38718 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 121 / Thursday, June 22, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William D. Travers,

Executive Director for Operations.

[FR Doc. 00–15542 Filed 6–21–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

NUCLEAR REGULATORY

COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 72

RIN 3150–AG55

List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage

Casks: VSC–24 Revision

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory

Commission.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory

Commission (NRC) is amending its

regulations revising the Pacific Sierra

Nuclear Associates (PSNA) VSC–24 cask

system listing within the 10 CFR part 72

‘‘List of approved spent fuel storage

casks,’’ to include Amendment No. 2 to

the Certificate of Compliance (CoC).

Amendment No. 2 will revise the

Technical Specifications and CoC

regarding welding and nondestructive

examination of welds, the method for

determining cask drain time during

loading, the minimum temperature for

moving the loaded multi-assembly

sealed basket (MSB), artificial thermal

loads other than spent fuel that may be

used to obtain temperature data, and the

maximum permissible air outlet

temperature. In addition, the

amendment includes changes to the

Technical Specifications and CoC to

correct typographical errors and to make

other minor clarifications and changes.

This amendment will allow the holders

of power reactor operating licenses to

store spent fuel in the VSC–24 cask

system, as amended, under a general

license.

DATES: The final rule is effective

September 5, 2000, unless significant

adverse comments are received by July

24, 2000. If adverse comments are

received, a timely withdrawal will be

published in the Federal Register

informing the public that the rule will

not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to:

Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, Washington, DC 20555–

0001. Attention: Rulemakings and

Adjudications Staff.

Deliver comments to 11555 Rockville

Pike, Rockville, Maryland, between 7:30

a.m. and 4:15 p.m. on Federal workdays.

You may also provide comments via

the NRC’s interactive rulemaking

website (http://ruleforumllnl.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 website, contact Ms. Carol

Gallagher, (301) 415–5905 (e-mail:

cag@nrc.gov).

Copies of any comments received may

be examined at the NRC Public

Document Room, 2120 L Street, NW.

(Lower Level), Washington, DC.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Gordon Gundersen, telephone (301)

415–6195, e-mail, GEG1@nrc.gov of the

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and

Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, Washington, DC 20555–

0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 218(a) of the Nuclear Waste

Policy Act of 1982, as amended

(NWPA), requires that ‘‘[t]he Secretary

[of the Department of Energy] shall

establish a demonstration program, in

cooperation with the private sector, for

the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel at

civilian nuclear power reactor sites,

with the objective of establishing one or

more technologies the [Nuclear

Regulatory] Commission may, by rule,

approve for use at the sites of civilian

nuclear power reactors without, to the

maximum extent practicable, the need

for additional site-specific approvals by

the Commission.’’ Section 133 of the

NWPA states, in part, that ‘‘[t]he

Commission shall, by rule, establish

procedures for the licensing of any

technology approved by the

Commission under section 218(a) for

use at the site of any civilian nuclear

power reactor.’’

To implement this mandate, the NRC

approved dry storage of spent nuclear

fuel in NRC-approved casks under a

general license, publishing a final rule,

in 10 CFR part 72 entitled ‘‘General

License for Storage of Spent Fuel at

Power Reactor Sites’’ (55 FR 29181, July

18, 1990). This rule also established a

new Subpart L within 10 CFR part 72

entitled ‘‘Approval of Spent Fuel

Storage Casks,’’ containing procedures

and criteria for obtaining NRC approval

of dry storage cask designs.

The NRC subsequently issued a final

rule on April 7, 1993 (58 FR 17948), that

approved the VSC–24 cask design,

added it to the list of NRC-approved

cask designs in § 72.214, and issued

Certificate of Compliance Number (CoC

No.) 1007.

Discussion

On November 20, 1998, PSNA (the

certificate holder), submitted an

application to the NRC to amend CoC

No. 1007 to revise the Technical

Specifications and CoC regarding

welding and nondestructive

examination of welds, the method for

determining cask drain time during

loading, the minimum temperature for

moving the loaded multi-assembly

sealed basket (MSB), artificial thermal

loads other than spent fuel that may be

used to obtain temperature data, and the

maximum permissible air outlet

temperature. In addition, the

amendment includes changes to the

Technical Specifications and CoC to

correct typographical errors and to make

other minor clarifications and changes.

These changes are described in the

Revision History for Amendment 2

(CoC, Attachment A, pages iii and iv).

The staff performed a safety evaluation

of the amendment request and found

that the changes provide reasonable

assurance that the spent fuel can be

stored safely and in compliance with 10

CFR Part 72. The staff documented its

review and evaluation in a Safety

Evaluation Report. A separate

amendment request (submitted

December 30, 1998) to permit a Part 72

licensee to store burnable poison rod

assemblies (BPRAs) in the VSC–24 cask

design along with the spent fuel is being

addressed in a separate rulemaking.

This direct final rule will revise the

PSNA VSC–24 cask system listing

within the list of NRC-approved casks

for spent fuel storage in § 72.214 by

adding Amendment No. 2 to CoC No.

