[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 129 (Friday, July 7, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 31512-31514]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14290]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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  Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 129 / Friday, July 7, 2017 / Proposed 
Rules  

[[Page 31512]]



NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

[NRC-2016-0138]
RIN 3150-AJ78


List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: EnergySolutions\TM\ 
Corporation, VSC-24 Ventilated Storage Cask System, Renewal of Initial 
Certificate and Amendment Nos. 1-6

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its 
spent fuel storage regulations by revising the 
EnergySolutionsTM Corporation's (EnergySolutions or the 
applicant) VSC-24 Ventilated Storage Cask System listing within the 
``List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks'' to renew, for an 
additional 40 years, the initial certificate and Amendment Nos. 1-6 of 
Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1007. The renewal of the initial 
certificate and Amendment Nos. 1-6 requires cask users to establish, 
implement, and maintain written procedures for aging management program 
(AMP) elements, including a lead cask inspection program, for VSC-24 
Storage Cask structures, systems, and components (SSCs) important to 
safety. Users must also conduct periodic ``tollgate'' assessments of 
new information on SSC aging effects and mechanisms to determine 
whether any element of an AMP addressing these effects and mechanisms 
requires revision to encompass the current state of knowledge. In 
addition, the renewal of the initial certificate and Amendment Nos. 1-6 
makes several other changes, described in Section IV, ``Discussion of 
Changes,'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of the companion 
direct final rule published in the Rules and Regulations section of 
this issue of the Federal Register.

DATES: Submit comments by August 7, 2017. Comments received after this 
date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the Commission 
is able to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before 
this date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2016-0138. 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.
     Email comments to: [email protected]. If you do 
not receive an automatic email reply confirming receipt, contact us at 
301-415-1677.
     Fax comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission at 301-415-1101.
     Mail comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and 
Adjudications Staff.
     Hand deliver comments to: 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852, between 7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. (Eastern Time) Federal 
workdays; telephone: 301-415-1677.
    For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting 
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert D. MacDougall, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-
5175; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
II. Rulemaking Procedure
III. Background
IV. Plain Writing
V. Availability of Documents

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2016-0138 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain 
publicly-available information related to this action by any of the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2016-0138.
     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, instructions about obtaining materials 
referenced in this document are provided in the ``Availability of 
Documents'' section.
     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.

B. Submitting Comments

    Please include Docket ID NRC-2016-0138 in your comment submission.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions into 
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove 
identifying or contact information.
    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons 
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to 
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove such information before making the comment submissions available 
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.

II. Rulemaking Procedure

    This proposed rule is limited to the renewal of the initial 
certificate and Amendment Nos. 1-6 of CoC No. 1007.

[[Page 31513]]

Because the NRC considers this action noncontroversial and routine, the 
NRC is publishing this proposed rule concurrently with a direct final 
rule in the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal 
Register. Adequate protection of public health and safety continues to 
be ensured.
    The direct final rule will become effective on September 20, 2017. 
However, if the NRC receives significant adverse comments on this 
proposed rule by August 7, 2017, then the NRC will publish a document 
that withdraws the direct final rule. If the direct final rule is 
withdrawn, the NRC will address the comments received in response to 
these proposed revisions in a subsequent final rule. Absent significant 
modifications to the proposed revisions requiring republication, the 
NRC will not initiate a second comment period on this action in the 
event the direct final rule is withdrawn.
    A significant adverse comment is a comment where the commenter 
explains why the rule would be inappropriate, including challenges to 
the rule's underlying premise or approach, or would be ineffective or 
unacceptable without a change. A comment is adverse and significant if:
    (1) The comment opposes the rule and provides a reason sufficient 
to require a substantive response in a notice-and-comment process. For 
example, a substantive response is required when:
    (a) The comment causes the NRC staff to reevaluate (or reconsider) 
its position or conduct additional analysis;
    (b) The comment raises an issue serious enough to warrant a 
substantive response to clarify or complete the record; or
    (c) The comment raises a relevant issue that was not previously 
addressed or considered by the NRC staff.
    (2) The comment proposes a change or an addition to the rule, and 
it is apparent that the rule would be ineffective or unacceptable 
without incorporation of the change or addition.
    (3) The comment causes the NRC staff to make a change (other than 
editorial) to the rule, CoC, or technical specifications.
    For additional procedural information and the regulatory analysis, 
see the direct final rule published in the Rules and Regulations 
section of this issue of the Federal Register.

