[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 48 (Friday, March 13, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10969-10971]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5437]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-438 and 50-439; NRC-2009-0093]


In the Matter of Tennessee Valley Authority (Bellefonte Nuclear 
Plant Units 1 and 2); Order

    The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (predecessor to the U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission)) issued construction 
permit (CP) Nos. CPPR-122 and CPPR-123 to the Tennessee Valley 
Authority (TVA or the applicant) on December 24, 1974, authorizing 
construction of the Bellefonte Nuclear Plant (Bellefonte or BLN) Units 
1 and 2, respectively, at the applicant's site in Jackson County, AL, 
on a peninsula at Tennessee River Mile 392 on the west shore of 
Guntersville Reservoir, about 6 miles east northeast of Scottsboro, AL. 
On March 4, 2003, the NRC issued an Order amending CP Nos. CPPR-122 and 
CPPR-123 by revising the latest dates for completion of construction to 
October 1, 2011, for BLN Unit 1, and October 1, 2014, for BLN Unit 2.
    On September 14, 2006, the NRC granted TVA its request to withdraw 
the CPs. Until the time of withdrawal, these facilities were in a 
deferred plant status as described in the Commission's Policy Statement 
on Deferred Plants, as published in the Federal Register on October 14, 
1987 (52 FR 38077).
    In a letter dated August 26, 2008, as supplemented on September 25, 
2008, and on November 24, 2008, TVA has requested these CPs be 
reinstated.
    The NRC staff has prepared an ``Environmental Assessment and 
Finding of No Significant Impact,'' which was published in the Federal 
Register on March 3, 2009 (74 FR 9308). Under Title 10, Section 51.32, 
``Finding of No Significant Impact,'' of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR 51.32), the Commission has determined that 
reinstating the CPs and placing the facility in a terminated plant 
status will not have a significant impact on the environment.
    For further details on this action, see the TVA application dated 
August 26, 2008, as supplemented on September 25, 2008, and on November 
24, 2008, and the NRC staff's letter and safety evaluation related to 
the requested reinstatement of the CPs dated March 9, 2009. Documents 
may be examined and/or copied for a fee at the NRC's Public Document 
Room located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first 
floor), and they are accessible through the Agencywide Documents Access 
and Management System (ADAMS) Electronic Reading Room link at the NRC 
Web site, http://www.nrc.gov.
    Any person adversely affected by this Order may request a hearing 
on this Order within 60 days of its issuance, and the request for a 
hearing is limited to whether good cause exists for the reinstatement 
of the CPs. The NRC will consider extending the time to answer or to 
request a hearing where good cause is shown. A request for an extension 
of time must be directed to the Director of the Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation (NRR), U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and must 
include a statement of good cause for the extension. Requirements for 
hearing requests are found in 10 CFR 2.309,

[[Page 10970]]

