[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 10, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13767-13768]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-04997]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-302; NRC-2021-0017]


ADP CR3, LLC; Crystal River Unit 3 Nuclear Plant

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
exemption in response to a January 19, 2021, request from ADP CR3, LLC 
(ADP CR3) for the Crystal River Unit 3 Nuclear Plant, from the 
requirement to investigate and report to the NRC when ADP CR3 does not 
receive notification of receipt of a shipment, or part of a shipment, 
of low-level radioactive waste within 20 days after transfer from the 
Crystal River facility. ADP CR3 requested that the time period for it 
to receive acknowledgement that the shipment has been received by the 
intended recipient be extended from 20 to 45 days to avoid an excessive 
administrative burden as operational experience indicates that rail or 
mixed mode shipments may take more than 20 days to reach their 
destination.

DATES: The exemption was issued on March 3, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2021-0017 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. 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-2021-0017. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 
telephone: 301-415-0624; 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.
     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 or 
301-415-4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John B. Hickman, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3017, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the exemption is attached.

    Dated: March 5, 2021.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Bruce A. Watson,
Chief, Reactor Decommissioning Branch, Division of Decommissioning, 
Uranium Recovery, and Waste Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety 
and Safeguards.

    Attachment--Exemption.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Docket No. 50-302

ADP CR3, LLC

Crystal River Unit 3 Nuclear Plant

I. Background

    The Crystal River Unit 3 Nuclear Plant (CR-3), licensed under Title 
10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50 (License No. 
DPR-72, Docket No. 50-302), is located in Citrus County, Florida. CR-3 
has been shutdown since September 26, 2009. Subsequently, the licensee 
determined that issues with containment integrity could not be 
satisfactorily resolved and decided not to attempt to restart the 
facility. On May 28, 2011, Duke Energy Florida, LLC (DEF) completed the 
removal of fuel from the reactor vessel at CR-3. By letter dated 
February 20, 2013 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
[ADAMS] Accession No. ML13056A005), DEF submitted to the U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) certifications in accordance with 10 CFR 
50.82(a)(1)(i) indicating it would permanently cease power operations, 
and with 10 CFR 50.82(a)(1)(ii) that it had permanently defueled the 
reactor vessel at CR-3. The spent fuel is currently being stored onsite 
in a spent fuel pool (SFP).
    The CR-3 operating license was transferred to ADP CR3, LLC (ADP 
CR3) by NRC Order issued April 1, 2020 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML20069A028). Upon implementation of the license transfer on October 1, 
2020, ADP CR3 commenced dismantlement and decommissioning activities at 
the CR-3 site that included the generation of low-level radioactive 
waste. This waste is primarily destined for transfer to distant 
locations such as the Waste Control Specialists (WSC) disposal site in 
Andrews, Texas by rail or mixed mode shipment, such as a combination of 
truck/rail/barge shipments.

II. Request/Action

    By letter dated January 19, 2021 (ADAMS Accession No. ML21019A464), 
ADP CR3 requested an exemption from 10 CFR part 20, Appendix G, 
``Requirements for Transfers of Low-Level Radioactive Waste Intended 
for Disposal at Licensed Land Disposal Facilities and Manifests,'' 
section III.E, for disposals from the CR-3 facility.
    Section III.E requires that the shipper of any low-level 
radioactive waste to a licensed land disposal facility must investigate 
and trace the shipment if the shipper has not received notification of 
the shipment's receipt by the disposal facility within 20 days after 
transfer. In addition, Section III.E requires licensees to report such 
missing shipments to the NRC. Specifically, ADP CR3 is requesting an 
exemption from the requirements in 10 CFR part 20, Appendix G, Section 
III.E, under the provisions of 10 CFR 20.2301, ``Applications for 
exemptions,'' to extend the time period for ADP CR3 to receive 
acknowledgement that the shipment has been received from 20 to 45 days 
after transfer for a rail or mixed

[[Page 13768]]

mode shipment from CR-3 to the intended recipient.
    Inherent to the decommissioning process, large volumes of low-level 
radioactive waste are generated and require disposal. Experience with 
waste shipments from CR-3 and other decommissioning power reactor sites 
indicates that rail or mixed-mode transportation time to waste disposal 
facilities has, in several instances, exceeded the 20-day receipt of 
notification requirement. For example, in December 2020, ADP CR3 
shipped six rail cars, three containing EXEMPT materials and three 
containing UN2912 LSA-1 materials to the WCS disposal facility in 
Andrews, Texas. The total transit time between when the railcars were 
released from the CR3 facility until verification of receipt was 
received for the six railcars ranged from thirty (30) to forty-one (41) 
days. Further, in June 2019, Vermont Yankee (VY) shipped two railcars 
containing four (4) freight containers each of low-level radioactive 
waste to the WCS disposal facility in Andrews, Texas. The total transit 
time between when the railcars were released from the VY facility until 
verification of receipt was received for the two railcars ranged from 
thirty-three (33) to forty (40) days. Finally, on September 11, 2014, 
ZionSolutions shipped two gondola railcars of low-level radioactive 
waste to the EnergySolutions' Clive Disposal Facility in Clive, UT. The 
railcars reported to the Clive Facility on October 9, 2014, a duration 
of 28 days. In addition, administrative processes at the disposal 
facility and mail delivery times can further delay the issuance or 
arrival of the receipt of notification.

