[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 22 (Friday, February 3, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9243-9246]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-02336]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-461, 72-1046, 50-254, 50-265, 72-53, 50-219 and 72-15; 
NRC-2017-0014]


Exelon Generation Company, LLC; Clinton Power Station, Unit No. 
1; Quad Cities Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and 2; Oyster Creek 
Nuclear Generating Station

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 August 16, 2016, request from Exelon 
Generation Company, LLC (Exelon or the licensee), from certain 
regulatory requirements. The exemption would allow a certified fuel 
handler (CFH), besides a licensed senior operator, to approve the 
emergency suspension of security measures for Clinton Power Station, 
Unit No. 1 (CPS); Quad Cities Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and 2 
(QCNPS); and Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station (OCNGS) during 
certain emergency conditions or during severe weather.

DATES: The exemption was issued on January 23, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0014 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-2017-0014. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John G. Lamb, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3100; email: [email protected].

I. Background

    Exelon is the holder of Facility Operating License No. NPF-62 for 
CPS, Renewed Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-29 and DPR-30 for 
QCNPS, and Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-16 for OCNGS. The 
license provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to 
all rules, regulations, and orders of the NRC now or hereafter in 
effect. The CPS, QCNPS, and OCNGS facilities consist of boiling-water 
reactors located in DeWitt County, Illinois; Rock Island County, 
Illinois; and Ocean County, New Jersey, respectively, and site-specific 
licensed independent spent fuel storage installations (ISFSI) at CPS, 
QCNPS, and OCNGS.
    By letter dated January 7, 2011, the licensee submitted 
Certification of Permanent Cessation of Operations for OCNGS. In this 
letter, Exelon provided notification to the NRC of its intent to 
permanently cease power operation no later than December 31, 2019.
    By letter dated June 20, 2016, the licensee submitted Certification 
of Permanent Cessation of Operations for CPS. In this letter, Exelon 
provided notification to the NRC of its intent to permanently cease 
power operation by June 1, 2017.
    By letter dated June 20, 2016, the licensee submitted Certification 
of Permanent Cessation of Operations for QCNPS. In this letter, Exelon 
provided notification to the NRC of its intent to permanently cease 
power operation by June 1, 2018.
    In accordance with Sec.  50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii), and Sec.  
50.82(a)(2) of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR),

[[Page 9244]]

the 10 CFR part 50 licenses for the facilities will no longer authorize 
reactor operation, placement, or retention of fuel in the respective 
reactor vessel after certifications of permanent cessation of 
operations and of permanent removal of fuel from the reactor vessel are 
docketed for CPS, QCNPS, and OCNGS.
    By letter dated September 6, 2016, the NRC approved the Certified 
Fuel Handler Training and Retraining Program for CPS, QCNPS, and OCNGS.
    By letters dated December 14, 2016, Exelon withdrew its 
``Certification of Permanent Cessation of Power Operations'' for CPS 
and QCNPS. The withdrawal letters for CPS and QCNPS did not revise its 
request for exemption, and did not change the effectiveness of the 
exemption or the conditions required to implement the actions permitted 
by the exemption.

II. Request/Action

    On August 16, 2016, the licensee requested an exemption from Sec.  
73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii), pursuant to Sec.  73.5, ``Specific 
exemptions.'' Section 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) require, in part, that 
the suspension of security measures during certain emergency conditions 
or during severe weather be approved by a licensed senior operator. 
Exelon requested an exemption from these rules to allow either a 
licensed senior operator or a CFH to approve the suspension of security 
measures. There is no need for an exemption from these rules for a 
licensed senior operator because the current regulation allows the 
licensed senior operator to approve the suspension of security 
measures. The exemption request relates solely to the licensing 
requirements specified in the regulations for the staff directing 
suspension of security measures in accordance with Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) 
and (ii), and would allow a CFH, besides a licensed senior operator, to 
provide this approval. The exemption would allow the suspension of 
security measures during certain emergency conditions or during severe 
weather by a licensed senior operator or a CFH.
    The current Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) regulations state the 
licensed senior operator can approve suspension of security measures.
    The proposed exemption would authorize that the suspension of 
security measures must be approved as a minimum by either a licensed 
senior operator or a certified fuel handler, at a nuclear power plant 
reactor facility for which the certifications required under Sec.  
50.82(a)(1) have been submitted.

