[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 10, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1276-1278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-00255]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 70-7003; NRC-2018-0002]
American Centrifuge Lead Cascade Facility; American Centrifuge
Operating, LLC
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Exemption; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued an
exemption in response to an August 22, 2017, request from the American
Centrifuge Operating, LLC (ACO) for a one-time exemption from the
requirement to conduct a biennial Emergency Preparedness (EP) onsite
exercise. The ACO requested to postpone conducting the exercise from
calendar year (CY) 2017, to the third quarter of CY 2018.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2018-0002 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may access publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2018-0002. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; 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
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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: Yawar H. Faraz, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-7220, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following sections include text from the
exemption issued to ACO.
I. Background
The ACO is the holder of License No. SNM-7003, which authorizes it
to possess source, byproduct, and special nuclear material at the
American Centrifuge Lead Cascade Facility (LCF). Until February 2016,
ACO operated the LCF at a Department of Energy (DOE) site in Piketon,
Ohio. Since March 2016, ACO has been in the process of decommissioning
the LCF. The site includes other facilities that are currently
operating, shutdown or undergoing decommissioning.
II. Request/Action
Section 70.22(i)(3)(xii) of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), requires emergency plans submitted under 10 CFR
70.22(i)(1)(ii) to include provisions for conducting an emergency
preparedness (EP) onsite exercise every 2 years. In accordance with 10
CFR 70.22(i)(3)(xii), ACO's Emergency Plan, requires that plant
personnel conduct biennial EP onsite exercises. The last EP onsite
exercise conducted at the LCF site was held in June 2015. By letter
dated August 22, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17244A210), ACO requested
that the NRC approves a one-time exemption allowing ACO to postpone the
EP onsite exercise from CY 2017, to the third quarter of CY 2018.
III. Discussion
Section 70.22(i)(3)(xii) requires ACO to conduct biennial EP onsite
exercises to test their response to simulated emergencies. The ACO is
required to invite offsite response organizations to participate in the
biennial EP onsite exercises. However, participation of offsite
response organizations in biennial EP onsite exercises, although
recommended, is not required. Exercises must use accident scenarios
postulated as most probable for the specific site and the scenarios
shall not be known to most exercise participants. Following the
exercise, ACO is required to critique the exercise using individuals
not having direct implementation responsibility for the emergency plan.
Critiques of exercises must evaluate the appropriateness of the plan,
emergency procedures, facilities, equipment, training of personnel, and
overall effectiveness of the response. Deficiencies found by the
critiques must be corrected. By letter dated, August 22, 2017, ACO
requested postponing the date of this exercise from CY 2017 to the
third quarter of CY 2018, and stated that the proposed exemption would
not decrease the margin of safety at the LCF.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 70.17(a), the Commission may, upon application
of any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant such
exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 70 as it determines are
authorized by law and will not endanger life or property of the common
defense and security and are otherwise in the public interest.
Authorized by Law
The licensee has stated that the exemption request to postpone
conducting the EP onsite exercise in CY 2017, to the third quarter of
CY 2018, would allow for an orderly and safe transition into the X-1020
Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Joint Information Center (JIC),
which are being renovated with new upgraded equipment. After the
renovations have been completed, the licensee stated that performance
testing and acceptance will be performed prior to return of EOC
personnel. The EOC and JIC Cadre teams will receive training on the new
equipment and software programs followed by EOC Cadre members
completing a series of drills on the new systems. According to the
licensee, these renovation and training activities will not be
completed until the second quarter of CY 2018.
As a result, ACO is requesting an exemption from the requirements
of 10 CFR 70.22(i)(3)(xii) to postpone the EP onsite exercise from CY
2017, to the third quarter of CY 2018. Section 70.17 allows the NRC to
grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 70. Granting the
licensee's proposed exemption is not otherwise inconsistent with NRC
regulations or other applicable laws. As explained below, the proposed
exemption will not endanger life or property, or the common defense and
security, and is otherwise in the public interest. Therefore, the
exemption is authorized by law.
Will Not Endanger Life or Property or the Common Defense and Security
On March 2, 2016, ACO notified the NRC, in accordance with 10 CFR
70.38(d)(2), of its parent company Centrus Energy Corporation's
decision to permanently cease operation at the LCF and terminate the
NRC's Special Nuclear Materials License (SNM-7003) for the LCF
following decontamination and decommissioning activities. ACO has
removed all uranium hexafluoride (UF6) and LCF equipment and piping
from the site. As such, the licensee has stated that any significant
radiological or chemical accident hazards that may have existed during
LCF operations have now been removed.
The NRC staff has determined that granting the exemption would not
impact the effectiveness of the emergency response capabilities of the
ACO facility. The last EP onsite exercise was conducted in June 2015,
and there were no issues identified which required immediate corrective
action. The NRC reviewed inspections conducted during the period from
October 1 through December 31, 2016, did not identify a decrease in the
effectiveness of ACO's emergency response capability. Further, since
this last exercise was conducted, ACO notified the NRC of its intent to
cease operations and the significant radiological and chemical accident
hazards have since been removed from the site. This change to the EP
exercise schedule also has no impact on security issues. Therefore, the
NRC staff has determined that this exemption will not endanger life or
property or the common defense and security.
Otherwise in the Public Interest
Given the aforementioned renovations occurring at the EOC and JIC,
the current Emergency Management program is being operated from
temporary locations. Postponing the EP onsite exercise from CY 2017, to
the third quarter of CY 2018 will allow for an orderly and safe
transition into the renovated facilities, after renovation and training
activities are completed. Accordingly, the NRC staff has determined
that this exemption is otherwise in the public interest.
IV. Environmental Considerations
The NRC staff has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25),
the exemption request will not result in any
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significant: (1) Hazards; (2) change in the types or significant
increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite;
(3) increase in individual or cumulative public or occupational
radiation exposure; (4) construction impact; or (5) increase in the
potential for or consequences from radiological accidents. The NRC
staff has further determined that the requirements from which the
exemption is sought involve the factors associated with 10 CFR
51.22(c)(25)(vi)(G)--scheduling requirements. Specifically, the
proposed exemption postpones the EP onsite exercise from CY 2017, to
the third quarter of CY 2018. Therefore, the exemption meets the
eligibility criteria for exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25).
Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental assessment or
an environmental impact statement need be prepared in connection with
the approval of this exemption request.
V. Conclusion
Accordingly, the NRC has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR
70.17(a), 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 NRC hereby grants ACO an exemption from
the requirements of 10 CFR 70.22(i)(3)(xii), to allow ACO to postpone
conducting the EP onsite exercise from CY 2017, to the third quarter of
CY 2018.
The NRC staff consulted with the Ohio Department of Health and the
Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office prior to issuing this exemption.
Neither objected to the issuance of this exemption.
This exemption became effective upon issuance of the NRC letter
dated December 29, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17354A990).
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, on January 5, 2018.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Craig G. Erlanger,
Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards, and Environmental
Review, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2018-00255 Filed 1-9-18; 8:45 am]
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