[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 83 (Friday, April 30, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22868-22869]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-10113]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2010-0167]


Withdrawal of Regulatory Guide

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Withdrawal of Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.165, ``Identification and 
Characterization of Seismic Sources and Determination of Safe Shutdown 
Earthquake Ground Motion.''

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca L. Karas, Geosciences & 
Geotechnical Engineering Branch 1, Division of Site & Environmental 
Reviews, Office of New Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone 301-415-7533 or e-mail 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is withdrawing RG 
1.165, ``Identification and Characterization of Seismic Sources and 
Determination of Safe Shutdown Earthquake Ground Motion,'' dated March 
1997. RG 1.165 provides general procedures to satisfy the requirements 
of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, part 100.23, ``Geologic 
and Seismic Siting Criteria'' (10 CFR 100.23) for siting and licensing 
new reactors or new reactor plant sites. It has been replaced with RG 
1.208, ``A Performance-Based Approach to Define the Site-Specific 
Earthquake Ground Motion.''
    The withdrawal of Regulatory Guide 1.165 does not alter the 
licensing basis of any currently operating reactor or any of the 
currently issued early site permits under 10 CFR part 52, subpart A. 
The siting decision is final for all licenses and early site permits 
that were reviewed and approved prior to this withdrawal of this guide. 
Additionally, the withdrawal of Regulatory Guide 1.165 does not affect 
the approval of any currently approved design certification under 10 
CFR part 52, Appendix B. The design basis for each design 
certification, including seismic and earthquake design, were 
established and approved as part of the issuance of each design 
certification and, in accordance with 10 CFR 52.63, may not be changed 
except through rulemaking amending a design certification rule.
    The withdrawal of Regulatory Guide 1.165 may affect applications, 
design certifications or design certification amendments currently 
under active consideration by the NRC or any future applications for 
new, amended, or renewed design certifications. If the applications 
were prepared (or are being prepared) to comply with RG 1.165, the NRC 
may request the applicant to demonstrate how the proposed design 
compares with a design meeting the guidance in Regulatory Guide 1.208. 
Finally, withdrawal of Regulatory Guide 1.165 may affect the NRC's 
consideration of any current combined license application under 10 CFR 
part 52, subpart C if the application was prepared to meet the 
withdrawn regulatory guide. The NRC may request that the applicant 
demonstrate how the proposed design meeting the guidance in Regulatory 
Guide 1.165 compares with a design meeting the guidance in new 
Regulatory Guide 1.208.
    Regulatory Guide 1.165 is being withdrawn and replaced with the 
improved guidance in RG 1.208 which incorporates new developments in 
ground motion estimation models; updated models for earthquake sources; 
methods for determining site response; and new methods for defining a 
site-specific, performance-based ground motion response spectrum 
(GMRS).

[[Page 22869]]

    The outmoded guidance in RG 1.165 was based on site and region-
specific investigations combined with a probabilistic seismic hazard 
assessment. The new guidance in RG 1.208 incorporates developments in 
ground motion estimation models and new methods for defining site 
specific ground motion response spectrum which allows for approximately 
consistent performance of structures, systems, and components across a 
range of seismic environments.

II. Further Information

    The withdrawal of Regulatory Guide 1.165 does not alter any prior 
or existing licensing commitments based on its use. The guidance 
provided in this regulatory guide is no longer necessary. Regulatory 
guides may be withdrawn when their guidance is superseded by 
congressional action or no longer provides useful information.
    Regulatory guides are available for inspection or downloading 
through the NRC's public Web site under ``Regulatory Guides'' in the 
NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections. Regulatory guides are also available for inspection at the 
NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), Room O-1 F21, One White Flint North, 
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-2738. The PDR's mailing 
address is US NRC PDR, Washington, DC 20555-0001. You can reach the 
staff by telephone at 301-415-4737 or 800- 397-4209, by fax at 301-415-
3548, and by e-mail to [email protected].
    Regulatory guides are not copyrighted, and NRC approval is not 
required to reproduce them.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of April, 2010.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert G. Carpenter,
Acting Chief, Regulatory Guide Development Branch, Division of 
Engineering, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 2010-10113 Filed 4-29-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P