[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 208 (Friday, October 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65419-65420]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-26365]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-338 and 50-339; NRC-2012-0258; License Nos.: NPF-4 and
NPF-7]
Virginia Electric and Power Company
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Partial Director's Decision; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission)
is giving notice that the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation has issued a partial Director's Decision with regard to a
petition dated October 20, 2011, filed by Paul Gunter et al., herein
referred to as ``the petitioners.''
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2012-0258 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, using any of the following
methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2012-0258. 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 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 notice (if that document is
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is
referenced.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at
[[Page 65420]]
the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jon Thompson, Project Manager, Office
of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone: 301-415-1119; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that the Director of
the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation has issued a partial
Director's Decision with regard to a petition dated October 20, 2011
(ADAMS Accession No. ML11293A116), filed by the petitioners. The
petition was supplemented on November 2, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML11308A027) and December 15, 2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12060A197).
The petition concerns the operation of the North Anna Power Station,
Units 1 and 2 (North Anna 1 and 2), by the Virginia Electric and Power
Company (VEPCO or the licensee). The petition requested that the NRC
suspend the operating licenses for North Anna 1 and 2, until the
completion of a set of activities described in the petition. The
petitioner also requested that a public meeting be held to discuss this
matter in the Washington, DC area.
As the basis for the October 20, 2011, request, the petitioner
raised several concerns, of which 12 were accepted for review by the
NRC staff by letter dated March 16, 2012 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML12060A090). These summarized as follows:
(1) Prior to the approval of restart for North Anna 1 and 2, after
the earthquake of August 23, 2011, Virginia Electric and Power Company
(the licensee) should be required to obtain a license amendment from
the NRC that reanalyzes and reevaluates the plant's design basis for
earthquakes and for associated necessary retrofits.
(2) Prior to the approval of restart for North Anna 1 and 2, after
the earthquake of August 23, 2011, the licensee should be required to
ensure that North Anna 1 and 2, are subjected to thorough inspections
of the same level and rigor.
(3) The licensee should be required to reanalyze and reevaluate the
North Anna Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI) due to
damage caused by the earthquake of August 23, 2011, and ensure that no
threat is posed to public health and safety by its operation.
(4) The licensee should ensure the reliability and accuracy of the
seismic instrumentation at North Anna 1 and 2.
(5) The NRC staff made hasty decisions about the restart of North
Anna 1 and 2, and gave priority to economic considerations. The long-
term action plan was not even complete before the NRC staff gave
authorization to restart.
(6) Regulatory commitments are an inadequate regulatory tool for
ensuring that the critical long-term tasks identified in the NRC
staff's confirmatory action letter dated November 11, 2011, are
completed.
(7) The licensee needs to address the possibility of both boildown
and rapid draindown events at the North Anna 1 and 2, spent fuel pool.
(8) The long-term storage of spent fuel in the spent fuel pool at
North Anna 1 and 2, and at the North Anna ISFSI poses challenges to the
public health and safety.
(9) ``Hardened on-site storage'' strategies for spent fuel should
be used at North Anna 1 and 2.
(10) Concerns exist about the response of North Anna 1 and 2, to a
prolonged station blackout.
(11) The current emergency evacuation plans for North Anna 1 and 2,
need to be revised to reflect the possible need to evacuate a larger
area than that identified in the current emergency planning zone.
(12) Concerns exist about damage to the structural integrity of the
spent fuel pool structure at North Anna 1 and 2, as represented on
pages 41 and 42 of the NRC staff's technical evaluation for the restart
of North Anna 1 and 2, dated November 11, 2011.
On December 12, 2012 and February 2, 2012, the petitioners and the
licensee met with the NRC staff's petition review board (meeting
transcripts under ADAMS Accession Nos. ML12033A025 and ML12047A240),
regarding the petition. These meetings gave the petitioner and the
licensee an opportunity to provide additional information and to
clarify issues raised in the petition.
The NRC staff sent a copy of the proposed partial Director's
Decision to the petitioners and to the licensee for comment on July 10,
2012 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML12165A208 and ML12165A209, respectively).
The petitioners responded with comments on July 31, 2012 (ADAMS
Accession Nos. ML12261A228 and ML12258A012), and the licensee responded
on July 30, 2012 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12219A120), that it did not
have comments. The comments by the petitioners and the NRC staff's
response are included in an attachment to the partial Director's
Decision.
The Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation has
determined that the request to suspend the operating licenses for North
Anna 1 and 2, until the completion of a set of activities described in
the petition, be partially granted, partially denied, and partially
deferred. The reasons for this decision are explained in the partial
Director's Decision pursuant to Title 10 of Code of Federal Regulations
(10 CFR 2.206), DD-12-02, the complete text of which is available in
ADAMS under Accession No. ML12262A158.
A copy of the partial Director's Decision will be filed with the
Secretary of the Commission for the Commission's review in accordance
with 10 CFR 2.206 of the Commission's regulations. As provided for by
this regulation, the Director's Decision will constitute the final
action of the Commission 25 days after the date of the decision, unless
the Commission, on its own motion, institutes a review of the
Director's Decision in that time.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day of October 2012.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Eric J. Leeds,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2012-26365 Filed 10-25-12; 8:45 am]
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