1007. The amended VSC–24 cask

system, when used in accordance with

the conditions specified in the CoC and

NRC regulations, will meet the

requirements of 10 CFR Part 72; thus,

adequate protection of public health and

safety will continue to be ensured.

Amendment No. 2 applies to any VSC–

24 cask loaded after September 5, 2000.

Amendment No. 2 to CoC No. 1007

and the underlying SER, and the

Environmental Assessment and Finding

of No Significant Impact are available

for inspection and comment at the NRC

Public Document Room, 2120 L Street,

NW. (Lower Level), Washington, DC.

Single copies of the CoC and SER may

be obtained from Gordon Gundersen,

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and

Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, Washington, DC 20555,

telephone (301) 415–6195, email

GEG1@nrc.gov.

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 121 / Thursday, June 22, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 38719

Discussion of Amendments by Section

Section 72.214 List of Approved Spent

Fuel Storage Casks

Certificate No. 1007 will be revised

indicating the addition of Amendment

No. 2 and its effective date.

Procedural Background

This rule is limited to the changes

contained in Amendment No. 2 to CoC

1007 and does not include other aspects

of the VSC–24 cask system design.

Because NRC considers this amendment

to its rules to be noncontroversial and

routine, the NRC is using the direct final

rule procedure for this rule. The

amendment to the rules will become

effective on September 5, 2000.

However, if the NRC receives significant

adverse comments on the associated

proposed rule notice published

concurrently in the proposed rules

section of this Federal Register by July

24, 2000, then the NRC will publish a

document that withdraws this action

and will address the comments received

in response to the amendments. These

comments will be addressed in a

subsequent final rule. Absent significant

modification to the proposed revisions

requiring republication, the NRC will

not initiate a second comment period on

this action.

Agreement State Compatibility

Under the ‘‘Policy Statement on

Adequacy and Compatibility of

Agreement State Programs’’ approved by

the Commission on June 30, 1997, and

published in the Federal Register on

September 3, 1997 (62 FR 46517), this

rule is classified as compatibility

Category ‘‘NRC.’’ Compatibility is not

required for Category ‘‘NRC’’

regulations. The NRC program elements

in this category are those that relate

directly to areas of regulation reserved

to the NRC by the Atomic Energy Act of

1954, as amended (AEA) or the

provisions of Title 10 of the Code of

Federal Regulations. Although an

Agreement State may not adopt program

elements reserved to NRC, it may wish

to inform its licensees of certain

requirements via a mechanism that is

consistent with the particular State’s

administrative procedure laws, but does

not confer regulatory authority on the

State.

Plain Language

The Presidential Memorandum dated

June 1, 1998, entitled ‘‘Plain Language

in Government Writing,’’ directed that

the Government’s writing be in plain

language. The NRC requests comments

on this direct final rule specifically with

respect to the clarity and effectiveness

of the language used. Comments should

be sent to the address listed under the

heading ADDRESSES above.

Voluntary Consensus Standards

The National Technology Transfer Act

of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–113), requires that

Federal agencies use technical standards

that are developed or adopted by

voluntary consensus standards bodies

unless the use of such a standard is

inconsistent with applicable law or

otherwise impractical. In this direct

final rule, the NRC will revise the PSNA

VSC–24 cask system listing within the

list of NRC approved casks for spent

fuel storage in 10 CFR 72.214. This

action does not constitute the

establishment of a standard that

establishes generally-applicable

requirements.

Finding of No Significant

Environmental Impact: Availability

Under the National Environmental

Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and the

NRC regulations in Subpart A of 10 CFR

Part 51, the NRC has determined that

this rule, if adopted, would not be a

major Federal action significantly

affecting the quality of the human

environment and, therefore, an

environmental impact statement is not

required. The rule will add Amendment

No. 2 to the VSC–24 cask system to the

list of approved spent fuel storage casks

that power reactor licensees can use to

store spent fuel at reactor sites without

additional site-specific approvals by the

NRC. The amendment will revise the

Technical Specifications and CoC

regarding welding and nondestructive

examination of welds, the method for

determining cask drain time during

loading, the minimum temperature for

moving the loaded MSB, artificial

thermal loads other than spent fuel that

may be used to obtain temperature data,

and the maximum permissible air outlet

temperature. In addition, the

amendment includes changes to correct

typographical errors and other minor

clarifications and changes. The

environmental assessment and finding

of no significant impact on which this

determination is based are available for

inspection at the NRC Public Document

Room, 2120 L Street NW. (Lower Level),

Washington, DC. Single copies of the

environmental assessment and finding

of no significant impact are available

from Gordon Gundersen, Office of

Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards,

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

Washington, DC 20555, Telephone (301)

415–6195, email GEG1@nrc.gov.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

This direct final rule does not contain

a new or amended information

collection requirement subject to the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Existing

requirements were approved by the

Office of Management and Budget,

Approval Number 3150–0132.

Public Protection Notification

If a means used to impose an

information collection does not display

a currently valid OMB control number,

the NRC may not conduct or sponsor,

and a person is not required to respond

to, the information collection.

