[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 157 (Monday, August 15, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50500-50502]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-20666]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2011-0183]


Request for Comments on the Draft Policy Statement on Volume 
Reduction and Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is revising its 
1981 Policy Statement on Low-Level Waste (LLW) Volume Reduction. This 
statement encouraged licensees to take steps to reduce the amount of 
waste generated and to reduce its volume once generated. The purpose of 
the revised statement is to recognize that progress in reducing waste 
volume has been achieved since the 1981 Policy Statement was published 
and to acknowledge that factors other than volume reduction may be used 
by licensees to determine how best to manage their LLW. This draft 
Policy Statement is being issued for public comment.

DATES: Comments on the draft Policy Statement should be submitted by 
September 14, 2011. Comments received after this date will be 
considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is only able to 
ensure consideration of comments received on or before this date.

ADDRESSES: Please include Docket ID NRC-2011-0183 in the subject line 
of your comments. For instructions on submitting comments and accessing 
documents related to this action, see Section I, ``Submitting Comments 
and Accessing Information'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 
this document. You may submit comments by any one of the following 
methods.
     Federal Rulemaking Web Site: Go to  http://www.regulations.gov and search for documents filed under Docket ID NRC-
2011-0183. Address questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher, 
telephone: 301-492-3668; e-mail: [email protected].
     Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Chief, Rules, 
Announcements, and Directives Branch (RADB), Office of Administration, 
Mail Stop: TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, 
DC 20555-0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Donald Lowman, Office of Federal and 
State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-
5452; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Submitting Comments and Accessing Information

    Comments submitted in writing or in electronic form will be posted 
on the Federal rulemaking Web site http://www.regulations.gov. Because 
your comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact 
information, the NRC cautions you against including any information in 
your submission that you do not want to be publicly disclosed. The NRC 
requests that any party soliciting or aggregating comments received 
from other persons for submission to the NRC inform those persons that 
the NRC will not edit their comments to remove any identifying or 
contact information, and therefore, they should not include any 
information in their comments that they do not want publicly disclosed.
    You can access publicly available documents related to this 
document using the following methods:
     NRC's Public Document Room (PDR): The public may examine 
and have copied, for a fee, publicly available documents at the NRC's 
PDR, O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): Publicly available documents created or received at the NRC 
are available online in the NRC Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this page, the public can gain entry into ADAMS, 
which provides text and image files of the NRC's public documents. If 
you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing 
the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC's PDR reference staff 
at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to [email protected].
     Federal Rulemaking Web Site: Public comments and 
supporting materials related to this notice can be found at http://www.regulations.gov by searching on Docket ID NRC-2011-0183.

II. Background

    In 1981, the NRC published a Policy Statement regarding the volume

[[Page 50501]]

reduction of LLW. The Policy Statement addressed:
     The need for a volume reduction policy;
     Suggested volume reduction techniques;
     That NRC would take expeditious action on requests for 
licensing of volume reduction systems; and
     The need for waste generators to minimize the quantity of 
waste produced.
    The NRC issued the Policy Statement in response to a General 
Accounting Office (now U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)) 
report that recommended that NRC take this step to help preserve 
disposal facility space (GAO, 1980). The Policy Statement was issued 
when disposal space was scarce since two of the three operating low 
level radioactive waste (LLRW) disposal sites had been threatening to 
close, and one had recently reduced the annual amount authorized for 
disposal by half. Further, volume reduction techniques were not yet in 
widespread use and NRC`s Policy Statement was meant to encourage the 
use of these techniques.
    On April 7, 2010, staff published SECY-10-0043, ``Blending of Low-
Level Radioactive Waste'' and addressed the Policy Statement in 
response to stakeholder comments that large-scale blending may not be 
consistent with the Policy Statement because it would enable licensees 
to avoid the use of an available volume reduction technology. In the 
blending paper, staff stated in Option 2:

    The staff believes that the Policy Statement could be updated to 
recognize the progress that has been achieved, and to acknowledge 
that other factors may be used by licensees in determining how best 
to manage their LLRW. Specifically, the Policy Statement could be 
revised to acknowledge that volume reduction continues to be 
important, but that risk-informed, performance-based approaches to 
managing waste are also appropriate in managing LLRW safely and that 
volume reduction should be evaluated in this light.

