[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 182 (Tuesday, September 21, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56462-56464]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-21149]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-184]
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); Notice of
Acceptance for Docketing of the Application and Notice of Opportunity
for Hearing Regarding Renewal of the National Bureau of Standards
Reactor (The NBSR) Facility Operating License No. TR-5 for an
Additional 20-Year Period
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) is
considering an application for the renewal of Operating License No. TR-
5, which authorizes the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), to operate the National Bureau of Standards Reactor (NBSR) at
20 megawatts thermal power for an additional 20-year period beyond the
period specified in the current operating license. The current
operating license for the NBSR (TR-5) expired on May 16, 2004.
On April 9, 2004, the Commission's staff received applications from
NIST filed pursuant to 10 CFR 50.51(a), to renew the Operating License
No. TR-5 for the NBSR. A Notice of Receipt and Availability of the
license renewal application, ``National lnstitute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) Notice of Receipt and Availability of Application for
Renewal of the National lnstitute of Standards and Technology Reactor
(the NBSR) Facility Operating License No. TR-5 for an Additional 20-
year Period,'' was published in the Federal Register on May 12, 2004
(69 FR 26414). Because the license renewal application was timely filed
under 10 CFR 2.109, the license will not be deemed to have expired
until the license renewal application has been finally determined.
The Commission's staff has determined that NIST has submitted
sufficient information in accordance with 10 CFR 50.33 and 50.34 that
is acceptable for docketing. The current Docket No. 50-184 for
Operating License No. TR-5, 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 the requested renewed license, the NRC will have
made the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended
(the Act), and the Commission's rules and regulations. Additionally, in
accordance with 10 CFR 51.20(b)(2), the NRC will prepare an
environmental
[[Page 56463]]
impact statement that contains a statement of the license renewal
purpose and a description of the environment that is affected. 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.
Within 60 days after the date of publication of this Federal
Register Notice, 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 licensee. Requests for a hearing and a
petition for leave to intervene shall be filed in accordance with the
Commission's ``Rules of Practice for Domestic Licensing Proceedings''
in 10 CFR part 2. Interested persons should consult a current copy of
10 CFR 2.309, which is available at the Commission's Public Document
Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike
(first floor), Rockville, Maryland 20852 and is accessible from the
Agencywide Documents Access and Management System's (ADAMS) Public
Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do not have access to
ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in
ADAMS should contact the NRC's PDR reference staff at 1-800-397-4209,
or by e-mail at [email protected]. If a request for a hearing or a petition
for leave to intervene is filed within the 60-day period, the
Commission or a presiding officer designated by the Commission or by
the Chief Administrative Judge of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board
Panel will rule on the request and/or petition; and the Secretary or
the Chief Administrative Judge of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board
will issue a notice of a hearing or an appropriate order. In the event
that no request for a hearing or petition for leave to intervene is
filed within the 60-day period, the NRC may, upon completion of its
evaluations and upon making the findings required under 10 CFR parts 50
and 51, renew the license without further notice.
As required by 10 CFR 2.309, 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. The petition must specifically explain the reasons why
intervention should be permitted with particular reference to the
following factors: (1) The nature of the requestor's/petitioner's right
under the Atomic Energy Act to be made a party to the proceeding; (2)
the nature and extent of the requestor's/petitioner's property,
financial, or other interest in the proceeding; and (3) the possible
effect of any decision or order which may be entered in the proceeding
on the requestor's/petitioner's interest. The petition must also set
forth the specific contentions which the petitioner/requestor seeks to
have litigated at the proceeding.
Each contention must consist of a specific statement of the issue
of law or fact to be raised or controverted. In addition, the
requestor/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 on which the requestor/
petitioner intends to rely in proving the contention at the hearing.
The requestor/petitioner must also provide references to those specific
sources and documents of which the requestor/petitioner is aware and on
which the requestor/petitioner intends to rely to establish those facts
or expert opinion. The requestor/petitioner must provide sufficient
information to show that a genuine dispute exists with the applicant on
a material issue of law or fact.\1\ 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 requestor/
petitioner to relief. A requestor/petitioner who fails to satisfy these
requirements with respect to at least one contention will not be
permitted to participate as a party.
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\1\ To the extent that the applications contain attachments and
supporting documents that are not publically available because they
are asserted to contain safeguards or proprietary information,
petitioners desiring access to this information should contact the
applicant or applicant's counsel and discuss the need for a
protective order.
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Each contention shall be given a separate numeric or alpha
designation within one of the following groups:
1. Technical--primarily concerns/issues relating to technical and/
or health and safety matters discussed or referenced in the applicant's
safety analysis for the NBSR license renewal application.
2. Environmental--primarily concerns issues relating to matters
discussed or referenced in the Environmental Report for the license
renewal application.
3. Miscellaneous--does not fall into one of the categories outlined
above.
As specified in 10 CFR 2.309, if two or more requestors/petitioners
seek to co-sponsor a contention, the requestors/petitioners shall
jointly designate a representative who shall have the authority to act
for the requestors/petitioners with respect to that contention. If a
requestor/petitioner seeks to adopt the contention of another
sponsoring requestor/petitioner, the requestor/petitioner who seeks to
adopt the contention must either agree that the sponsoring requestor/
petitioner shall act as the representative with respect to that
contention, or jointly designate with the sponsoring requestor/
petitioner a representative who shall have the authority to act for the
requestors/petitioners with respect to that contention.
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 participate fully in the conduct
of the hearing. A request for a hearing or a petition for leave to
intervene must be filed by: (1) First class mail addressed to the
Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemaking and
Adjudications Staff; (2) courier, express mail, and expedited delivery
services: Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth Floor, One White Flint
North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, 20852, Attention:
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff; (3) e-mail addressed to the Office
of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
[email protected]; or (4) facsimile transmission addressed to the
Office of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff at 301-
415-1101, verification number is 301-415-1966. A copy of the request
for hearing and petition for leave to intervene must also be sent to
the Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001, and it is requested that copies be
transmitted either by means of facsimile transmission to 301-415-3725
or by e-mail to [email protected]. A copy of the request for
hearing and petition for leave to intervene should also be sent to the
licensee. The licensee's contact for this is Dr. Seymour H. Weiss,
Chief, Reactor Operations and Engineering, Center for Neutron Research,
National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S.
[[Page 56464]]
Department of Commerce, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899.
Nontimely requests and/or petitions and contentions will not be
entertained absent a determination by the Commission, the presiding
officer, or the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board that the petition,
request and/or contentions should be granted based on a balancing of
the factors specified in 10 CFR 2.309(c)(1)(i)-(viii).
Detailed guidance which the NRC uses to review applications for the
renewal of non-power reactor licenses can be found in the document
NUREG-1537, entitled ``Guidelines for Preparing and Reviewing
Applications for the Licensing of Non-Power Reactors,'' can be obtained
from the Commission's PDR. Copies of the application to renew the
operating license for the NBSR are available for public inspection at
the Commission's PDR, located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland, 20855-2738, and on the NRC's
Web page at http://www.nrc.gov/what-we-do/regulatory/adjudicatory/hearing-license-applications.html. The NRC maintains an Agencywide
Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and
image files of NRC's public documents. The application also may be
accessed through the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room on the
Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html under ADAMS
accession number ML041120161. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS,
or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS,
may contact the NRC Public Document Room Reference staff at 1-800-397-
4209, 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to [email protected].
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2nd day of September, 2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Patrick M. Madden,
Section Chief, Research and Test Reactors Section, New, Research and
Test Reactors Program, Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs,
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 04-21149 Filed 9-20-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P