[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 113 (Wednesday, June 14, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27297-27300]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-12270]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 72-1014, 72-59, and 50-271; NRC-2017-0134]


Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.; Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power 
Station; Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation

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 a request submitted by Entergy Nuclear 
Operations, Inc. (Entergy) on November 9, 2016, and supplemented on 
January 9, 2017, for its general license to operate an independent 
spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) at the Vermont Yankee Nuclear 
Power Station (VYNPS). This exemption would permit the VYNPS to load 
and store certain low-enriched channeled undamaged fuel assemblies with 
higher enriched fuel assemblies in the same HI-STORM 100 multi-purpose 
canister (MPC)-68M using Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1014, 
Amendment No. 10.

[[Page 27298]]


DATES: June 14, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0134 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-2017-0134. 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 it is available 
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in 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: Yen-Ju Chen, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555; telephone: 301-415-1018; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The VYNPS began operation in 1972. The reactor was permanently shut 
down on December 29, 2014. The VYNPS currently stores spent boiling-
water reactor (BWR) fuel assemblies at its ISFSI in thirteen (13) HI-
STORM 100 casks under CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 2. The remaining 
spent fuel assemblies were removed from the reactor and transferred to 
the spent fuel pool. Entergy, which owns the facility, submitted the 
VYNPS Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR) to the 
NRC on December 19, 2014. In the PSDAR, Entergy stated its intention to 
move all of the spent nuclear fuel assemblies into dry cask storage by 
2020 and put the plant into SAFSTOR \1\ until it is ready to fully 
decommission the facility.
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    \1\ A method of decommissioning in which a nuclear facility is 
placed and maintained in a condition that allows the facility to be 
safely stored and subsequently decontaminated (deferred 
decontamination) to levels that permit release for unrestricted use.
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    Consistent with subpart K of part 72 of title 10 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (10 CFR), a general license is issued for the 
storage of spent fuel in an ISFSI at power reactor sites to persons 
authorized to possess or operate nuclear power reactors under 10 CFR 
part 50. Entergy is currently authorized to store spent fuel at the 
VYNPS ISFSI under the 10 CFR part 72 general license provisions. 
Entergy plans to use Holtec HI-STORM 100 storage casks, as approved by 
the NRC under CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 10, at the VYNPS for dry 
storage of spent nuclear fuel in MPC-68M canisters.

II. Request/Action

    By letter dated November 9, 2016, as supplemented on January 9, 
2017, Entergy submitted a request for an exemption from those 
provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3), 72.212(b)(5)(i), 
72.212(b)(11), and 72.214 that require compliance with the terms, 
conditions, and specifications of CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 10, for 
the VYNPS to load and store certain low-enriched channeled undamaged 
fuel assemblies with higher enriched fuel assemblies in the same Holtec 
HI-STORM 100 MPC-68M canister.

III. Discussion

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 72.7, the Commission may, upon application by 
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant such exemptions 
from the requirements of the regulations of 10 CFR part 72 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.
    The NRC staff prepared a safety evaluation report (SER) (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML17054C788) to document the evaluation of the proposed 
mixed-enrichment fuel loading arrangement to assure continued 
protection of public health and safety, common defense and security, 
and the environment. As summarized below, the NRC's safety review 
concludes that the requested exemption does not affect the ability of 
the cask system to meet the requirements of 10 CFR part 72.

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law

    This exemption would permit the VYNPS to load and store certain 
low-enriched (up to 3.3 wt.% U-235) channeled BWR fuel assemblies 
classified as undamaged per CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 10, in the same 
MPC with higher enriched (planar-average initial enrichment up to 4.8 
wt.% U-235) BWR fuel assemblies. The provisions from which the NRC is 
granting the exemption require the VYNPS to follow the conditions of 
CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 10, that when loading certain low-enriched 
channeled undamaged BWR fuel assemblies in an MPC-68M, all fuel 
assemblies in the same MPC are limited to 3.3 wt.% U-235 maximum 
planar-average initial enrichment.
    Section 72.7 allows the Commission to grant exemptions from the 
requirements of 10 CFR part 72 if the exemption is authorized by law 
and will not endanger life or property nor the common defense and 
security. Issuance of this exemption is consistent with the Atomic 
Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and not otherwise inconsistent with 
NRC's regulations or other applicable laws. Therefore, issuance of the 
exemption is authorized by law.

B. The Exemption Presents No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety

    Approval of this exemption request will allow VYNPS to load and 
store certain low-enriched channeled undamaged BWR fuel assemblies in 
the same HI-STORM 100 MCP-68M canister, with higher enriched BWR fuel 
assemblies. As discussed in the SER and summarized in the following 
sections, the NRC staff finds that Entergy's proposed action is 
acceptable and will not endanger life or property.
Review of the Requested Exemption
    The classification of certain low-enriched channeled BWR fuel as 
undamaged for the Holtec HI-STORM 100 system was reviewed previously 
and approved by the NRC in Amendment No. 9, Revision 1, on March 21, 
2016. The CoC has a restriction that when loading certain low-enriched 
channeled undamaged BWR fuel (limited to 3.3 wt.% U-235), all fuels in 
the same MPC are limited to 3.3 wt.% U-235 maximum planar-average 
initial enrichment.
    Entergy stated that the VYNPS has a large number of assemblies that 
fall into the category of low-enriched channeled undamaged BWR fuel. 
These assemblies can be mixed with higher enriched fuel in the same 
cask to reduce dose rates because placing the low-enriched

