[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 144 (Wednesday, July 27, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49281-49284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-17772]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-206, 50-361, and 50-362; NRC-2016-0148]


Southern California Edison Company; San Onofre Nuclear Generating 
Station, Units 1, 2, and 3

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing a 
partial exemption from several of the record keeping requirements in 
its regulations in response to an August 13, 2015, request from the 
Southern California Edison Company (the licensee). Specifically, the 
licensee requested that the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, 
Units 1, 2, and 3, be granted a partial exemption from regulations that 
require retention of records for certain systems, structures, and 
components until the termination of the operating license.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2016-0148 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-2016-0148. 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 in this notice (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: Marlayna Vaaler, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-3178; email: 
[email protected], U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Units 1, 2, and 3 
(SONGS), operated by the Southern California Edison Company (SCE) is 
located approximately 4 miles south of San Clemente, California. SONGS, 
Unit 1, Docket No. 50-206, was a Westinghouse 456 megawatt electric 
(MWe) pressurized water reactor which was granted Facility Operating 
License No. DPR-13 on January 1, 1968 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML13309A138), and ceased operation on November 30, 1992 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML13319B040). The licensee completed defueling on March 
6, 1993 (ADAMS Accession No. ML13319B055), and maintained the unit in 
SAFSTOR until June 1999, when it initiated decommissioning (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML13319B111). On December 28, 1993 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML13319B059), the NRC approved the Permanently Defueled Technical 
Specifications for SONGS, Unit 1. SCE submitted the proposed 
Decommissioning Plan for SONGS, Unit 1, on November 3, 1994 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML13319B073). As a result of the 1996 revision to the 
regulations in section 50.82 of title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), the NRC replaced the requirement for a 
decommissioning plan with a requirement for a Post Shutdown 
Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR). On August 28, 1996, the 
SONGS, Unit 1, Decommissioning Plan became the SONGS 1 PSDAR (61 FR 
67079; December 19, 1996). On December 15, 1998 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML13184A353), SCE submitted an update to the PSDAR to the NRC, as 
required by 10 CFR 50.82(a)(7), in order to begin planning for the 
dismantlement and decommissioning of SONGS, Unit 1.
    SONGS, Units 2 and 3, Docket Nos. 50-361 and 50-362, are Combustion 
Engineering 1127 MWe pressurized water reactors, which were granted 
Facility Operating Licenses NPF-10 on February 16, 1982, and NPF-15 on 
November 15, 1982, respectively. In June 2013, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(1)(i), the licensee certified to the NRC that as of June 12, 
2013, operations had ceased at SONGS, Units 2 and 3 (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML131640201). The licensee later certified, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(1)(ii), that all fuel had been removed from the reactor 
vessels of both units, and committed to maintaining the units in a 
permanently defueled status (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML13204A304 and 
ML13183A391 for Unit 2 and Unit 3, respectively). Therefore, pursuant 
to 10 CFR 50.82(a)(2), SCE's 10 CFR part 50 licenses do not authorize 
operation of SONGS or emplacement or retention of fuel into the reactor 
vessels.
    The PSDAR for SONGS, Units 2 and 3, was submitted on September 23, 
2014 (ADAMS Accession No. ML14272A121), and the associated public 
meeting was held on October 27, 2014, in Carlsbad, California (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML14352A063). The NRC confirmed its review of the SONGS, 
Units 2 and 3, PSDAR and addressed public comments in a letter dated 
August 20, 2015 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15204A383). On July 17, 2015, 
the NRC approved the Permanently Defueled Technical Specifications for 
SONGS, Units 2 and 3 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15139A390).

