[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 43729-43731]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18108]


 ========================================================================
 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. 84, No. 163 / Thursday, August 22, 2019 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 43729]]



NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

[NRC-2019-0126]
RIN 3150-AK35


List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: Holtec International 
Storage, Transport and Repository (HI-STAR) 100 Storage System, 
Certificate of Compliance No. 1008, Amendment No. 3

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to 
amend its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the Holtec 
International Storage, Transport and Repository 100 Storage System 
listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to 
include Amendment No. 3 to Certificate of Compliance No. 1008. 
Amendment No. 3 revises the technical specifications to: Include 
multipurpose canister (MPC)-32 for storage of pressurized-water reactor 
spent fuel in the Holtec International HI-STAR 100 Storage System; 
include the Metamic neutron absorber for MPC-32, MPC-24, and MPC-68; 
credit the soluble boron in criticality analyses for both MPC-32 and 
MPC-24; incorporate standard system features and ancillaries such as 
the forced helium dehydration; allow for horizontal storage of the 
casks; provide updated drawings; and revise the MPC design pressure for 
accident condition to 200 pounds per square inch gauge. Amendment No. 3 
also makes other administrative changes to the technical 
specifications.

DATES: Submit comments by September 23, 2019. Comments received after 
this date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC 
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 Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0126. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions contact 
the individuals 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, then 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: Bernard H. White, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-6577; email: 
[email protected] or Solomon Sahle, Office of Nuclear Material 
Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-3781; email: 
[email protected]. Both are staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

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

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0126 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 Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0126.
     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 ``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-2019-0126 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

    Because the NRC considers this action to be non-controversial, 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. The direct final rule will become effective on November 5, 
2019. However, if the NRC

[[Page 43730]]

receives significant adverse comments on this proposed rule by 
September 23, 2019, 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 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.
    (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 to make a change (other than 
editorial) to the rule.
    For 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 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 Nuclear 
Waste Policy Act states, in part, that ``[the Commission] shall, by 
rule, establish procedures for the licensing of any technology approved 
by the Commission under section [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). 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 
September 3, 1999, that approved the Holtec International Storage, 
Transport and Repository (HI-STAR) 100 Storage System design and added 
it to the list of NRC-approved cask designs provided in Sec.  72.214 as 
Certificate of Compliance No. 1008 (64 FR 48259).

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. 
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 31885). The NRC 
requests comment on the proposed rule with respect to 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.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Document                       ADAMS  accession No.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Holtec International, Submittal of        ML15280A182.
 Certificate of Compliance Amendment
 Request (1008-3), dated September 25,
 2015.
Holtec International, Certificate of      ML15280A219.
 Compliance Amendment 1008-3--Summary of
 Proposed Changes, dated September 25,
 2015.
Holtec International, Certificate of      ML15280A220.
 Compliance Amendment 1008-3--Revision 4
 of the HI-STAR Final Safety Analysis
 Report, dated September 25, 2015.
Holtec International, Certificate of      ML15280A223.
 Compliance Amendment 1008-3--Final
 Safety Analysis Report on HI-STAR 100
 MPC Storage System, dated September 25,
 2015.
Certificate of Compliance for Spent Fuel  ML15280A224.
 Storage Casks, NRC Form 561, dated
 September 25, 2015.
Certificate of Compliance No. 1008,       ML15280A225.
 Appendix A, Technical Specifications
 for the HI-STAR 100 Cask System,
 Amendment 3, dated September 25, 2015.
Certificate of Compliance No. 1008,       ML15280A222.
 Appendix B, Approved Contents and
 Design Features for the HI-STAR 100
 Cask System, Amendment 3, dated
 September 25, 2015.
Holtec International--Supplemental        ML16041A041.
 Information for HI-STAR 100 System,
 Amendment Request (1008-3), dated
 January 15, 2016.
Submittal of Response to Request for      ML16133A503.
 Additional Information for Revision
 Request (1008-3) to HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance, dated April
 29, 2016.
Submittal of Response to Request for      ML16133A509.
 Additional Information for Revision
 Request (1008-3) to HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance, Attachment
 1--Request for Additional Information
 Responses on HI-STAR 100--
 Nonproprietary, dated April 29, 2016.
Submittal of Response to Request for      ML16133A511.
 Additional Information for Revision
 Request (1008-3) to HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance, Attachment
 3--HI-STAR 100 Certificate of
 Compliance Appendix A Request for
 Additional Information Markup, dated
 April 29, 2016.
Submittal of Response to Request for      ML16133A512.
 Additional Information for Revision
 Request (1008-3) to HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance, Attachment
 4--HI-STAR 100 Certificate of
 Compliance Appendix B Request for
 Additional Information Markup, dated
 April 29, 2016.
Submittal of Response to Request for      ML16133A513.
 Additional Information for Revision
 Request (1008-3) to HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance, Attachment
 5--Final Safety Analysis Report Changed
 Pages, dated April 29, 2016.

[[Page 43731]]

 
Holtec International Submittal of         ML17360A162.
 Responses to NRC's 2nd Round Requests
 for Additional Information for HI-STAR
 100 Amendment Number 3, dated December
 15, 2017.
Holtec International--Submittal of        ML18183A448.
 Supplemental Changes for HI-STAR 100
 Certificate of Compliance Amendment
 Request 1008-3, dated July 2, 2018.
Holtec International--Supplemental        ML18183A449.
 Changes for HI-STAR 100 Certificate of
 Compliance Amendment Request 1008-3,
 dated July 2, 2018.
Holtec International--HI-STAR 100         ML19037A152.
 Amendment Request (1008-3), Removal of
 Preferential Fuel Loading Requirement
 from Certificate of Compliance, dated
 February 6, 2019.
User Need for Rulemaking for Amendment    ML19137A303.
 No. 3 to the Holtec International
 Storage, Transport and Repository (HI-
 STAR) 100 Storage System, Enclosure 1:
 Proposed Certificate of Compliance No.
 1008, Amendment No. 3.
User Need for Rulemaking for Amendment    ML19137A300.
 No. 3 to the Holtec International
 Storage, Transport and Repository (HI-
 STAR) 100 Storage System, Enclosure 2:
 Proposed Technical Specifications
 Appendix A.
User Need for Rulemaking for Amendment    ML19137A301.
 No. 3 to the Holtec International
 Storage, Transport and Repository (HI-
 STAR) 100 Storage System, Enclosure 3:
 Proposed Technical Specifications
 Appendix B.
User Need for Rulemaking for Amendment    ML19137A302.
 No. 3 to the Holtec International
 Storage, Transport and Repository (HI-
 STAR) 100 Storage System, Enclosure 4:
 Preliminary Safety Evaluation Report.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The NRC may post materials related to this document, including 
public comments, on the Federal Rulemaking website at http://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2019-0126. The Federal 
Rulemaking website allows you to receive alerts when changes or 
additions occur in a docket folder. To subscribe: (1) Navigate to the 
docket folder (NRC-2019-0126); (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, Hazardous waste, Indians, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nuclear energy, Penalties, Radiation 
protection, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Security 
measures, Spent fuel, Whistleblowing.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 9th day of August, 2019.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Margaret M. Doane,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2019-18108 Filed 8-21-19; 8:45 am]
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