III. Discussion

    The NRC's security rules have long recognized the potential need to 
suspend security or safeguards measures under certain conditions. 
Accordingly, 10 CFR 50.54(x) and (y), first published in 1983, allow a 
licensee to take reasonable steps in an emergency that deviate from 
license conditions when those steps are ``needed to protect the public 
health and safety'' and there are no conforming comparable measures (48 
FR 13970; April 1, 1983). As originally issued, the deviation from 
license conditions must be approved by, as a minimum, a licensed senior 
operator. In 1986, in its final rule, ``Miscellaneous Amendments 
Concerning the Physical Protection of Nuclear Power Plants'' (51 FR 
27817; August 4, 1986), the Commission issued Sec.  73.55(a).
    In 1996, the NRC made a number of regulatory changes to address 
decommissioning. One of the changes was to amend Sec.  50.54 (x) and 
(y) to authorize a non-licensed operator called a ``Certified Fuel 
Handler,'' in addition to a licensed senior operator, to approve such 
protective steps. Specifically, in addressing the role of the CFH 
during emergencies, the Commission stated in the proposed rule, 
``Decommissioning of Nuclear Power Reactors'' (60 FR 37379; July 20, 
1995):

    The Commission is proposing to amend 10 CFR 50.54(y) to permit a 
certified fuel handler at nuclear power reactors that have 
permanently ceased operations and permanently removed fuel from the 
reactor vessel, subject to the requirements of Sec.  50.82(a) and 
consistent with the proposed definition of ``Certified Fuel 
Handler'' specified in Sec.  50.2, to make these evaluations and 
judgments. A nuclear power reactor that has permanently ceased 
operations and no longer has fuel in the reactor vessel does not 
require a licensed individual to monitor core conditions. A 
certified fuel handler at a permanently shutdown and defueled 
nuclear power reactor undergoing decommissioning is an individual 
who has the requisite knowledge and experience to evaluate plant 
conditions and make these judgments.

    In the final rule (61 FR 39298; July 29, 1996), the NRC added the 
following definition to Sec.  50.2: ``Certified fuel handler means, for 
a nuclear power reactor facility, a non-licensed operator who has 
qualified in accordance with a fuel handler training program approved 
by the Commission.'' However, the decommissioning rule did not propose 
or make parallel changes to Sec.  73.55(a), and did not discuss the 
role of a non-licensed CFH.
    In the final rule, ``Power Reactor Security Requirements'' (74 FR 
13926; March 27, 2009), the NRC relocated the security suspension 
requirements from Sec.  73.55(a) to Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii). The 
role of a CFH was not discussed in the rulemaking, so the suspension of 
security measures in accordance with Sec.  73.55(p) continued to 
require approval as a minimum by a licensed senior operator, even for a 
site that otherwise no longer operates.
    However, pursuant to Sec.  73.5, the Commission may, upon 
application by any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant 
exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 73, as it determines 
are authorized by law and will not endanger life or property or the 
common defense and security, and are otherwise in the public interest.

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law

    The exemption from Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) would allow a CFH, 
besides a licensed senior operator, to approve the suspension of 
security measures, under certain emergency conditions or severe 
weather. The licensee intends to align these regulations with Sec.  
50.54(y) by using the authority of a CFH in place of a licensed senior 
operator to approve the suspension of security measures during certain 
emergency conditions or during severe weather.
    Per Sec.  73.5, the Commission is allowed to grant exemptions from 
the regulations in 10 CFR part 73, as authorized by law. The NRC staff 
has determined that granting of the licensee's proposed exemption will 
not result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 
or other laws. Therefore, the exemption is authorized by law.

B. Will Not Endanger Life or Property or the Common Defense and 
Security

    Relaxing the requirement to allow a CFH, besides a licensed senior 
operator, to approve suspension of security measures during emergencies 
or severe weather will not endanger life or property or the common 
defense and security for the reasons described in this section.
    First, Sec.  73.55(p)(2) continues to require that ``[s]uspended 
security measures must be reinstated as soon as conditions permit.''
    Second, the suspension for non-weather emergency conditions under 
Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) will continue to be invoked only ``when this 
action is immediately needed to protect the public health and safety 
and no action consistent with license conditions and technical 
specifications that can provide adequate or equivalent protection is 
immediately apparent.'' Thus, the exemption would not prevent the 
licensee from meeting the underlying purpose of Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) to 
protect

