[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 239 (Thursday, December 12, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67827-67828]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-26691]
========================================================================
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 239 / Thursday, December 12, 2019 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 67827]]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Part 72
[NRC-2019-0160]
RIN 3150-AK36
List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: Holtec International
HI-STORM 100 Multipurpose Canister Cask System, Certificate of
Compliance No. 1014, Amendment No. 14
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Direct final rule; confirmation of effective date.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is confirming the
effective date of December 17, 2019, for the direct final rule that was
published in the Federal Register on October 3, 2019. This direct final
rule amended the NRC's spent fuel storage regulations by revising the
Holtec International HI-STORM 100 Multipurpose Canister Cask System
listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to
include Amendment No. 14 to Certificate of Compliance No. 1014.
Amendment No. 14 revised the technical specifications to add new heat
loading patterns, reduce the minimum cooling time, allow use of a
damaged fuel isolator for storing damaged fuel, and modify the
description of vents in the overpack. Amendment No. 14 also made other
administrative changes to the technical specifications.
DATES: The effective date of December 17, 2019, for the direct final
rule published on October 3, 2019 (84 FR 52747), is confirmed.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0160 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 https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0160. 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.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://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]. The proposed amendment to the
certificate, the proposed changes to the technical specifications, and
the preliminary safety evaluation report are available in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML19120A076. The final amendment to the certificate, the
final changes to the technical specifications, and the final safety
evaluation report also can be viewed in ADAMS under Accession No.
ML19295C567.
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; telephone: 301-415-1018; email: [email protected] or Torre Taylor, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and
Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-7900; email: [email protected]. Both
are staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 3, 2019 (84 FR 52747), the NRC
published a direct final rule amending its regulations in part 72 of
title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) by revising the
``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to include Amendment No.
14 to Certificate of Compliance No. 1014 for the Holtec International
HI-STORM 100 Multipurpose Canister Cask System (HI-STORM 100 Cask
System). Amendment No. 14 revised the technical specifications to add
new heat loading patterns, reduce the minimum cooling time, allow use
of a damaged fuel isolator for storing damaged fuel, and modify the
description of vents in the overpack. Amendment No. 14 also made other
administrative changes to the technical specifications.
In the direct final rule, the NRC stated that if no significant
adverse comments were received, the direct final rule would become
effective on December 17, 2019. The NRC received one comment (ADAMS
Accession No. ML19309E185). The commenter asked whether the NRC
independently verified that the amended certificate will continue to
protect public health, safety, and the environment and whether the HI-
STORM 100 Cask System, as approved on May 1, 2000, continues to meet
all requirements in 10 CFR 72.214 as outlined in Certificate of
Compliance No. 1014. The NRC evaluated the comment against the criteria
for withdrawing the direct final rule as described in the proposed rule
(84 FR 52815; October 3, 2019) and determined it was not significant
and adverse. Specifically, the commenter did not provide new
information that would cause the NRC to reevaluate its position in the
preliminary safety evaluation report (ADAMS Accession No. ML19120A064).
The commenter did not provide information that would cause the NRC to
conduct additional analyses nor did the commenter raise a serious issue
that warrants an NRC response to complete the record. The commenter
also did not raise any issues that have not been previously addressed.
In addition, the commenter did not propose a change, without which the
rule would be ineffective or unacceptable.
The NRC's safety evaluation report provides the NRC's review and
assessment of Holtec's proposed changes and the independent
calculations that the NRC performed to verify Holtec's analyses. The
final safety analysis report provided by Holtec, and reviewed by the
NRC, evaluates generic site characteristics. Any general licensee
proposing to use Amendment No. 14 to the HI-STORM 100 Cask System will
have to ensure, as required by 10 CFR 72.212(b)(6), that its site
characteristics are enveloped by the cask design bases evaluated for
Amendment No. 14. The NRC confirmed that Holtec's evaluation
[[Page 67828]]
of Amendment No. 14 shows that the use of the damaged fuel isolators
and new heat loads will not impair the ability of the storage cask to
maintain confinement and subcriticality. Additionally, the off-site
dose rates will meet the dose requirements in 10 CFR 72.236(d).
As discussed in the environmental assessment for the direct final
rule, Amendment No. 14 does not reflect a significant change in design
or fabrication of the cask; therefore, any resulting occupational
exposure or offsite dose rates would remain well within the 10 CFR part
20 annual limits for public and occupational radiological doses.
Additionally, Amendment No. 14 will not result in any radiological or
non-radiological environmental impacts that significantly differ from
the environmental impacts evaluated in the environmental assessment
supporting the final rule, ``Storage of Spent Fuel in NRC-Approved
Storage Casks at Power Reactor Sites'' (55 FR 29181; July 18, 1990).
There will be no significant change in the types of, or significant
revisions in the amounts of, any effluent released; no significant
increase in the individual or cumulative radiation exposures; and no
significant increase in the potential for, or consequences of,
radiological accidents. Therefore, this direct final rule will become
effective as scheduled.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 6th day of December 2019.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Pamela J. Shepherd-Vladimir,
Acting Chief, Regulatory Analysis and Rulemaking Support Branch,
Division of Rulemaking, Environmental and Financial Support, Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2019-26691 Filed 12-11-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P