[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 170 (Friday, August 31, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46036-46038]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-21938]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-277 and 50-278]


Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon): Peach Bottom Atomic 
Power Station, Units 2 and 3; Notice of Acceptance for Docketing of the 
Application and Notice of Opportunity for Hearing Regarding Renewal of 
Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-44 and DPR-56 for an Additional 20-
Year Period

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering an application for the renewal of Operating License Nos. 
DPR-44 and DPR-56, which authorize Exelon Generation Company, LLC 
(Exelon) to operate Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station (PBAPS), Units 2 
and 3, at 3458 megawatts thermal. The renewed licenses would authorize 
the applicant to operate PBAPS Units 2 and 3 for an additional 20 years 
beyond the period

[[Page 46037]]

specified in the current licenses. The current operating licenses for 
PBAPS Units 2 and 3 expire on August 8, 2013, and July 2, 2014, 
respectively.
    Exelon submitted an application on July 2, 2001, to renew the 
operating licenses for PBAPS Units 2 and 3. A Notice of Receipt of 
Application, ``Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon), Peach Bottom 
Atomic Power Station, Units 2 and 3; Notice of Receipt of Application 
for Renewal of Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-44, and DPR-56 for 
an Additional 20-Year Period,'' was published in the Federal Register 
on July 25, 2001 (66 FR 38753).
    The Commission's staff has determined that Exelon has submitted 
information in accordance with 10 CFR 54.19, 54.21, 54.22, 54.23, and 
51.53(c) that is complete and acceptable for docketing. The current 
Docket Nos. 50-277 and 50-278, for Operating License Nos. DPR-44 and 
DPR-56, respectively, will be retained. The docketing of the renewal 
application does not preclude requesting additional information as the 
review proceeds, nor does it predict whether the Commission will grant 
or deny the application.
    Before issuance of each requested renewed license, the NRC will 
have made the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended (the Act), and the NRC's rules and regulations. In accordance 
with 10 CFR 54.29, the NRC will issue a renewed license on the basis of 
its review if it finds that actions have been identified and have been 
or will be taken with respect to (1) managing the effects of aging 
during the period of extended operation on the functionality of 
structures and components that have been identified as requiring aging 
management review, and (2) time-limited aging analyses that have been 
identified as requiring review, such that there is reasonable assurance 
that the activities authorized by the renewed license will continue to 
be conducted in accordance with the current licensing basis (CLB) and 
that any changes made to the plant's CLB comply with the Act and the 
Commission's regulations.
    Additionally, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.95(c), the NRC will 
prepare an environmental impact statement that is a supplement to the 
Commission's NUREG-1437, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for 
License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants'' (May 1996). Pursuant to 10 
CFR 51.26, and as part of the environmental scoping process, the staff 
intends to hold a public scoping meeting. Detailed information 
regarding this meeting will be included in a future Federal Register 
notice. The Commission also intends to hold public meetings to discuss 
the license renewal process and the schedule for conducting the review. 
The Commission will provide prior notice of these meetings. As 
discussed further herein, in the event that a hearing is held, issues 
that may be litigated will be confined to those pertinent to the 
foregoing.
    By October 1, 2001, the applicant may file a request for a hearing, 
and any person whose interest may be affected by this proceeding and 
who wishes to participate as a party in the proceeding must file a 
written request for a hearing and a petition for leave to intervene 
with respect to the renewal of the licenses in accordance with the 
provisions of 10 CFR 2.714. Interested persons should consult a current 
copy of 10 CFR 2.714, which is available at the Commission's Public 
Document Room, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor) Rockville, Maryland, 
and on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov (the Electronic Reading 
Room). If a request for a hearing or a petition for leave to intervene 
is filed by the above date, the Commission or an Atomic Safety and 
Licensing Board designated by the Commission or by the Chairman of the 
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel will rule on the request(s) 
and/or petition(s), and the Secretary or the designated Atomic Safety 
and Licensing Board will issue a notice of hearing or an appropriate 
order. In the event that no request for a hearing or petition for leave 
to intervene is filed by the above date, the NRC may, upon completion 
of its evaluations and upon making the findings required under 10 CFR 
parts 54 and 51, renew the licenses without further notice.
    As required by 10 CFR 2.714, a petition for leave to intervene 
shall set forth with particularity the interest of the petitioner in 
the proceeding and how that interest may be affected by the results of 
the proceeding, taking into consideration the limited scope of matters 
that may be considered pursuant to 10 CFR parts 54 and 51. The petition 
must specifically explain the reasons why intervention should be 
permitted with particular reference to the following factors: (1) the 
nature of the petitioner's right under the Act to be made a party to 
the proceeding; (2) the nature and extent of the petitioner's property, 
financial, or other interest in the proceeding; and (3) the possible 
effect of any order that may be entered in the proceeding on the 
petitioner's interest. The petition must also identify the specific 
aspect(s) of the subject matter of the proceeding as to which 
petitioner wishes to intervene. Any person who has filed a petition for 
leave to intervene or who has been admitted as a party may amend the 
petition without requesting leave of the board up to 15 days before the 
first prehearing conference scheduled in the proceeding, but such an 
amended petition must satisfy the specificity requirements described 
above.
    Not later than 15 days before the first prehearing conference 
scheduled in the proceeding, a petitioner shall file a supplement to 
the petition to intervene that must include a list of the contentions 
that the petitioner seeks to have litigated in the hearing. Each 
contention must consist of a specific statement of the issue of law or 
fact to be raised or controverted. In addition, the petitioner shall 
provide a brief explanation of the bases of each contention and a 
concise statement of the alleged facts or the expert opinion that 
supports the contention and on which the petitioner intends to rely in 
proving the contention at the hearing. The petitioner must also provide 
references to those specific sources and documents of which the 
petitioner is aware and on which the petitioner intends to rely to 
establish those facts or expert opinion. The petitioner must provide 
sufficient information to show that a genuine dispute exists with the 
applicant on a material issue of law or fact. Contentions shall be 
limited to matters within the scope of the action under consideration. 
The contention must be one that, if proven, would entitle the 
petitioner to relief. A petitioner who fails to file such a supplement 
that satisfies these requirements with respect to at least one 
contention will not be permitted to participate as a party.
    Those permitted to intervene become parties to the proceeding, 
subject to any limitations in the order granting leave to intervene, 
and have the opportunity to participate fully in the conduct of the 
hearing, including the opportunity to present evidence and cross-
examine witnesses.
    Requests for a hearing and petitions for leave to intervene must be 
filed with the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff, or may be delivered to the Commission's Public 
Document Room, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland, 
20855-2738, by the above date. A copy of the request for a hearing and 
the petition to intervene should also be sent to the Office of the 
General Counsel, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, and to Mr. James A. Hutton, Director-Licensing, Exelon 
Corporation,