[[Page 9245]]

public health and safety even after the exemption is granted.
    Third, the suspension for severe weather under Sec.  
73.55(p)(1)(ii) will continue to be used only when ``the suspension of 
affected security measures is immediately needed to protect the 
personal health and safety of security force personnel and no other 
immediately apparent action consistent with the license conditions and 
technical specifications can provide adequate or equivalent 
protection.'' The requirement to receive input from the security 
supervisor or manager will remain. The exemption would not prevent the 
licensee from meeting the underlying purpose of Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(ii) 
to protect the health and safety of the security force.
    Additionally, by letter dated September 6, 2016, the NRC approved 
Exelon's CFH training and retraining program for the CPS, QCNPS, and 
OCNGS facilities. The NRC staff found that, among other things, the 
program addresses the safe conduct of decommissioning activities, safe 
handling and storage of spent fuel, and the appropriate response to 
plant emergencies. Because the CFH is sufficiently trained and 
qualified under an NRC-approved program, the NRC staff considers a CFH 
to have sufficient knowledge of operational and safety concerns, such 
that allowing a CFH to suspend security measures during emergencies or 
severe weather will not result in undue risk to public health and 
safety.
    In addition, the exemption does not reduce the overall 
effectiveness of the physical security plan and has no adverse impacts 
to Exelon's ability to physically secure the sites or protect special 
nuclear material at CPS, QCNPS, and OCNGS, and thus would not have an 
effect on the common defense and security. The NRC staff has concluded 
that the exemption would not reduce security measures currently in 
place to protect against radiological sabotage. Therefore, relaxing the 
requirement to allow a CFH, besides a licensed senior operator, to 
approve the suspension of security measures in an emergency or during 
severe weather, does not adversely affect public health and safety 
issues or the assurance of the common defense and security.

C. Is Otherwise in the Public Interest

    Exelon's proposed exemption would relax the requirement to allow a 
CFH, besides a licensed senior operator, to approve suspension of 
security measures in an emergency when ``immediately needed to protect 
the public health and safety'' or during severe weather when 
``immediately needed to protect the personal health and safety of 
security force personnel.'' Without the exemption, the licensee cannot 
implement changes to its security plan to authorize a CFH to approve 
the temporary suspension of security regulations during an emergency or 
severe weather, comparable to the authority given to the CFH by the NRC 
when it published Sec.  CFR 50.54(y). Instead, the regulations would 
continue to require that a licensed senior operator be available to 
make decisions for a permanently shutdown plant, even though CPS, 
QCNPS, and OCNGS would no longer require a licensed senior operator 
after the certifications required by 10 CFR 50.82(a)(1)(i) and 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(1)(ii) were submitted. It is unclear how the licensee would 
implement emergency or severe weather suspensions of security measures 
without a licensed senior operator. This exemption is in the public 
interest for two reasons. First, without the exemption, there is 
uncertainty on how the licensee will invoke temporary suspension of 
security matters that may be needed for protecting public health and 
safety or the safety of the security force during emergencies and 
severe weather. The exemption would allow the licensee to make 
decisions pursuant to Sec.  73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) without having to 
maintain a staff of licensed senior operators. The exemption would also 
allow the licensee to have an established procedure in place to allow a 
trained CFH to suspend security measures in the event of an emergency 
or severe weather. Second, the consistent and efficient regulation of 
nuclear power plants serves the public interest. This exemption would 
assure consistency between the security regulations in 10 CFR part 73 
and CFR 50.54(y), and the requirements concerning licensed operators in 
10 CFR part 55. The NRC staff has determined that granting the 
licensee's proposed exemption would allow the licensee to designate an 
alternative position, with qualifications appropriate for a permanently 
shutdown and defueled reactor, to approve the suspension of security 
measures during an emergency to protect the public health and safety, 
and during severe weather to protect the safety of the security force, 
consistent with the similar authority provided by Sec.  50.54(y). 
Therefore, the exemption is in the public interest.