[[Page 27299]]

assemblies on the periphery of the cask acts as shielding and blocks 
the radiation from the higher-enriched fuels stored in the center of 
the cask. In order to reduce maximum dose rates from the casks for the 
decommissioning loading plan, Entergy is seeking an exemption from the 
loading restriction.
    The NRC staff reviewed the requested exemption and determined that 
it does not change the fundamental design, components, or safety 
features of the storage system. The NRC staff evaluated the applicable 
potential safety impacts of granting the exemption to assess the 
potential for any danger to life or property or the common defense and 
security. Specifically, the NRC staff reviewed the applicant's 
criticality and shielding evaluations for the proposed exemption.
    Criticality Review for the Requested Exemption: The NRC staff 
evaluated the adequacy of the description, methods, and analyses 
related to the criticality evaluation for the requested action to 
ensure that the storage of higher enrichments with low enriched 
channeled undamaged fuel in the same MPC-68M meets the criticality 
safety requirements of 10 CFR part 72. The NRC staff concludes that the 
HI-STORM 100 Cask System continues to meet the regulatory requirements 
that the dry cask storage system as modified will continue to remain 
subcritical under all credible normal, off-normal, and accident 
conditions and provide reasonable assurance for safe storage of spent 
fuel.
    Shielding Review for the Requested Exemption: The objective of the 
review is to ensure that, with the exemption request, the VYNPS 
continues to provide adequate protection against direct radiation to 
the onsite operating workers and members of the public, and that the 
ISFSI continues to satisfy the regulatory requirements during normal 
operating, off-normal, and design-basis accident conditions. The NRC 
staff found that the mixing of lower enriched fuel (at 3.3 wt.% U-235) 
and higher enriched fuel (up to 4.8 wt.% U-235) reduced the overall 
dose rates. Therefore, the staff concludes that granting this exemption 
assures that the VYNPS ISFSI continues to satisfy the dose limits as 
specified in 10 CFR 72.104. It also provides benefit to the onsite 
workers and the public.

C. The Exemption Is Consistent With the Common Defense and Security

    Review of Common Defense and Security: The NRC staff also 
considered potential impacts of granting the exemption on the common 
defense and security. The requested exemption is not related to any 
security or common defense aspect of the VYNPS ISFSI, therefore 
granting the exemption would not result in any potential impacts to 
common defense and security.
    Based on its review, the NRC staff has determined that under the 
requested exemption, the storage system will continue to meet the 
safety requirements of 10 CFR part 72 and the offsite dose limits of 10 
CFR part 20 and, therefore, will not endanger life or property. The NRC 
staff also finds that the exemption would not endanger common defense 
and security.

D. Otherwise in the Public Interest

    In considering whether granting the exemption is in the public 
interest, the NRC staff considered the alternative of not granting the 
exemption. If the exemption was not granted, in order to comply with 
the CoC, when the VYNPS loaded certain low-enriched channeled undamaged 
BWR fuel, all fuels in the same MPC would be limited to 3.3 wt.% U-235 
maximum planar-average initial enrichment.
    Entergy stated that granting the exemption is in the public 
interest since it will reduce operational dose rate by loading certain 
low-enriched channeled undamaged BWR fuel with higher enriched BWR fuel 
in the same MPC, and NRC staff confirms this statement in Section B.6 
of the SER. Additionally, granting the exemption would support VYNPS's 
cask loading schedule as part of its decommissioning effort.
    The NRC staff concludes that allowing the VYNPS to load certain 
low-enriched channeled undamaged BWR fuel with higher enriched BWR fuel 
in the same MPC would continue to provide adequate protection of public 
health and safety. Therefore, granting the exemption is otherwise in 
the public interest.

E. Environmental Considerations

    The NRC staff also considered whether there would be any 
significant environmental impacts associated with the exemption. For 
this proposed action, the NRC staff performed an environmental 
assessment pursuant to 10 CFR 51.30. The environmental assessment 
concluded that the proposed action would not significantly impact the 
quality of the human environment. The NRC staff concluded that the 
proposed action would not result in any changes in the types or amounts 
of any radiological or non-radiological effluents that may be released 
offsite, and there is no significant increase in occupational or public 
radiation exposure because of the proposed action. The Environmental 
Assessment and the Finding of No Significant Impact was published on 
June 6, 2017 (82 FR 26144).

IV. Conclusions

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
72.7, this exemption is authorized by law, will not endanger life or 
property or the common defense and security, and is otherwise in the 
public interest. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants Entergy an 
exemption from those provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 10 CFR 
72.212(b)(3), 10 CFR 72.212(b)(5)(i), 10 CFR 72.214, and the portion of 
10 CFR 72.212(b)(11) that require compliance with terms, conditions, 
and specifications of the CoC No. 1014, Amendment No. 10, for the VYNPS 
to load and store certain low-enriched channeled undamaged fuel 
assemblies with higher enriched fuel assemblies in the same Holtec HI-
STORM 100 MPC-68M canister.

V. Availability of Documents

    The documents identified in the following table are available to 
interested persons through one or more of the methods indicated in the 
ADDRESSES section.

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               Document                       ADAMS Accession No.
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Entergy's exemption request, November  ML16319A102
 9, 2016.
Entergy's supplemental information,    ML17010A300
 January 9, 2017.
Certificate of Compliance No. 1014,    ML16144A177
 Amendment No. 10 for the HI-STORM
 100 Cask System, dated May 25, 2016.
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station   ML14357A110
 Post-Shutdown Decommissioning
 Activities Report, December 29, 2014.
NRC's SER for the exemption request,   ML17054C788
 dated May 26, 2017.
CoC and SER for Amendment No. 9,       ML16056A529
 Revision 1, to CoC 1014 issued on
 March 21, 2016.
Environmental Assessment (82 FR        ML16343A859
 26144, June 6, 2017).
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    The exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6 day of June, 2017.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John McKirgan,
Chief, Spent Fuel Licensing Branch, Division of Spent Fuel Management, 
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2017-12270 Filed 6-13-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P