[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 158 (Thursday, August 16, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46102-46103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-16131]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION


Consolidated Decommissioning Guidance; Notice of Revision to, 
Withdrawal of Portions of, and Process for Updating

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of revision to, withdrawal of portions of, and process 
for updating NUREG-1757.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff is 
revising, withdrawing portions of, and describing the process for 
updating guidance in ``Consolidated Decommissioning Guidance: 
Characterization, Survey, and Determination of Radiological Criteria'' 
(NUREG-1757, Vol. 2, Rev. 1), Appendix N, ``ALARA Analyses.'' This 
notice also describes the staff's process for developing interim 
guidance and future revisions to the three volumes of its 
``Consolidated Decommissioning Guidance'' (NUREG-1757).

ADDRESSES: NUREG-1757 is available for inspection and copying for a fee 
at the Commission's Public Document Room, NRC's Headquarters Building, 
11555 Rockville Pike (First Floor), Rockville, Maryland. The Public 
Document Room is open from 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except on Federal holidays. NUREG-1757 is also available 
electronically on the NRC Web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1757/, and from the ADAMS Electronic 
Reading Room on the NRC Web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
    The NRC's decommissioning Web page is at: http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/decommissioning.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Duane W. Schmidt, Division of Waste 
Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and State 
Materials and Environmental Management Programs, Mail Stop T-8F5, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001. Telephone: 
(301) 415-6919; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In September 2006, the NRC staff published 
Revision 1 of Volume 2 of NUREG-1757, entitled, ``Consolidated 
Decommissioning Guidance: Characterization, Survey, and Determination 
of Radiological Criteria,'' which provides technical guidance on 
compliance with the radiological criteria for license termination in 
the NRC's License Termination Rule (LTR) (Code of Federal Regulations, 
Title 10, Part 20, Subpart E). Volume 2 is applicable to all licensees 
subject to the LTR. Volume 2 is one of three volumes of the NUREG-1757 
series, which, combined, provide consolidated guidance on 
decommissioning.
    The NRC staff considers the development of its guidance as an 
iterative process. Formal revisions to of NUREG-1757 (i.e., publishing 
new revised volumes of NUREG-1757) are anticipated in the future. When 
these revised volumes are developed, the NRC staff intends to publish 
them as drafts for public comment. Between formal revisions of the 
NUREG-1757 volumes, errors needing correction or other revisions may be 
identified and the NRC staff may develop interim guidance and post it 
on the NRC's decommissioning web page, to make it available for use by 
licensees and other stakeholders.
    During the review of a recently submitted decommissioning plan, 
proposing decommissioning in accordance with the restricted use 
provision of the LTR, the NRC staff determined that there are certain 
errors in Vol. 2 of NUREG-1757, Appendix N. The specific errors concern 
compliance with the ``as low as is reasonably achievable'' (ALARA) 
provisions of the LTR.
    The guidance being corrected or withdrawn is described below.
    Error 1. On page N-1 of Appendix N, the first paragraph provides a 
general introductory discussion of ALARA. In this paragraph, the word 
``feasible'' is used twice when referring to ALARA. The correct word is 
``reasonable.''

[[Page 46103]]

    Error 2. On page N-4 of Appendix N, The last paragraph discusses 
the monetary value for collective dose averted and discount rates that 
may be used in ALARA calculations. In particular, the paragraph 
includes the following two sentences: ``For doses averted within the 
first 100 years, a discount rate of 7% should be used. For doses 
averted beyond 100 years, a 3% discount rate should be used. `` The 
discussion of discount rate in these two sentences is incorrect. 
Therefore, these two quoted sentences are withdrawn from the guidance 
of NUREG-1757, Vol. 2 and should not be used.
    Error 3. On page N-10 of Appendix N, Table N.2 summarizes 
acceptable parameter values for use in decommissioning ALARA analyses. 
This table includes a row describing the monetary discount rate, r. 
Consistent with Error 2, above, the description for the second column 
(the ``value'' description) of the row on monetary discount rate, r, is 
withdrawn from the guidance of NUREG-1757, Vol. 2.
    Error 4. On page N-12 of Appendix N, Example 3 is an ALARA 
calculation for removing surface soil contaminated with a long-lived 
radionuclide. Use of the single discount rate in the example may be 
misleading, because the guidance in NUREG/BR-0058 recommends multiple 
analyses be performed. Therefore, Example 3 is withdrawn from Appendix 
N of NUREG-1757, Vol. 2, and should not be used.
    Error 5. On page N-18 of Appendix N, the last paragraph again 
discusses acceptable values for the discount rate, r. In particular, 
this paragraph includes the sentence: ``Values for r are given in 
NUREG/BR-0058, Revision 2, and OMB policy (OMB 1996).'' The referenced 
guidance is out-of-date, and this quoted sentence is withdrawn from the 
guidance of NUREG-1757, Vol. 2.
    The staff intends to develop interim guidance to address the 
withdrawn portions of guidance discussed above and will post the 
interim guidance on the NRC's decommissioning Web page, to make it 
available for use by licensees and other stakeholders.
    The guidance in NUREG-1757 and any corrections to NUREG-1757 are 
intended for use by NRC staff and licensees. The NUREG and any 
corrections are not substitutes for NRC regulations, and compliance 
with them is not required. The NUREG and corrections describe 
approaches that are generally acceptable to NRC staff. However, methods 
and solutions different than those in the NUREG and corrections will be 
acceptable, if they provide a basis for concluding that the 
decommissioning actions are in compliance with NRC regulations.

    Dated at Rockville, MD, this 10th day of August, 2007.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Keith I. McConnell,
Deputy Director, Decommissioning & Uranium Recovery, Licensing 
Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, 
Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management 
Programs.
 [FR Doc. E7-16131 Filed 8-15-07; 8:45 am]
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