[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 35 (Wednesday, February 22, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 10401-10403]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-4090]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 35 / Wednesday, February 22, 2012 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 10401]]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Part 61
RIN-3150-AI92
[NRC-2011-0012]
Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management Issues
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Public meeting; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission)
plans to conduct a public meeting to discuss possible revisions to the
regulatory framework for the management of commercial low-level
radioactive waste (LLW). The purpose of this public meeting is to
gather information and receive feedback from stakeholders and other
interested members of the public concerning specific proposed revisions
to the Commission's LLW regulations. Consistent with Commission
direction, the NRC staff plans to hold a series of three public
meetings in 2012 on the proposed revisions to Commission's LLW
regulations. This is the first of those public meetings.
DATES: The first public meeting will be held on March 2, 2012, in
Phoenix, Arizona. Comments on the issues and questions presented in
Section V of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document
should be submitted by July 31, 2012.
ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held on March 2, 2012, from 8
a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Marriott Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel, 50
East Adams Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85004. The NRC will accept written
comments at the public meeting and welcomes active participation from
those attending. You may access information and comment submissions
related to this document, which the NRC possesses and is publicly-
available, by searching on http://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID
NRC-2011-0012. You may submit comments by the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2011-0012. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: (301) 492-
3668; email: [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.
Fax comments to: RADB at 301-492-3446.
For additional direction on accessing information and submitting
comments, see ``Accessing Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael P. Lee, Ph.D., Office of
Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone:
(301) 415-6887; email: [email protected]; or Tarsha Moon, Office of
Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone:
(301) 415-6745; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Accessing Information and Submitting Comments
A. Accessing Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2011-0012 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information regarding this document. You may
access information related to this document, which the NRC possesses
and is publicly-available, by the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web Site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2011-0012.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may access publicly-available documents online in the NRC
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the
search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-
based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-(800) 397-4209, (301)
415-4737, or by email to [email protected]. The ADAMS accession
number for each document referenced in this document is provided the
first time that a document is referenced.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
B. Submitting Comments
Please include Docket ID NRC-2011-0012 in the subject line of your
comment submission, in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make
your comment submission available to the public in this docket.
The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact
information in comment submissions that you do not want to be publicly
disclosed. The NRC posts all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as entering the comment submissions into
ADAMS, and the NRC does not edit comment submissions to remove
identifying or contact information.
If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to
include identifying or contact information in their comment submissions
that they do not want to be publicly disclosed. Your request should
state that the NRC will not edit comment submissions to remove such
information before making the comment submissions available to the
public or entering the comment submissions into ADAMS.
II. Background
The Commission's licensing requirements for the disposal of LLW in
near-surface [approximately the uppermost 30 meters (100 feet)]
facilities reside in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10
CFR) Part 61, ``Licensing Requirements for Land Disposal of Radioactive
Waste.'' These regulations were published in the Federal Register on
December 27, 1982 (47 FR 57446). The rule applies to any near-surface
LLW disposal technology, including shallow-land burial, engineered land
disposal methods such as below-ground vaults, earth-mounded concrete
bunkers, and augured holes. The regulations emphasize an integrated
[[Page 10402]]
systems approach to the disposal of commercial LLW, including site
selection, disposal facility design and operation, minimum waste form
requirements, and disposal facility closure. To lessen the burden on
society over the long periods of time contemplated for the control of
the radioactive material, and thus lessen reliance on institutional
controls, 10 CFR Part 61 emphasizes passive rather than active systems
to limit and retard releases to the environment.
Development of the 10 CFR Part 61 regulation in the early 1980s was
based on several assumptions as to the types of wastes likely to go
into a commercial LLW disposal facility. To better understand what the
likely inventory of wastes available for disposal might be, the NRC
conducted a survey of existing LLW generators. The survey, documented
in Chapter 3 of NUREG-0782, Draft 10 CFR Part 61 Environmental Impact
Statement (DEIS), ``Licensing Requirements for Land Disposal of
Radioactive Waste'' (ADAMS Accession No. ML052590347)--revealed that
there were about 37 distinct commercial waste streams consisting of
about 25 radionuclides of potential regulatory interest. The specific
waste streams in question were representative of the types of
commercial LLW being generated at the time. Waste streams associated
with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) nuclear defense complex
were not considered as part of the survey, since disposal of those
wastes, at that time, was to be conducted at the DOE-operated sites.
