Proposed Rules. Notice; supplemental information

Agency: Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Action: Notice; supplemental information
Citation: FR Doc. 2013-10925 · Docket No. 50-326; NRC-2010-0217

Summary

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) published a notice in the Federal Register on February 13, 2012 (77 FR 7610-7613), “Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for the License Renewal for University of California, Irvine Nuclear Reactor Facility,” to inform the public that the NRC is considering issuance of a renewed Facility License No. R-116 for the Regents of the University of California (the licensee) which would authorize continued operation of the University of California, Irvine Nuclear Reactor Facility. The notice provided the NRC staff's review of the Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for the University of California, Irvine Nuclear Reactor Facility. This action is necessary to provide the public with supplemental information regarding the U.S. Court of Appeals Waste Confidence Ruling and NRC staff review of the ruling showing the non-applicability to research and test reactor licensing.

Supplementary Information

On June 8, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit found that some aspects of the 2010 Waste Confidence Rulemaking did not satisfy the NRC's National Environmental Policy Act obligations and vacated the rulemaking. On August 7, 2012, the Commission directed the NRC staff not to issue any licenses dependent on the Waste Confidence Rule until the court's remand has been appropriately addressed. NRC staff analyzed the Waste Confidence Rule (part 51.23 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), “Temporary Storage of Spent Fuel after Cessation of Reactor Operation-Generic Determination of No Significant Environmental Impact,”) as well as supplemental information, and concluded that 10 CFR 51.23 does not specifically refer to research and test reactors (RTRs), only to power reactors and independent spent fuel storage installations. As such, RTR licensing does not rely or depend on the Waste Confidence Rule. The NRC staff's memo documenting this review can be found in the NRC Agencywide Documents Access and Management System under Accession No. ML13071A642. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day of May, 2013. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Alexander Adams, Jr., Chief, Research and Test Reactors Licensing Branch, Division of Policy and Rulemaking, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. [FR Doc. 2013-10925 Filed 5-7-13; 8:45 am]