[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 178 (Friday, September 13, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56749-56750]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-22321]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2013-0210]
Site Characteristics and Site Parameters for Nuclear Power Plants
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Standard review plan-draft section revision; request for
comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) seeks public
comment on the proposed revisions to five sections in NUREG-0800,
``Standard Review Plan for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for
Nuclear Power Plants: LWR Edition.'' The five sections which would be
revised are located in Chapter 2, ``Site Characteristics and Site
Parameters'' of the Standard Review Plan (SRP), Section 2.5.1,
``Geologic Characterization Information,'' (currently titled as ``Basic
Geologic and Seismic Information''); Section 2.5.2, ``Vibratory Ground
Motion''; Section 2.5.3, ``Surface Deformation'' (currently titled as
``Surface Faulting''); Section 2.5.4, ``Stability of Subsurface
Materials and Foundations''; and Section 2.5.5, ``Stability of
Slopes.''
DATES: Submit comments by October 15, 2013. Comments received after
this date will be considered, if it is practical to do so, but the
Commission is able to ensure consideration only for comments received
on or before this date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods
(unless this document describes a different method for submitting
comments on a specific subject):
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0210. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3442; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual(s) listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section
of this document.
Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Chief, Rules,
Announcements, and Directives Branch (RADB), Office of Administration,
Mail Stop: 3WFN-06-44M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555-0001.
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: Mr. Jonathan DeGange, Office of New
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, telephone: 301-415-6992, email: mailto:[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Accessing Information and Submitting Comments
A. Accessing Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2013-0210 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information regarding this document. You may
access publicly-available information related to this document by any
of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0210.
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 document (if that document is
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is
referenced. The ADAMS Accession numbers for the redline documents
comparing the current revisions and the proposed revisions of
individual sections are available in ADAMS: Section 2.5.1, Proposed
Revision 5 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12300A231), Current Revision 4 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML070730464), Redline (ADAMS Accession No. ML12302A009);
Section 2.5.2, Proposed Revision 5 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12301A010),
Current Revision 4 (ADAMS Accession No. ML070730593), Redline (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12302A010); Section 2.5.3, Proposed Revision 5 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12302A003), Current Revision 4 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML070730597), Redline (ADAMS Accession No. ML12302A012); Section 2.5.4,
Proposed Revision 5 (ML12302A004), Current Revision 4 (ML100610449),
Redline (ML12302A011); and Section 2.5.5, Proposed Revision 5 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12302A005), Current Revision 4 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML100610529), Redline (ADAMS Accession No. ML12302A013).
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-2013-0210 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 you
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
[[Page 56750]]
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. Further Information
The Office of New Reactors and Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
proposes to revise Sections 2.5.1 through 2.5.5 in Chapter 2 of NUREG-
0800, ``Standard Review Plan for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports
for Nuclear Power Plants: LWR Edition.
The proposed changes to the SRP sections reflect the current staff
review methods and practices based on lessons learned from NRC reviews
of design certification and combined license applications completed
since the last revision of this chapter. Changes include: (1)
incorporating several guidance documents including Interim Staff
Guidance DC/ISG 017, ``Interim Staff Guidance on Ensuring Hazard-
Consistent Seismic Input for Site Response and Soil Structure
Interaction Analyses,'' NUREG-2115 and NUREG-2117; (2) adding
information concerning the Geologic Mapping License Condition; (3)
adding specification for backfill Inspections, Tests, Analyses, and
Acceptance Criteria for backfill to be placed under safety related
structures; (4) adding references to, or clarified the acceptance
criteria with respect to Appendix S of Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) parts 50 and 52, 10 CFR 100.23(d)(2), 100.23(c),
52.17, C 52.79 and GDC 2; and (5) clarifying and strengthening the
review interface between various SRP Sections.
The NRC requests public comments on the proposed revisions to the
five SRP sections in Chapter 2. After the NRC considers any public
comments, it will make a determination regarding the issuance of the
five proposed SRP Sections in final form.
Backfitting and Issue Finality
The five draft SRP sections, if finalized, would provide guidance
to the staff with respect to site characteristics and parameters when
reviewing future applications for construction permits and operating
licenses under 10 CFR part 50, and future applications for early site
permits, standard design approvals, standard design certifications, and
combined licenses under 10 CFR part 52 with respect to those same
subject matters. The NRC staff does not intend to impose the positions
in the draft SRP sections, if finalized, on the two existing OL
applications, the current applications for design certification rules,
the current applications for early site permits, the two current
holders of combined licenses, or the current applications for combined
licenses.
Issuance of these draft SRP sections, if finalized, would not
constitute backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 50.109, or otherwise be
inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52. The
staff's position is based upon the following considerations.
1. The draft SRP positions, if finalized, do not constitute
backfitting, inasmuch as the SRP is internal guidance to NRC staff.
The SRP provides interim guidance to the staff on how to review an
application for NRC regulatory approval in the form of licensing.
Changes in internal staff guidance are not matters for which applicants
or licensees are protected under 10 CFR 50.109 or issue finality
provisions in 10 CFR part 52.
2. Backfitting and issue finality--with certain exceptions
discussed below--do not protect current or future applicants.
Applicants and potential applicants are not, with certain
exceptions, protected by either the Backfit Rule or any issue finality
provisions under 10 CFR part 52. This is because neither the Backfit
Rule nor the issue finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52--with
certain exclusions discussed below--were intended to apply to every NRC
action which substantially changes the expectations of current and
future applicants.
The exceptions to the general principle are applicable whenever an
applicant references a 10 CFR part 52 license (e.g., an early site
permit) and/or NRC regulatory approval (e.g., a design certification
rule) with specified issue finality provisions. The staff does not, at
this time, intend to impose the positions represented in the draft SRP
section (if finalized) in a manner that is inconsistent with any issue
finality provisions. If, in the future, the staff seeks to impose a
position in the draft SRP section (if finalized) in a manner which does
not provide issue finality as described in the applicable issue
finality provision, then the staff must address the criteria for
avoiding issue finality as described in the applicable issue finality
provision.
3. The staff has no intention to impose the draft SRP positions on
existing nuclear power plant licenses or regulatory approvals either
now or in the future (absent a voluntary request for change from the
licensee, holder of a regulatory approval, or a design certification
applicant)
The staff does not intend to impose or apply the positions
described in the draft SRP section to existing (already issued)
licenses (e.g., operating licenses and combined licenses) and
regulatory approvals--in this case, design certifications. Hence, the
draft SRP--even if considered guidance which is within the purview of
the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52--need not be evaluated
as if it were a backfit or as being inconsistent with issue finality
provisions. If, in the future, the staff seeks to impose a position in
the draft SRP (if finalized) on holders of already issued licenses in a
manner which does not provide issue finality as described in the
applicable issue finality provision, then the staff must make the
showing as set forth in the Backfit Rule, or address the criteria for
avoiding issue finality as described applicable issue finality
provision, as applicable.
The NRC staff is issuing this notice to solicit public comments on
the proposed SRP Sections in Chapter 2. After the NRC staff considers
any public comments, it will make a determination regarding the
proposed SRP Sections in Chapter 2.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 5th day of September 2013.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Joseph Colaccino,
Chief, Policy Branch, Division of Advanced Reactors and Rulemaking,
Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2013-22321 Filed 9-12-13; 8:45 am]
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