[[Page 46038]]

200 Exelon Way, Kennett Square, PA 19348.
    Nontimely filings of petitions for leave to intervene, amended 
petitions, supplemental petitions, and/or requests for a hearing will 
not be entertained absent a determination by the Commission, the 
presiding officer, or the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board that the 
petition and/or request should be granted based upon a balancing of the 
factors specified in 10 CFR 2.714(a)(1)(i)-(v) and 2.714(d).
    Detailed information about the license renewal process can be found 
under the Nuclear Reactors icon of the NRC's Web page at http://www.nrc.gov.
    A copy of the application to renew the operating licenses for PBAPS 
Units 2 and 3 is available for public inspection at the Commission's 
Public Document Room, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, 
Maryland, 20855-2738, and on the NRC's Web page at http://www.nrc.gov. 
The NRC maintains an Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS), which provides text and image files of NRC's public documents. 
These documents may be accessed through the NRC's Public Electronic 
Reading Room on the Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/index.html. If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems 
in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public 
Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737 or 
by e-mail to [email protected].
    The staff has also verified that copies of the license renewal 
application for the PBAPS, Units 2 and 3 are also available to local 
residents at the Harford County Public Library, in Whiteford, Maryland, 
and the Collinsville Community Library, in Brogue, Pennsylvania.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this the 24th day of August 2001.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Christopher I. Grimes,
Chief, License Renewal and Standardization Branch, Division of 
Regulatory Improvement Programs, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 01-21938 Filed 8-30-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P