    In the Staff Requirements Memorandum for SECY-10-0043, the 
Commission approved Option 2, which included the staff's proposed 
changes noted above. Consequently, a revised Policy Statement on Volume 
Reduction and Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management is being published 
for public comment.

III. Draft Policy Statement of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 
on Volume Reduction and Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management

Summary

    In 1981, the Commission published a Policy Statement (46 FR 51100; 
October 16, 1981) regarding the volume reduction of LLW. On April 7, 
2010, the NRC staff published SECY-10-0043 ``Blending of Low-Level 
Radioactive Waste'' in which it recommended updating the Policy 
Statement to acknowledge that volume reduction continues to be 
important, but that risk-informed, performance-based approaches to 
managing waste are also needed to safely manage LLRW. The Commission 
approved the staff's recommendation thus the Policy Statement is being 
revised.

Policy Statement

    The Commission recognizes the substantial progress made by 
licensees in reducing volumes of LLRW for disposal since the 
publication of the 1981 Volume Reduction Policy Statement. Nuclear 
industry groups have also played a central part in this effort by 
encouraging volume reduction practices among their members. Widespread 
use of these volume reduction practices has resulted in a significant 
reduction in the amount of LLW produced by licensees. The Commission 
recognizes that the high cost of disposal has been a factor, along with 
lack of disposal access, in the increased use of volume reduction 
techniques.
    The Commission continues to believe that volume reduction is an 
important component in the management of LLW; a continued focus on 
volume reduction will extend the operational lifetime of the existing 
commercial low-level disposal sites and reduce the number of waste 
shipments.
    Administrative controls and operational enhancements are the 
foundation of a successful radioactive waste management program. 
Therefore, the Commission encourages licensees to continue to adopt 
procedures that will reduce the volume of waste being transferred to 
disposal facilities. Additionally, as currently required by Title 10 of 
the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 20.1406, applicants for 
licenses shall describe in the application how facility design and 
procedures for operation will minimize, to the extent practicable, the 
generation of radioactive waste.
    The Commission also recognizes that volume reduction is only one 
aspect of an effective radioactive waste management program. While the 
Commission continues to favor the disposal of LLRW over storage, it 
recognizes that licensees may manage waste in a variety of ways, 
consistent with NRC regulations and guidance. In addition to ensuring 
public health and safety, licensees should consider operational 
efficiency, reductions in occupational exposures, security, and cost in 
determining how best to manage LLRW. As part of their radioactive waste 
management strategies, licensees should consider all means available to 
manage waste in a manner that is secure and protects public health and 
safety, such as:
     Waste minimization.
     Short-term storage and decay.
     Long-term storage.
     Use of the alternate disposal provision contained in 10 
CFR 20.2002.
     Use of waste processing technologies.
     Use of licensed disposal facilities.
    The Commission understands that limited disposal access means that 
many licensees will be forced to store at least some of their LLW. 
Agreement State and NRC licensees must continue to ensure waste is 
safely and securely managed. However, disposal is considered the safest 
and most secure long-term management approach.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

    This Policy Statement does not contain new or amended information 
collection requirements that are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). These information collections were 
approved by the Office of Management and Budget, approval numbers 3150-
0014 and 3150-0151.

Public Protection Notification

    The NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to a request for information or an information collection 
requirement unless the requesting document displays a currently valid 
OMB control number.

IV. Public Comments

    Based on the comments received in both written and electronic form, 
the Commission will then be in a better position to proceed with the 
issuance of a final Policy Statement. The final Policy Statement, when 
issued by the Commission, will be published in the Federal Register.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 5th day of August, 2011.


[[Page 50502]]


    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Cynthia A. Carpenter,
Acting Director, Office of Federal and State Materials and 
Environmental Management Programs.
[FR Doc. 2011-20666 Filed 8-12-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P