[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 145 (Monday, July 29, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49046-49047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-19197]


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

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 72-31]


Yankee Atomic Electric Company; Issuance of Environmental 
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for the Proposed 
Exemption

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) is 
considering issuance of an exemption, pursuant to 10 CFR 72.7, from the 
provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(i)(A), and 72.214 to 
the Yankee Atomic Electric Company (YAEC). The requested exemption 
would allow YAEC to deviate from the requirements of Certificate of 
Compliance No. 1025 (the Certificate), Appendix A, Technical 
Specifications (TS), Table A2-2, Intact Fuel Assembly Characteristics 
for the NAC-MPC. The exemption would modify the specified fuel 
enrichment parameters to incorporate fuel enrichment fabrication 
tolerances into the Yankee-Class fuel parameters which would allow YAEC 
to maintain continuity of the fuel loading campaign at Yankee Nuclear 
Power Station (YNPS) in Rowe, Massachusetts.

[[Page 49047]]

Environmental Assessment (EA)

    Identification of Proposed Action: By letter dated May 10, 2002, 
YAEC requested an exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 
72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(i)(A), and 72.214 to deviate from the 
requirements of Certificate of Compliance No. 1025, Appendix A, Table 
A2-2. YAEC is a general licensee, authorized by NRC to use spent fuel 
storage casks approved under 10 CFR part 72, subpart K.
    YAEC plans to use the NAC-MPC cask system to store spent nuclear 
fuel, generated at YNPS, at an independent spent fuel storage 
installation (ISFSI) located in Rowe, Massachusetts, on the YNPS site. 
The YNPS ISFSI has been constructed for interim dry storage of spent 
nuclear fuel.
    By exempting YAEC from 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(i)(A), and 
72.214, YAEC will be authorized to store fuel with enrichments 0.03 wt 
% U-235 larger than those enrichments specified in the existing 
technical specifications for Yankee-Class fuel. The revised fuel 
enrichment parameters for the Yankee-Class fuel are as follows (all 
enrichments are in wt % of U-235):

Combustion Engineering Type A....  Maximum--3.93                           Minimum--3.66
Combustion Engineering Type B....  Maximum--3.93                           Minimum--3.66
Exxon Type A.....................  Maximum--4.03                           Minimum--3.46
Exxon Type B.....................  Maximum--4.03                           Minimum--3.46
Westinghouse Type A..............  Maximum--4.97                           Minimum--4.90
Westinghouse Type B..............  Maximum--4.97                           Minimum--4.90
United Nuclear Type A............  Maximum--4.03                           Minimum--3.96
United Nuclear Type B............  Maximum--4.03                           Minimum--3.96
 

    The specifications above would be in lieu of those in the current 
Certificate of Compliance No. 1025, Rev. 1, Appendix A, Table A2-2. The 
proposed action before the Commission is whether to grant this 
exemption under 10 CFR 72.7.
    On April 18, 2002, the Certificate holder, NAC International (NAC), 
submitted to the NRC an application to amend Certificate of Compliance 
No. 1025. The requested amendment includes the same revisions to Table 
A2-2 in Appendix A to the Certificate as requested in this exemption. 
The NRC staff has reviewed the application and agreed with the 
applicant's conclusion that the NAC-MPC system is not significantly 
affected by increasing the enrichment by 0.03 wt % above the previous 
design basis enrichment and does not impact the ability of the NAC-MPC 
to meet the requirements of 10 CFR part 72.
    Need for the Proposed Action: The revised Table A2-2 will authorize 
for storage, fuel with enrichments that incorporate enrichment 
fabrication tolerances for the Yankee-Class fuel. This will allow YAEC 
to maintain continuity of fuel loading activities to permit inspection 
of the fuel assemblies in the lower tier of the spent fuel pool. The 
exemption will also support YAEC's goal of a timely decommissioning of 
the YNPS site. The overall result of not granting the exemption would 
be unnecessary delays in schedule and delayed completion of 
decommissioning activities with negligible impact on safety. Because 
the 10 CFR part 72 rulemaking to amend the Certificate will not be 
completed prior to the date that YNPS plans to begin loading fuel into 
the NAC-MPC cask systems, the NRC is proposing to grant this exemption 
based on the staff's technical review of information submitted by YAEC 
and NAC.
    Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action: The Commission has 
already determined that spent fuel can be stored safely and without 
significant environmental impact at an onsite ISFSI in the NAC-MPC cask 
system (65 FR 12444, dated March 9, 2000). Staff's review of NAC's 
application for an amendment of its Certificate confirmed that changes 
in fuel parameters to take into account fabrication tolerances for 
enrichment will not increase the probability or consequences of 
accidents. No changes have been requested to the types or quantities of 
any radiological effluents that may be released offsite, and there is 
no significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure. 
There are no significant radiological environmental impacts associated 
with the proposed action.
    Alternative to the Proposed Action: Since there is no significant 
environmental impact associated with the proposed action, alternatives 
with equal or greater environmental impact are not evaluated. The 
alternative to the proposed action would be to deny approval of the 
exemption and use the fuel assembly parameters table in the current 
Certificate. Denial of the exemption will result in unnecessary delays 
in schedules and delayed completion of decommissioning activities. With 
the proposed actions, the applicant continues to meet all applicable 
safety requirements.
    Agencies and Persons Consulted: On July 9, 2002, Mr. Jim 
Muckerhide, Nuclear Engineer, Nuclear Safety, Massachusetts Emergency 
Management Agency was contacted about the Environmental Assessment for 
the proposed action and had no comments.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The environmental impacts of the proposed action have been reviewed 
in accordance with the requirements set forth in 10 CFR Part 51. Based 
upon the foregoing EA, the Commission finds that the proposed action of 
granting an exemption from 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(i)(A), and 
72.214 allowing YAEC to use revised intact fuel enrichment parameters 
in Table A2-2 at YNPS ISFSI will not significantly impact the quality 
of the human environment. Accordingly, the Commission has determined 
that an environmental impact statement for the proposed exemption is 
not warranted.
    The request for the exemption was docketed under 10 CFR Part 71, 
Docket 72-31. For further details with respect to this action, see the 
exemption request dated May 10, 2002. 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/reading-rm/adams.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].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 24th day of July, 2002.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
M. Wayne Hodges,
Acting Director, Spent Fuel Project Office, Office of Nuclear Material 
Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 02-19197 Filed 7-26-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P