Over the last several years there have been a number of developments
that have called into question some of the key assumptions made in
connection with the earlier 10 CFR Part 61 DEIS, including:
The emergence of potential LLW streams that were not
considered in the original 10 CFR Part 61 rulemaking, including large
quantities of depleted uranium (DU), and possibly incidental wastes
associated with the commercial reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel;
The DOE's increasing use of commercial facilities for the
disposal of defense-related LLW streams; and
Extensive international operational experience in the
management of LLW and intermediate-level radioactive wastes that did
not exist at the time 10 CFR Part 61 was promulgated.
The developments previously described will need to be considered if
the staff undertakes a revision of 10 CFR Part 61. Waste from the
Nation's defense programs has been managed by DOE and is not subject to
regulation under 10 CFR Part 61. Instead, DOE has relied on Order 435.1
to specify the disposal requirements for this waste. The current
version of this Order has been in place for about 11 years and applies
to management of radioactive waste within the DOE complex. Like 10 CFR
Part 61, Order 435.1 places a heavy emphasis on performance assessment
as part of its radioactive waste management decision-making. The DOE
recently started a comprehensive revision of Order 435.1, which it
plans to complete sometime in 2012.
III. Recent Commission Direction to the NRC Staff
In a March 18, 2009, staff requirements memorandum (SRM) SRM-SECY-
08-0147,\1\ the Commission directed the NRC staff to proceed with a 10
CFR Part 61 rulemaking to specify a requirement for a site-specific
analysis for the disposal of large quantities of DU including the
technical requirements for such an analysis, and to develop a guidance
document for public comment that outlines the parameters and
assumptions to be used in conducting such site-specific analyses. In a
second SRM, SRM SECY-10-0043,\2\ the staff was also directed to include
blended LLW streams as part of this rulemaking initiative. Following
the solicitation of early public input in 2009 (74 FR 30175; Docket ID
NRC-2009-0257), the NRC staff subsequently developed a technical basis
document for the rulemaking amendment (ADAMS Accession No.
ML111040419), shared it with the NRC Agreement States, and proceeded to
develop a proposed rulemaking package. In connection with the
rulemaking effort, the NRC staff also proposed a two-tier approach for
evaluating compliance with 10 CFR Part 61's overall system performance
objectives: An assessment that extends to 20,000 years as well as an
assessment that extends beyond 20,000 years to the time of peak dose.
In May 2011, the NRC staff sought public feedback (76 FR 24831) on the
preliminary proposed rulemaking language (ADAMS Accession No.
ML111150205), as well as the technical basis for the time of compliance
recommendation (ADAMS Accession No. ML111030586) after these materials
were made publicly available. (See http://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/rulemaking/potential-rulemaking/uw-streams.html.) Later in
2011, the staff also briefed the Advisory Committee on Reactor
Safeguards (ACRS) on the preliminary proposed rulemaking language for
which a Committee Letter Report dated September 22, 2011 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML11256A191) was issued to the Commission.
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\1\ See http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/commission/srm/2008/2008-0147srm.pdf.
\2\ See http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/commission/srm/2010/2010-0043srm.pdf.
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More recently, in a SRM, dated January 19, 2012,\3\ the Commission
provided additional direction to the NRC staff concerning this
particular rulemaking. Specifically, the NRC staff was directed to
amend the existing draft rulemaking to include the following:
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\3\ See http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/commission/comm-secy/2011/2011-0002comgeawdm-srm.pdf.
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Allowing licensees the flexibility to use ICRP dose
methodologies in a site-specific performance assessment for the
disposal of all radioactive waste.
A two tiered approach that establishes a compliance period
that covers the reasonably foreseeable future and a longer period of
performance that is not a priori and is established to evaluate the
performance of the site over longer timeframes. The period of
performance is developed based on the candidate site characteristics
(waste package, waste form, disposal technology, cover technology and
geo-hydrology) and the peak dose to a designated receptor
Flexibility for disposal facilities to establish site-
specific waste acceptance criteria based on the results of the site's
performance assessment and intruder assessment.
A compatibility category for the elements of the revised
rule that establish the requirements for site-specific performance
assessments and the development of the site-specific waste acceptance
criteria that ensures alignment between the States and Federal
government on safety fundamentals, while providing the States with the
flexibility to determine how to implement these safety requirements.
