[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 65 (Friday, April 3, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 18876-18878]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-06663]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
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. 85, No. 65 / Friday, April 3, 2020 / Proposed
Rules
[[Page 18876]]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
10 CFR Part 72
[NRC-2019-0224]
RIN 3150-AK40
List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: TN Americas LLC
NUHOMS[supreg] EOS Dry Spent Fuel Storage System, Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Amendment No. 1
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to
amend its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the TN Americas
LLC NUHOMS[supreg] EOS Dry Spent Fuel Storage System listing within the
``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to include Amendment No.
1 to Certificate of Compliance No. 1042. Amendment No. 1 makes the
following changes: Adds a new basket type (Type 4) to allow for the
loading of intact, damaged, or failed fuel; adds another new basket
type (Type 5) with low conductivity poison basket plates and low
emissivity coated steel basket plates; accepts fuel assemblies with a
minimum two-year cooling time, in selected locations within the basket;
adds the NUHOMS[supreg] MATRIX design as an alternative to the EOS
horizontal storage module design for the storage of spent fuel; and
makes additional revisions to the certificate of compliance and the
technical specifications for consistency and clarity.
DATES: Submit comments by May 4, 2020. 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 https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0224. When
preparing and submitting your comments, see ``Tips for Submitting
Effective Comments'' at https://www.regulations.gov/docs/Tips_For_Submitting_Effective_Comments.pdf. 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 Section I, ``Obtaining Information and Submitting
Comments'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christian Jacobs, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-6825; email:
[email protected] or Nicole Fields, Office of Nuclear Material
Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 630-829-9570; 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
III. Background
IV. Plain Writing
V. Availability of Documents
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0224 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-2019-0224.
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]. For the convenience of the reader,
instructions about obtaining materials referenced in this document are
provided in Section V, ``Availability of Documents,'' of 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.
B. Submitting Comments
Please include Docket ID NRC-2019-0224 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
https://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
[[Page 18877]]
the Rules and Regulations section of this issue of the Federal
Register. The direct final rule will become effective on June 17, 2020.
However, if the NRC receives any significant adverse comment by May 4,
2020, 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 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 a detailed discussion of the proposed rule changes and
associated analyses, 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 ``[t]he 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 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 that 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.'' 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 direct final rule on March 24, 2017, that
approved the TN Americas LLC NUHOMS[supreg] EOS Dry Spent Fuel Storage
System design and added it to the list of NRC-approved cask designs in
Sec. 72.214 as Certificate of Compliance No. 1042.
IV. Plain Writing
The Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274) requires Federal
agencies to write documents in a clear, concise, and 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. 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.
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ADAMS accession No./ Federal
Document Register citation
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Proposed Certificate of ML19290H608.
Compliance No. 1042, Amendment
No. 1.
Proposed Technical ML19290H605.
Specifications, Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Amendment
No. 1, Appendix A.
Preliminary Safety Evaluation ML19290H606.
Report, Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Amendment
No. 1.
Application for Amendment 1 to ML18053A220 (package).
the NUHOMS EOS System, Revision
0, dated February 15, 2018.
Acceptance Review of TN Americas, ML18178A029 (package).
LLC Application for Certificate
of Compliance No. 1042,
Amendment 1 to NUHOMS EOS
System, Rev. 1--Response to
Request for Supplemental
Information, dated June 14, 2018.
Acceptance Review (Continued) of ML18255A124 (package).
TN Americas LLC Application for
Certificate of Compliance No.
1042, Amendment No. 1, to the
NUHOMS EOS System, Revision 2--
Response to Second Request for
Supplemental Information, dated
August 30, 2018.
Application for Amendment 1 to ML19058A410 (package).
NUHOMS EOS Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Rev. 3--
Response to Request for
Additional Information, dated
February 19, 2019.
Application for Amendment 1 to ML19084A054.
NUHOMS EOS Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Revision 4--
Computer Files Associated with
Certain CoC 1042 Amendment 1
Request for Additional
Information Items (Docket No. 72-
1042, CAC No. 001028, EPID: L-
2018-LLA-0043), dated March 21,
2019.
Submittal of Amendment 1 to ML19176A315 (package).
NUHOMS EOS Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Revision 5--
Revised Responses to Request for
Additional Information, dated
June 19, 2019.
Application for Amendment 1 to ML19204A228 (package).
NUHOMS EOS Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Revision 6--
Revised Responses to Request for
Additional Information, dated
July 16, 2019.
E-Mail from G. Mathues/Orano TN ML19220A177 (package).
to C. Jacobs/NRC re: EOS
Amendment 1 CoC Clarifications,
dated July 17, 2019.
Transmittal Letter Regarding ML19248C254 (package).
Application for Amendment 1 to
NUHOMS EOS Certificate of
Compliance No. 1042, Revision 7--
Technical Specifications Table 3
Editorial Correction, dated
August 29, 2019.
Orano USA--Application for ML19274B914.
Amendment 1 to NUHOMS EOS
Certificate of Compliance No.
1042, Revision 8--Appendix 3.9.7
Editorial Correction, dated
October 1, 2019.
Agreement State Program Policy 82 FR 48535.
Statement, dated October 18,
2017.
Plain Language in Government 63 FR 31885.
Writing, dated June 10, 1998.
Storage of Spent Fuel In NRC- 55 FR 29181.
Approved Storage Casks at Power
Reactor Sites: Final Rule, dated
July 18, 1990.
[[Page 18878]]
List of Approved Spent Fuel 82 FR 14987.
Storage Casks: TN Americas LLC,
NUHOMS[supreg] EOS Dry Spent
Fuel Storage System, Certificate
of Compliance No. 1042: Direct
Final Rule, dated March 24, 2017.
Certificate of Compliance No. ML17215A161.
1042, Initial Certificate,
Corrected.
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The NRC may post materials related to this document, including
public comments, on the Federal Rulemaking website at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket ID NRC-2019-0224. 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-2019-0224); (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 18th day of March, 2020.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Margaret M. Doane,
Executive Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2020-06663 Filed 4-2-20; 8:45 am]
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