II. Request/Action

    By letter dated August 13, 2015 (ADAMS Accession No. ML15231A107), 
SCE filed a request for NRC approval of an exemption from the record 
retention requirements of: (1) 10 CFR part 50, appendix A, Criterion 1, 
which requires

[[Page 49282]]

certain records be retained throughout the life of the unit; (2) 10 CFR 
part 50, appendix B, Criterion XVII, which requires certain records be 
retained consistent with regulatory requirements for a duration 
established by the licensee; (3) 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3), which requires 
certain records be maintained until termination of a license issued 
pursuant to 10 CFR part 50; and (4) 10 CFR 50.71(c), which requires 
certain records be maintained consistent with various elements of the 
NRC regulations, facility technical specifications and other licensing 
bases documents.
    The licensee is proposing to eliminate: (1) The records related to 
the nuclear power units and associated systems, structures, and 
components (SSCs), when the licensing basis requirements previously 
applicable to the nuclear power units and associated SSCs are no longer 
effective (e.g., removed from the PSDAR, Defueled Safety Analysis 
Report, Updated Final Safety Analysis Report, and/or technical 
specifications by appropriate change mechanisms); and (2) the records 
related to SSCs associated with safe storage of the fuel in the spent 
fuel pool (SFP), when the spent nuclear fuel has been completely 
transferred from the SFP to dry storage, the spent fuel building is 
ready for demolition, and the associated licensing bases are no longer 
effective. The licensee cites record retention exemptions granted to 
Zion Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and 2 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML111260277), Millstone Power Station, Unit 1, (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML070110567), and Haddam Neck Plant (ADAMS Accession No. ML052160088), 
as precedents for the NRC granting SCE's request.
    Records associated with residual radiological activity and with 
programmatic controls necessary to support decommissioning, such as 
security and quality assurance, are not affected by the exemption 
request because they will be retained as decommissioning records until 
the termination of the SONGS license. In addition, the licensee did not 
request an exemption associated with any other record keeping 
requirements for the storage of spent fuel at its Independent Spent 
Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI) under 10 CFR part 50 or the general 
license requirements of 10 CFR part 72. No exemption was requested from 
the decommissioning records retention requirements of 10 CFR 50.75, or 
any other requirements of 10 CFR part 50 applicable to decommissioning 
and dismantlement.

