[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 137 (Wednesday, July 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46195-46197]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-15328]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-305; NRC-2023-0116]


Kewaunee Solutions, Inc.; Kewaunee Power Station

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Exemption; issuance.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued an 
exemption in response to a request dated March 29, 2023, from Kewaunee 
Solutions, Inc. (Kewaunee Solutions), for the Kewaunee Power Station 
(KPS) facility, that permits Kewaunee Solutions to investigate, trace, 
and report to the NRC any low-level radioactive waste shipment or part 
of a shipment for which acknowledgement of receipt is not received by 
EnergySolutions, LLC within 45 days of transfer, rather than the 20 day 
requirement that is currently delineated in the NRC's regulations.

DATES: The exemption was issued on July 5, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0116 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-2023-0116. 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, at 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.
     NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies 
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. To make an 
appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to 
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karl J. Sturzebecher, Office of 
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-8534, email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the exemption is attached.

    Dated: July 14, 2023.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Shaun M. Anderson,
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. 50-305

Kewaunee Solutions, Inc., Kewaunee Power Station

Exemption From Certain Low-Level Waste Shipment Tracking Requirements

I. Background

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) 
license for Kewaunee Power Station (KPS) facility is Renewed Facility 
Operating License (RFOL) No. DPR-43. EnergySolutions, LLC 
(EnergySolutions) is the licensed holder of No. DPR-43 and operator for 
decommissioning, while its subsidiary Kewaunee Solutions, Inc. 
(Kewaunee Solutions) would continue to hold title to and ownership of 
any real estate encompassing the KPS site, any improvements to the 
site, and title to and ownership of spent nuclear fuel. The RFOL 
provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to all 
rules, regulations, and orders of the NRC now or hereafter in effect. 
The KPS facility is located about 90 miles North-East of the city of 
Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
    Kewaunee Solutions is currently decommissioning the KPS facility, 
which consists of a permanently shutdown and defueled pressurized water 
reactor design and a dry cask Independent Spent Fuel Storage 
Installation. Inherent to the plans for this decommissioning process, 
large volumes of low-level radioactive waste are generated. This low-
level radioactive waste requires processing and disposal or only 
disposal. KPS will transport, by truck or by mixed mode shipments (for 
example, by a combination of truck and rail), low-level radioactive 
waste from the facility to locations such as the waste disposal 
facility owned and operated by EnergySolutions in Clive, Utah.

II. Request/Action

    By letter dated March 29, 2023 (Agencywide Document Access and 
Management System Accession No. ML23088A275), Kewaunee Solutions 
requested an exemption from certain requirements of title 10 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), part 20, appendix G, section 
III.E, ``Requirements for Transfers of Low-Level Radioactive Waste 
Intended for Disposal at Licensed Land Disposal Facilities and 
Manifests.'' Specifically, Kewaunee Solutions requests an exemption 
from the requirement to investigate and report to the NRC when 
notification of receipt of a shipment, or part of a shipment, of low-
level radioactive waste is not received within 20 days after transfer. 
Kewaunee Solutions is requesting that the time to receive 
acknowledgement that a shipment has been received by the intended 
recipient be extended from 20 days to 45 days for low-level radioactive 
waste shipments from the KPS facility. Further, Kewaunee Solutions 
states that the requested exemption would be applicable to shipments 
from KPS by rail or by mixed transportation modes, such as a 
combination of truck/rail shipments.

[[Page 46196]]

III. Discussion

    The NRC's regulations at 10 CFR 20.2301, ``Applications for 
exemptions,'' allow the Commission to grant exemptions from the 
requirements of the regulations in 10 CFR part 20, ``Standards for 
Protection Against Radiation,'' if it determines the exemption is 
authorized by law and would not result in undue hazard to life or 
property.

