[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 203 (Friday, October 19, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64361-64362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-25848]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2010-0362]


Report on Waste Burial Charges: Changes in Decommissioning Waste 
Disposal Costs at Low-Level Waste Burial Facilities

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Draft NUREG-1307, revision 15; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: On September 21, 2012 (77 FR 58591), the U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) issued Draft NUREG-1307, 
Revision 15, ``Report on Waste Burial Charges: Changes in 
Decommissioning Waste Disposal Costs at Low-Level Waste Burial 
Facilities,'' in the Federal Register for a 30 day public comment 
period. The NRC is extending the public comment period for Draft NUREG-
1307, Revision 15 from October 22, 2012, to November 15, 2012. Draft 
NUREG-1307, Revision 15, Draft Report for Comment incorporates updated 
information and expands on the NUREG-1307, Revision 14 report published 
in November 2010. NUREG-1307, Revision 15, also incorporates changes 
resulting from a reassessment of the assumptions used for the vendor 
waste disposal option for low-level waste.

DATES: Submit comments by November 15, 2012. Comments received after 
this date will be considered if it is practical

[[Page 64362]]

to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure consideration only for comments 
received on or before this date. Although a time limit is given, 
comments and suggestions in connection with items for inclusion in 
guides currently being developed or improvements in all published 
guides are encouraged at any time.

ADDRESSES: You may access information and comment submissions related 
to this document, which the NRC possesses and are publicly available, 
by searching on http://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2010-
0362. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2010-0362. 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: Jo Ann Simpson, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-8388; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Accessing Information and Submitting Comments

A. Accessing Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2010-0362 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 are publicly available, by any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2010-0362.
     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 draft regulatory guide 
is available electronically under ADAMS Accession Number ML12257A191.
     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-2010-0362 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 that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions into 
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely 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 that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely 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

    On September 21, 2012 (77 FR 58591), the NRC published a notice of 
issuance and availability of Draft NUREG-1307, Revision 15. The draft 
NUREG proposed a reduction in the estimate of the potential savings 
from using waste vendors to process radioactive waste generated during 
power reactor decommissioning. The change resulted in an increase in 
the minimum permissible amount of decommissioning financial assurance 
required by the licensee. By letter dated September 26, 2012, (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML12271A275), the Nuclear Energy Institute requested an 
extension of the stated comment period for the purpose of providing 
sufficient time for the industry to thoroughly understand and assess 
the proposed changes, interact with the agency staff to obtain 
necessary clarifications at one or more focused public meetings, and 
provide-fully supported written comments to inform development of the 
final NUREG-1307, Revision 15. It is the desire of the NRC to receive 
comments of a high quality from all stakeholders. Several factors have 
been considered in granting an extension. The comment period extension 
is reasonable and does not affect NRC deadlines. The additional time 
will allow adequate time for the NRC to review comments, organize a 
public workshop on NUREG-1307, Revision 15, and finalize NUREG-1307, 
Revision 15, for use by licensees before the required submission of 
power reactor Decommissioning Funding Status reports by the March 31, 
2013, due date. The NRC continues to evaluate factors affecting waste 
burial costs. Guidance developed by the NRC staff would benefit from 
industry information reflecting real world burial cost data and other 
such information that could assist in evaluating changes to the waste 
burial factor. Such information would include: (1) Actual disposal 
costs, under proprietary cover, if necessary; (2) Disposal costs 
specific to disposal operations for Rancho Saco and Zion Solutions, 
under proprietary cover, if necessary, (3) Identification of 
misinterpreted or misapplied data, if any, found in Table A-4 of NUREG-
1307, Revision 15; and (4) Licensees' site-specific cost estimates and 
time assumptions. The NRC also seeks comments from other stakeholders 
on the costs and benefits of reducing the estimate of potential savings 
in decommissioning costs available from using a waste vendor to process 
power reactor decommissioning wastes. Therefore the comment submittal 
period is extended from the original date of October 22, 2012 to 
November 15, 2012.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 10th day of October, 2012.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jo Ann Simpson,
Acting Chief, Financial Analysis and International Projects Branch. 
Division of Inspection and Regional Support, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2012-25848 Filed 10-18-12; 8:45 am]
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