Regulatory Analysis

On July 18, 1990 (55 FR 29181), the

NRC issued an amendment to 10 CFR

Part 72 to provide for the storage of

spent nuclear fuel under a general

license in cask system designs approved

by the NRC. Any nuclear power reactor

licensee can use NRC-certified casks to

store spent nuclear fuel if it notifies the

NRC in advance, spent fuel is stored

under the conditions specified in the

cask’s CoC, and the conditions of the

general license are met.

A list of NRC-approved cask system

designs is contained in § 72.214. On

April 7, 1993 (58 FR 17948), the NRC

issued an amendment to part 72 that

approved the VSC–24 cask design,

added it to the list of NRC-approved

cask designs in § 72.214, and issued CoC

No. 1007. On November 20, 1998, the

certificate holder submitted an

application to the NRC to amend CoC

No. 1007 to revise the Technical

Specifications and CoC regarding

welding and nondestructive

examination of welds, the method for

determining cask drain time during

loading, the minimum temperature for

moving the loaded MSB, artificial

thermal loads other than spent fuel that

may be used to obtain temperature data,

and the maximum permissible air outlet

temperature. In addition, the

amendment includes changes to the

Technical Specifications and CoC to

correct typographical errors and to make

other minor clarifications and changes.

This rule will permit manufacture of

casks under the revisions in

Amendment 2. The alternative to this

action is to withhold approval of this

amended cask system design and give a

site-specific license to each utility that

proposes to use the casks. This

alternative would cost both the NRC and

the utilities more time and money in

that each utility would have to pursue

a new site-specific license. Conducting

site-specific reviews would be in

38720 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 121 / Thursday, June 22, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

conflict with NWPA direction to the

NRC to approve technologies for the use

of spent fuel storage at the sites of

civilian nuclear power reactors without,

to the maximum extent practicable, the

need for additional site-specific

approvals by the NRC. This alternative

does not foster competition because it

would tend to favor new vendors

without cause and would arbitrarily

limit the choice of cask system designs

available to power reactor licensees.

Approval of the direct final rule

would eliminate the above problems

and is consistent with previous NRC

actions. Further, the direct final rule

will have no adverse effect on public

health and safety. This direct final rule

has no significant identifiable impact or

benefit on other Government agencies.

Based on the above discussion of the

benefits and impacts of the alternatives,

the NRC concludes that the

requirements of the direct final rule are

commensurate with the NRC’s

responsibilities for public health and

safety and the common defense and

security. No other available alternative

is believed to be as satisfactory, and

thus, this action is recommended.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement

Fairness Act

In accordance with the Small

Business Regulatory Enforcement

Fairness Act of 1996, the NRC has

determined that this action is not a

major rule and has verified this

determination with the Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Office of Management and Budget.

Regulatory Flexibility Certification

In accordance with the Regulatory

Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 605(b)),

the NRC certifies that this rule will not,

if promulgated, have a significant

economic impact on a substantial

number of small entities. This direct

final rule affects only the licensing and

operation of nuclear power plants,

independent spent fuel storage facilities,

and PSNA. The companies that own

these plants do not fall within the scope

of the definition of ‘‘small entities’’ set

forth in the Regulatory Flexibility Act or

the Small Business Size Standards set

out in regulations issued by the Small

Business Administration at 13 CFR part

121.

Backfit Analysis

The NRC has determined that the

backfit rule (10 CFR 50.109 or 10 CFR

72.62) does not apply to this direct final

rule because this amendment does not

involve any provisions that would

impose backfits as defined. Therefore, a

backfit analysis is not required.

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 adopting 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. Section 72.214, Certificate of

Compliance (CoC) 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.

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 25th day

of May, 2000.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William D. Travers,

Executive Director for Operations.

[FR Doc. 00–15540 Filed 6–21–00; 8:45am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Airspace Docket No. 00–ACE–8]

Amendment to Class E Airspace;

Sheldon, IA

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Direct final rule; confirmation of

effective date.

SUMMARY: This document confirms the

effective date of a direct final rule which

revises Class E airspace at Sheldon, IA.

DATES: The direct final rule published at

65 FR 20724 is effective on 0901 UTC,

August 10, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kathy Randolph, Air Traffic Division,

Airspace Branch, ACE–520C, DOT

Regional Headquarters Building, Federal

Aviation Administration, 901 Locust,

Kansas City, MO 64106; telephone:

(816) 329–2525.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The FAA published this direct final

rule with a request for comments in the

Federal Register on April 18, 2000 (65

FR 20724). The FAA uses the direct

final rulemaking procedure for a noncontroversial rule where the FAA

believes that there will be no adverse

public comment. This direct final rule

advised the public that no adverse

comments were anticipated, and that

unless a written adverse comment, or a

written notice of intent to submit such

an adverse comment, were received

within the comment period, the

regulation would become effective on

August 10, 2000. No adverse comments

were received, and thus this notice

confirms that this direct final rule will

become effective on that date.