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law

    The requested exemption from 10 CFR part 20, appendix G, section 
III.E would extend the receipt acknowledgment period from 20 days to 45 
days before Kewaunee Solutions would have to investigate, trace, and 
report on the status of a low-level radioactive waste shipment being 
transported from KPS to a licensed low-level radioactive waste 
processing or land disposal facility. As stated above, 10 CFR 20.2301 
allows the NRC to grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR part 
20 when, in part, the exemptions are authorized by law. 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. The NRC staff 
determined that the requested exemption is therefore permissible under 
the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and other regulatory 
requirements. Therefore, the NRC finds that the requested exemption is 
authorized 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 on low-level 
radioactive waste shipments that have not reached their destination, as 
scheduled, for unknown reasons. In its exemption request, Kewaunee 
Solutions stated that ample industry experience in shipping low-level 
radioactive waste in support of decommissioning has demonstrated that 
shipments often take longer than 20 days. Based on past reports and 
industry experience, the NRC staff agrees that delays due to rail 
scheduling are likely to recur.
    Further, Kewaunee Solutions stated that its exemption request is 
similar to others that have previously been approved by the NRC for 
Fort Calhoun Station (ML20162A155), La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor 
(ML17124A210), and Zion Nuclear Power Station (ML15008A417). The NRC 
staff reviewed these other exemption requests and notes that all of the 
licensees that requested and were granted this exemption, previously 
had at least once missed 20-day receipt notification window. The NRC 
staff conclude that due to the location of KPS to low level waste 
disposal facilities and the use or the rail system, it is likely that 
without the exemption, Kewaunee Solutions would be in a similar 
situation to the licensees referenced above due to the trail transport 
system practices. The NRC staff agrees that these exemption requests 
are similar to the exemption requested by Kewaunee Solutions.
    In its exemption request, Kewaunee Solutions stated that it will be 
transporting low-level radioactive waste from the KPS facility to 
distant locations such as the waste disposal facilities owned by 
EnergySolutions in Clive, Utah. KPS plans to ship most of the waste to 
these disposal facilities or intermediate processors by rail. Kewaunee 
Solutions expressed that industry experience from other decommissioning 
projects shipping large quantities of low level radwaste to offsite 
disposal facilities, has shown that rail and mixed mode shipments can 
routinely take longer than 20 days, resulting in an excessive 
administrative burden due to the required investigations and reporting. 
Further, Kewaunee Solutions stated that there are various reasons for 
these delays that cannot be anticipated or avoided and that are beyond 
the control of the shipper.
    Kewaunee Solutions further stated that, for rail shipments from 
KPS, a tracking system will be utilized that allows daily monitoring of 
a shipment's progress to its destination. Shipping procedures prescribe 
the expectations for tracking and communications during transit. 
Kewaunee Solutions stated that it will request daily updates be 
provided identifying the location of the shipment from the appropriate 
carrier. As a result, Kewaunee Solutions explains that it will be 
unlikely that a shipment could be lost, misdirected, or diverted 
without the knowledge of the carrier or Kewaunee Solutions personnel. 
According to Kewaunee Solutions, exceeding the 20-day requirement 
results in the ``excessive administrative burden'' of investigating and 
reporting, even though the shipments continue to be under requisite 
controls.
    The NRC staff notes that in terms of potential effects on a member 
of the public, the primary cause of low-level radioactive waste 
shipment delays is coordination with the rail carriers. When these 
delays happen, the shipment is generally within a railyard and not near 
a member of the public or a public place. The only way a low-level 
radioactive waste shipment would remain in a public place for an 
unusual amount of time is if there was a problem with the transport 
vehicle or the rail system itself. In that instance, the NRC staff 
notes that all low-level radioactive waste shipments from KPS are 
required to be compliant with the U.S. Department of Transportation 
(DOT) and NRC requirements for transportation of low-level radioactive 
packaging, placarding, and allowable radiation levels at the surface of 
the package for health and safety purposes during transit, including 
during switchyard staging. Furthermore, the shipments are required to 
be under control of the shipper at all times, tracked by the licensee, 
and periodically monitored by the licensee, as needed. Therefore, there 
are no potential health and safety concerns associated with this 
material sitting in a switchyard for an extended period of time. In the 
unlikely event that a low-level waste shipments were to remain in a 
public place for an extended period of time, adherence to the DOT 
transportation requirements would also ensure that there would be no 
health and safety concerns regarding potential dose to the public.
    Based on the history of low-level radioactive waste shipments from 
other Nuclear Power Plants in decommissioning and the lack of potential 
health or safety concerns associated with these shipments sitting in a 
switchyard for an extended period of time, the NRC staff concludes that 
the need to investigate, trace, and report on low-level radioactive 
waste shipments that take longer than 45 days is appropriate.
    Additionally, as indicated in the exemption request, for truck and 
rail shipments from Kewaunee Solutions, KPS will use a tracking system 
that allows daily monitoring of a shipment's progress to its 
destination and KPS shipping procedures prescribe the expectations for 
tracking and communications during transit. The NRC staff notes that 
this will allow for monitoring the progress of shipments on a daily 
basis, if needed, in lieu of the 20-day requirement, and will initiate 
an investigation as provided for by 10 CFR part 20, appendix G, section 
III.E after 45 days. Because of this oversight and the ability to 
monitor low-level radioactive waste shipments throughout the entire 
journey from KPS to a disposal or processing facility, the staff 
concludes that it is unlikely that a shipment could be lost, 
misdirected, or

[[Page 46197]]

diverted without the knowledge of the carrier or Kewaunee Solutions and 
that, therefore, there is no potential health or safety concern 
presented by the requested exemption. Furthermore, by extending the 
time for receipt acknowledgment to 45 days before requiring 
investigations, tracing, and reporting, a reasonable upper limit on 
shipment duration is maintained in the event that a breakdown of normal 
tracking systems was to occur.
    Based on the above, the NRC staff finds that the requested 
exemption would not result in undue hazard to life or property.

C. Environmental Considerations

    With respect to compliance with section 102(2) of the National 
Environmental Policy Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2) (NEPA), the NRC 
staff has determined that the proposed action, the approval of the 
Kewaunee Solutions exemption request, is within the scope of the 
categorical exclusion listed at 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25). The proposed 
granting of the exemption from certain requirements of the NRC's 
regulations at 10 CFR part 20, appendix G, section III.E would: (i) 
present 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) not result 
in a significant increase in individual or cumulative public or 
occupational radiation exposure; (iv) have no significant construction 
impact; (v) does not present a significant increase in the potential 
for or consequences from radiological accidents. Additionally, the 
requirements from which an exemption is sought involves reporting 
requirements under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(B) as well as inspection or 
surveillance requirements under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(C). Given the 
applicability of relevant categorical exclusions, 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, effective immediately, the 
Commission hereby grants Kewaunee Solutions 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 KPS to a 
licensed land disposal or processing facility.

    Dated: July 5, 2023.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

/RA/

Jane E. Marshall,
Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and Waste 
Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.

[FR Doc. 2023-15328 Filed 7-18-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P