In the January 2012 SRM, the Commission also directed the NRC staff
to engage stakeholders and other members of the interested public to
discuss and finalize the NRC's approach to address the matters raised
by the Commission. The Commission also noted that it would reserve
judgment on the regulatory form these elements should take in any final
rule following NRC staff evaluation of stakeholder input. Accordingly,
the NRC staff plans to hold a series of three public meetings in March,
May, and July 2012 on the proposed revisions to 10 CFR Part 61. After
completion of the public outreach campaign, the staff will prepare an
[[Page 10403]]
amended technical basis document and commence with the rulemaking.
Changes will also need to be made to any 10 CFR Part 61 performance
assessment companion guidance document to address the recent June 2012
direction. The completion date for submittal of a revised rulemaking
package is currently July 19, 2013.
The Commission also directed the staff to gather information on the
options presented in SECY-10-0165, dated December 27, 2010,\4\
concerning the staff's approach to a risk-informing 10 CFR Part 61.
Previously, the NRC staff sponsored an earlier workshop on SECY-10-
0165, on March 4, 2011 (76 FR 10810). The staff intends to seek the
public's views on earlier stakeholder comments received as well as
other proposals for a risk-informed revision of 10 CFR Part 61.
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\4\ See http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/commission/secys/2010/secy2010-0165/2010-0165scy.pdf.
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IV. Emerging Issues Concerning Part 61
The NRC staff has also conducted other activities related to 10 CFR
Part 61. These include revisions to the Commission's LLW Volume
Reduction Policy Statement (76 FR 50500; August 15, 2011); and the
Concentration Averaging Branch Technical Position (76 FR 4739; January
26, 2011). Through the course of those stakeholder interactions, the
staff received comments and suggestions relevant to the more
comprehensive revision of 10 CFR Part 61. For example, stakeholders
have recommended changes that would lengthen the period of
institutional controls and allow a site-specific intruder assessment.
Some stakeholders have questioned basic fundamental tenets of 10 CFR
Part 61 including the need to protect the inadvertent intruder. The
staff intends to seek the public's views on these and other stakeholder
comments.
V. NRC Public Meeting
The purpose of this public meeting is to gather information from
stakeholders and other interested members of the public concerning the
rulemaking proposals identified by the Commission in its January 2012
SRM. This overall approach is consistent with NRC's openness policy and
is consistent with the type of public outreach initiative originally
used by the NRC staff to develop 10 CFR Part 61. The March 2, 2012,
public meeting will be organized into three parts. In the first part,
the NRC staff will seek public feedback on the pros and cons of the
four technical issues specifically identified by the Commission in its
January 2012 SRM. In the second part, the staff will identify other
technical issues identified by stakeholders bearing on the 10 CFR Part
61 rule and seek public feedback on the merits of these (additional)
changes that have been suggested in connection with other on-going LLW
regulatory initiatives. In the third session, the staff will seek
public feedback on the options proposed in SECY-10-0165 and accept
other proposals for a comprehensive revision of 10 CFR Part 61.
The public meeting will be held on March 2, 2012, from 8 a.m. to 4
p.m. at the Marriott Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel, 50 East Adams
Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85004. Pre-registration for this meeting is
not necessary. Members of the public choosing to participate in this
meeting remotely can do so in one of two ways--online, or via a
telephone (audio) connection. Instructions for remote participation in
this meeting follow.
Interested members of the public can also participate in this
meeting via webinar. The webinar meeting registration link can be found
at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/191710105. After registering,
instructions for joining the webinar (including a teleconference number
and pass code) will be provided via email. All participants will be in
``listen-only'' mode during the presentation. Participants will have a
chance to pose questions either orally after the presentation or in
writing during the webinar.
To receive a call back, provide your phone number when you join the
meeting, or call the following number and enter the access code:
Call-in toll-free number (US/Canada): 1-888-942-8392, access code:
8568781.
The agenda for the public meeting will be noticed no fewer than ten
(10) days prior to the meeting on the NRC's Public Meeting Schedule Web
site at http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/public-meetings/index.cfm.
Subsequent public meetings are tentatively planned for Dallas, Texas,
on May 15, 2012 and late July in Rockville, Maryland.
Comments may be sent to the address listed in the ADDRESSES section
of this document.
Questions about participation in the public meetings should be
directed to the points of contact listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of February 2012.
For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Andrew Persinko,
Deputy Director, Environmental Protection and Performance Assessment
Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection,
Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2012-4090 Filed 2-21-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P