[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 238 (Thursday, December 11, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73643-73646]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-29126]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 52-036; NRC-2008-0616]


Entergy Operations, Inc. Combined License Application for River 
Bend Unit 3

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
exemption in response to a July 18, 2014, request from Entergy 
Operations, Inc. (EOI) which requested an exemption from Final Safety 
Analysis Report (FSAR) updates included in their Combined License (COL) 
application. The NRC staff reviewed this request and determined that it 
is appropriate to grant the exemption with the stipulation that the 
updates to the FSAR must be submitted the earlier of the resumption of 
the COL application review or December 31, 2015.

DATES: December 11, 2014.

[[Page 73644]]


ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0616 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-2008-0616. 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: Lynnea Wilkins, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-1377; email: [email protected].

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

I. Background

    On September 25, 2008, EOI submitted to the NRC a COL application 
for one Economic Simplified Boiling-Water Reactor to be constructed and 
operated near St. Francisville, Louisiana in West Feliciana Parish. On 
December 4, 2008, the NRC accepted for docketing the River Bend Station 
Unit 3 (RBS3) COL application (ADAMS Accession No. ML083370275, Docket 
No. 52-036). On January 9, 2009, EOI requested that the NRC temporarily 
suspend review of the application and the NRC granted EOI's request 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML090080277) while the application remained 
docketed. On December 3, 2012 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12342A231), EOI 
submitted updates to the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), per 
Section 50.71(e)(3)(iii) of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR). On September 30, 2013 (ADAMS Accession No. ML13275A066), EOI 
requested an exemption from the 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements to 
submit COL FSAR updates. The exemption was granted by the NRC on 
December 4, 2013 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML13297A247 and ML13297A248). On 
July 18, 2014 (ADAMS Accession No. ML14202A337), EOI requested another 
exemption from the 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements to submit COL 
FSAR updates.

II. Request/Action

    Section 50.71(e)(3)(iii) requires that an applicant for a COL under 
Subpart C of 10 CFR part 52, must update their FSAR annually during the 
period from docketing the application to the Commission making its 10 
CFR 52.103(g) finding.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) the next scheduled annual 
update of the FSAR concerning the RBS3 COL application would be due in 
December 2014 based on the granted exemption on December 4, 2013 (ADAMS 
Accession Nos. ML13297A247 and ML13297A248). By letter dated January 9, 
2009, EOI requested that the NRC suspend review of the RBS3 COL. The 
NRC granted EOI's request for suspension (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML090080277) and all review activities related to the RBS3 COL 
application were suspended while the application remained docketed. In 
a letter dated, July 14, 2014 (ADAMS Accession No. ML14202A337), EOI 
requested that the RBS3 COL application be exempt from the 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements the earlier of the resumption of the RBS3 
COL application review or December 31, 2015.
    EOI's requested exemption is interpreted as a schedule change from 
the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would allow 
EOI to submit the next FSAR update the earlier of resumption of the EOI 
application review or December 31, 2015. The current FSAR update 
requirement could not be changed, absent the exemption.

III. 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: 
``application 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)(iii)) 
and if ``the exemption would provide only temporary relief from the 
applicable regulation and the licensee or applicant has made good faith 
efforts to comply with the regulation'' (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(v)).
    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 
EOI requested the NRC to suspend its review of the RBS3 COL 
application, compelling EOI 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. Requiring the updates would result in undue 
hardship on EOI, and the purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) would still 
be achieved if the update is submitted the earlier of the restart of 
the resumption of EOI's application review or December 31, 2015.
    The requested exemption to defer submittal of the next update to 
the FSAR included in the RBS3 COL application would provide only 
temporary relief from the regulations of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). As 
evidenced by the proper submittal of annual updates on December 6, 2010 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML103440074), December 7, 2011 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML11343A568), and December 3, 2012 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML12342A231), EOI has made good faith efforts to comply with 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) prior to requesting suspension of the review. EOI's 
exemption request asks the NRC to grant exemption from 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) to December 31, 2015 or coincident with resuming the 
review of the RBS3 COL application, whichever occurs first.
    For the reasons stated above, the application of 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) in this particular circumstance can be deemed 
unnecessary and the granting of the exemption would allow only 
temporary relief from a rule that the applicant had made good faith 
efforts to comply with, therefore special circumstances are present.

[[Page 73645]]

Authorized by Law

    The exemption is a schedule exemption from the requirements of 10 
CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would allow EOI to submit the next 
RBS3 FSAR update the earlier of the resumption of EOI's application or 
December 31, 2015 in lieu of the required scheduled submittal in 
December 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 EOI the requested exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) will provide only temporary 
relief from this regulation and 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 purposes 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 EOI 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 decision is made, the probability of postulated 
accidents is not increased. Additionally, based on the nature of the 
requested exemption, as described above, no new accident precursors are 
created by the exemption; thus neither probability, nor the 
consequences of postulated accidents are not increased. Therefore, 
there is no undue risk to public health and safety.

Consistent With Common Defense and Security

    The exemption would allow EOI to submit the next RBS3 FSAR update 
the earlier of the resumption of EOI's application review or December 
31, 2015. 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 the RBS3 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 EOI were then required to update its FSAR 
the earlier of the resumption of EOI's application review or December 
31, 2015, the purpose of the rule would still be achieved.
    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(v) are 
present whenever the exemption would provide only temporary relief from 
the regulation and the applicant has made good faith efforts to comply 
with this regulation. Because of the assumed and imposed new deadline 
of (the earlier of the resumption of EOI's application review or 
December 31, 2015), EOI's exemption request seeks only temporary relief 
from the requirement that it file an update to the FSAR included in the 
RBS3 COL application. Therefore, since the relief from the requirements 
of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) would be temporary and the applicant has 
made good faith efforts to comply with the rule, and 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 10 CFR 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--
    (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 considerations 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.

[[Page 73646]]

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

IV. Conclusion

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(1) and (2), 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 EOI 
the exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
pertaining to the River Bend Station Unit 3 COL application to allow 
submittal of the next FSAR update the earlier of the resumption of the 
COL application review or December 31, 2015.
    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 3rd day of December 2014.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Ronaldo Jenkins,
Chief, Licensing Branch 3, Division of New Reactor Licensing, Office of 
New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2014-29126 Filed 12-10-14; 8:45 am]
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