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 when 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. However, the 
Commission will not consider granting an exemption unless special 
circumstances are present. Special circumstances are described in 10 
CFR 50.12(a)(2).
    As described in the PSDAR, SONGS, Unit 1, is being returned to a 
condition suitable for unrestricted use. According to the August 13, 
2015, submittal, there are no SSCs classified as safety-related 
remaining at SONGS, Unit 1. Plant dismantlement is complete and nearly 
all of the SSCs have been shipped offsite for disposal. Only the spent 
fuel, reactor vessel, and the below-grade portions of some buildings 
remain onsite. The principal remaining decommissioning activities are 
soil remediation, compaction, and grading. This is to be completed in 
conjunction with the future decommissioning of the ISFSI subsequent to 
shipment offsite of the SONGS stored spent fuel.
    The August 13, 2015, submittal also stated that decommissioning of 
SONGS, Units 2 and 3, has begun and the nuclear reactor and essentially 
all associated SSCs in the nuclear steam supply system and balance of 
plant that supported the generation of power have been retired in place 
and are being prepared for removal. The SSCs that remain operable are 
associated with the SFP and the spent fuel building, are needed to meet 
other regulatory requirements, or are needed to support other site 
facilities (e.g., radioactive waste handling, ventilation and air 
conditioning, etc.). No remaining SSCs are classified as safety-
related.
    The licensee's general justification for eliminating records 
associated with SONGS, Units 1, 2, and 3, SSCs that have been or will 
be removed from service under the NRC license, dismantled, or 
demolished, is that these SSCs will not in the future serve any SONGS, 
Units 1, 2, or 3 functions regulated by the NRC. SCE's dismantlement 
plans involve evaluating SSCs with respect to the current facility 
safety analysis; progressively removing them from the licensing basis 
where necessary through appropriate change mechanisms (e.g., 10 CFR 
50.59 or via NRC-approved technical specification changes, as 
applicable); revising the Defueled Safety Analysis Report and/or 
Updated Safety Analysis Report as necessary; and then proceeding with 
an orderly dismantlement. Dismantlement of the plant structures will 
also include dismantling existing records storage facilities.
    While SCE intends to retain the records required by its licenses as 
the project transitions from current plant conditions to a fully 
dismantled plant with the fuel in dry storage, plant dismantlement will 
obviate the regulatory and business need for maintenance of most 
records. As the SSCs are removed from the licensing basis and the need 
for the associated records is, on a practical basis, eliminated, the 
licensee proposes that they be exempted from the records retention 
requirements for SSCs and historical activities that are no longer 
relevant, thereby eliminating the associated regulatory and economic 
burdens of creating alternative storage locations, relocating records, 
and retaining irrelevant records.
    The exemption request states that all records necessary for spent 
fuel and spent fuel storage SSCs and activities have been, and will 
continue to be, retained for the SFP throughout its functional life. 
Similar to other plant records, once the SFP is emptied of fuel, 
drained and ready for demolition, there will be no safety-significant 
function or other regulatory need for retaining SFP related records. In 
addition, SCE recognized in its application that the SONGS site will 
continue to be under NRC regulation until license termination, 
primarily due to residual radioactivity. The operational, radiological, 
and other necessary programmatic controls (such as security and quality 
assurance) for the facility, as well as the implementation of controls 
for the defueled condition and decommissioning activities, will 
continue to be appropriately addressed through the 10 CFR part 50 
licenses and current decommissioning plan documents such as the PSDAR, 
Updated Final Safety Analysis Report, and plant technical 
specifications.
     The Exemption is Authorized by Law: The NRC staff has 
determined that granting the licensee's proposed exemption will not 
result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 
other laws, or the Commission's regulations. Therefore, the exemption 
from the record keeping requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 
50, appendix A, Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, appendix B, Criterion 
XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) is authorized by law.
     The Exemption Presents no Undue Risk to Public Health and 
Safety: Removal of the underlying SSCs

