[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 143 (Friday, July 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44933-44936]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16116]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-333; NRC-2020-0130]
Exelon Generation Company, LLC James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power
Plant
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Exemption; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued an
exemption in response to an August 8, 2019, request from Exelon
Generation Company, LLC (Exelon or the licensee). The licensee
requested that the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant be granted
a permanent exemption from regulations regarding the containment leak
rate test to exclude the main steam isolation valve leakage from the
leakage rate test measurements.
DATES: The exemption was issued on July 21, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0130 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document.
[[Page 44934]]
You may obtain publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2020-0130. Address
questions about NRC docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges;
telephone: 301-287-9127; 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 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 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. The NRC staff's approval is
available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML20140A071.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Samson S. Lee, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3168, email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the exemption is attached.
Dated: July 21, 2020.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samson S. Lee,
Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch I, Division of Operating
Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
Attachment--Exemption.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Docket No. 50-333; Exelon Generation Company, LLC; James A. FitzPatrick
Nuclear Power Plant
Exemption
I. Background
Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon or the licensee) is the
holder of Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-59, which
authorizes operation of the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant
(FitzPatrick). The facility consists of a boiling-water reactor located
in Oswego County, New York. The license provides, among other things,
that the facility is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) now or
hereafter in effect.
II. Request/Action
By letter dated August 8, 2019 (Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System Accession No. ML19220A043), the licensee requested an
exemption from (1) the requirements of Appendix J, Option B, paragraph
III.A to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50
to allow exclusion of the main steam isolation valve (MSIV) leakage
from the overall integrated leakage rate measured when performing a
Type A Test, and (2) the requirements of Appendix J, Option B,
paragraph III.B to 10 CFR part 50 to allow exclusion of the MSIV
leakage rate of the penetration valves subject to Type B and C tests.
This exemption is in conjunction with a license amendment request.
Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 specifies the leakage test
requirements, schedules, and acceptance criteria for tests of the
leaktight integrity of the primary reactor containment and systems and
components that penetrate the containment.
Appendix J, Option B, paragraph III.B to 10 CFR part 50 requires,
in part, that the overall integrated leakage rate must not exceed the
allowable leakage rate with margin as specified in the facility's TSs.
The overall integrated leakage rate is defined in Appendix J to 10 CFR
part 50 as ``the total leakage rate through all tested leakage paths,
including containment welds, valves, fittings, and components that
penetrate the containment system.'' This includes the contribution from
MSIV leakage.
Appendix J, Option B, paragraph III.B to 10 CFR part 50 requires,
in part, that the sum of the leakage rates at accident pressure of Type
B tests and pathway leakage rates from Type C tests be less than the
performance criterion with margin, as specified in the facility's TSs.
The licensee requests an exemption from this requirement to allow
exclusion of the MSIV leakage rate of the penetration valves subject to
Type B and C tests.
Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 testing ensures primary containment
leakage following a design-basis loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) will
be within the allowable leakage limits. The licensee requests this
exemption because the radiological dose consequences of MSIV leakage
for FitzPatrick are modeled as a separate primary containment release
path to the environment that bypasses secondary containment. The LOCA
dose calculation assumes all MSIV leakage migrates to the turbine
building. However, if MSIV leakage were also included as part of the
primary-to-secondary containment modeling, it would be ``double-
counted.''
III. Discussion
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon application by
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from
the requirements of 10 CFR part 50 when (1) the exemptions are
authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to public health and
safety, and are consistent with the common defense and security; and
(2) when special circumstances are present. Special circumstances are
present whenever, according to 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), ``Application of
the regulation in the particular circumstances would not serve the
underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the
underlying purpose of the rule; or . . . .''
A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law
The exemption would permit exclusion of the MSIV contributions from
the overall integrated leakage rate (Type A) test measurement and from
the sum of the leakage rates from local leakage rate (Type B and C)
tests.
As stated above, 10 CFR 50.12 allows the NRC to grant exemptions
from the requirements of Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50. The NRC staff
has determined that granting of the licensee's proposed exemption will
not result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended,
or the Commission's regulations. Therefore, the exemption is authorized
by law.
B. The Exemption Presents No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety
The underlying purposes of Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 are to
assure that containment leaktight integrity is maintained (a) as tight
as reasonably achievable, and (b) sufficiently tight so as to limit
effluent release to values bounded by the analyses of radiological dose
consequences of design-basis accidents.
