[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 34 (Wednesday, February 20, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11907-11909]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-03850]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2013-0035]


Notice of Forthcoming Workshop To Discuss Revisions to NUREG/BR-
0204, Rev. 2 ``Instructions for Completing NRC's Uniform Low-Level 
Waste Manifest''

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of public workshop.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) plans to conduct 
a public workshop to discuss possible revisions to NUREG/BR-0204, Rev. 
2 ``Instructions for Completing NRC's Uniform Low-Level Radioactive 
Waste Manifest.'' Information will be gathered from subject matter 
experts and other interested members of the public regarding NUREG/BR-
0204 and how it can best be revised. Specifically, the NRC staff is 
interested in gaining a better understanding of the issues associated 
with reporting certain difficult-to-measure (DTM) radionuclides on 
shipping waste manifests as required by Appendix G of part 20 of Title 
10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). In particular based on 
their experience some involved members of the public would like the NRC 
to update NUREG/BR-0204 to address the manifesting of Technecium-99 
(Tc-99), Carbon-14 (C-14), Tritium (H-3), and Iodine-129 (I-129) to 
minimize over-estimation of activity. These isotopes are key 
contributors to groundwater dose and can lead to premature closure of 
low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities if over-estimated. 
Additionally, the NRC staff received comments from involved members of 
the public recommending that the NRC staff consider Chlorine-36 (Cl-36) 
during this effort so staff will also address the reporting of Cl-36 in 
the update to NUREG/BR-0204.

DATES: The public workshop will be held on March 1, 2013, from 8:00 
a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (registration begins at 7:30 a.m.) at the Sheraton 
Downtown Phoenix Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona. The

[[Page 11908]]

public workshop will be held immediately following the 2013 WM 
Symposia. The workshop is being held in conjunction with the Symposia 
and being broadcast as a Webinar to draw in as many participants as 
possible.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2013-0035 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-2013-0035. 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 the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Don Lowman, Office of Federal and 
State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-
5452; email: [email protected].

I. Further Information

    The public workshop will be held at the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix 
Hotel, 340 N. 3rd Street; West Building, Meeting Room Phoenix A, 
Phoenix, Arizona 85004. The phone number for the hotel is 1-602-262-
2500. The NRC will accept written comments at the public workshop and 
welcomes active participation from those attending.

II. Background

    Part 20, Appendix G, ``Requirements for Transfers of Low-Level 
Radioactive Waste (LLRW) Intended for Disposal at Licensed Land 
Disposal Facilities and Manifests'' requires that an NRC Uniform Waste 
Manifest (Shipping Paper and Container and Waste Description) be 
prepared for LLRW intended for ultimate disposal at a licensed LLRW 
land disposal facility. The waste generator, collector, or processor 
who transports, or offers for transportation, LLRW must prepare the 
manifest reflecting information requested on applicable NRC Forms 540 
(Uniform Low-Level Radioactive Waste Manifest (Shipping Paper)) and 541 
(Uniform Low-Level Radioactive Waste Manifest (Container and Waste 
Description)) and if necessary, on an applicable NRC Form 542 (Uniform 
Low-Level Radioactive Waste Manifest (Manifest Index and Regional 
Compact Tabulation)). NRC Forms 540 and 540A must be completed and must 
physically accompany the pertinent LLRW shipment. Per Appendix G of 10 
CFR Part 20, the shipper of the waste must include, on the uniform 
manifest for the waste shipment, ``[t]he activity of each of the 
radionuclides H-3, C-14, Tc-99, and I-129 contained in the shipment.'' 
These isotopes are of concern because they were found to be especially 
important to safety from groundwater migration in the 10 CFR Part 61 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement (ADAMS Accession No. ML060930564).
    In SECY-13-0001, ``Staff Recommendations for Improving the 
Integration of the Ongoing 10 CFR Part 61 Rulemaking Initiatives'' 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML12199A412), staff noted that involved members of 
the public have recommended that the earlier assumptions concerning the 
above isotopes cited in the 10 CFR Part 20, Appendix G should be 
revisited.
    Unfortunately, the activities of H-3, C-14, Tc-99, and I-129 are 
DTM in the radioactive waste that is generated. Involved members of the 
public suggest that H-3, C-14, Tc-99, and I-129 are being over-
estimated in current site inventory dose assessments because of a 
reliance on a default value when the amount of the physical isotope in 
question is below some lower limit of detection threshold for these 
isotopes. If true, the cumulative effect of this over reporting results 
in an over-estimation of the site inventory, thus, if reporting 
requirements are not updated, disposal sites may have to close 
prematurely due to over-estimation in site inventory dose assessments.
    Additionally, the State of Texas required the performance 
assessment for the Waste Control Specialists (WCS) LLRW disposal 
facility in Andrews County to address Cl-36 because it is also a key 
contributor to the groundwater dose and was analyzed in NUREG-1573, ``A 
Performance Assessment Methodology for Low-Level Radioactive Waste 
Disposal Facilities'' (ADAMS Accession No. ML053250352). Cl-36 may also 
be over-reported because of minimum detection reporting criteria, thus 
it is included in the effort to update NUREG/BR-0204.
    Involved members of the public would like the NRC to address the 
manifesting of these isotopes. The NRC staff believes it is possible to 
revise NUREG/BR-0204, Rev. 2 to provide improved reporting guidance for 
the DTM radionuclides rather than making changes to 10 CFR Part 20. The 
NRC staff will also evaluate inclusion of Cl-36 in the update to NUREG/
BR-0204, Rev. 2.

III. NRC Public Workshop

    The purpose of this public workshop is to gather information from 
interested members of the public concerning possible revisions to 
NUREG/BR-0204, Rev. 2 ``Instructions for Completing NRC's Uniform Low-
Level Waste Manifest.'' This overall approach is consistent with the 
NRC's openness policy. The March 1, 2013, public workshop will have a 
panel of invited subject matter experts to discuss questions and 
comments regarding DTM isotope reporting issues.
    Following the panel session, interested members of the public will 
have an opportunity to pose questions and comment directly to the 
panelists.
    Pre-registration for this workshop is not necessary. Members of the 
public choosing to participate in this workshop remotely can do so in 
one of two ways--online or via a telephone (audio) connection.
    Interested members of the public can also participate in this 
workshop remotely via Webinar.
    The Webinar workshop registration link can be found at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/909493521. The Webinar ID is 909-493-521. 
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 
workshop, or call the following number and enter the access code:
    Call-in toll-free number (US/Canada): 1-888-455-9355. The Webinar 
access code is 9515574.
    The agenda for the public workshop will be noticed no fewer than 10 
days

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prior to the workshop on the NRC's Public Meeting Schedule Web site at 
http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/public-meetings/index.cfm.
    Questions about participation in the public workshops should be 
directed to the point of contact listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this document.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 12th day of February 2013.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Aby Mohseni,
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. 2013-03850 Filed 2-19-13; 8:45 am]
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