[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 30 (Thursday, February 13, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7399-7401]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-3571]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 40-8989 SMC-1559]


Envirocare of Utah, Inc.; Order Modifying Exemption From 
Requirements Relative to Possession of Special Nuclear Material

    Envirocare of Utah, Inc. (Envirocare) operates a low-level waste 
(LLW) disposal facility in Clive, Utah. This facility is licensed by 
the State of Utah, an Agreement State. Envirocare is also licensed by 
Utah to dispose of mixed radioactive and hazardous wastes. In addition, 
Envirocare has a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) license to 
dispose of by product material as defined in 10 CFR part 40.
    Section 70.3 of 10 CFR part 70 requires persons who own, acquire, 
deliver, receive, possess, use, or transfer special nuclear material 
(SNM) to obtain a license pursuant to the requirements in 10 CFR part 
70. The licensing requirements in 10 CFR part 70 apply to persons in 
Agreement States possessing greater than critical mass quantities as 
defined in 10 CFR 150.11.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 70.14, ``the Commission may * * * grant such 
exemptions from the requirements of the regulations in this part as it 
determines are authorized by law and will not endanger life or property 
or the common defense and security and are otherwise in the public 
interest.''
    On May 24, 1999, NRC transmitted an Order to Envirocare of Utah, 
Inc. The Order was published in the Federal Register on May 21, 1999, 
(64 FR 27826). The Order exempted Envirocare from certain NRC 
regulations and permitted Envirocare, under specified conditions, to 
possess waste containing SNM, in greater quantities than specified in 
10 CFR part 150, at Envirocare's low-level waste (LLW) disposal 
facility located in Clive, Utah, without obtaining an NRC license 
pursuant to 10 CFR part 70. The methodology used to establish these 
limits is discussed in the 1999 Safety Evaluation Report (SER) that 
supported the 1999 Order.
    Envirocare, in a letter dated July 3, and 29, 2002, proposes that 
NRC issue further exemptions by amending the 1999 Order as follows: (1) 
Include stabilization of liquid waste streams containing SNM; (2) 
include the thermal

[[Page 7400]]

desorption process; (3) change the homogenous contiguous mass limit 
from 145 kg to 600 kg; (4) change the language and SNM limit associated 
with footnotes ``c'' and ``d'' of Condition 1 to reflect all materials 
in Conditions 2 and 3; and (5) omit the confirmatory testing 
requirements for debris waste.
    A principal emphasis of 10 CFR part 70 is criticality safety and 
safeguarding SNM against diversion or sabotage. The staff considers 
that criticality safety can be maintained by relying on concentration 
limits, under the conditions specified. Safeguarding SNM against 
diversion or sabotage is not considered a significant issue because of 
the diffuse form of the SNM in waste meeting the conditions specified. 
These conditions are considered an acceptable alternative to the 
criticality definition provided in 10 CFR 150.11, thereby assuring the 
same level of protection. The staff reviewed safety aspects of the 
proposed action (i.e., granting Envirocare's request) in the Safety 
Evaluation Report, dated January 14, 2003. The staff concluded that 
additional conditions were required to maintain sufficient protection 
of health, safety and the environment. The exemption conditions would 
be revised as follows:
    1. Concentrations of SNM in individual waste containers must not 
exceed the following values at time of receipt:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Maximum      Measurement
                Radionuclide                 concentration   uncertainty
                                                (pCi/g)        (pCi/g)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
U-235\a\...................................          1,900           285
U-235\b\...................................          1,190       179 \1\
U-235\c\...................................             26            10
U-235\d\...................................            680           102
U-233......................................         75,000        11,250
Pu-236.....................................            500            75
Pu-238.....................................         10,000         1,500
Pu-239.....................................         10,000         1,500
Pu-240.....................................         10,000         1,500
Pu-241.....................................        350,000        50,000
Pu-242.....................................         10,000         1,500
Pu-243.....................................            500            75
Pu-244.....................................            500           75
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a\ For uranium below 10 percent enrichment and a maximum of 20 percent
  of the weight of the waste of materials listed in Condition 2.
\b\ For uranium at or above 10 percent enrichment and a maximum of
  materials listed in Condition 2 of the weight of the waste of
  materials listed in Condition 2.
\c\ For uranium at any enrichment with unlimited quantities of materials
  listed in Conditions 2 and 3.
\d\ For uranium at any enrichment with sum of materials listed in
  Conditions 2 and 3 not exceeding 45 percent of the weight of the
  waste.


