[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 247 (Thursday, December 24, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 80398-80400]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-32512]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 52-039; NRC-2008-0603]


Bell Bend, LLC; Combined License Application for Bell Bend 
Nuclear Power Plant

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
exemption in a response to an October 7, 2015, letter from Bell Bend, 
LLC, 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, but stipulated that the updates to 
the FSAR must be submitted prior to, or coincident with, the resumption 
of the COL application safety review or by December 31, 2016, whichever 
comes first.

DATES: The exemption is effective on December 31, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2008-0603 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2008-0603. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; 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 obtain 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 (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: Patricia Vokoun, Office of New 
Reactors, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-3470; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On October 10, 2008, Bell Bend, LLC (formerly known as PPL) 
submitted to the NRC a COL application for a single unit of AREVA NP's 
U.S. Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR) (ADAMS Accession No. ML082890663) 
in accordance with the requirements of subpart C of part 52 of title 10 
of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), ``Licenses, Certifications, 
and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants.'' This reactor is to be 
constructed and operated as Bell Bend Nuclear Power Plant (BBNPP), in 
Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. The NRC docketed the BBNPP COL 
application on December 19, 2008 (Docket Number 52-039). Additionally, 
the BBNPP COL application incorporates by reference AREVA NP's 
application for a standard design certification for the U.S. EPR. The 
NRC review of the AREVA NP application for design certification of the 
U.S. EPR has been suspended.

II. Request/Action

    The regulations at 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) require that an 
applicant for a COL under 10 CFR part 52 shall, during the period from 
docketing of a COL application until the Commission makes a finding 
under 10 CFR 52.103(g) pertaining to facility operation, submit an 
annual update to the application's FSAR, which is part 2 of the COL 
application. Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii), the next annual 
update of the FSAR included in the BBNPP COL application would be due 
by December 31, 2015.
    On January 9, 2014, Bell Bend, LLC (formerly known as PPL) 
submitted a request to place the safety review of the BBNPP COL 
application on hold until further notice (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML14030A074). As a result of the safety review being placed on hold, no 
informational updates to the FSAR have occurred during this time. On 
October 7, 2015, Bell Bend, LLC requested an exemption from the 10 CFR 
50.71(e)(3)(iii) requirements to submit the BBNPP COL application FSAR 
update in calendar year 2015 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15300A070).
    The Bell Bend, LLC's requested exemption is a one-time schedule 
change from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption 
would allow Bell Bend, LLC to submit the next FSAR update at a later 
date but no later than December 31, 2016. The current requirement to 
submit an FSAR update could not be changed, absent the exemption.

III. Discussion

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the NRC 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 exemptions 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: 
(1) Application of the regulation in the particular circumstances would 
not serve the underlying purpose of the rule

[[Page 80399]]

or is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule (10 
CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii)); or (2) 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. As 
requested by Bell Bend, LLC (formerly known as PPL) in the above 
referenced letter dated January 9, 2014, the NRC placed the safety 
review portion of the BBNPP COL application on hold until further 
notice. Therefore, updating the BBNPP FSAR would only cause undue 
hardship on Bell Bend, LLC, and the purpose of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) 
would still be achieved so long as the next update is submitted by 
December 31, 2016.
    The requested exemption to defer submittal of the next update to 
the FSAR included in the BBNPP COL application would provide only 
temporary relief from the regulations of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii).

Authorized by Law

    The exemption is a one-time schedule change from the requirements 
of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii). The exemption would allow PPL to submit the 
next BBNPP COL application FSAR update on or before December 31, 2016. 
Per 10 CFR 50.12, the NRC staff has determined that granting Bell Bend, 
LLC the requested one-time 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 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. Based on the nature of the requested exemption as described 
above, no new accident precursors are created by the exemption; 
therefore, 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 Bell Bend, LLC to submit the 
next FSAR update on or before December 31, 2016. This schedule change 
has no relation to security issues. Therefore, the common defense and 
security is not impacted by this exemption.

