, when used 
in accordance with the conditions specified in the CoC, the TS, and NRC 
regulations will meet the requirements of Part 72; thus, adequate 
protection of public health and safety will continue to be ensured.
    CoC No. 1004, the revised Technical Specifications, the underlying 
Safety Evaluation Report for Amendment No. 3, and the Environmental 
Assessment are available for inspection at the NRC Public Document 
Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. Single copies of these 
documents may be obtained from Gordon Gundersen, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone (301) 415-6195, email 
[email protected].

Discussion of Amendments by Section

Section 72.214  List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks

    Certificate No. 1004 is revised by adding the effective date of 
Amendment Number 3 and adding Model Number NUHOMS -61BT.

Procedural Background

    This rule is limited to the changes contained in Amendment 3 to CoC 
No. 1004 and does not include other aspects of the Standardized 
NUHOMS Storage System cask system design. The NRC is using 
the ``direct final rule procedure'' to promulgate this amendment 
because it represents a limited and routine change to an existing CoC 
that is expected to be noncontroversial. Adequate protection of public 
health and safety continues to be ensured. This amendment is not 
considered to be a significant amendment by the NRC staff. The 
amendment to the rule will become effective on September 12, 2001. 
However, if the NRC receives significant adverse comments by July 30, 
2001, then the NRC will publish that 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. A significant adverse comment is a comment where the 
commenter explains why the rule would be inappropriate, including 
challenges to the rule's underlying premise or approach, or would be 
ineffective or unacceptable without a change. These comments will be 
addressed in a subsequent final rule. The NRC will not initiate a 
second comment period on this action.

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 would revise the 
Standardized NUHOMS Storage System cask system design listed 
in Sec. 72.214 (List of NRC-approved spent fuel storage cask designs). 
This action does not constitute the establishment of a standard that 
establishes generally applicable requirements.

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 the 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.
    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 would amend the CoC for the Standardized NUHOMS Storage 
System cask system within the list of approved spent fuel storage casks 
that power reactor licensees can use to store spent fuel at reactor 
sites under a general license. The amendment will modify the present 
cask system design by adding the -61BT DSC to store spent fuel in and 
making conforming changes to TS to add additional fuel parameters to 
support use of the -61BT DSC. Additional administrative changes are 
made to the conditions of the CoC. 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

[[Page 34525]]

assessment and finding of no significant impact are available from 
Gordon Gundersen, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, telephone 
(301) 415-6195, 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 designs approved by the NRC. Any nuclear power 
reactor licensee can use NRC-approved cask designs 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 designs is 
contained in Sec. 72.214. On December 22, 1994 (59 FR 65920), the NRC 
issued an amendment to part 72 that approved the Standardized 
NUHOMS Storage System cask design by adding it to the list of 
NRC-approved cask designs in Sec. 72.214. On July 15, 2000, and as 
supplemented on September 1, 2000, the certificate holder, Transnuclear 
West, submitted an application to the NRC to amend CoC No. 1004 to 
permit a part 72 licensee to use the -61BT DSC to store spent fuel in 
and to make conforming changes to TS to support the use of the -61BT 
DSC.
    This rule will permit general licensees to use the -61BT DSC to 
store spent fuel. The rule will remove CoC Conditions Nos. 9, 10, and 
11; will redesignate Condition No. 12 as No. 6; and make an editorial 
change to Condition No. 3.b. The alternative to this action is to 
withhold approval of this amended cask system design and issue an 
exemption to each general license. This alternative would cost both the 
NRC and the utilities more time and money because each utility would 
have to pursue an exemption.
    Approval of the direct final rule will eliminate the above 
described problem 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.

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 Transnuclear West. 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.

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.

List of Subjects In 10 CFR Part 72

    Administrative practice and procedure, Criminal penalties, Manpower 
training programs, Nuclear materials, Occupational safety and health, 
Penalties, Radiation protection, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Security measures, Spent fuel, Whistleblowing.

    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. 552 and 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. 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. In Sec. 72.214, Certificate of Compliance (CoC) 1004 is revised 
to read as follows:


Sec. 72.214  List of approved spent fuel storage casks.

* * * * *
    Certificate Number: 1004.
    Initial Certificate Effective Date: January 23, 1995
    Amendment Number 1 Effective Date: April 27, 2000
    Amendment Number 2 Effective Date: September 5, 2000
    Amendment Number 3 Effective Date: September 12, 2001.
    SAR Submitted by: Transnuclear West, Inc.
    SAR Title: Final Safety Analysis Report for the Standardized 
NUHOMS Horizontal Modular Storage System for Irradiated 
Nuclear Fuel

[[Page 34526]]

    Docket Number: 72-1004
    Certificate Expiration Date: January 23, 2015
    Model Number: Standardized NUHOMS -24P, NUHOMS 
-52B, and NUHOMS -61BT.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of June , 2001.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
William D. Travers,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 01-16390 Filed 6-28-01; 8:45 am]
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