[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 3, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Page 42152]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19855]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-373 and 50-374]
In the Matter of Commonwealth Edison Company (LaSalle County
Station, Units 1 and 2); Exemption
I
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd, the licensee) is the holder of
Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-11 and NPF-18 for LaSalle County
Station, Units 1 and 2. The licenses provide, among other things, that
the licensee is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the
Commission now or hereafter in effect.
LaSalle County Station consists of two boiling water reactors
located in LaSalle County, Illinois.
II
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section
50.71, ``Maintenance of records, making of reports,'' paragraph (e)(4)
states, in part, that ``[s]ubsequent revisions [to the Updated Final
Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR)] must be filed annually or 6 months
after each refueling outage provided the interval between successive
updates [to the UFSAR] does not exceed 24 months.'' The LaSalle
station, Units 1 and 2, share a common FSAR. Therefore, this rule
requires the licensee to update the same document annually or within 6
months after each unit's refueling outage (approximately every 9
months).
III
Section 50.12(a) of 10 CFR, ``Specific exemptions,'' states:
The Commission may, upon application by any interested person or
upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of
the regulations of this part, which are--(1) Authorized by law, will
not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and are
consistent with the common defense and security. (2) The Commission
will not consider granting an exemption unless special circumstances
are present.
Section 50.12(a)(2)(ii) of 10 CFR states that special circumstances
are present when ``[a]pplication of the regulation in the particular
circumstances would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.'' The
licensee has proposed updating the unified LaSalle UFSAR within 24
calendar months of the previous UFSAR revision. The underlying purpose
of the rule was to relieve licensees of the burden of filing annual
UFSAR revisions while assuring that such revisions are made at least
every 24 months. The Commission reduced the burden, in part, by
permitting a licensee to submit its UFSAR revisions 6 months after
refueling outages for its facility, but did not provide in the rule for
multiple unit facilities sharing a common UFSAR. Rather, the Commission
stated that ``[w]ith respect to * * * multiple facilities sharing a
common UFSAR, licensees will have maximum flexibility for scheduling
updates on a case-by-case basis'' (57 FR 39355 (1992)).
As noted In the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation, the licensee's
proposed schedule for the LaSalle UFSAR updates will ensure that the
UFSAR will be maintained current for both units within 24 months of the
last revision. The proposed schedule satisfies the maximum 24-month
interval between UFSAR revisions specified by 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4). The
requirement to revise the UFSAR annually or within 6 months after
refueling outages for each unit, therefore, is not necessary to achieve
the underlying purpose of the rule. Accordingly, the Commission has
determined that special circumstances are present as defined in 10 CFR
50.12(a)(2)(ii). The Commission has further determined that, pursuant
to 10 CFR 50.12, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present
an undue risk to the public health and safety and is consistent with
the common defense and security, and is otherwise in the public
interest.
The Commission hereby grants the licensee an exemption from the
requirement of 10 CFR 50.71(e)(4) to submit updates to the LaSalle
UFSAR annually or within 6 months of each unit's refueling outage. The
licensee will be required to submit updates to the LaSalle UFSAR within
24 months of the previous UFSAR revision submittal.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that
granting of this exemption will have no significant effect on the
quality of the human environment (64 FR 39177).
This exemption is effective upon issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day of July, 1999.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John A. Zwolinski,
Director, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 99-19855 Filed 8-2-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
