[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 244 (Wednesday, December 19, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 75065-75066]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30528]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
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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. 244 / Wednesday, December 19, 2012 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 75065]]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Part 51
[Docket No. PRM-51-29; NRC-2012-0215]
Rescinding Spent Fuel Pool Exclusion Regulations
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Petition for rulemaking; notice of receipt.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received a
petition for rulemaking from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
(Commonwealth or petitioner) requesting that the NRC rescind its
regulations excluding consideration of spent fuel pool storage impacts
from license renewal environmental review. The petition was filed on
June 2, 2011, with the NRC's Atomic Safety Licensing Board (ASLB) in
conjunction with a request for a waiver of the NRC's spent fuel pool
exclusion regulations. The petitioner requested that, if the ASLB
rejected the Commonwealth's waiver petition, the NRC initiate a
rulemaking. On November 28, 2011, the ASLB denied the Commonwealth's
waiver petition, and on March 8, 2012, in a Commission Memorandum and
Order, the petition for rulemaking was referred to NRC staff. The NRC
is not requesting public comment period on this petition at this time.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2012-0215 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information for this petition. You may
access information related to this petition, 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-2012-0215. 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 ``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 the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cindy Bladey, Chief, Rules,
Announcements, and Directives Branch, Division of Administrative
Services, Office of Administration, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-492-3667, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. The Petitioner
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Office of the Attorney General,
Environmental Protection Division has filed this petition (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12254A005) with the NRC.
II. The Petition
The petitioner requests that the NRC institute a rulemaking to
rescind the regulations excluding consideration of spent fuel storage
impacts from license renewal environmental review. Specifically, the
petitioner requests that the spent fuel pool exclusion regulations in
Sec. 51.71(d) of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
and appendix B to subpart A of 10 CFR part 51, be rescinded because
these regulations ``generically classify the environmental impacts of
high-density pool storage of spent fuel as insignificant and thereby
permit their exclusion from consideration in environmental impact
statements (EISs) for renewal of nuclear power plant operating
licenses.''
The petitioner argues that ``the appropriate vehicle for revising
the conclusions that underlie the spent fuel pool exclusion regulations
is a waiver [of 10 CFR 51.71(d) and 10 CFR part 51 subpart A, appendix
B], because * * * many of the implications of the Fukushima accident
for the Pilgrim NPP license renewal proceeding are site specific.'' The
petition continues: ``[i]n the alternative, in the event that the ASLB
denies the Commonwealth's Waiver Petition, pursuant to 10 CFR 2.802(a),
the Commonwealth asks the NRC to rescind the spent fuel pool exclusion
regulations across the board, in a rulemaking.'' The petition
specifically states that, if the ASLB determines that a waiver is not
justified, ``the Secretary should rescind the spent fuel exclusion
regulations on a generic basis.'' The petitioner states that rescinding
the spent fuel pool exclusion regulations is necessary to challenge
``the adequacy of the environmental impact analysis and severe accident
mitigation alternatives (SAMA) analysis performed by Entergy Corp. and
the NRC in support of their proposal to re-license the Pilgrim nuclear
power plant (NPP), in light of significant new information revealed by
the Fukushima accident.'' The petitioner states that ``significant new
information yielded by the Fukushima accident shows fundamental errors
or oversights in the key environmental analyses relied on by the NRC
for its generic designation of spent fuel storage impacts as
insignificant. * * *'' The petitioner further states that ``[t]he
purpose of the spent fuel pool exclusion regulations--to make a generic
finding of no significant impact for all NPPs--would not be served
where the Fukushima accident has demonstrated that environmental
impacts of spent fuel storage are so significant and where the insights
from the Fukushima accident have such a plant-specific application.''
In an ASLB Memorandum and Order dated November 28, 2011, the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts's request for a waiver was denied (ADAMS
Accession No. ML11332A152). Subsequently, in a Commission Memorandum
and Order dated March 8, 2012, the Commonwealth's petition for
rulemaking was referred to NRC staff for appropriate resolution (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12068A187). NRC staff has determined that the
Commonwealth's petition for rulemaking has met the basic requirements
set forth in 10 CFR
[[Page 75066]]
2.802(c). The petitioner has specified the regulations that it would
like revoked. Additionally, the petitioner has stated its grounds for
and interest in this action. Lastly, the petition sets forth the
specific issues involved, provides views and arguments in favor of the
petitioner's position, and provides relevant data to support the
request to rescind 10 CFR 51.71(d) and 10 CFR part 51 subpart A,
appendix B. Because the petitioner has satisfied the acceptance
criteria in 10 CFR 2.802(c), the NRC has accepted, and will review the
petition for rulemaking. The NRC is not requesting public comment on
this petition at this time.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day of December 2012.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Annette L. Vietti-Cook,
Secretary of the Commission.
[FR Doc. 2012-30528 Filed 12-18-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P