01-5398. List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: VSC-24 Revision

AGENCY:

Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its regulations revising the Pacific Sierra Nuclear Associates (PSNA) VSC-24 listing within the “List of approved spent fuel storage casks” to include Amendment No. 3 to the Certificate of Compliance (CoC). This amendment will allow holders of power reactor operating licenses as general licensees to store Combustion Engineering 16x16 spent fuel assemblies in accordance with revised technical specifications in the VSC-24 cask system. The proposed Amendment No. 3 to the VSC-24 CoC changes Technical Specifications 1.2.1 and 1.2.6 to modify the fuel specifications for Combustion Engineering 16x16 spent fuel stored in the VSC-24 cask system, modifies the text in TS 1.2.7 for accuracy, modifies the text in Certificate Section 2.b. to remove ambiguity, modifies Certificate Section 3 to be consistent with TS 1.1.4, modifies Certificate Section 4 for consistency with TS 1.1.3, and modifies Certificate Section 5 to remove ambiguity.

DATES:

Comments on the proposed rule must be received on or before April 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments to: Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attn: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff. Deliver comments to 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD, between 7:30 am and 4:15 pm on Federal workdays.

You may also provide comments via the NRC's interactive rulemaking website (http://ruleforum.llnl.gov). This site provides the capability to upload comments as files (any format) if your web browser supports that function. For information about the interactive rulemaking site, contact Ms. Carol Gallagher [phone]; e-mail [e-mail].

Certain documents related to this rule, including comments received by the NRC, may be examined at the NRC Public Document Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD. These documents may also be viewed and downloaded electronically via the rulemaking website.

Documents created or received at the NRC after November 1, 1999 are also available electronically at the NRC Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/​NRC/​ADAMS/​index.html. From this site, the public can gain entry into the NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and image files of NRC's public documents. An electronic copy of the proposed CoC and preliminary safety evaluation report (SER) can be found in ADAMS under Accession No. ML003733556. For more information, contact the NRC's Public Document Room Reference Staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737 or by e-mail at [e-mail].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Stan Turel, telephone [phone], e-mail, [e-mail], of the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

For additional information see the Direct Final Rule published in the final rules section of this Federal Register.

Procedural Background

The NRC is also publishing this proposed rule as a direct final rule because it represents a limited and routine change to an existing CoC that is expected to be noncontroversial; adequate protection of public health and safety continues to be ensured. The direct final rule will become effective on May 21, 2001. However, if the NRC receives significant adverse comments on the direct final rule by April 5, 2001, then the NRC will publish a document to withdraw the direct final rule. If the direct final rule is withdrawn, the NRC will address the comments received in response to the proposed revisions in a subsequent final rule. Absent significant modifications to the proposed revisions requiring republication, the NRC will not initiate a second comment period for this action if the direct final rule is withdrawn.

List of Subjects In 10 CFR Part 72

• Criminal penalties
• Manpower training programs
• Nuclear materials
• Occupational safety and health
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
• Security measures
• Spent fuel

For the reasons set out in the preamble and under the authority of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as amended; and 5 U.S.C. 553; the NRC is proposing to adopt the following amendments to 10 CFR Part 72.

PART 72—LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE INDEPENDENT STORAGE OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL AND HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTE

1. The authority citation for Part 72 continues to read as follows:

Authority: Secs. 51, 53, 57, 62, 63, 65, 69, 81, 161, 182, 183, 184, 186, 187, 189, 68 Stat. 929, 930, 932, 933, 934, 935, 948, 953, 954, 955, as amended, sec. 234, 83 Stat. 444, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2071, 2073, 2077, 2092, 2093, 2095, 2099, 2111, 2201, 2232, 2233, 2234, 2236, 2237, 2238, 2282); sec. 274, Pub. L. 86-373, 73 Stat. 688, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2021); sec. 201, as amended, 202, 206, 88 Stat. 1242, as amended, 1244, 1246 (42 U.S.C. 5841, 5842, 5846); Pub. L. 95-601, sec. 10, 92 Stat. 2951 as amended by Pub. L. 10d-48b, sec. 7902, 10b Stat. 31b3 (42 U.S.C. 5851); sec. 102, Pub. L. 91-190, 83 Stat. 853 (42 U.S.C. 4332); secs. 131, 132, 133, 135, 137, 141, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2229, 2230, 2232, 2241, sec. 148, Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10151, 10152, 10153, 10155, 10157, 10161, 10168).

Section 72.44(g) also issued under secs. 142(b) and 148(c), (d), Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-232, 1330-236 (42 U.S.C. 10162(b), 10168(c), (d)). Section 72.46 also issued under sec. 189, 68 Stat. 955 (42 U.S.C. 2239); sec. 134, Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2230 (42 U.S.C. 10154). Section 72.96(d) also issued under sec. 145(g), Pub. L. 100-203, 101 Stat. 1330-235 (42 U.S.C. 10165(g)). Subpart J also issued under secs. 2(2), 2(15), 2(19), 117(a), 141(h), Pub. L. 97-425, 96 Stat. 2202, 2203, 2204, 2222, 2244, (42 U.S.C. 10101, 10137(a), 10161(h)). Subparts K and L are also issued under sec. 133, 98 Stat. 2230 (42 U.S.C. 10153) and sec. 218(a), 96 Stat. 2252 (42 U.S.C. 10198).

2. In § 72.214, Certificate of Compliance 1007 is revised to read as follows:

§ 72.214

List of approved spent fuel storage casks.

* * * * *

Certificate Number: 1007

Initial Certificate Effective Date: May 7, 1993

Amendment Number 1 Effective Date: May 30, 2000

Amendment Number 2 Effective Date: September 5, 2000

Amendment Number 3 Effective Date: May 21, 2001

SAR Submitted by: Pacific Sierra Nuclear Associates

SAR Title: Final Safety Analysis Report for the Ventilated Storage Cask System

Docket Number: 72-1007

Certificate Expiration Date: May 7, 2013

Model Number: VSC-24

* * * * *

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of February, 2001.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William D. Travers,

Executive Director for Operations.