[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 52 (Friday, March 16, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15818-15819]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-6409]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2011-0191]


License Renewal Interim Staff Guidance LR-ISG-2011-05: Ongoing 
Review of Operating Experience

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Interim staff guidance; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing the 
final License Renewal Interim Staff Guidance (LR-ISG), LR-ISG-2011-05, 
``Ongoing Review of Operating Experience.'' This LR-ISG provides 
guidance and clarification concerning ongoing reviews of plant-specific 
and industry-wide operating experience as an attribute of aging 
management programs used at nuclear power plants as described in NUREG-
1801, Revision 2, ``Generic Aging Lessons Learned (GALL) Report,'' 
(Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession 
No. ML103490041), and NUREG-1800, Revision 2, ``Standard Review Plan 
for Review of License Renewal Applications for Nuclear Power Plants'' 
(SRP-LR) (ADAMS Accession No. ML103490036).

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2011-0191 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, using the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2011-0191. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-492-
3668; email: [email protected].
     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 Documentsz,'' 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 final LR-ISG-
2011-05 is available under ADAMS Accession No. ML12044A215.
     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.
     NRC's Interim Staff Guidance Web Site: LR-ISG documents 
are also available online under the ``License Renewal'' heading at 
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/#int.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Matthew Homiack, Division of 
License Renewal, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-
1683; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background Information

    The NRC issues LR-ISG to communicate insights and lessons learned 
and to address emergent issues not covered in license renewal guidance 
documents. In this way, the NRC staff and stakeholders may use the 
guidance in an LR-ISG document until it is incorporated into a formal 
license renewal guidance document revision. The NRC staff issues LR-ISG 
in accordance with the LR-ISG Process, Revision 2 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML100920158), for which a notice of availability was published in the 
Federal Register on June 22, 2010 (75 FR 35510).
    The NRC staff developed LR-ISG-2011-05 to clarify guidance on how 
the ongoing review of operating experience should be used to ensure the 
effectiveness of the license renewal aging management programs used at 
nuclear power plants to meet the requirements of Title 10 of the Code 
of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 54, ``Requirements for Renewal of 
Operating Licenses for Nuclear Power Plants.'' The final LR-ISG-2011-05 
revises the NRC staff's recommended aging management programs in the 
GALL Report and the NRC staff's aging management review procedures and 
acceptance criteria in the SRP-LR.
    On August 24, 2011 (76 FR 52995), the NRC requested public comments 
on draft LR-ISG-2011-05. By letter dated August 29, 2011 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML11242A114), the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) 
requested a 30-day extension to the comment period and a public meeting 
to discuss draft comments and questions concerning implementation of 
the LR-ISG. The NRC staff granted the NEI's requests, as noticed on 
September 20, 2011 (76 FR 58311). The public meeting was held on 
October 12, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML11304A259), and the comment 
period was extended until October 23, 2011.
    During this time, the NRC staff identified the need to include 
additional guidance on areas where license renewal applicants should 
ensure their programmatic activities for operating experience reviews 
are appropriate for considering operating experience related to aging 
management. The NRC staff identified this need through its ongoing 
reviews of license renewal applications and through insights gained on 
how nuclear power plant licensees carry out their operating experience 
review activities. The additional guidance covers areas where 
enhancements may need to be made for license renewal, such as the 
specific kind of information that should be considered as operating 
experience, the training of plant personnel, information to consider in 
operating experience evaluations, criteria for identifying and

[[Page 15819]]

categorizing operating experience as related to aging, and guidelines 
for reporting operating experience on age-related degradation to the 
industry. The NRC staff outlined these changes at the October 12, 2011, 
public meeting and a revised draft LR-ISG was issued for public comment 
on November 25, 2011 (76 FR 72725).
    The NRC received comments from Exelon Generation Company, LLC, by 
letter dated October 18, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML11298A171), and 
from the NEI by letters dated October 18, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML11293A041), and December 15, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML11354A228). 
No other comments were submitted. The NRC considered these comments in 
developing the final LR-ISG. Detailed responses to the comments can be 
found in Appendix C of the final LR-ISG.
    The final LR-ISG-2011-05 is approved for NRC staff and stakeholder 
use and will be incorporated into NRC's next formal license renewal 
guidance document revision.

Backfitting and Issue Finality

    Issuance of this final LR-ISG does not constitute backfitting as 
defined in 10 CFR 50.109 (the Backfit Rule) and is not otherwise 
inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in Part 52, ``Licenses, 
Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,'' of 10 CFR. As 
discussed in the ``Backfitting Discussion'' section of final LR-ISG-
2011-05, the LR-ISG is directed to holders of operating licenses or 
combined licenses who are currently in the license renewal process. The 
LR-ISG is not directed to holders of operating licenses or combined 
licenses until they apply for license renewal. The LR-ISG is also not 
directed to licensees who already hold renewed operating or combined 
licenses.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 9th day of March 2012.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Melanie A. Galloway,
Acting Director, Division of License Renewal, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2012-6409 Filed 3-15-12; 8:45 am]
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