[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 159 (Thursday, August 17, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47549-47550]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-13559]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Proposed License Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2006-03:
Staff Guidance for Preparing Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives
(SAMA) Analyses; Solicitation of Public Comment
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
ACTION: Solicitation of public comment.
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SUMMARY: NRC is soliciting public comment on its Proposed License
Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2006-03 (LR-ISG) for preparing
Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA) analyses. This LR-ISG
recommends that applicants for license renewal use the Guidance
Document NEI 05-01, Rev. A (ADAMS Accession No. ML060530203) when
preparing their SAMA analyses. The NRC staff issues LR-ISGs to
facilitate timely implementation of the license renewal rule and to
review activities associated with a license renewal application. Upon
reviewing public comments, the NRC staff will evaluate the comments and
make a determination to incorporate the comments, as appropriate. Once
the NRC completes the LR-ISG, it will issue the LR-ISG for NRC and
industry use. The NRC staff will also incorporate the approved LR-ISG
into the next revision of Supplement 1 to Regulatory Guide 4.2,
``Preparation of Supplemental Environmental Reports for Applications to
Renew Nuclear Power Plant Operating Licenses.''
DATES: Comments may be submitted by September 18, 2006. Comments
received after this date will be considered, if it is practical to do
so, but the Commission is to ensure consideration only for comments
received on or before this date.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted to: Chief, Rules and Directives
Branch, Office of Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001.
Comments should be delivered to: 11545 Rockville Pike (first
floor), Rockville, Maryland, Room T-6D59,
[[Page 47550]]
between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays. Persons may also
provide comments via e-mail at [email protected]. The NRC maintains an
Agencywide Documents 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. Persons who do
not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS should contact the NRC Public Document Room
(PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at
[email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard L. Emch, Jr., Senior
Project Manager, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC, 20555-0001; telephone 301-415-
1590 or by e-mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Attachment 1 to this Federal Register
notice, entitled Staff Position and Rationale for the Proposed License
Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2006-03: Staff Guidance for
Preparing Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA) Analyses
contains the NRC staff's rationale for publishing the proposed LR-ISG-
2006-03. Attachment 2 to this Federal Register notice, entitled
Proposed License Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2006-03: Staff
Guidance for Preparing Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA)
Analyses, contains the guidance for preparing SAMA analyses related to
license renewal applications.
The NRC staff is issuing this notice to solicit public comments on
the proposed LR-ISG-2006-03. After the NRC staff considers any public
comments, it will make a determination regarding the proposed LR-ISG.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 10th day of August 2006.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Pao-Tsin Kuo,
Deputy Director Division of License Renewal, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
Attachment 1--Staff Position and Rationale for the Proposed License
Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2006-03: Staff Guidance for
Preparing Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA) Analyses
Staff Position:
The NRC staff recommends that applicants for license renewal
follow the guidance provided in Nuclear Energy Institute NEI 05-01,
``Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA) Analysis--Guidance
Document,'' Rev. A when preparing their SAMA analyses.
Rationale:
The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) developed a generic Guidance
Document NEI 05-01, Rev. A, to help clarify the NRC staff's
expectations regarding the information that needs to be included in
SAMA analyses. The NRC staff reviewed and concluded that NEI 05-01,
Rev. A describes existing NRC regulations, and facilitates complete
preparation of SAMA analysis submittals. The staff finds that
utilization of the guidance provided in NEI 05-01, Rev. A will
result in improved quality in SAMA analyses and a reduction in the
number of requests for additional information.
Attachment 2--Proposed License Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-
2006-03: Staff Guidance for Preparing Severe Accident Mitigation
Alternatives (SAMA) Analyses
Introduction
A Severe Accident Mitigation Alternatives (SAMA) analyses is
required as part of a license renewal application, if a SAMA
analysis has not already been performed for the plant and reviewed
by the NRC staff. SAMA analyses have been performed and submitted to
the NRC as part of all the applications for license renewal received
by the staff thus far. Therefore, this LR-ISG is being proposed
consistent with our goal to more efficiently resolve license renewal
issues identified by the staff or the industry.
Background and Discussion
After receiving extensive requests for additional information
regarding the SAMA analyses, several applicants for license renewal
concluded that they did not fully understand the kind of information
that the NRC staff was expecting to see in SAMA analyses.
The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) developed a generic guidance
document to help clarify the NRC staff's expectations regarding the
information that needs to be submitted in SAMA analyses. On April 8,
2005, NEI submitted NEI 05-01, ``Severe Accident Mitigation
Alternatives (SAMA) Analysis--Guidance Document.'' The NRC staff
reviewed this guidance document, and by letter, dated July 12, 2005,
provided comments on NEI 05-01. The NRC staff's comments were
discussed during a public meeting between NEI and NRC on July 21,
2005.
On February 17, 2006, NEI submitted its NEI 05-01, Rev. A, dated
November 2005. The NRC staff reviewed and concluded that this
version fully resolved the NRC staff's comments. In addition, the
NRC staff concluded that NEI 05-01, Rev. A, describes existing NRC
regulations, and facilitates complete preparation of SAMA analysis
submittals.
Some applicants for license renewal have submitted SAMA analyses
using the guidance provided in NEI 05-01, Rev A. The NRC staff found
improved quality in the submitted SAMA analyses and a reduction in
the number of requests for additional information for those
applications that followed the guidance provided in NEI 05-01, Rev.
A.
Proposed Action
The staff is proposing that applicants for license renewal
follow the guidance provided in NEI 05-01, Rev. A when preparing
their SAMA analyses. The staff finds that NEI 05-01, Rev. A,
describes existing NRC regulations, and facilitates complete
preparation of SAMA analysis submittals.
Although this proposed LR-ISG does not convey a change in the
NRC's regulations or how they are being interpreted, it is being
provided to facilitate complete preparation of future SAMA analysis
submittals in support of applications for license renewal. The NRC
staff plans to incorporate the guidance provided in NEI 05-01, Rev.
A, into a future update of Supplement 1 to Regulatory Guide 4.2,
``Preparation of Supplemental Environmental Reports for Applications
to Renew Nuclear Power Plant Operating Licenses.'' Because this LR-
ISG provides a clarification of existing guidance with no additional
requirements, the staff did not perform a backfit evaluation. For
those that are interested in reviewing NEI 05-01, Rev. A, the
Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession
Number is ML060530203.
[FR Doc. E6-13559 Filed 8-16-06; 8:45 am]
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