[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 239 (Friday, December 11, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 80193-80194]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-27351]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2020-0255]


Implementation of Aging Management Requirements for Spent Fuel 
Storage Renewals

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Draft regulatory guide; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for 
public comment draft regulatory guide (DG), DG-3055, ``Implementation 
of Aging Management Requirements for Spent Fuel Storage Renewals.'' 
This DG is a proposed new regulatory guide that would describes an 
approach that is acceptable to the staff of the NRC to meet the 
regulatory requirements for spent fuel storage renewals. It addresses 
requirements for the renewal of specific licenses for independent spent 
fuel storage installations (ISFSI) and certificates of compliance (CoC) 
for spent fuel storage cask designs pursuant to NRC requirements.

DATES: Submit comments by January 25, 2021. 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. Although a time limit is given, comments and suggestions in 
connection with items for inclusion in guides currently being developed 
or improvements in all published guides are encouraged at any time.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods; 
however, the NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal Rulemaking website:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2020-0255. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges; 
telephone: 301-287-9127; email: [email protected]. For technical 
questions, contact the individuals listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document.
     Mail comments to: Office of Administration, Mail Stop: 
TWFN-7-A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, ATTN: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff.
    For additional direction on accessing information and submitting 
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristina Banovac, telephone: 301-415-
7116, email: [email protected], or Harriet Karagiannis, 
telephone: 301-415-2493, email: [email protected]. Both are 
staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0255 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information regarding 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-2020-0255.
     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].
     Attention: The PDR, where you may examine, and order 
copies of public documents is currently closed. You may submit your 
request to the PDR via email at [email protected] or call 1-800-397-
4209 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

[[Page 80194]]

B. Submitting Comments

    The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal Rulemaking website: https://www.regulations.gov. Please include 
Docket ID NRC-2020-0255 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 posts all comment submissions at https://www.regulations.gov as well as enters 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 submissions into ADAMS.

II. Additional Information

    The NRC is issuing for public comment a DG in the NRC's 
``Regulatory Guide'' series. This series was developed to describe 
methods that are acceptable to the NRC staff for implementing specific 
parts of the agency's regulations, to explain techniques that the staff 
uses in evaluating specific issues or postulated events, and to 
describe information that the staff needs in its review of applications 
for permits and licenses.
    This DG, titled, ``Implementation of Aging Management Requirements 
for Spent Fuel Storage Renewals,'' is temporarily identified by its 
task number, DG-3055 (ADAMS Accession No. ML20282A298). This draft 
guide is a proposed new regulatory guide (RG) 3.76. Regulatory Guide 
3.76 describes an approach that is acceptable to the staff of the NRC 
by endorsing, with clarifications, the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) 
guidance in NEI 14-03, Revision 2, ``Format, Content and Implementation 
Guidance for Dry Cask Storage Operations-Based Aging Management,'' 
issued December 2016.
    This new RG provides guidance to industry for complying with and 
implementing the requirements for spent fuel storage renewals in part 
72 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), ``Licensing 
Requirements for the Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-
Level Radioactive Waste, and Reactor-Related Greater Than Class C 
Waste.'' This guidance addresses renewal of ISFSI specific licenses and 
CoCs for spent fuel storage cask designs in 10 CFR 72.42, ``Duration of 
license; renewal,'' and 10 CFR 72.240, ``Conditions for spent fuel 
storage cask renewal,'' respectively.
    The guidance specifically addresses the format and content of spent 
fuel storage renewal applications and the implementation of aging 
management programs (AMPs). The guidance uses an operations-focused 
approach to aging management, in which operating experience is shared 
through an industry database and continually assessed to adjust AMPs, 
as needed and within regulatory limits, to ensure the effectiveness of 
aging management activities during the period of extended operation and 
the continued safe storage of spent fuel.
    The staff is also issuing for public comment a draft regulatory 
analysis (ADAMS Accession No. ML20282A299). The staff develops a 
regulatory analysis to assess the value of issuing this new regulatory 
guide as well as alternative courses of action.

III. Backfitting, Forward Fitting, and Issue Finality

    This proposed regulatory guide, RG 3.76, proposes to endorse, with 
clarifications, NEI 14-03, which provides guidance on the format and 
content of spent fuel storage renewal applications and implementation 
of aging management programs under 10 CFR part 72. As explained in the 
proposed RG 3.76, licensees are not required to comply with the 
positions set forth in this regulatory guide. Therefore, proposed RG 
3.76 does not constitute backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 72.62, 
``Backfitting,'' and as described in NRC Management Directive (MD) 8.4, 
``Management of Backfitting, Forward Fitting, Issue Finality, and 
Information Requests;'' or constitute forward fitting as that term is 
defined and described in MD 8.4. If, in the future, the NRC were to 
impose a position in this proposed RG 3.76 in a manner that would 
constitute backfitting or forward fitting, then the NRC would address 
the backfitting provision in 10 CFR 72.62 or the forward fitting 
provision of MD 8.4, respectively.

    Dated: December 8, 2020.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Meraj Rahimi,
Chief, Regulatory Guidance and Generic Issues Branch, Division of 
Engineering, Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 2020-27351 Filed 12-10-20; 8:45 am]
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