Special Circumstances

    Special circumstances, in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2), are 
present whenever: (1) 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)); or (2) 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)).
    As discussed above, the requested one-time exemption is solely 
administrative in nature, in that it pertains to a one-time schedule 
change for submittal of revisions to an application under 10 CFR part 
52, for which a license has not been granted. This one-time exemption 
will support the NRC staff's effective and efficient review of the 
BBNPP COL application, when resumed, as well as issuance of the NRC 
staff's safety evaluation report. For this reason, application of 10 
CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) in the particular circumstances is not necessary 
to achieve the underlying purpose of that rule. Therefore, special 
circumstances exist under 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii). In addition, special 
circumstances are also present under 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(v) because 
granting a one-time exemption from 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) would 
provide only temporary relief. For the above reasons, the special 
circumstances required by 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2) 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). Under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25), granting of an exemption from 
the requirements of any regulation of 10 CFR Chapter 1 (which includes 
10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii)) is an action that is a categorical exclusion, 
provided that:
    (i) There is no significant hazards consideration;
    (ii) There is no significant change in the types or significant 
increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite;
    (iii) There is no significant increase in individual or cumulative 
public or occupational radiation exposure;
    (iv) There is no significant construction impact;
    (v) There is no significant increase in the potential for or 
consequences from radiological accidents; and
    (vi) The requirements from which an exemption is sought involve:
    (A) Recordkeeping requirements;
    (B) Reporting requirements;
    (C) Inspection or surveillance requirements;
    (D) Equipment servicing or maintenance scheduling requirements;
    (E) Education, training, experience, qualification, requalification 
or other employment suitability requirements;
    (F) Safeguard plans, and materials control and accounting inventory 
scheduling requirements;
    (G) Scheduling requirements;
    (H) Surety, insurance or indemnity requirements; or
    (I) Other requirements of an administrative, managerial, or 
organizational nature.
    The requirements from which this exemption is sought involve only 
``(B) Reporting requirements'' or ``(G) Scheduling requirements'' of 
those required by 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi).
    The NRC staff's determination that each of the applicable criteria 
for this categorical exclusion is met as follows:
    I. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(i): There is no significant hazards 
consideration.
    Staff Analysis: The criteria for determining if an exemption 
involves a 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 only the 
environmental portion of the licensing review is currently underway. 
Therefore, there are no significant hazard 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.

[[Page 80400]]

    II. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(ii): There is no significant change in the 
types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may 
be released offsite.
    Staff Analysis: The proposed action involves only a schedule 
change, which is administrative in nature, and does not involve any 
changes in the types or significant increase in the amounts of 
effluents that may be released offsite.
    III. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(iii): There is no significant increase in 
individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure.
    Staff Analysis: 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. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(iv): There is no significant construction 
impact.
    Staff Analysis: The proposed action involves only a schedule change 
which is administrative in nature. While the environmental portion of 
the application review is underway, the safety portion of the COL 
application review is on hold and no license will be issued prior to 
receipt of the aforementioned application's December 31, 2016, 
submittal of the revised FSAR; therefore, the proposed action does not 
involve any construction impact.
    V. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(v): There is no significant increase in the 
potential for or consequences from radiological accidents.
    Staff Analysis: The proposed action involves only a schedule change 
which is administrative in nature and does not impact the probability 
or consequences of accidents.
    VI. 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi): The requirements from which this 
exemption is sought involve only ``(B) Reporting requirements'' or 
``(G) Scheduling requirements.''
    Staff Analysis: The exemption request involves requirements in both 
of these categories because it involves submitting an updated COL FSAR 
by December 31, 2016, and also relates to the schedule for submitting 
COL FSAR updates to the NRC.

IV. Conclusion

    The NRC has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, 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 exist under 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(ii). This one-time exemption will support the NRC staff's 
effective and efficient review of the COL application, when resumed, as 
well as issuance of the NRC staff's safety evaluation report. 
Therefore, the NRC hereby grants Bell Bend, LLC a one-time exemption 
from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(3)(iii) pertaining to the 
BBNPP COL application to allow submittal of the next FSAR update on or 
before December 31, 2016.
    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 16th day of December 2015.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Frank Akstulewicz,
Director, Division of New Reactor Licensing, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2015-32512 Filed 12-23-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P