D. Environmental Considerations

    The NRC's approval of the exemption to security requirements 
belongs to a category of actions that the Commission, by rule or 
regulation, has declared to be a categorical exclusion, after first 
finding that the category of actions does not individually or 
cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment. 
Specifically, the exemption is categorically excluded from further 
analysis under Sec.  51.22(c)(25).
    Under Sec.  51.22(c)(25), the granting of an exemption from the 
requirements of any regulation of Chapter I to 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 
involve: Safeguard plans, and materials control and accounting 
inventory scheduling requirements; or involve other requirements of an 
administrative, managerial, or organizational nature.
    The Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of 
Nuclear Reactor Regulation, has determined that approval of the 
exemption request involves no significant hazards consideration because 
allowing a CFH, besides a licensed senior operator, to approve the 
security suspension at a defueled shutdown power plant does 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. The 
exempted security regulation is unrelated to any operational 
restriction. Accordingly, 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 
regulation is not associated with construction, so there is no 
significant construction impact. The exempted regulation does not 
concern the source term (i.e., potential amount of radiation in an 
accident), nor mitigation. Thus, there is no significant increase in 
the potential for, or consequences of, a radiological accident. The 
requirement to have a licensed senior operator approve departure from 
security actions may be

[[Page 9246]]

viewed as involving either safeguards, materials control, or managerial 
matters.
    Therefore, pursuant to Sec.  51.22(b) and (c)(25), no environmental 
impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in 
connection with the approval of this exemption request.

IV. Conclusions

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
73.5, the exemption is authorized by law and will not endanger life or 
property or the common defense and security, and is otherwise in the 
public interest. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants the licensee's 
request for an exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 73.55(p)(1)(i) 
and (ii), to authorize that the suspension of security measures must be 
approved as a minimum by either a licensed senior operator or a 
certified fuel handler, at a nuclear power plant reactor facility for 
which the certifications required under 10 CFR 50.82(a)(1) have been 
submitted.
    The exemption is effective upon receipt.

V. Availability of Documents

    The documents identified in the following table are available to 
interested persons.

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                                                        ADAMS accession
                Title                       Date              No.
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Exelon letter to NRC, ``Permanent           1/07/2011        ML110070507
 Cessation of Operations at Oyster
 Creek Nuclear Generating Station.''.
Exelon letter to NRC, Clinton Power         6/20/2016        ML16172A137
 Station, Unit 1, ``Certification of
 Permanent Cessation of Power
 Operations.''.......................
Exelon letter to NRC, Quad Cities           6/20/2016        ML16172A151
 Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and
 2, ``Certification of Permanent
 Cessation of Power Operations.''....
NRC letter to Exelon, Oyster Creek          9/06/2016        ML16222A787
 Nuclear Generating Station;
 ``Clinton Power Station, Unit No. 1;
 and Quad Cities Nuclear Power
 Station, Units 1 and 2--Approval of
 Certified Fuel Handler Training and
 Retraining Program.''...............
Exelon letter to NRC, Clinton Power         8/16/2016        ML16229A133
 Station, Unit No. 1, Quad Cities
 Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and
 2, and Oyster Creek Nuclear
 Generating Station, ``Request for
 Exemption from Specific Provisions
 in 10 CFR 7355(p)(1)(i) and
 (p)(1)(ii) Related to the Suspension
 of Security Measures in an Emergency
 or During Severe Weather.''.........
Exelon letter to NRC, Oyster Creek          5/17/2016        ML16138A129
 Nuclear Generating Station,
 ``License Amendment Request--
 Proposed Changes to Technical
 Specifications Section 6.0
 Administrative Controls for
 Permanently Defueled Condition''....
Exelon letter to NRC, Clinton Power         7/28/2016        ML16210A300
 Station, Unit No. 1, ``License
 Amendment Request--Proposed Changes
 to Technical Specifications Section
 5.0 Administrative Controls for
 Permanently Defueled Condition''....
Exelon letter to NRC, Quad Cities          10/20/2016        ML16294A203
 Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and
 2, ``License Amendment Request--
 Proposed Changes to Technical
 Specifications Section 5.0
 Administrative Controls for
 Permanently Defueled Condition......
Exelon Letter to NRC, Quad Cities          12/14/2016        ML16349A311
 Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and
 2, ``Withdrawal of Certification of
 Permanent Cessation of Power
 Operations.''.......................
Exelon Letter to NRC, Clinton Power        12/14/2016        ML16349A314
 Station, Unit No. 1, ``Withdrawal of
 Certification of Permanent Cessation
 of Power Operations.''..............
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    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of January 2017.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Anne T. Boland,
Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2017-02336 Filed 2-2-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P