[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 158 (Thursday, August 15, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66457-66458]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-18209]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 11006611; NRC-2024-0139]


Perma-Fix Northwest Richland, Inc.; Export License Application

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Opportunity to provide comments, request a hearing, and 
petition for leave to intervene.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received and is 
considering issuing an export license (XW033), requested by Perma-Fix 
Northwest Richland, Inc (PFNW) by application dated June 18, 2024. The 
application seeks the NRC's approval to return residual radioactive 
waste to the country of origin, Mexico. The NRC is providing notice of 
the opportunity to comment, request a hearing, and petition to 
intervene on PFNW's application.

DATES: Submit comments by September 16, 2024. A request for a hearing 
or petition for leave to intervene must be filed by September 16, 2024.

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-2024-0139. 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.
     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.
    For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting 
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrea Jones, Office of International 
Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 404-997-4443; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to NRC-2024-0139 or Docket No. 11006611 when 
contacting the NRC about the availability of information for this 
action. You may obtain publicly available information related to this 
action by the following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2024-0139.
     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 export license application is 
available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML24205A240.
     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.

B. Submitting Comments

    The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please 
include NRC-2024-0139 or Docket No. 11006611 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. Discussion

    On June 18, 2024, PFNW submitted an application to the NRC for a 
license to export treated radioactive waste of Mexican origin. The 
source of the waste is the Comisi[oacute]n Federal de Electricidad 
(CFE) Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant (CFE LVNPP), located in 
Veracruz, Mexico. PFNW intends to receive shipment of incoming waste 
consisting

[[Page 66458]]

of liquid, solids, contaminated personal protective equipment, paper, 
plastic, glass, and combustible waste generated by the research 
projects at the power plant. PFNW will treat the waste by thermal 
processing, stabilization, and solidification. Residual ash, residual 
metal, and noncombustible material would then be exported back to 
Mexico for disposal. Resultant contaminants to be exported will include 
cobalt 60 (Co-60), cesium-137 (Cs-137), tritium (H-3), manganese-54 
(Mn-54), zinc-65 (Zn-65), cobalt-58 (Co-58), carbon-14 (C-14), iron-55 
(Fe-55), nickel-63 (Ni-63), strontium-90 (Sr-90), techneticum-99 (Tc-
99), plutonium-241 (Pu-241), and americium-241 (Am 241) in the form of 
residual ash and residual metal or non-combustible material, not to 
exceed 0.119 terabecquerels (TBq). PFNW requests an expiration date of 
December 1, 2030.
    In accordance with paragraph 110.70(b) of title 10 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (10 CFR), the NRC is providing notice of the 
receipt of the application; providing the opportunity to submit written 
comments concerning the application; and providing the opportunity to 
request a hearing or petition for leave to intervene, for a period of 
30 days after publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
    A hearing request or petition for leave to intervene must include 
the information specified in 10 CFR 110.82(b). Any request for hearing 
or petition for leave to intervene shall be served by the requestor or 
petitioner in accordance with 10 CFR 110.89(a), either by delivery, by 
mail, or filed with the NRC electronically in accordance with the NRC's 
E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139; August 28, 2007, as amended at 77 FR 46562; 
August 3, 2012). Detailed guidance on electronic submissions is located 
in the ``Guidance for Electronic Submissions to the NRC'' (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML13031A056) and on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
    To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10 
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the 
Office of the Secretary by email at [email protected], or by 
telephone at 301-415-1677, to (1) request a digital identification (ID) 
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or 
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing 
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise 
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or 
other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the 
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC 
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the 
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the hearing in this 
proceeding if the Secretary has not already established an electronic 
docket.
    The information concerning this application for an export license 
is as follows.

                     NRC Export License Application
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                         Application Information
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Name of Applicant............  Perma-Fix Northwest Richland, Inc.
Date of Application..........  June 18, 2024.
Date Received................  July 24, 2024.
Application No...............  XW033.
Docket No....................  11006611.
ADAMS Accession No...........  ML24205A240.
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                         Description of Material
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Material Type................  Low-level radioactive waste contaminated
                                with Co-60, Cs-137, H-3, Mn-54, Zn-65,
                                Co-58, C-14, Fe-55, Ni-63, Sr-90, Tc-99,
                                Pu-241, and Am 241 in the form of
                                residual ash and residual metal or non-
                                combustible material. The incoming
                                material will include liquid, solids,
                                contaminated personal protective
                                equipment, paper, plastic, glass, and
                                combustible waste generated by the
                                Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant,
                                located in Veracruz, Mexico.
Total Quantity...............  Not to exceed 0.119 TBq.
End Use......................  Storage and ultimate disposal of low-
                                level radioactive waste.
Country of Destination.......  Mexico.
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    Dated: August 9, 2024.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
David L. Skeen,
Director, Office of International Programs.
[FR Doc. 2024-18209 Filed 8-14-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P