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associated with the records for which SCE has requested an exemption 
from record keeping requirements has been or will be determined by the 
licensee to have no adverse public health and safety impact, in 
accordance with 10 CFR 50.59 or an NRC-approved license amendment. 
These change processes involve either a determination by the licensee 
or an approval from the NRC that the affected SSCs no longer serve any 
safety purpose regulated by the NRC. Elimination of records associated 
with these removed SSCs can have no impact to public health and safety.
    The partial exemption from the record keeping requirements of 10 
CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 50, appendix A, Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, 
appendix B, Criterion XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) for the records 
described above is administrative in nature and will have no impact on 
any remaining decommissioning activities or on radiological effluents. 
The exemption will only advance the schedule for disposition of the 
specified records. Considering the content of these records, the 
elimination of these records on an advanced timetable will have no 
reasonable possibility of presenting any undue risk to the public 
health and safety.
     The Exemption is Consistent With the Common Defense and 
Security: The elimination of the record keeping requirements does not 
involve information or activities that could potentially impact the 
common defense and security of the United States. Upon dismantlement of 
the affected SSCs, the records have no functional purpose relative to 
maintaining the safe operation of the SSCs, maintaining conditions that 
would affect the ongoing health and safety of workers or the public, or 
informing decisions related to nuclear security.
    Rather, the exemption requested is administrative in nature and 
would only advance the current schedule for disposition of the 
specified records. Therefore, the partial exemption from the record 
keeping requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 50, appendix A, 
Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, appendix B, Criterion XVII; and 10 CFR 
50.59(d)(3) for the types of records described above is consistent with 
the common defense and security.
     Special Circumstances: Paragraph 50.12(a)(2) states, in 
part: ``The Commission will not consider granting an exemption unless 
special circumstances are present. Special circumstances are present 
whenever: . . . (ii) 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; (iii) 
Compliance would result in undue hardship or other costs that are 
significantly in excess of those contemplated when the regulation was 
adopted . . . .''
    Criterion 1 of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix A, states in part: 
``Appropriate records of the design, fabrication, erection, and testing 
of structures, systems, and components important to safety shall be 
maintained by or under the control of the nuclear power unit licensee 
throughout the life of the unit.''
    Criterion XVII of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix B, states in part: 
``Sufficient records shall be maintained to furnish evidence of 
activities affecting quality.''
    Paragraph 50.59(d)(3) states in part: ``The records of changes in 
the facility must be maintained until the termination of an operating 
license issued under this part. . . .'' Paragraph 50.71(c), states in 
part: ``Records that are required by the regulations in this part or 
Part 52 of this chapter, by license condition, or by technical 
specifications must be retained for the period specified by the 
appropriate regulation, license condition, or technical specification. 
If a retention period is not otherwise specified, these records must be 
retained until the Commission terminates the facility license. . . .''
    In the Statement of Considerations (SOC) for the final rulemaking, 
``Retention Periods for Records'' (53 FR 19240; May 27, 1988), in 
response to public comments received during the rulemaking process, the 
NRC stated that records must be retained ``for NRC to ensure compliance 
with the safety and health aspects of the nuclear environment and for 
the NRC to accomplish its mission to protect the public health and 
safety.'' In the SOC, the Commission also explained that requiring 
licensees to maintain adequate records assists the NRC ``in judging 
compliance and noncompliance, to act on possible noncompliance, and to 
examine facts as necessary following any incident.''
    These regulations apply to licensees in decommissioning despite the 
fact that, during the decommissioning process, safety-related SSCs are 
retired or disabled and subsequently removed from NRC licensing basis 
documents by appropriate change mechanisms. Appropriate removal of an 
SSC from the licensing basis requires either a determination by the 
licensee or an approval from the NRC that the SSC no longer has the 
potential to cause an accident, event, or other problem which would 
adversely impact public health and safety.
    The records subject to removal under this exemption are associated 
with SSCs that had been important to safety during power operation or 
operation of the SFP but are no longer capable of causing an event, 
incident, or condition that would adversely impact public health and 
safety, as evidenced by their appropriate removal from the licensing 
basis documents. If the SSCs no longer have the potential to cause 
these scenarios, then it is reasonable to conclude that the records 
associated with these SSCs would not reasonably be necessary to assist 
the NRC in determining compliance and noncompliance, taking action on 
possible noncompliance, and examining facts following an incident. 
Therefore, their retention would not serve the underlying purpose of 
the rule.
    In addition, once removed from the licensing basis documents, SSCs 
are no longer governed by the NRC's regulations, and therefore are not 
subject to compliance with the safety and health aspects of the nuclear 
environment. As such, retention of records associated with SSCs that 
are or will no longer be part of the facility serves no safety or 
regulatory purpose, nor does it serve the underlying purpose of the 
rule of maintaining compliance with the safety and health aspects of 
the nuclear environment in order to accomplish the NRC's mission. 
Accordingly, special circumstances are present which the NRC may 
consider, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), to grant the requested 
exemption.
    Records which continue to serve the underlying purpose of the rule, 
that is, to maintain compliance and to protect public health and safety 
in support of the NRC's mission, will continue to be retained pursuant 
to the regulations in 10 CFR part 50 and 10 CFR part 72. These retained 
records not subject to the exemption include those associated with 
programmatic controls, such as those pertaining to residual 
radioactivity, security, and quality assurance, as well as records 
associated with the ISFSI and spent fuel assemblies.
    The retention of records required by 10 CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 
50, appendix A, Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, appendix B, Criterion 
XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) provides assurance that records associated 
with SSCs will be captured, indexed, and stored in an environmentally 
suitable and retrievable condition. Given the volume of records 
associated with the SSCs, compliance with the records retention rule 
results in a considerable cost to the licensee.

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Retention of the volume of records associated with the SSCs during the 
operational phase is appropriate to serve the underlying purpose of 
determining compliance and noncompliance, taking action on possible 
noncompliance, and examining facts following an incident, as discussed 
above.
    However, the cost effect of retaining operational phase records 
beyond the operations phase until the termination of the license was 
not fully considered or understood when the records retention rule was 
put in place. For example, existing records storage facilities are 
often eliminated as decommissioning progresses. Retaining records 
associated with SSCs and activities that no longer serve a safety or 
regulatory purpose would therefore necessitate creation of new 
facilities and retention of otherwise unneeded administrative support 
personnel. As such, compliance with the rule would result in an undue 
cost in excess of that contemplated when the rule was adopted. 
Accordingly, special circumstances are present which the NRC may 
consider, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii), to grant the requested 
exemption.
     Environmental Considerations: Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b) 
and (c)(25), the granting of an exemption from the requirements of any 
regulation in Chapter I of 10 CFR 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 are among those 
identified in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi).
    The NRC staff has determined that approval of the exemption request 
involves no significant hazards consideration because allowing the 
licensee exemption from the record keeping requirements of 10 CFR 
50.71(c); 10 CFR part 50, appendix A, Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, 
appendix B, Criterion XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) at the 
decommissioning San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Units 1, 2, and 
3 does not (1) involve a significant increase in the probability or 
consequences of an accident previously evaluated; (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 (10 CFR 50.92(c)). Likewise, there is no significant 
change in the types or significant increase in the amounts of any 
effluents that may be released offsite, and no significant increase in 
individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure.
    The exempted regulations are not associated with construction, so 
there is no significant construction impact. The exempted regulations 
do not concern the source term (i.e., potential amount of radiation 
involved an accident) or accident mitigation; therefore, there is no 
significant increase in the potential for, or consequences from, 
radiological accidents. Allowing the licensee partial exemption from 
the record retention requirements for which the exemption is sought 
involves record keeping requirements, as well as reporting requirements 
of an administrative, managerial, or organizational nature.
    Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b) and 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25), no 
environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be 
prepared in connection with the approval of this exemption request.

IV. Conclusions

    The NRC staff has determined that the requested partial exemption 
from the record keeping requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 
50, appendix A, Criterion I; 10 CFR part 50, appendix B, Criterion 
XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) will not present an undue risk to the 
public health and safety. The destruction of the identified records 
will not impact remaining decommissioning activities; plant operations, 
configuration, and/or radiological effluents; operational and/or 
installed SSCs that are quality-related or important to safety; or 
nuclear security. The NRC staff has determined that the destruction of 
the identified records is administrative in nature and does not involve 
information or activities that could potentially impact the common 
defense and security of the United States.
    The purpose for the record keeping regulations is to assist the NRC 
in carrying out its mission to protect the public health and safety by 
ensuring that the licensing and design basis of the facility is 
understood, documented, preserved and retrievable in such a way that 
will aid the NRC in determining compliance and noncompliance, taking 
action on possible noncompliance, and examining facts following an 
incident. Since the SONGS SSCs that were safety-related or important to 
safety have been or will be removed from the licensing basis and 
removed from the plant, the staff agrees that the records identified in 
the partial exemption will no longer be required to achieve the 
underlying purpose of the records retention rule.
    Accordingly, the Commission 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 are present. 
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants the Southern California Edison 
Company a one-time partial exemption from the record keeping 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.71(c); 10 CFR part 50, appendix A, Criterion 
I; 10 CFR part 50, appendix B, Criterion XVII; and 10 CFR 50.59(d)(3) 
for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Units 1, 2, and 3 to 
advance the schedule to remove records associated with SSCs that have 
been removed from NRC licensing basis documents by appropriate change 
mechanisms.
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 18th day of July 2016.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John R. Tappert,
Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery and Waste 
Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2016-17772 Filed 7-26-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P