[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 232 (Friday, December 2, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87083-87085]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-28962]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2014-0254]


Advanced Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk Assessment

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Interim staff guidance; issuance.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing 
Interim Staff Guidance (ISG), DC/COL-ISG-028, ``Assessing the Technical 
Adequacy of the Advanced Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk 
Assessment for the Design Certification Application and Combined 
License Application.'' The purpose of this ISG is to provide guidance 
for assessing the technical adequacy of the probabilistic risk 
assessment (PRA) needed for advanced light-water reactor (ALWR) design 
certification (DC) and combined license (COL) applications. This 
guidance addresses only the typical conditions for the DC and COL 
application.

DATES: The DC/COL-ISG-028 is available on December 2, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2014-0254 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-2014-0254. 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]. For 
the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS accession numbers are provided 
in a table in the ``Availability of Documents'' section of this 
document.
     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.
     NRC's Public Web site: NRC posts its issued staff guidance 
at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/isg.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Lintz, Office of New Reactors, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001; 
telephone: 301-415-4051; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Discussion

    The NRC is issuing DC/COL-ISG-028, ``Assessing the Technical 
Adequacy of the Advanced Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk 
Assessment for the Design Certification Application and Combined 
License Application,'' to provide specific review guidance for 
assessing the technical adequacy of the PRA needed for an application 
for a DC of an ALWR under part 52 of title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), ``Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for 
Nuclear Power Plants,'' specifically 10 CFR 52.47(a)(27). This ISG will 
also apply to an application for a COL under 10 CFR 52.79(a)(46). 
Specifically, this guidance addresses how these applicants can use 
American Society of Mechanical Engineers/American Nuclear Society 
(ASME/ANS) RA-Sa-2009, ``Addenda to ASME/ANS RA-S-2008 Standard for 
Level 1/Large

[[Page 87084]]

Early Release Frequency Probabilistic Risk Assessment for Nuclear Power 
Plant Applications,'' (the PRA Standard), as endorsed by NRC's 
Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.200, Revision 2, ``An Approach for Determining 
the Technical Adequacy of Probabilistic Risk Assessment Results for 
Risk-Informed Activities.''
    The NRC staff intends to incorporate DC/COL-ISG-028 into the next 
revision of RG 1.200, Revision 2; RG 1.206, ``Combined License 
Applications for Nuclear Power Plants;'' NUREG-0800, ``Standard Review 
Plan (SRP) for the Review of Safety Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power 
Plants;'' and SRP Chapter 19.0, ``Probabilistic Risk Assessment and 
Severe Accident Evaluation for New Reactors,'' as appropriate.

II. Public Comments

    The NRC issued draft DC/COL-ISG-028, ``Assessing the Technical 
Adequacy of the Advanced Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk 
Assessment for the Design Certification Application and Combined 
License Application,'' in the Federal Register on November 26, 2014 (79 
FR 70575), for a 60-day comment period. The comment period ended on 
January 26, 2015.
    The Commission received 49 comments from the Nuclear Energy 
Institute (NEI). These comments were addressed and are available in the 
comment resolution document.

III. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    The NRC is issuing this ISG to assist the NRC staff when assessing 
the technical adequacy of PRAs submitted as part of ALWR DC and COL 
applications. Issuance of this ISG does not constitute backfitting as 
defined in Sec.  50.109 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(10 CFR) (the Backfit Rule) or otherwise be inconsistent with the issue 
finality provisions in 10 CFR part 52. The NRC staff's position is 
based upon the following considerations.
    1. The ISG positions do not constitute backfitting, inasmuch as the 
ISG is internal guidance to NRC staff.
    The ISG provides interim guidance to the NRC staff on how to review 
an application for NRC regulatory approval in the form of licensing. 
Changes in internal NRC staff guidance are not matters for which either 
nuclear power plant applicants or licensees are protected under 10 CFR 
50.109 or the issue finality provisions of 10 CFR part 52.
    2. Backfitting and issue finality--with certain exceptions 
discussed below--do not protect current or future applicants.
    Applicants are not, with certain exceptions, protected by either 
the Backfit Rule or any issue finality provisions under 10 CFR part 52. 
This is because neither the Backfit Rule nor the issue finality 
provisions under 10 CFR part 52--with certain exclusions discussed 
below--were intended to apply to every NRC action that substantially 
changes the expectations of current and future applicants.
    The exceptions to the general principle are applicable whenever an 
applicant references a 10 CFR part 52 license (e.g., an early site 
permit) or NRC regulatory approval (e.g., a design certification rule) 
with specified issue finality provisions. The NRC staff does not, at 
this time, intend to impose the positions represented in the ISG in a 
manner that is inconsistent with any issue finality provisions. If, in 
the future, the NRC staff seeks to impose a position in the ISG in a 
manner that does not provide issue finality as described in the 
applicable issue finality provision, then the NRC staff must address 
the criteria for avoiding issue finality as described in the applicable 
issue finality provision.
    3. NRC consideration of PRA impacts to address the application of 
the PRA Standard are outside the scope of matters subject to 
backfitting protection, and are not a violation of issue finality 
provisions.
    The NRC consideration of PRA impacts to address the application of 
the PRA Standard, and an applicant's submission of risk-assessment 
information needed to support the NRC's assessment of the technical 
adequacy of the PRA, do not fall within the scope of matters that 
constitute backfitting. Consideration of PRA impacts to address the 
application of the PRA Standard falls within the scope of matters 
protected under issue finality provisions. However, this protection 
applies only if a COL application references a PRA. Therefore, issuance 
of this ISG does not constitute a violation or inconsistency of the 
issue finality provisions applicable to COL applications referencing a 
PRA.

IV. Congressional Review Act

    This ISG is a rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act (5 
U.S.C. 801-808). However, the Office of Management and Budget has not 
found it to be a major rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act.

V. Availability of Documents

    The documents identified in the following table are available as 
indicated.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Document title                    ADAMS  accession No.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interim Staff Guidance-028, ``Assessing   ML16130A468
 the Technical Adequacy of the Advanced
 Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk
 Assessment for the Design Certification
 Application and Combined License
 Application'' (Clean Version).
Interim Staff Guidance-028, ``Assessing   ML16155A055
 the Technical Adequacy of the Advanced
 Light-Water Reactor Probabilistic Risk
 Assessment for the Design Certification
 Application and Combined License
 Application'' (Redline Version).
Interim Staff Guidance-028, Comment       ML16130A466
 Resolution Table.
NUREG-0800, Revision 3, ``Standard        ML15089A068
 Review Plan for the Review of Safety
 Analysis Reports for Nuclear Power
 Plants: LWR Edition, Chapter 19.0,
 Severe Accidents''.
Regulatory Guide 1.200, Revision 2, ``An  ML090410014
 Approach for Determining the Technical
 Adequacy of Probabilistic Risk
 Assessment Results for Risk-Informed
 Activities''.
Regulatory Guide 1.206, ``Combined        ML070720184
 License Applications for Nuclear Power
 Plants''.
------------------------------------------------------------------------



[[Page 87085]]

     Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day of November, 2016.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Joseph Colaccino,
Chief, New Reactor Rulemaking and Guidance Branch, Division of 
Engineering Infrastructure and Advanced Reactors, Office of New 
Reactors.
[FR Doc. 2016-28962 Filed 12-1-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P