III. Background

    Section 218(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) of 1982, as 
amended, requires that ``the Secretary [of the Department of Energy] 
shall establish a demonstration program, in cooperation with the 
private sector, for the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel at civilian 
nuclear power reactor sites, with the objective of establishing one or 
more technologies that the [Nuclear Regulatory] Commission may, by 
rule, approve for use at the sites of civilian nuclear power reactors 
without, to the maximum extent practicable, the need for additional 
site-specific approvals by the Commission.'' Section 133 of the NWPA 
states, in part, that ``[the Commission] shall, by rule, establish 
procedures for the licensing of any technology approved by the 
Commission under Section 219(a) [sic: 218(a)] for use at the site of 
any civilian nuclear power reactor.''
    To implement this mandate, the Commission approved dry storage of 
spent nuclear fuel in NRC-approved casks under a general license by 
publishing a final rule which added a new subpart K in part 72 of title 
10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) entitled, ``General 
License for Storage of Spent Fuel at Power Reactor Sites'' (55 FR 
29181; July 18, 1990). A general license authorizes a reactor licensee 
to store spent fuel in NRC-approved casks at a site that is licensed to 
operate a power reactor under 10 CFR parts 50 or 52. This rule also 
established a new subpart L in 10 CFR part 72 entitled, ``Approval of 
Spent Fuel Storage Casks,'' which contains procedures and criteria for 
obtaining NRC approval of spent fuel storage cask designs. The NRC 
subsequently issued a final rule on April 7, 1993 (58 FR 17967), that 
approved the VSC-24 Cask System design effective May 7, 1993, and added 
it to the list of NRC-approved cask designs in 10 CFR 72.214 as CoC No. 
1007.

IV. Plain Writing

    The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federal 
agencies to write documents in a clear, concise, well-organized manner 
that also follows other best practices appropriate to the subject or 
field and the intended audience. The NRC has written this document to 
be consistent with the Plain Writing Act as well as the Presidential 
Memorandum, ``Plain Language in Government Writing,'' published June 
10, 1998 (63 FR 31883). The NRC requests comment on the proposed rule 
with respect to the clarity and effectiveness of the language used.

V. Availability of Documents

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

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                  ADAMS Accession No./
                   Document                    Federal Register Citation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Initial         ML16057A127
 Issuance.
Proposed Technical Specification (TS),         ML16057A139
 Attachment A, CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Initial
 Issuance.
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 1...  ML16057A189
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 1.......  ML16057A211
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 2...  ML16057A216
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 2.......  ML16057A322
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 3...  ML16057A333
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 3.......  ML16057A358
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 4...  ML16057A449
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 4.......  ML16057A511
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 5...  ML16057A593
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 5.......  ML16057A600
Proposed CoC No. 1007 Renewal, Amendment 6...  ML16057A617
Proposed TS, Attachment A, Amendment 6.......  ML16057A630
Preliminary Safety Evaluation Report.........  ML16057A667
Final Safety Analysis Report for the VSC-24    ML060810682
 Ventilated Storage Cask System.
NUREG-1092, ``Environmental Assessment for 10  ML091050510
 CFR Part 72--Licensing Requirements for the
 Independent Storage of Spent Fuel and High-
 Level Radioactive Waste''.