III. Discussion

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law

    The NRC's regulations in 10 CFR 20.2301 allow the Commission to 
grant exemptions from the requirements of the regulations in 10 CFR 
part 20 if it determines the exemption would be authorized by law and 
would not result in undue hazard to life or property. There are no 
provisions in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (or in any 
other Federal statute) that impose a requirement to investigate and 
report on low-level radioactive waste shipments that have not been 
acknowledged by the recipient within 20 days of transfer. Therefore, 
the NRC staff concludes that there is no statutory prohibition on the 
issuance of the requested exemption and the NRC is authorized to grant 
the exemption by law.

B. The Exemption Presents No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety

    The purpose of 10 CFR part 20, Appendix G, Section III.E is to 
require licensees to investigate, trace, and report radioactive 
shipments that have not reached their destination, as scheduled, for 
unknown reasons.
    Data from CR-3 (for example, see ADP CR3 report on investigation 
pursuant to 10 CFR part 20, Appendix G (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML21019A458)) found that several shipments took longer than 20 days, 
from 30 to 41 days, to reach the Waste Control Specialists disposal 
facility in Andrews, Texas once they left the CR-3 facility. The NRC 
acknowledges that, based on the history of low-level radioactive waste 
shipments from CR-3, the need to investigate, trace and report on 
shipments that take longer than 20 days could result in an excessive 
administrative burden on the licensee. As noted above, shipping times 
have frequently exceeded 20 days and have taken up to 41 days. As 
stated in the request for exemption for rail shipments, ADP CR3 
utilizes an electronic data tracking system interchange, or similar 
tracking systems that allows monitoring the progress of the shipments 
on a daily basis.
    The requirement to investigate a late shipment that may be lost, 
misdirected, or diverted helps prevent any inadvertent radiological 
exposure to the public from the radioactive materials in the shipment. 
Because of the oversight and monitoring of radioactive waste shipments 
throughout the entire journey from CR-3 to the disposal site, it is 
unlikely that a shipment could be lost, misdirected, or diverted 
without the knowledge of the carrier or ADP CR3; therefore, there is no 
potential health and safety concern presented by the requested 
exemption. This oversight and monitoring would facilitate a prompt 
investigation of a loss, misdirection or diversion which would minimize 
any adverse impact. By extending the elapsed time for receipt 
acknowledgment to 45 days before requiring investigations, tracing, and 
reporting, a reasonable upper limit on shipment duration (based on 
historical analysis) is still maintained if a breakdown of normal 
tracking systems were to occur. Consequently, the NRC finds that 
extending the receipt of notification period from 20 to 45 days after 
transfer of the low-level radioactive waste as described by ADP CR3 in 
its January 19, 2021, letter would not result in an undue hazard to 
life or property.

C. Categorical Exclusion

    With respect to compliance with Section 102(2) of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4332(2) (NEPA), the NRC 
staff has determined that the proposed action, namely, the approval of 
the ADP CR3 exemption request, is within the scope of the categorical 
exclusions listed at 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25). The proposed action presents 
(i) no significant hazards considerations; (ii) would not result in a 
significant change in the types, or significant increase in the 
amounts, of any effluents that may be released offsite; (iii) would not 
result in a significant increase in individual or cumulative public or 
occupational radiation exposure; (iv) has no significant construction 
impact; (v) does not present a significant increase in the potential 
for or consequences from radiological accidents. The requirements from 
which an exemption is sought involves reporting requirements under 10 
CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(B) and inspection or surveillance requirements 
under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(C). Therefore, no further analysis is 
required under NEPA.

IV. Conclusions

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
20.2301, the exemption is authorized by law and will not result in 
undue hazard to life or property. Therefore, the Commission hereby 
grants ADP CR3 an exemption from 10 CFR part 20, Appendix G, Section 
III.E to extend the receipt of notification period from 20 days to 45 
days after transfer for rail or mixed-mode shipments of low-level 
radioactive waste from the CR-3 facility to a licensed land disposal 
facility.

[FR Doc. 2021-04997 Filed 3-9-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P