``Hearing requests, Petitions to Intervene, Requirements for Standing, 
and Contentions.''
    All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a 
request for hearing, any motion or other document filed in the 
proceeding prior to the submission of a request for hearing, and 
documents filed by interested governmental entities participating under 
10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with the NRC's Electronic 
Maintenance and Submission of Information (E-Filing) rule, which the 
NRC promulgated on August 28, 2007 (72 FR 49139). The E-Filing process 
requires participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents 
over the Internet or, in some cases, to mail copies on electronic 
storage media. Participants may not submit paper copies of their 
filings unless they seek a waiver in accordance with the procedures 
described below.
    To comply with the procedural requirements associated with E-
Filing, at least 10 days prior to the filing deadline, the requestor 
should contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at 
[email protected] or by calling (301) 415-1677, to request (1) a 
digital identification (ID) certificate that allows the participant (or 
its counsel or representative) to digitally sign documents and access 
the E-Submittal server for any NRC proceeding in which it is 
participating or (2) the creation of an electronic docket for the 
proceeding (even in instances when the requestor (or its counsel or 
representative) already holds an NRC-issued digital ID certificate). 
Each requestor will need to download the Workplace Forms 
ViewerTM to access the Electronic Information Exchange (EIE) 
viewer, which is a component of the E-Filing system. The Workplace 
Forms ViewerTM is free and is available at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/install-viewer.html. Information 
about how to apply for a digital ID certificate is also available on 
NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html.
    Once a requestor has obtained a digital ID certificate, had a 
docket created, and downloaded the EIE viewer, he or she can then 
submit a request for a hearing through EIE. Submissions should be in 
portable document format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance 
available on the NRC public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the time the filer 
submits the document through EIE. To be timely, electronic filings must 
be submitted to the EIE system no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 
the due date. Upon receipt of a transmission, the E-Filing system time-
stamps the document and sends the submitter an e-mail notice confirming 
receipt of the document. The EIE system also distributes an e-mail 
notice that provides access to the document to the NRC Office of the 
General Counsel and any others who have advised the Office of the 
Secretary that they wish to participate in the proceeding, so that the 
filer need not serve the document on those participants separately. 
Therefore, applicants and other participants (or their counsel or 
representative) must apply for and receive a digital ID certificate 
before a hearing request is filed so that they may obtain access to the 
document via the E-Filing system.
    A person filing electronically using the agency's adjudicatory e-
filing system may seek assistance through the ``Contact Us'' link 
located on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk, 
which is available between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday 
through Friday, excluding government holidays. The toll-free help line 
number is (866) 672-7640. A person filing electronically may also seek 
assistance by sending an e-mail to the NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk 
at [email protected]. Participants who believe that they have good 
cause for not submitting documents electronically must file an 
exemption request, in accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their 
initial paper filing requesting authorization to continue to submit 
documents in paper format. Such filings must be submitted (1) by 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, or (2) by courier, 
express mail, or expedited delivery service to the Office of the 
Secretary, Sixteenth Floor, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 
Pike, Rockville, Maryland, 20852, Attention: Rulemaking and 
Adjudications Staff. Participants filing a document in this manner are 
responsible for serving the document on all other participants. Filing 
is considered complete by first-class mail as of the time of the 
deposit in the mail, or by courier, express mail, or expedited delivery 
service upon depositing the document with the provider of the service.
    Non-timely 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 
and/or request should be granted and/or the contentions should be 
admitted based on a balancing of the factors specified in 10 CFR 
2.309(c)(1)(i)-(viii). To be timely, filings must be submitted no later 
than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date.
    Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in 
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at 
http://ehd.nrc.gov/EHD_Proceeding/home.asp, unless they are excluded 
under an order of the Commission, the Atomic Safety and Licensing 
Board, or a presiding officer. Participants are requested not to 
include personal privacy information such as social security numbers, 
home addresses, or home telephone numbers in their filings. With 
respect to copyrighted works, except for limited excerpts that serve 
the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would constitute a ``fair 
use'' application, participants are requested not to include 
copyrighted materials in their submission.
    If a person requests a hearing, that person shall set forth with 
particularity the manner in which his or her interest is adversely 
affected by this Order and shall address the criteria set forth in 10 
CFR 2.309(d).
    The scope of this Order reinstating the CPs and any proceeding 
hereunder is limited to direct challenges to the permit holder's 
asserted reasons that show good cause justification for the 
reinstatement of the CPs.
    Attorney for the Permit Holder: Maureen H. Dunn, Executive Vice 
President and General Counsel, Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West 
Summit Hill Drive, Knoxville, TN 37902.
    Accordingly, pursuant to Section 161b of the Atomic Energy Act of 
1954, as amended, 42 U.S.C. Section 2201(b), and 10 CFR 50.55(b), it is 
hereby ordered that CP Nos. CPPR-122 and CPPR-123 for the construction 
of BLN Units 1 and 2, respectively, are reinstated, and the facility 
returned to a terminated plant status under Section III.B, ``Terminated 
Plant,'' of the Commission's Policy Statement on Deferred Plants dated 
October 14, 1987 (52 FR 38077). It is also ordered, in accordance with 
10 CFR 50.55(b), that the expiration dates defining the latest 
construction completion dates for CP Nos. CPPR-122 and CPPR-123 are 
October 1, 2011, and October 1, 2014, respectively. Should TVA choose 
to pursue placement of the facility in a deferred plant status, it 
shall ensure to the satisfaction of the NRR Director that it has 
complied with the guidance and

[[Page 10971]]

provisions under Section III.A, ``Deferred Plant,'' of the Commission's 
Policy Statement on Deferred Plants. When the results of its evaluation 
and inspection are satisfactory, the NRR Director may then authorize 
placement of the facility in a deferred plant status. Should TVA decide 
to reactivate construction, it shall comply with the provisions for 
notifying the NRR Director and shall provide the information described 
in the Commission's Policy Statement on Deferred Plants.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 9th day of March 2009.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Eric J. Leeds,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
 [FR Doc. E9-5437 Filed 3-12-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P