    The measurement uncertainty values in column 3 above represent 
the maximum one-sigma uncertainty associated with the measurement of 
the concentration of the particular radionuclide.
    The SNM must be homogeneously distributed throughout the waste. 
If the SNM is not homogeneously distributed, then the limiting 
concentrations must not be exceeded on average in any contiguous 
mass of 600 kilograms of waste.
    2. Except as allowed by notes a, b, c, and d in Condition 1, 
waste must not contain ``pure forms'' of chemicals containing 
carbon, fluorine, magnesium, or bismuth in bulk quantities (e.g., a 
pallet of drums, a B-25 box). By ``pure forms,'' it is meant that 
mixtures of the above elements such as magnesium oxide, magnesium 
carbonate, magnesium fluoride, bismuth oxide, etc. do not contain 
other elements. These chemicals would be added to the waste stream 
during processing, such as at fuel facilities or treatment such as 
at mixed waste treatment facilities. The presence of the above 
materials will be determined by the generator, based on process 
knowledge or testing.
    3. Except as allowed by notes c and d in Condition 1, waste 
accepted must not contain total quantities of beryllium, hydrogenous 
material enriched in deuterium, or graphite above one percent of the 
total weight of the waste. The presence of the above materials will 
be determined by the generator, based on process knowledge, physical 
observations, or testing.
    4. Waste packages must not contain highly water soluble forms of 
uranium greater than 350 grams of uranium-235 or 200 grams of 
uranium-233. The sum of the fractions rule will apply for mixtures 
of U-233 and U-235. Highly soluble forms of uranium include, but are 
not limited to: uranium sulfate, uranyl acetate, uranyl chloride, 
uranyl formate, uranyl fluoride, uranyl nitrate, uranyl potassium 
carbonate, and uranyl sulfate. The presence of the above materials 
will be determined by the generator, based on process knowledge or 
testing.
    5. Waste processing of waste containing SNM will be limited to 
stabilization (mixing waste with reagents), micro-encapsulation, 
macro-encapsulation using low-density and high-density polyethylene 
and thermal desorption.
    When waste is processed using the thermal desorption process, 
Envirocare shall confirm the SNM concentration following processing 
and prior to returning the waste to temporary storage.
    Liquid waste may be stabilized provided the SNM concentration 
does not exceed the SNM concentration limits in Condition 1. For 
containers of liquid waste with more than 600 kilograms of waste, 
the total activity (pCi) of SNM shall not exceed the SNM 
concentration in Condition 1 times 600 kilograms of waste. Waste 
containing free liquids and solids shall be mixed prior to 
treatment. Any solids shall be maintained in a suspended state 
during transfer and treatment.
    6. Envirocare shall require generators to provide the following 
information for each waste stream:

Pre-Shipment

    1. Waste Description. The description must detail how the waste 
was generated, list the physical forms in the waste, and identify 
uranium chemical composition.
    2. Waste Characterization Summary. The data must include a 
general description of how the waste was characterized (including 
the volumetric extent of the waste, and the number, location, type, 
and results of any analytical testing), the range of SNM 
concentrations, and the analytical results with error values used to 
develop the concentration ranges.
    3. Uniformity Description. A description of the process by which 
the waste was generated showing that the spatial distribution of SNM 
must be uniform, or other information supporting spatial 
distribution.
    4. Manifest Concentration. The generator must describe the 
methods to be used to determine the concentrations on the manifests. 
These methods could include direct measurement and the use of 
scaling factors. The generator must describe the uncertainty 
associated with sampling and testing used to obtain the manifest 
concentrations.
    Envirocare shall review the above information and, if adequate, 
approve in writing this pre-shipment waste characterization and 
assurance plan before permitting the shipment of a waste stream. 
This will include statements that Envirocare has a written copy of 
all the information required above, that the characterization 
information is adequate and consistent with the waste description, 
and that the information is sufficient to demonstrate compliance 
with Conditions 1 through 4. Where generator process knowledge is 
used to demonstrate compliance with Conditions 1, 2, 3, or 4, 
Envirocare shall review this information and determine when testing 
is required to provide additional information in assuring compliance 
with the Conditions. Envirocare shall retain this information as 
required by the State of Utah to permit independent review.

At Receipt

    Envirocare shall require generators of SNM waste to provide a 
written certification with each waste manifest that states that the 
SNM concentrations reported on the manifest do not exceed the limits 
in Condition 1, that the measurement uncertainty does not exceed the 
uncertainty value in Condition 1, and that the waste meets 
Conditions 2 through 4.
    7. Sampling and radiological testing of waste containing SNM 
must be performed in accordance with the following: one sample for 
each of the first ten shipments of a waste stream; or one sample for 
each of the first 100 cubic yards of waste up to 1,000 cubic yards 
of a waste stream, and one sample for each additional 500 cubic 
yards of waste following the first ten shipments or the following 
the first 1,000 cubic yards of a waste stream. Sampling and 
radiological testing of debris waste containing SNM (that is 
exempted from sampling by the State of Utah) can be eliminated if 
the SNM concentration is lower than one tenth of the limits in 
Condition 1.
    8. Envirocare shall notify the NRC, Region IV office within 24 
hours if any of the above conditions are not met, including if a 
batch during a treatment process exceeds the SNM

[[Page 7401]]

concentrations of Condition 1. A written notification of the event 
must be provided within 7 days.
    9. Envirocare shall obtain NRC approval prior to changing any 
activities associated with the above conditions.

    Based on the staff's evaluation, the Commission has determined, 
pursuant to 10 CFR 70.14, that the exemption of above activities at the 
Envirocare disposal facility is authorized by law, and will not 
endanger life or property or the common defense and security and is 
otherwise in the public interest. Accordingly, by this Order, the 
Commission grants an exemption subject to the stated conditions. The 
exemption will become effective after the State of Utah has 
incorporated the above conditions into Envirocare's radioactive 
materials license. In addition, at that time, the Order transmitted on 
May 24, 1999, will no longer be effective.
    Pursuant to the requirements in 10 CFR part 51, the Commission has 
prepared an Environmental Assessment for the proposed action and has 
determined that the granting of this exemption will have no significant 
impacts on the quality of the human environment. This finding was 
noticed in the Federal Register on January 23, 2003; 68 FR 3281.
    The requests for the modifying the Order are available for 
inspection at NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room at <http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/ADAMS/index.html ML021900394 and 
ML022180270. The staff's Environmental Assessment and Safety Evaluation 
Report may be obtained at the above web site using ML023470617 and 
ML023470587. Any questions with respect to this action should be 
referred to Timothy Harris, Environmental and Performance Assessment 
Branch, Division of Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety 
and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001. Telephone: (301) 415-6613, Fax: (301) 415-5398.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 30th day of January 2003.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Martin J. Virgilio,
Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 03-3571 Filed 2-12-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P