[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 249 (Tuesday, December 30, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78500-78502]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-30585]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

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


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

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 an October 16, 2014, letter from Entergy 
Operations, Inc. (EOI) which requested an exemption to suspend 
maintaining the Departures Report and the design control document (DCD) 
Update Report until December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the 
review of the for River Bend Station Unit 3 (RBS3) Combined License 
(COL) application, whichever comes first. The NRC staff reviewed this 
request and determined that it is appropriate to grant the exemption.

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 individual 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 
ADAMS Public Documents collection 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.

[[Page 78501]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lynnea Wilkins, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-5136; email: [email protected].

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

I. Background

    The NRC accepted for docketing the River Bend Station Unit 3 (RBS3) 
COL application on December 4, 2008 (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 October 16, 2014, (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML14289A521), EOI requested an exemption from the requirements of 10 
CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b until 
December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the review of the for 
RBS3 COL application, whichever comes first.

II. Request/Action

    10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraph X.A.1 requires that the 
applicant for this appendix shall maintain a copy of the generic DCD 
[design control document] that includes all generic changes it makes to 
Tier 1 and Tier 2, and the generic TS and other operational 
requirements. The applicant shall maintain sensitive unclassified non-
safeguards information (including proprietary information and security-
related information) and safeguards information referenced in the 
generic DCD for the period that this appendix may be referenced, as 
specified in Section VII of this appendix.
    10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraph X.A.2 requires that an 
applicant or licensee who references this appendix shall maintain the 
plant-specific DCD to accurately reflect both generic changes to the 
generic DCD and plant-specific departures made under Section VIII of 
this appendix throughout the period of application and for the term of 
the license (including any period of renewal).
    10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraph X.B.3.b requires that during 
the interval from the date of application for a license to the date the 
Commissions makes its findings required by 10 CFR 52.103(g), the 
[Departures] report must be submitted semiannually. Updates to the 
plant-specific DCD must be submitted annually and may be submitted 
along with amendments to the application.
    By letter dated January 9, 2009, EOI requested that the NRC suspend 
review of the RBS3 COL application. The NRC granted EOI's request for 
suspension of all review activities while the application remained 
docketed. In a letter dated, October 16, 2014, EOI requested an 
exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, 
Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b until December 31, 2015 or 
coincident with resuming the review of the for RBS3 COL application, 
whichever comes first.
    EOI's requested exemption is seen as a schedule change from the 
requirements of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, 
and X.B.3.b. The exemption would allow EOI to suspend maintaining the 
Departures Report and the DCD Update Report and forego submitting these 
reports until December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the review 
of the RBS3 COL application, whichever comes first.

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 part 52, Appendix 
E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b, 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)(ii)); ``compliance 
would result in undue hardship or other costs that are significantly in 
excess of those contemplated when the regulation was adopted, or that 
are significantly in excess of those incurred by others similarly 
situated'' (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii)) or; ``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 purposes of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, 
X.A.2, and X.B.3.b are to maintain reports pertaining to the ESBWR and 
plant-specific DCDs associated with a COL application current and to 
provide timely, current, comprehensive reports and updates in order to 
support an effective and efficient review by NRC staff and issuance of 
the staff's safety evaluation report.
    Because EOI requested the NRC to suspend its review of the RBS3 COL 
application, the Departures Report and DCD Update, if provided, would 
not be reviewed by the NRC. Therefore, compelling EOI to provide 
Departures Report and DCD Update would result in an unnecessary burden 
and hardship for the applicant. For this reason the application of 10 
CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b can be 
deemed unnecessary and therefore, special circumstances are present.