The licensee's exemption request was submitted in conjunction with
an application for a TS amendment to increase the allowable leak rate
for the MSIVs in adopting the alternative source term (AST) in
accordance with 10 CFR 50.67. The amendment will be issued concurrently
with this exemption as License Amendment No. 338. In the amendment, the
NRC approves the use of the AST in the calculations of the radiological
dose consequences of design-basis accidents for FitzPatrick. The MSIV
leakage for the design-basis accident analysis has been accounted for
separately from the overall leakage
[[Page 44935]]
associated with the primary containment boundary (Type A) and local
leakage rate (Type B and C). The radiological dose consequence analysis
evaluates the MSIV leakage separately as migration to the turbine
building that bypasses the secondary containment. The inclusion of MSIV
leakage as part of Type A and as part of Type B and C test results is
not necessary to ensure the actual radiological dose consequences of
design-basis accidents remain below the regulatory limit. With the
exemption, the FitzPatrick primary containment leakage test program
would more closely align with the assumptions used in associated
accident consequence analyses. The exemption would not remove the MSIVs
from the requirements of leakage testing. The MSIVs would continue to
be tested under the FitzPatrick TS for primary containment leakage rate
testing with an allowable leakage rate that is within the licensee's
radiological dose analysis. Because the staff finds the licensee's
radiological dose consequences meet the criteria in 10 CFR 50.67, the
exemption presents no undue risk in public health and safety.
C. The Exemption Is Consistent With the Common Defense and Security
The exemption would permit exclusion of the MSIV leakage
contributions from the overall integrated leakage rate (Type A) test
measurement and from the sum of the leakage rates from local leakage
rate (Type B and C) tests. This change to accounting for leakage rate
measurement has no relation to security issues. Therefore, the common
defense and security is not impacted by this exemption.
D. Special Circumstances
Special circumstances in accordance with 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2) are
present whenever application of the regulation in the particular
circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule. The
underlying purpose of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix J, Option B, paragraphs
lll.A and III.B is to ensure the radiological consequences of design-
basis accidents remain below those previously evaluated and accepted,
as demonstrated by the actual, periodic measurement of containment
leakage (Type A) and local leakage rate measurement (Type B and C).
Although Type A and Type B and C leakage tests measure the
associated leakages, inclusion of the MSIV leakage results in double-
counting at FitzPatrick, once as a part of the actual containment
leakage and again as part of MSIV leakage used in dose calculations.
This is because FitzPatrick's radiological dose consequence analysis
addresses MSIV leakage separately as migration to the turbine building
that bypasses the secondary containment. The MSIV leakages are
periodically measured as part of the Appendix J to the 10 CFR part 50
program to ensure the leakage rates will not exceed the TS limit, which
is the maximum rate assumed in the safety analysis for radiological
dose consequences. Since the MSIV leakage is considered a separate
leakage path and its effects are specifically accounted for in the dose
analysis, it is appropriate to exclude MSIV leakage from Type A and
Type B and C test result totals. Therefore, requiring inclusion of MSIV
leakage in the Type A and Type B and C leakage is not necessary to
achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.
Because compliance with 10 CFR part 50, Appendix J, Option B,
paragraphs lII.A and III.B, is not necessary to achieve the underlying
purpose of the requirements, the special circumstances required by 10
CFR 50.12(a)(2) for the granting of an exemption from 10 CFR part 50,
Appendix J, Option B, paragraphs III.A and III.B exist.
IV. Environmental Considerations
The NRC staff determined that the issuance of the requested
exemption meets the provisions for a categorical exclusion from the
preparation of an environmental impact statement or environmental
assessment, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9), because the exemption is
from a requirement with respect to the installation or use of a
facility component located within the restricted area, as defined in 10
CFR part 20, and the issuance of the exemption involves: (i) No
significant hazards consideration, (ii) no significant change in the
types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may
be released offsite, and (iii) no significant increase in individual or
cumulative occupational radiation exposure. Therefore, in accordance
with 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or
environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the NRC's
issuance of this exemption. The basis for the NRC staff's determination
is provided in the following evaluation of the requirements in 10 CFR
51.22(c)(9)(i) through (iii).
Requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9)(i)
The NRC staff evaluated whether the exemption involves no
significant hazards consideration by using the standards in 10 CFR
50.92(c), as presented below:
1. Does the requested exemption involve a significant increase in
the probability or consequences of an accident previously evaluated?
No. The proposed exemption would allow FitzPatrick to exclude the
MSIV leakage contributions from the overall integrated leakage rate
(Type A) test measurement and from the sum of the leakage rates from
local leakage rate (Type B and C) tests as required by 10 CFR part 50,
Appendix J. The licensee's evaluation of the allowable leakage rate for
the MSIVs is based on adopting the AST in accordance with 10 CFR 50.67.
The MSIV leakage is treated separately from the remainder of the
assumed leakage from primary containment in the LOCA analysis. The
Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 testing ensures primary containment
leakage following a design-basis LOCA will be within the allowable
leakage limits specified in the facility's TSs and assumed in the
safety analysis for determining radiological dose consequences. The
MSIV leakage effluent would be treated as a different pathway to the
environment when compared to a typical containment penetration. The
MSIV leakage would bypass secondary containment and instead would
migrate to the turbine building. The proposed exemption from Appendix J
to 10 CFR part 50 would separate MSIV leakage from other containment
leakage and is consistent with the radiological dose consequence
analysis. Otherwise, the MSIV leakage would be ``double-counted''
because of the different pathways. Since design-basis accident
initiators are not being altered by the proposed exemption, the
probability of an accident previously evaluated is not affected. Also,
the consequences of previously evaluated accidents remain within the
regulatory limits.
Therefore, the proposed exemption does not involve a significant
increase in the probability or consequences of an accident previously
evaluated.
2. Does the requested exemption create the possibility of a new or
different kind of accident from any accident previously evaluated?
No. The underlying purpose of Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 is to
ensure that the radiological dose consequences of design-basis
accidents remain below the applicable regulatory limits and are
supported by the actual periodic measurement of containment leakage.
The proposed exemption would treat the MSIV leakage separately from the
remainder of the assumed leakage from primary containment based on the
radiological dose consequence analysis
[[Page 44936]]
in accordance with 10 CFR 50.67. No plant configuration changes are
required. Measuring the MSIV leakage separately to ensure it is within
limits of the radiological dose consequence analysis does not create
initiators or precursors of a new or different kind of accident.
Therefore, the proposed exemption does not create the possibility
of a new or different kind of accident from any previously evaluated.
3. Does the requested exemption involve a significant reduction in
a margin of safety?
No. The proposed exemption from Appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 would
separate MSIV leakage from other containment leakage based on the
radiological dose consequence analysis for the design-basis LOCA
through application of the AST (10 CFR 50.67). Safety margins have been
evaluated and analytical conservatisms have been utilized to ensure
that the radiological dose consequence analysis adequately bounds the
postulated limiting event scenario. Approval of the proposed exemption
request would align the FitzPatrick TS limits with the LOCA dose
consequence analysis.
Therefore, the proposed exemption does not involve a significant
reduction in a margin of safety.
Based on the evaluation above, the NRC staff has determined that
the proposed exemption involves no significant hazards consideration.
Therefore, the requirements of 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9)(i) are met.
Requirements in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9)(ii) and (iii)
The proposed exemption would allow FitzPatrick to treat MSIV
leakage separately from other containment leakage. The MSIV leakage for
the FitzPatrick design-basis accident analysis has been accounted for
separately in the AST analysis. Approval of the proposed exemption
request would align the TS limits with the radiological dose
consequence calculation. The exemption does not modify plant
operations. The MSIVs would continue to be tested under the FitzPatrick
TS for primary containment leakage rate testing with an allowable
leakage rate that is within the licensee's radiological dose analysis.
Because the NRC staff finds the MSIV leakage radiological dose
consequence analysis meets the limits in 10 CFR 50.67, there is no
significant change in the types or significant increase in the amounts
of any effluents that may be released offsite, and no significant
increase in individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure.
Therefore, the requirements of 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9)(ii) and (iii) are
met.
V. Conclusions.
Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR
50.12, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue
risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common
defense and security; also, special circumstances are present.
Therefore, the Commission hereby grants to Exelon an exemption from the
requirements of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix J, Option B, paragraphs lll.A
and III.B, for FitzPatrick.
Dated: July 21, 2020.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory F. Suber,
Deputy Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2020-16116 Filed 7-23-20; 8:45 am]
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