Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 45 / Tuesday, March 9, 2010 / Notices 10839 

applicable physical security 

requirements as described in 10 CFR 

73.55 and reflected in its current NRC 

approved physical security program. By 

June 30, 2011, DCPP will be in full 

compliance with the regulatory 

requirements of 10 CFR 73.55, as issued 

on March 27, 2009. 

4.0 Conclusion for Part 73 Schedule 

Exemption Request 

The staff has reviewed the licensee’s 

submittals and concludes that the 

licensee has provided adequate 

justification for its request for an 

extension of the compliance date to June 

30, 2011 for two specified requirements. 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

determined that pursuant to 10 CFR 

73.5, ‘‘Specific exemptions,’’ an 

exemption from the March 31, 2010, 

compliance date is authorized by law 

and will not endanger life or property or 

the common defense and security, and 

is otherwise in the public interest. 

Therefore, the Commission hereby 

grants the requested exemption. 

The NRC staff has determined that the 

long-term benefits that will be realized 

when the DCPP security modifications 

are complete justifies exceeding the full 

compliance date with regard to the 

specified requirements of 10 CFR 73.55. 

The significant security enhancements 

DCPP needs additional time to complete 

are new requirements imposed by 

March 27, 2009 amendments to 10 CFR 

73.55, and are in addition to those 

required by the security orders issued in 

response to the events of September 11, 

2001. Therefore, the NRC concludes that 

the licensee’s actions are in the best 

interest of protecting the public health 

and safety through the security changes 

that will result from granting this 

exemption. 

As per the licensee’s request and the 

NRC’s regulatory authority to grant an 

exemption from the March 31, 2010, 

deadline for the two items specified in 

Enclosure 1 of PG&E letter dated 

December 4, 2009, the licensee is 

required to be in full compliance by 

June 30, 2011. In achieving compliance, 

the licensee is reminded that it is 

responsible for determining the 

appropriate licensing mechanism (i.e., 

10 CFR 50.54(p) or 10 CFR 50.90) for 

incorporation of all necessary changes 

to its security plans. 

Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, ‘‘Finding of 

no significant impact,’’ the Commission 

has previously determined that the 

granting of this exemption will not have 

a significant effect on the quality of the 

human environment (75 FR 8152; dated 

February 23, 2010). 

This exemption is effective upon 

issuance. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2nd day 

of March 2010. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Joseph G. Giitter, 

Director, Division of Operating Reactor 

Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

[FR Doc. 2010–4937 Filed 3–8–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[Docket No. 50–395; NRC–2010–0067] 

South Carolina Electric and Gas 

Company; Virgil C. Summer Nuclear 

Station, Unit 1; Exemption 

1.0 Background 

South Carolina Electric and Gas 

Company, (SCE&G, the licensee) is the 

holder of Facility Operating License No. 

NPF–12, which authorizes operation of 

the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Station, 

Unit 1 (VCSNS). The license provides, 

among other things, that the facility is 

subject to all rules, regulations, and 

orders of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC, the Commission) 

now or hereafter in effect. 

The facility consists of a pressurized 

water reactor located in Fairfield 

County, South Carolina. 

2.0 Request/Action 

Title 10 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations (10 CFR) Part 73, ‘‘Physical 

protection of plants and materials,’’ 

section 73.55, ‘‘Requirements for 

physical protection of licensed activities 

in nuclear power reactors against 

radiological sabotage,’’ published March 

27, 2009, effective May 26, 2009, with 

a full implementation date of March 31, 

2010, requires licensees to protect, with 

high assurance, against radiological 

sabotage by designing and 

implementing comprehensive site 

security plans. The amendments to 10 

CFR 73.55 published on March 27, 

2009, establish and update generically 

applicable security requirements similar 

to those previously imposed by 

Commission orders issued after the 

terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, 

and implemented by licensees. In 

addition, the amendments to 10 CFR 

73.55 include additional requirements 

to further enhance site security based 

upon insights gained from 

implementation of the post September 

11, 2001, security orders. It is from two 

of these new requirements that VCSNS 

now seeks an exemption from the March 

31, 2010, implementation date. All other 

physical security requirements 

established by this recent rulemaking 

have already been or will be 

implemented by the licensee by March 

31, 2010. 