Authorized by Law

    The exemption is a temporary exemption from the requirements of 10 
CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b. The 
exemption would allow EOI to suspend maintaining the Departures Report 
and the DCD Update Report and forego submitting these reports until 
December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the review of the RBS3 
COL application, whichever comes first. As stated above, 10 CFR 50.12 
allows the NRC to grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 
52. The NRC staff has determined that granting EOI the requested 
exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix E, 
Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b will be only temporary, 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 part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs 
X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b are to maintain reports pertaining to the 
ESBWR and plant-specific DCDs associated with a COL application current 
and to provide timely, current, comprehensive reports and updates in 
order to support an effective and efficient review by NRC staff and 
issuance of the staff's safety evaluation report. The requested 
exemption is administrative in nature in that it pertains to activities 
for which a license has not been granted; hence, there are no safety 
implications. Specifically, there are no new health or safety issues 
created and no increase in the probability of postulated accidents or 
their consequences associated with this exemption request. Therefore, 
there is no undue risk to public health and safety.

[[Page 78502]]

Consistent With Common Defense and Security

    The exemption would allow EOI to suspend maintaining the Departures 
Report and the DCD Update Report and forego submitting these reports 
until December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the review of the 
RBS3 COL application, whichever comes first. 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), are 
present whenever ``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)(ii)); compliance would result in undue hardship or other 
costs that are significantly in excess of those contemplated when the 
regulation was adopted, or that are significantly in excess of those 
incurred by others similarly situated (10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii)) or; 
``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 underlying 
purposes of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and 
X.B.3.b are to maintain reports pertaining to the ESBWR and plant-
specific DCDs associated with a COL application current and to provide 
timely, current, comprehensive reports and updates in order to support 
an effective and efficient review by NRC staff and issuance of the 
staff's safety evaluation report.
    Because the requirement to maintain reports pertaining to the ESBWR 
and plant-specific DCDs associated with a COL application 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 EOI would then be required to 
comply by the earlier of a restart or the review or December 31, 2015, 
and the purpose of the rule would still be achieved. Additionally, 
because EOI requested the NRC to suspend its review of the GGNS COL 
application, the Departures Report and DCD Update, if provided, would 
not be reviewed by the NRC. Therefore, compelling EOI to provide 
Departures Report and DCD Update would result in an unnecessary burden 
and hardship for the applicant.
    In addition, the exemption is a temporary exemption from the 
requirements of 10 CFR part 52, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, 
and X.B.3.b. EOI has made good faith efforts to comply with the 
regulation. The exemption would allow EOI to suspend maintaining the 
Departures Report and the DCD Update Report and forego submitting these 
reports until December 31, 2015, or coincident with resuming the review 
of the GGNS COL application, whichever comes first.
    Therefore, the special circumstances required by 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(ii), (iii), and (v) for the granting of an exemption from 
10 CFR part 50, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, X.A.2, and X.B.3.b 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 discussed below.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(i): The criteria for determining whether there 
is no significant hazards consideration are found in 10 CFR 
50.92(c)(1)-(3) . 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. There are no significant hazards 
considerations because granting the proposed exemption would not 
involve a significant increase in the probability or consequences of an 
accident previously evaluated, create the possibility of a new or 
different kind of accident from any accident previously evaluated or 
involve a significant reduction in a margin of safety.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(ii): 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.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(iii): 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.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(iv): The proposed action involves only a 
schedule change which is administrative in nature; the COL 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.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(v): The proposed action involves only a 
schedule change which is administrative in nature, and does not impact 
the probability or consequences of radiological accidents.
    10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(B) and (G): The exemption request involves 
submitting an updated COL application by EOI and relates to the 
schedule for submitting a COL application update 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 as described in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), (iii), and (v) 
are present. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants EOI the exemption 
from the requirements of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix E, Paragraphs X.A.1, 
X.A.2, and X.B.3.b pertaining to the River Bend Station Unit 3 COL 
application to allow submittal of the Departures Report and the DCD 
Update Report the earlier of any request to the NRC to resume the 
review or by 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 22nd day of December 2014.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Perry Buckberg,
Acting Branch Chief, Licensing Branch 3, Division of New Reactor 
Licensing, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2014-30585 Filed 12-29-14; 8:45 am]
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