[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 1, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-2171]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: February 1, 1994]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Joint Statement of Understanding Between Nuclear Regulatory
Commission and Department of Energy on Implementing Energy Policy Act
Provisions on Regulation of Gaseous Diffusion Uranium Enrichment Plants
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Publication of Joint Statement of Understanding Between the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE) have entered into a Joint Statement of
Understanding which describes the roles of the DOE and NRC in
implementing the Energy Policy Act of 1992 provisions on the regulation
of gaseous diffusion uranium enrichment plants. The text of the Joint
Statement of Understanding is set forth below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. S. R. Ruffin, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, MS 4-E-4, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555, telephone 301-504-2696.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of January, 1994.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samuel J. Chilk,
Secretary of the Commission.
Joint Statement of Understanding
By October 24, 1994, pursuant to Title XI of the Energy Policy
Act of 1992 (the ``Act''), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the
``NRC'') is directed to establish standards (the ``standards'') for
regulation of the gaseous diffusion uranium enrichment facilities
(the ``facilities'' or ``GDPs'') owned by the Department of Energy
(the ``DOE'') in order to protect the public health and safety from
radiological hazard and provide for the common defense and security.
Title XI of the Act also specifies that NRC establish a
certification process to ensure that the U.S. Enrichment Corporation
(the ``Corporation''), which is to lease the facilities from DOE,
complies with the NRC standards. After NRC establishes the
standards, the Corporation is required to apply at least annually to
NRC for a certificate of compliance with the standards. The
requirement for a certificate of compliance is in lieu of any
requirement for a license for the facilities leased by the
Corporation. The Act also provides that the Corporation may not
operate the facilities unless the NRC makes a determination that the
facilities are in compliance with the NRC standards to be
established by October 24, 1994, or NRC approves a plan prepared by
DOE for achieving compliance with such standards.
Title XI of the Act also provides that the NRC, in consultation
with the Environmental Protection Agency (the ``EPA''), shall review
the operations of the Corporation to ensure that public health and
safety are adequately protected. Further, Title IX of the Act
provides the Corporation shall lease the gaseous diffusion
facilities of DOE at Paducah, Kentucky and Portsmouth, Ohio for a
six-year period, beginning July 1, 1993.
Pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, including
in particular the provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 on
regulation and certification as generally described above, NRC and
DOE are issuing this joint statement of understanding (the ``Joint
Statement'') to address matters relating to the process by which NRC
will assume, and DOE will relinquish at the time and to the extent
provided by law, responsibility for regulatory oversight under the
Act for the DOE facilities leased by the Corporation as specified by
the Energy Policy Act of 1992. In view of the explicit framework of
the Act under which NRC is to assume responsibility for the
radiological protection of the public health and safety and the
common defense and security after NRC standards are established and
become effective for that purpose, this Joint Statement of
Understanding identifies certain responsibilities of NRC and DOE
with respect to the process, provides for cooperation between NRC
and DOE necessary to the successful implementation of the process,
and serves such other purposes as may be related thereto.
In NRC requesting and DOE agreeing to supply information, DOE
and NRC understand that the purpose is to help establish NRC's
regulatory framework under the Act, not for NRC to establish
oversight before NRC assumes regulatory jurisdiction over the
facilities.
1. Under the Act, by October 24, 1994, NRC is directed to
establish its standards to protect public health and safety and
common defense and security for the facilities leased to the
Corporation.
2. In order to support NRC in developing the standards
identified in paragraph 1, DOE will supply available information,
permit site visits, and provide other similar assistance in support
of NRC standards development in response to NRC's request. In
particular, DOE will provide any available description of the Safety
Basis and Framework for DOE Oversight of the Gaseous Diffusion
Plants, including:
(i) A description of the safety analyses, operational safety
requirements, and the bases for maintaining the safety basis for the
GDPs. The description will include the information which DOE relies
on to demonstrate that the current regulatory base is adequate to
protect the public health and safety and provide for the common
defense and security.
(ii) A description of the operational requirements, consisting
of the basic operational safety objectives, implementation
requirements, implementation measures, status of conformance with
the implementation requirements, and the corrective actions being
taken to address non-conformances.
(iii) A description of DOE's program for continuing regulatory
oversight over the GDPs, including a description of the program for
compliance reviews and audits, followup actions to assure that audit
findings are addressed, and the status of open audit findings.
At NRC's request, DOE will supply copies of applicable DOE
Orders, other documents referenced in the aforementioned
descriptions, and such other documents as are necessary to support
NRC's standards development.
DOE will also permit NRC to locate observers at the facilities
on or after July 1, 1993, to obtain information and knowledge that
may be useful to NRC in developing or implementing its standards.
Interim guidance for the NRC observers will be established by the
DOE Regulatory Oversight Manager and the NRC covering the period
before NRC assumes regulatory jurisdiction over the facilities.
3. As indicated above, the Energy Policy Act amendments to the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954 condition NRC regulation (through the
annual certification process) of the facilities leased to the
Corporation on the promulgation of the new NRC standards. NRC
anticipates that it will require the Corporation to file the first
annual application for a certificate of compliance within six (6)
months after promulgation by NRC of the standards. Thus, until such
time as NRC has promulgated its standards and they have become
effective and the first certification process based on NRC standards
has been completed, DOE will continue to exercise its public health
and safety and common defense and security regulatory oversight over
the operation of the facilities.
4. During the entire period that the facilities are in
operation, and thereafter as long as necessary, on a full cost
reimbursable basis from the Corporation, DOE will retain
responsibility for all access authorization programs with respect to
the facilities leased by the Corporation and the Corporation itself.
DOE will be responsible for the administrative determinations
relating to granting, suspending, adjudicating, or denying a
security clearance, and for reinvestigating an individual's
background for continued access.
5. At all times during the period the facilities are in
operation by the Corporation after NRC assumes responsibility for
regulatory oversight, NRC will be responsible for granting security
facility approvals and for establishing an information security
program to ensure that Restricted Data, including both information
and equipment, is appropriately classified and protected with
respect to the facilities leased by the Corporation and the
Corporation itself.
6. During the entire period that uranium enriched to 20 percent
or more U\235\ is located at the Portsmouth facility, DOE will
retain title to and possess such uranium and will be solely
responsible for providing for, establishing and maintaining nuclear
safety, safeguards and security controls applicable to such uranium.
This Joint Statement is not a regulation and is not intended to
create or alter legal requirements or obligations of NRC, DOE, the
Corporation or any other interested person.
Dated: December 7, 1993.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Ivan Selin,
Chairman, Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Dated: December 20, 1993.
For the Department of Energy.
Hazel R. O'Leary,
Secretary of Energy.
[FR Doc. 94-2171 Filed 1-31-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