On December 11, 2009, the licensee 

submitted two letters, SCE&G 

designation RC–09–0154 (NRC ADAMS 

ML093490316) and RC–09–0148 (NRC 

ADAMS ML093480496 and 

ML093480497), requesting an 

exemption in accordance with 10 CFR 

73.5, ‘‘Specific exemptions.’’ SCE&G’s 

letter RC–09–0148, contains securityrelated information and, accordingly, is 

not available to the public. SCE&G’s 

letter RC–09–0154 is a redacted version 

of RC–09–0148 that does not contain 

security related information. The 

licensee has requested an exemption 

from the March 31, 2010, compliance 

date for two provisions of the revised 10 

CFR Part 73, stating that the scope of 

work necessary to complete these two 

provisions would require a schedule 

going past the March 31, 2010, 

implementation date in the revised 10 

CFR Part 73. Specifically, the request is 

to extend the compliance date for two 

specific requirements from the current 

March 31, 2010 deadline to September 

30, 2010. Being granted this exemption 

for the two items would allow the 

licensee to complete the study, design, 

planning, procurement, construction, 

testing, and project closeout for the two 

areas on a schedule that will allow 

adherence to the licensee’s design 

control and work control processes. 

3.0 Discussion of Part 73 Schedule 

Exemptions from the March 31, 2010, 

Full Implementation Date 

Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.55(a)(1), ‘‘By 

March 31, 2010, each nuclear power 

reactor licensee, licensed under 10 CFR 

Part 50, shall implement the 

requirements of this section through its 

Commission-approved Physical Security 

Plan, Training and Qualification Plan, 

Safeguards Contingency Plan, and Cyber 

Security Plan referred to collectively 

hereafter as ‘security plans.’ ’’ Pursuant 

to 10 CFR 73.5, the Commission may, 

upon application by any interested 

person or upon its own initiative, grant 

exemptions from the requirements of 10 

CFR Part 73 when the exemptions are 

authorized by law, and will not 

endanger life or property or the common 

defense and security, and are otherwise 

in the public interest. 

NRC approval of this exemption 

would, as noted above, allow an 

extension from March 31, 2010, until 

September 30, 2010, for the 

implementation date for two specific 

requirements of the new rule. The NRC 

staff has determined that granting of the 

licensee’s proposed exemption would 

not result in a violation of the Atomic 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES
10840 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 45 / Tuesday, March 9, 2010 / Notices 

Energy Act of 1954, as amended, or the 

Commission’s regulations. Therefore, 

the exemption is authorized by law. 

In the draft final rule provided to the 

Commission, (SECY–08–0099, dated 

July 9, 2008), the NRC staff proposed 

that the requirements of the new 

regulation be met within 180 days. The 

Commission directed a change from 180 

days to approximately 1 year for 

licensees to fully implement the new 

requirements. This change was 

incorporated into the final rule. From 

this, it is clear that the Commission 

wanted to provide a reasonable 

timeframe for licensees to achieve full 

compliance. 

As noted in the final rule, the 

Commission also anticipated that 

licensees would have to conduct site 

specific analyses to determine what 

changes were necessary to implement 

the rule’s requirements, and that 

changes could be accomplished through 

a variety of licensing mechanisms, 

including exemptions. Since issuance of 

the final rule, the Commission has 

rejected a generic industry request to 

extend the rule’s compliance date for all 

operating nuclear power plants, but 

noted that the Commission’s regulations 

provide mechanisms for individual 

licensees, with good cause, to apply for 

relief from the compliance date 

(Reference: June 4, 2009, letter from R. 

W. Borchardt, NRC, to M. S. Fertel, 

Nuclear Energy Institute). The licensee’s 

request for an exemption is therefore 

consistent with the approach set forth 

by the Commission as discussed in the 

June 4, 2009, letter. 

VCSNS Schedule Exemption Request 

The licensee provided detailed 

information in Enclosures 1 and 2 and 

attachment 1 (NRC ADAMS ML 

093480496) of its letter dated December 

11, 2009 (RC–09–0148), requesting an 

exemption. It describes a plan that 

proceeds from the now completed study 

phase to the major activities of design 

development of the engineering change 

request package to support the activities 

necessary for full compliance with part 

73. These activities include the required 

plant modifications; design 

development of custom computer 

software; detailed field planning; work 

document development; schedule 

integration including integration of the 

new equipment with the existing 

security system; material procurement; 

field implementation of the required 

plant modifications including 

installation of fiber optic cables, large 

and small diameter conduit and 

distribution boxes; connections to the 

computer system; and project closeout. 

