[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79317-79318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-22117]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2023-0145]


Interim Staff Guidance: Radiological Survey and Dose Modeling of 
the Subsurface To Support License Termination

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final guidance; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing the 
Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and Waste Programs 
(DUWP), Interim Staff Guidance (ISG), DUWP-ISG-02, ``Radiological 
Survey and Dose Modeling of the Subsurface to Support License 
Termination.'' The purpose of this ISG is to provide guidance on 
surveys of open surfaces in the subsurface, including open excavations, 
materials planned for reuse, and substructures. This ISG also provides 
guidance on the use of commonly used decommissioning dose modeling 
codes for submerged and partially submerged substructures to develop 
clean-up levels, and on methods to evaluate risk from existing 
groundwater contamination. This ISG supplements guidance found in 
NUREG-1757, Volume 2, Revision 2, which pertains to licensees subject 
to the license termination rule found in NRC regulations. This ISG is 
intended for use by applicants, licensees, and NRC staff. The guidance 
is also available to Agreement States and the public.

DATES: This guidance is effective on October 28, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0145 when contacting the

[[Page 79318]]

NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0145. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 
telephone: 301-415-0624; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9dcee9fcfee4b3cefef5e8f0fcf3f3ddf3effeb3faf2eb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="97c4e3f6f4eeb9c4f4ffe2faf6f9f9d7f9e5f4b9f0f8e1">[email protected]</span></a>. For technical 
questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this document.
    <bullet> NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS 
Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public 
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, at 301-415-4737, 
or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4f1f0b1d611d2a3c203a3d2c2a0f213d2c61282039"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7d2d392f532f180e12080f1e183d130f1e531a120b">[email protected]</span></a>. The ADAMS accession number for 
each document referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) is provided the 
first time that it is mentioned in this document. The ISG 
``Radiological Survey and Dose Modeling of the Subsurface to Support 
License Termination,'' is available in ADAMS under Accession No. 
ML24197A219.
    <bullet> NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies 
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. To make an 
appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f2a2b6a0dca097819d87809197b29c8091dc959d84"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="376773651965524458424554527759455419505841">[email protected]</span></a> or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Barr, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-4015; email: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#afecd6c1dbc7c6ce81edceddddefc1ddcc81c8c0d9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="490a30273d212028670b283b3b09273b2a672e263f">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The NRC is issuing this ISG to supplement guidance provided in 
NUREG-1757, Volume 2, Revision 2, ``Consolidated Decommissioning 
Guidance, Characterization, Survey, and Determination of Radiological 
Criteria,'' which was issued in July 2022 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML22194A859). The ISG provides additional guidance developed after 
Revision 2 to NUREG-1757, Volume 2, was published related to surveys of 
open surfaces in the subsurface, including open excavations, materials 
planned for reuse, and substructures. The ISG also provides guidance on 
the use of commonly used decommissioning dose modeling codes to develop 
clean-up levels for submerged and partially submerged substructures, 
and on methods to evaluate risk from existing groundwater 
contamination. NRC staff held two subsurface investigations workshops 
on July 14-15, 2021, and May 11, 2022, to help support the development 
of this ISG, and contracted with Oak Ridge Associated Universities to 
develop guidance on acceptable survey methods.
    On October 19, 2023, the NRC issued a Federal Register notice (88 
FR 72112) soliciting public comment on its draft ISG, ``Radiological 
Survey and Dose Modeling of the Subsurface to Support License 
Termination.'' The NRC received comments from the Nuclear Energy 
Institute, by letter dated December 13, 2023 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML24009A037); EnergySolutions, by letter dated December 18, 2023 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML23353A243); and the State of New Jersey Department of 
Environmental Protection, by email dated December 21, 2023 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML24009A080). No other comments were submitted. The NRC 
staff considered those comments in developing the final version of the 
ISG. The staff's responses to the comments are provided in Appendix D, 
``Comment Responses,'' of the final ISG. The NRC also issued a draft 
Regulatory Analysis for the draft ISG for public comment (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML23177A009). No comments were received on the draft 
Regulatory Analysis. The final Regulatory Analysis is available in 
ADAMS under ML24200A233.

II. Backfitting, Forward Fitting, and Issue Finality

    Issuance of this ISG will not (i) constitute backfitting as defined 
in sections 50.109, 70.76, or 72.62 of title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), ``Backfitting,'' and as described in Management 
Directive (MD) 8.4, ``Management of Backfitting, Forward Fitting, Issue 
Finality, and Information Requests''; (ii) affect issue finality of any 
approval issued under 10 CFR part 52, ``Licenses, Certifications, and 
Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants''; or (iii) constitute forward 
fitting as that term is defined and described in MD 8.4. This ISG 
states the NRC staff's position on acceptable methods for surveys of 
open surfaces in the subsurface, including open excavations, materials 
planned for reuse, and substructures, as well as guidance on the use of 
commonly used decommissioning dose modeling codes for submerged and 
partially submerged substructures to develop clean-up levels, and on 
methods to evaluate risk from existing groundwater contamination. 
Applicants and licensees will not be required to comply with the 
positions set forth in this ISG.

III. Congressional Review Act

    This ISG is a rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act (5 
U.S.C. 801-808). However, the Office of Management and Budget has not 
found it to be a major rule as defined in the Congressional Review Act.

    Dated: September 23, 2024.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jennifer Whitman,
Acting Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and 
Waste Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2024-22117 Filed 9-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P


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