[[Page 31514]]

 
Proposed Rule, ``Licensing Requirements for    51 FR 19106
 the Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear
 Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste''.
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No     54 FR 19379
 Significant Impact for Proposed Rule
 Entitled ``Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel in
 NRC-Approved Storage Casks at Nuclear Power
 Reactor Sites''.
Final Rule, ``Storage of Spent Fuel In NRC-    55 FR 29181
 Approved Storage Casks at Power Reactor
 Sites''.
Final Rule, ``License and Certificate of       76 FR 8872
 Compliance Terms''.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The NRC may post materials related to this document, including 
public comments, on the Federal Rulemaking Web site at http://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2016-0138. The Federal 
Rulemaking Web site allows you to receive alerts when changes or 
additions occur in a docket folder. To subscribe: (1) Navigate to the 
docket folder (NRC-2016-0138); (2) click the ``Sign up for Email 
Alerts'' link; and (3) enter your email address and select how 
frequently you would like to receive emails (daily, weekly, or 
monthly).

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Part 72

    Administrative practice and procedure, Criminal penalties, 
Hazardous waste, Indians, Intergovernmental relations, Manpower 
training programs, Nuclear energy, Nuclear materials, Occupational 
safety and health, Penalties, Radiation protection, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Security measures, Spent fuel, 
Whistleblowing.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization 
Act of 1974, as amended; the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as 
amended; and 5 U.S.C. 552 and 553; the NRC is proposing to adopt the 
following amendments to 10 CFR part 72.

PART 72--LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INDEPENDENT STORAGE OF 
SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL, HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE, AND REACTOR-
RELATED GREATER THAN CLASS C WASTE

0
1. The authority citation for part 72 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  Atomic Energy Act of 1954, secs. 51, 53, 57, 62, 63, 
65, 69, 81, 161, 182, 183, 184, 186, 187, 189, 223, 234, 274 (42 
U.S.C. 2071, 2073, 2077, 2092, 2093, 2095, 2099, 2111, 2201, 2210e, 
2232, 2233, 2234, 2236, 2237, 2238, 2273, 2282, 2021); Energy 
Reorganization Act of 1974, secs. 201, 202, 206, 211 (42 U.S.C. 
5841, 5842, 5846, 5851); National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
(42 U.S.C. 4332); Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, secs. 117(a), 
132, 133, 134, 135, 137, 141, 145(g), 148, 218(a) (42 U.S.C. 
10137(a), 10152, 10153, 10154, 10155, 10157, 10161, 10165(g), 10168, 
10198(a)); 44 U.S.C. 3504 note.

0
2. In Sec.  72.214, Certificate of Compliance 1007 is revised to read 
as follows:


Sec.  72.214  List of approved spent fuel storage casks.

* * * * *
    Certificate Number: 1007.
    Initial Certificate Effective Date: May 7, 1993, superseded by 
Renewed Initial Certificate, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Initial Certificate Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 1 Effective Date: May 30, 2000, superseded by 
Renewed Amendment Number 1, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 1 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 2 Effective Date: September 5, 2000, superseded by 
Renewed Amendment Number 2, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 2 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 3 Effective Date: May 21, 2001, superseded by 
Renewed Amendment Number 3, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 3 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 4 Effective Date: February 3, 2003, superseded by 
Renewed Amendment Number 4, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 4 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 5 Effective Date: September 13, 2005, superseded 
by Renewed Amendment Number 5, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 5 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    Amendment Number 6 Effective Date: June 5, 2006, superseded by 
Renewed Amendment Number 6, on September 20, 2017.
    Renewed Amendment Number 6 Effective Date: September 20, 2017.
    SAR Submitted by: EnergySolutionsTM Corporation.
    SAR Title: Final Safety Analysis Report for the VSC-24 Ventilated 
Storage Cask System.
    Docket Number: 72-1007.
    Renewed Certificate Expiration Date: May 7, 2053.
    Model Number: VSC-24.
* * * * *

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 31st day of May 2017.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Michael R. Johnson,
Acting Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2017-14290 Filed 7-6-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P