[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 143 (Wednesday, July 27, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43463-43465]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-3993]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 72-13]


Entergy Operations, Inc., Arkansas Nuclear One Independent Spent 
Fuel Storage Installation; Issuance of Environmental Assessment and 
Finding of No Significant Impact Regarding a Proposed Exemption

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No 
Significant Impact.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christopher M. Regan, Senior Project 
Manager, Spent Fuel Project Office, Office of Nuclear Material Safety 
and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC. 
20555. Telephone: (301) 415-1179; fax number: (301) 415-1179; e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC 
or Commission) is considering a request dated March 21, 2005, from 
Entergy Operations, Inc. (applicant or Entergy Operations) for 
exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2) and 10 CFR 
72.214 pursuant to 10 CFR 72.7, for the Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO),

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Unit 1 and Unit 2 Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation, located 
6 miles west-northwest of Russellville, Arkansas. In consideration of 
the request, the NRC would also grant exemption from the requirements 
of 10 CFR 72.212(b)(2)(I) and 72.212(b)(7). The exemption would 
authorize the applicant to store damaged spent nuclear fuel (SNF) 
assemblies in a Holtec HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 design, Multi-Purpose 
Canister (MPC) -32.

Environmental Assessment (EA)

I. Identification of Proposed Action

    By letter dated March 21, 2005, Entergy Operations requested an 
exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2) and 10 CFR 
72.214, specifically, exemption from complying with Appendix B, Section 
2.1, of the HI-STORM 100 Cask System CoC (1014), Fuel Specifications 
and Loading Conditions. The NRC action would also include granting 
exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(b)(2)(I) and 
72.212(b)(7). Approval of the exemption request would allow storage of 
uncanned damaged SNF assemblies in a HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 design, 
MPC-32. Damaged SNF assemblies may be stored in an HI-STORM 100, 
Amendment 2 design, MPC-32 when properly canned. Entergy Operations has 
identified five previously loaded intact fuel assemblies that have been 
reclassified as damaged SNF assemblies. A damaged SNF assembly is 
defined in the HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 CoC in part as one with 
greater than pinhole leak or hairline cracks. Each of the five SNF 
assemblies classified as damaged contain one interior rod characterized 
as defective. In accordance with Amendment 1 to CoC 1014 granted to 
Holtec for the HI-STORM 100 cask system, and as codified in 10 CFR 
72.214, the MPC-32 is not permitted to store damaged fuel assemblies. 
ANO as a general licensee, is authorized by the NRC to use spent fuel 
storage casks approved under 10 CFR Part 72, Subpart K.
    For the NRC to permit Entergy Operations to continue to store the 
five uncanned damaged SNF assemblies in four HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 
design, MPC-32's, the NRC, must grant Entergy Operations an exemption 
from the general license conditions defined in 10 CFR 72.212. The 
regulations in 10 CFR 72.212 state that the general license for storage 
of SNF at power reactor sites is limited to storage of SNF in casks 
approved under the provisions in 10 CFR Part 72. By exempting Entergy 
Operations from 10 CFR 72.214 and 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(I), and 
72.212(b)(7), Entergy Operations will be authorized to use its general 
license to store uncanned damaged SNF assemblies in the HI-STORM 100, 
Amendment 1 design, MPC-32. The proposed action before the Commission 
is whether to grant the exemption under 10 CFR 72.7.
    The ISFSI is located 6 miles west-northwest of Russellville, 
Arkansas, on the ANO Power Plant site. The ANO ISFSI is an existing 
facility constructed for interim dry storage of spent ANO nuclear fuel.

II. Need for the Proposed Action

    Five uncanned damaged SNF assemblies are currently loaded into four 
HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 design, MPC-32's stored at the ANO ISFSI. 
Unloading of the damaged SNF assemblies would subject personnel to a 
significant unnecessary dose, generate additional contaminated waste, 
increase the risk of a possible fuel handling accident, and increase 
the risk of a heavy load handling accident. Discharge of the damaged 
SNF assemblies from storage in the MPCs would result in inadequate 
storage capacity in the ANO Unit 2 Spent Fuel Pool. If the damaged SNF 
assemblies are discharged into the spent fuel pool, storage of new fuel 
and the restoration of normal full core offload capability prior to and 
after the next refueling outage would be challenged. Recovery of spent 
fuel pool space could be significantly hindered due to double handling 
of ANO Unit 2 fuel in addition to material and scheduling conflicts 
with ANO Unit 1 activities to the extent that ANO Unit 2 core offloads 
could be jeopardized.

III. Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The potential environmental impact of using the HI-STORM 100 system 
was initially presented in the Environmental Assessment for the final 
rule to add the HI-STORM 100 system to the list of approved spent fuel 
storage casks in 10 CFR 72.214 (65 FR 25241; May 1, 2000). Furthermore, 
each general licensee must assess the environmental impacts of the 
specific ISFSI in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR 
72.212(b)(2)(iii). This section requires the general licensee to 
perform written evaluations to demonstrate compliance with the 
environmental requirements of 10 CFR 72.104, ``Criteria for radioactive 
materials in effluents and direct radiation from an ISFSI or MRS 
[Monitored Retrievable Storage Installation].''
    The HI-STORM 100 system is designed to mitigate the effects of 
design basis accidents that could occur during storage. Design basis 
accidents account for human-induced events and the most severe natural 
phenomena reported for the site and surrounding area. Postulated 
accidents analyzed for an ISFSI include tornado winds and tornado 
generated missiles, design basis earthquake, design basis flood, 
accidental cask drop, lightning effects, fire, explosions, and other 
incidents. Considering the specific design requirements for each 
accident condition, the design of the HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1, cask 
system using an MPC-32 basket design, would prevent loss of 
containment, shielding, and criticality control. The loading of damaged 
SNF has no impact on the structural aspects of the containment 
boundary. The HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 design permits storage of 
damaged SNF assemblies in the MPC-24 and MPC 68 which utilize the same 
outer containment boundary as the MPC-32. Dose surveys performed prior 
to placing each cask in service, including those MPC-32s containing the 
damaged SNF assemblies, demonstrated that each cask satisfied the dose 
requirements defined in the HI-STORM 100 Amendment 1 CoC. Any 
relocation of the damaged fuel rods, in the fuel assembly, within the 
MPC has a negligible effect on the keff (criticality 
control) of the system predominantly due to the fact that there are no 
more than two individual damaged fuel rods per MPC. Without the loss of 
either containment, shielding, or criticality control, the risk to 
public health and safety from the continued storage of five damaged SNF 
assemblies in four HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1 design, MPC-32s, is not 
compromised.
    By permitting the continued storage of five uncanned damaged SNF 
assemblies using HI-STORM 100 system, Amendment 1 design, MPC-32s, 
there will be no additional occupational exposure due to unloading 
activities, and offsite dose rates will remain well within the 10 CFR 
Part 20 limits. Therefore, the NRC staff has determined that an 
acceptable safety margin is maintained and that there are no 
significant environmental impacts as a result of continuing to store 
five damaged SNF assemblies in four HI-STORM 100, Amendment 1, MPC-32s 
at the ANO ISFSI.

IV. Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    The staff evaluated the alternative to the proposed action to deny 
approval of the exemption. Denial of the exemption request would result 
in unloading of the

[[Page 43465]]

damaged SNF assemblies subjecting personnel to unnecessary dose, the 
generation of additional contaminated waste, an increase in the risk of 
a possible fuel handling accident, an increase in the risk of a heavy 
load handling accident, and result in inadequate storage capacity in 
the ANO Unit 2 Spent Fuel Pool jeopardizing the ability to fully 
offload the ANO Unit 2 core.

V. Agencies and Persons Consulted

    On July 11, 2005, Bernard Bevill from the Radiation Control Work 
Unit, Arkansas Department of Health, was contacted about the EA for the 
proposed action and had no concerns.

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), 
72.212(b)(7), and 72.214 so that Entergy Operations may continue to 
store uncanned damaged SNF assemblies in a Holtec HI-STORM 100, 
Amendment 1 design, MPC-32, at the ANO, Units 1 and 2 ISFSI, will not 
significantly impact the quality of the human environment.

Further Information

    In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of NRC's ``Rules of Practice,'' 
final NRC records and documents regarding this proposed action, 
including the exemption request dated March 21, 2005, are publically 
available in the records component of NRC's Agencywide Documents Access 
and Management System (ADAMS). These documents may be inspected at 
NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. These documents may also be viewed electronically on the 
public computers located at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), 
O1F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 
20852. The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee. 
Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in 
accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR 
Reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or (301) 415-4737, or by 
e-mail to [email protected].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of July 2005.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Christopher M. Regan,
Senior Project Manager, Spent Fuel Project Office, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. E5-3993 Filed 7-26-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P