SCE&G has also provided a timeline for 

achieving full compliance with the new 

regulation that shows the design, 

planning procurement, construction, 

testing, and project closeout activities. 

SCE&G stated that the project schedule 

takes into consideration the logistical 

efforts required to maintain the current 

defensive strategy while implementing 

the security system upgrade. SCE&G’s 

letter (RC–09–0148) and its Enclosures 1 

and 2 and Attachment 1 (ADAMS 

ML093480496 and ML093480497) 

contains security-related information 

regarding the site security issues, details 

of specific portions of the new 

regulation with which SCE&G cannot be 

in compliance by the March 31, 2010, 

deadline, why the required changes to 

the VCSNS security configuration could 

not be completed by March 31, 2010, 

and a timeline with critical path 

activities that would enable SCE&G to 

achieve full compliance by September 

30, 2010. The timeline provides 

milestone dates for engineering, 

planning and procurement, 

implementation, startup and testing, 

engineering closeout, and project 

closeout. 

Notwithstanding the scheduler 

exemptions for these limited 

requirements, the licensee will continue 

to be in compliance with all other 

applicable physical security 

requirements as described in 10 CFR 

73.55 and reflected in its current NRC 

approved physical security program. By 

September 30, 2010, VCSNS will be in 

full compliance with all the regulatory 

requirements of 10 CFR 73.55, as issued 

on March 27, 2009. 

4.0 Conclusion for Part 73 Schedule 

Exemption Request 

The NRC staff has reviewed the 

licensee’s submittals and concludes that 

the licensee has provided adequate 

justification for its request for an 

extension of the compliance date to 

September 30, 2010, with regard to two 

specific requirements of 10 CFR 73.55. 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

determined that pursuant to 10 CFR 

73.5, ‘‘Specific exemptions,’’ an 

exemption from the March 31, 2010, 

compliance date is authorized by law 

and will not endanger life or property or 

the common defense and security, and 

is otherwise in the public interest. 

Therefore, the Commission hereby 

grants the requested exemption. 

The NRC staff has determined that the 

long-term benefits that will be realized 

when the licensee’s equipment 

installation is complete justifies 

extending the full compliance date with 

regard to the specific requirements of 10 

CFR 73.55. The security measures, that 

SCE&G needs additional time to 

implement, are new requirements 

imposed by the March 27, 2009, 

amendments to 10 CFR 73.55, and are 

in addition to those required by the 

security orders issued in response to the 

events of September 11, 2001. 

Therefore, it is concluded that the 

licensee’s actions are in the best interest 

of protecting the public health and 

safety through the security changes that 

will result from granting this exemption. 

As per the licensee’s request and the 

NRC’s regulatory authority to grant an 

exemption from the March 31, 2010, 

implementation deadline for the two 

requirements specified in the licensee’s 

two letters dated December 11, 2009, the 

licensee is required to be in full 

compliance by September 30, 2010. In 

achieving compliance, the licensee is 

reminded that it is responsible for 

determining the appropriate licensing 

mechanism (i.e., 10 CFR 50.54(p) or 10 

CFR 50.90) for incorporation of all 

necessary changes to its security plans. 

Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, ‘‘Finding of 

no significant impact,’’ the Commission 

has previously determined that the 

granting of this exemption will not have 

a significant effect on the quality of the 

human environment 75 FR 8756; dated 

February 25, 2010. 

This exemption is effective upon 

issuance. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 1st day 

of March, 2010. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Joseph G. Giitter, 

Director, Division of Operating Reactor 

Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

[FR Doc. 2010–4935 Filed 3–8–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Advisory Committee on Reactor 

Safeguards (ACRS) Meeting of the 

Subcommittee on Advanced Boiling 

Water Reactor (ABWR); Notice of 

Meeting 

The ACRS Subcommittee on ABWR 

will hold a meeting on March 18, 2010, 

at 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland, Room T2 B3. 

The meeting will be open to public 

attendance, with the exception of a 

portion that may be closed to protect 

information that is proprietary to the 

South Texas Project (STP), pursuant to 

5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(4). 

The agenda for the subject meeting 

shall be as follows: 

March 18, 2010–8:30 a.m.–5 p.m. 

The Subcommittee will review 

selected chapters (5, 8, 16, and 17) of 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES