[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 250 (Monday, December 30, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79501-79503]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-31232]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 52-014 AND 52-015; NRC-2008-0043]


Tennessee Valley Authority, Exemption From the Requirement To 
Submit an Annual Update to the Final Safety Analysis Report Included in 
a Combined License Application

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
exemption in response to an October 28, 2013, request from Tennessee 
Valley Authority (TVA). On September 29, 2010, TVA requested that the 
NRC suspend review of its combined license (COL) application until 
further notice. On October 28, 2013, TVA requested an exemption from 
certain regulatory requirements that require them to submit updates to 
the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR) included in their COL 
Application until requesting the NRC to resume its review of their COL 
application. The NRC staff reviewed this request and determined that it 
is appropriate to grant the exemption, but stipulated that the updates 
to the FSAR must be submitted prior to requesting the NRC resume its 
review of the COL application or by December 31, 2014, whichever comes 
first.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0043 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may access publicly-available information related to this action by the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0043. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact 
the individuals listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section 
of this document.
     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 the 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: Anthony Minarik, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC, 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-6185; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The following sections include the text of the exemption in its 
entirety as issued to TVA.

1.0 Background

    On October 30, 2007 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management 
System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML073110527) Tennessee Valley Authority 
(TVA), submitted to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) a 
Combined License (COL) application for two units of Westinghouse 
Electric Company's AP1000 advanced pressurized water reactors to be 
constructed and operated at the Bellefonte site, located near the 
cities of Hollywood and Scottsboro in Jackson County in northeast 
Alabama. (Docket numbers 052000-14 and 052000-15). The NRC docketed the 
Bellefonte Nuclear Plant, Units 3 and 4 (BLN 3&4) COL application on 
January 28, 2008. On September 29, 2010 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML10274076) TVA requested that the NRC defer the review of the BLN 3&4 
COL application. In a letter dated November 24, 2010 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML102930207), the NRC granted TVA's request to defer the review and 
stated it was in a suspended status, meaning all review activities 
related to the BLN 3&4 COL application were eventually suspended after 
a closeout period while the application remained docketed. On October 
28, 2013 (ADAMS Accession No. ML13325B058) TVA requested an exemption 
from the Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements to submit COL application Final Safety 
Analysis Report (FSAR) updates.

2.0 Request/Action

    10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requires that an applicant for a COL under 
Subpart C of 10 CFR Part 52, submit updates to their FSAR annually 
during the period from docketing the application to the Commission 
making its 52.103(g) finding.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) the next annual update of the 
FSAR included in the BLN 3&4 COL application would be due in January of 
2014 as TVA's application was docketed on January 28, 2008 and TVA had 
submitted Revision 3 to its FSAR on December 22, 2010 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML110040748). In a letter dated, September 29, 2010 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML10274076) TVA requested that the NRC suspend review of 
the BLN 3&4

[[Page 79502]]

COL application. The NRC granted TVA's request for suspension (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML102930207) and all review activities related to the BLN 
3&4 COL application were eventually suspended after a closeout period 
while the application remained docketed. In a letter dated December 19, 
2011 (ADAMS Accession No. ML11356A068) TVA stated that they were still 
deferred and had no updates to their FSAR. In a letter dated, October 
28, 2013 (ADAMS Accession No. ML13325B058), TVA requested that the BLN 
3&4 COL application be exempt from the 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements 
until requesting the NRC to resume the review of the BLN 3&4 COL 
application.
    TVA's requested exemption is interpreted as a one-time schedule 
change from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). In its 
request, TVA asked the NRC to grant the exemption from 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii), until they had asked the NRC to resume the review of 
the BLN 3&4 COL application. Because such a request is seen as open-
ended, the NRC included an imposed December 31, 2014 deadline as part 
of its review of the exemption request. The exemption would allow TVA 
to submit the next FSAR update at a later date, but still in advance of 
NRC's reinstating its review of the application and in any event, by 
December 31, 2014. The current requirement to submit an FSAR update 
could not be changed, absent the exemption.

3.0 Discussion

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12 the Commission may, upon application by 
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from 
the requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, including 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
when: (1) the exemption(s) are authorized by law, will not present an 
undue risk to public health or safety, and are consistent with the 
common defense and security; and (2) special circumstances are present. 
As relevant to the requested exemption, special circumstances exist if: 
``[a]pplication of the regulation in the particular circumstances would 
not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to 
achieve the underlying purpose of the rule'' (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii)).
    The purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) is to ensure that the NRC 
has the most up to date information regarding the COL application, in 
order to perform an efficient and effective review. The rule targeted 
those applications that are being actively reviewed by the NRC. Because 
TVA requested the NRC suspend its review of the BLN 3&4 COL 
application, compelling TVA to submit its FSAR on an annual basis is 
not necessary as the FSAR will not be changed or updated until the 
review is restarted. The purpose of 50.71(e)(3)(iii) would still be 
achieved if the update is submitted prior to restarting the review and 
in any event by December 31, 2014.
    For the reasons stated above, the application of 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
in this particular circumstance can be deemed unnecessary in order to 
achieve the underlying purpose of the rule, therefore special 
circumstances are present.

Authorized by Law

    The exemption is a one-time schedule exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would allow TVA 
to submit the next BLN 3&4 COL application FSAR update on or before 
December 31, 2014 in lieu of the required scheduled submittal in 
January 2014. As stated above, 10 CFR 50.12 allows the NRC to grant 
exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR Part 50 . The NRC staff has 
determined that granting TVA the requested one-time exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) will not result in a violation 
of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, or the NRC's regulations. 
Therefore, the exemption is authorized by law.

No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety

    The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) is to provide for 
a timely and comprehensive update of the FSAR associated with a COL 
application in order to support an effective and efficient review by 
the NRC staff and issuance of the NRC staff's safety evaluation report. 
The requested exemption is solely administrative in nature, in that it 
pertains to the schedule for submittal to the NRC of revisions to an 
application under 10 CFR Part 52, for which a license has not been 
granted. In addition, since the review of the application has been 
suspended, any update to the application submitted by TVA will not be 
reviewed by the NRC at this time. Based on the nature of the requested 
exemption as described above, no new accident precursors are created by 
the exemption thus, neither the probability, nor the consequences of 
postulated accidents are increased. Therefore, there is no undue risk 
to public health and safety. Plant construction cannot proceed until 
the NRC review of the application is completed, a mandatory hearing is 
completed, and a license is issued. Additionally, based on the nature 
of the requested exemption as described above, no new accident 
precursors are created by the exemption; thus neither the probability, 
nor the consequences of postulated accidents are increased. Therefore, 
there is no undue risk to public health and safety.

Consistent With Common Defense and Security

    The requested exemption would allow TVA to submit the next FSAR 
update prior to requesting the NRC to resume the review and, in any 
event, on or before December 31, 2014. This schedule change has no 
relation to security issues. Therefore, the common defense and security 
is not impacted.

Special Circumstances

    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii) 
are present ``[a]pplication of the regulation in the particular 
circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is 
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule'' (10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(ii)). The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) is 
to ensure that the NRC has the most up-to date information in order to 
perform its review of a COL application efficiently and effectively. 
Because the requirement to annually update the FSAR was intended for 
active reviews and BLN 3&4 COL application review is now suspended, the 
application of this regulation in this particular circumstance is 
unnecessary in order to achieve its underlying purpose. If the NRC were 
to grant this exemption, and TVA were then required to update its FSAR 
by December 31, 2014, or prior to any request to restart of their 
review, the purpose of the rule would still be achieved.
    Therefore, since the underlying purpose of the rule is not served 
by application of the rule in this circumstance, the special 
circumstances required by 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii) and 50.12(a)(2)(v) for 
the granting of an exemption from 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) exist.

Eligibility for Categorical Exclusion From Environmental Review

    With respect to the exemption's impact on the quality of the human 
environment, the NRC has determined that this specific exemption 
request is eligible for categorical exclusion as identified in 10 CFR 
51.22(c)(25) and justified by the NRC staff as follows:
    (c) The following categories of actions are categorical exclusions:
    (25) Granting of an exemption from the requirements of any 
regulation of this chapter, provided that--

[[Page 79503]]

    (i) There is no significant hazards consideration;
    The criteria for determining whether there is no significant 
hazards consideration are found in 10 CFR 50.92. The proposed action 
involves only a schedule change regarding the submission of an update 
to the application for which the licensing review has been suspended. 
Therefore, there is no significant hazards consideration because 
granting the proposed exemption would not:
    (1) Involve a significant increase in the probability or 
consequences of an accident previously evaluated; or
    (2) Create the possibility of a new or different kind of accident 
from any accident previously evaluated; or
    (3) Involve a significant reduction in a margin of safety.
    (ii) There is no significant change in the types or significant 
increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite;

    The proposed action involves only a schedule change which is 
administrative in nature, and does not involve any changes to be 
made in the types or significant increase in the amounts of 
effluents that may be released offsite.

    (iii) There is no significant increase in individual or cumulative 
public or occupational radiation exposure;

    Since the proposed action involves only a schedule change which 
is administrative in nature, it does not contribute to any 
significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure.

    (iv) There is no significant construction impact;

    The proposed action involves only a schedule change which is 
administrative in nature; the application review is suspended until 
further notice, and there is no consideration of any construction at 
this time, and hence the proposed action does not involve any 
construction impact.

    (v) There is no significant increase in the potential for or 
consequences from radiological accidents; and

    The proposed action involves only a schedule change which is 
administrative in nature, and does not impact the probability or 
consequences of accidents.

    (vi) The requirements from which an exemption is sought involve:
    (B) Reporting requirements;
    The exemption request involves submitting an updated FSAR by TVA 
and
    (G) Scheduling requirements;
    The proposed exemption relates to the schedule for submitting FSAR 
updates to the NRC.

4.0 Conclusion

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12(a), the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue 
risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common 
defense and security. Also special circumstances are present. 
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants TVA a one-time exemption from 
the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) pertaining to the BLN 3&4 
COL application to allow submittal of the next FSAR update prior to any 
request to the NRC to resume the review, and in any event, no later 
than December 31, 2014.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22, the Commission has determined that the 
exemption request meets the applicable categorical exclusion criteria 
set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25), and the granting of this exemption 
will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human 
environment.
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day of December 2013.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Lawrence Burkhart,
Chief, Licensing Branch 4, Division of New Reactor Licensing, Office of 
New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2013-31232 Filed 12-27-13; 8:45 am]
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