Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 11 / Friday, January 16, 2009 / Notices 3105 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[NRC–2009–0008] 

Final Memorandum of Understanding 

Between the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission and the Virginia 

Department of Health 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert Stransky, Senior Emergency 

Response Coordinator, Operations 

Branch, Division of Preparedness and 

Response, Office of Nuclear Security 

and Incident Response, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555. Telephone: (301) 415–6411; 

fax number: (301) 415–6382; e-mail: 

Robert.Stransky@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction 

This notice is to advise the public of 

the issuance of a Final Memorandum of 

Understanding (MOU) between the U.S. 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 

and the Virginia Department of Health, 

an agency of the Commonwealth of 

Virginia. The MOU provides the basis 

for mutually agreeable procedures 

whereby the Virginia Department of 

Health may utilize the NRC Emergency 

Response Data System (ERDS) to receive 

data during an emergency at a 

commercial nuclear power plant whose 

10-mile Emergency Planning Zone lies 

within the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

II. Effective Date 

This MOU is effective November 26, 

2008. 

III. Further Information 

Documents related to this action, 

including the application for 

amendment and supporting 

documentation, are available 

electronically at the NRC’s Electronic 

Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/ 

reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, 

you can access the NRC’s Agencywide 

Documents Access and Management 

System (ADAMS), which provides text 

and image files of NRC’s public 

documents. The ADAMS accession 

number for the document related to this 

notice is: Memorandum of 

Understanding Between NRC and the 

VA Department of Health ML 08337043. 

If you do not have access to ADAMS or 

if there are problems in accessing the 

documents located in ADAMS, contact 

the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) 

Reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301– 

415–4737 or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. 

These documents may also be viewed 

electronically on the public computers 

located at the NRC’s Public Document 

Room (PDR), O 1 F21, One White Flint 

North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

MD 20852. The PDR reproduction 

contractor will copy documents for a 

fee. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 8th day 

of January, 2009. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

William A. Gott, 

Chief, Operations Branch, Division of 

Preparedness and Response, Office of Nuclear 

Security and Incident Response. 

Memorandum of Understanding 

Pertaining to the Emergency Response 

Data System Between the U. S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission and the 

Virginia Department of Health 

I. Authority 

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) and the Virginia 

Department of Health (VDH), an agency 

of the Commonwealth of Virginia, enter 

into this Memorandum of 

Understanding (MOU) under the 

authority of section 274i of the Atomic 

Energy Act of 1954, as amended. 

The Commonwealth of Virginia 

recognizes the Federal Government, 

primarily the NRC, as having the 

exclusive authority and responsibility to 

regulate the radiological and national 

security aspects of the construction and 

operation of nuclear production or 

utilization facilities, except for certain 

authority over air emissions granted to 

States by the Clean Air Act. Nothing in 

this MOU is intended to restrict or 

expand the scope of regulatory authority 

of either the NRC or the Commonwealth 

of Virginia. 

In the Commonwealth of Virginia, the 

VDH, through its Division of 

Radiological Health and Safety 

Regulation (a division within VDH’s 

Office of Epidemiology), is the state 

radiation control agency and 

implements the program regulating 

sources of radiation, not otherwise 

regulated by the NRC, for the protection 

of public health and safety. The Virginia 

Department of Emergency Management 

(VDEM) administers emergency services 

and disaster preparedness programs in 

the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

II. Background 

A. The Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 

amended, and the Energy 

Reorganization Act of 1974, as 

amended, authorize the NRC to license 

and regulate, among other activities, the 

manufacture, construction, and 

operation of utilization facilities 

(nuclear power plants) in order to assure 

common defense and security and to 

protect the public health and safety. 

Under these statutes, the NRC is the 

agency responsible for regulating 

nuclear power plant safety. 

B. NRC believes that its mission to 

protect public health and safety can be 

served by a policy of cooperation with 

State governments and has formally 

adopted a policy statement on 

‘‘Cooperation with States at Commercial 

Nuclear Power Plants and Other Nuclear 

Production or Utilization Facilities’’ (54 

FR 7530, February 25, 1992). The policy 

statement provides that NRC will 

consider State proposals to enter into 

instruments of cooperation for certain 

programs when these programs have 

provisions to ensure close cooperation 

with NRC. This MOU is intended to be 

consistent with, and implement the 

provisions of, the NRC’s policy 

statement. 

C. NRC fulfills its statutory mandate 

to regulate nuclear power plant safety 

by, among other things, responding to 

emergencies at licensee facilities and 

monitoring the status and adequacy of 

licensees’ responses to emergency 

situations. 

D. The Commonwealth of Virginia 

fulfills, through the VDH and VDEM, its 

statutory mandate to provide for 

preparedness, response, mitigation, and 

recovery in the event of an accident at 

a nuclear power plant through its 

statutes located in Titles 32.1 and 44 of 

the Code of Virginia. 

III. Scope 

A. This MOU defines the way in 

which NRC and VDH intend to 

cooperate in planning and maintaining 

the capability to transfer reactor plant 

data via the Emergency Response Data 

System (ERDS) during emergencies at 

commercial nuclear power plants in the 

Commonwealth of Virginia that have 

implemented an ERDS interface, and for 

which any portion of the plant’s 10-mile 

Emergency Planning Zone (EPZ) lies 

within the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

B. It is understood by the NRC and the 

VDH that ERDS data will only be 

transmitted to the Commonwealth of 

Virginia during emergencies classified 

at the Alert level or above, during 

scheduled tests, or during exercises 

when available. 

C. Nothing in this MOU is intended 

to restrict or expand the statutory 

authority of the NRC, the 

Commonwealth of Virginia, VDH, or 

VDEM, or to affect or otherwise alter the 

terms of any agreement in effect under 

the authority of section 274b of the 

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended; 

nor is anything in this MOU intended to 

restrict or expand the authority of the 

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3106 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 11 / Friday, January 16, 2009 / Notices 

Commonwealth of Virginia, VDH, or 

VDEM, on matters not within the scope 

of this MOU. 

D. Nothing in this MOU confers upon 

the Commonwealth of Virginia, VDH, or 

VDEM, the authority to (1) interpret or 

modify NRC regulations and NRC 

requirements imposed on the licensee; 

(2) take enforcement actions; (3) issue 

confirmatory letters; (4) amend, modify, 

or revoke a license issued by the NRC; 

or (5) direct or recommend nuclear 

power plant employees to take, or not 

take, any action. Authority for all such 

actions is reserved exclusively to the 

NRC. 

E. This MOU does not confer any 

binding obligation or right of action on 

either party. This MOU does not 

obligate any funds and is subject to the 

availability of appropriated funds. 

IV. NRC’s General Responsibilities 

Under this MOU, the NRC will 

maintain ERDS. ERDS is a system 

designed to receive, store, and 

retransmit data from in-plant data 

systems at nuclear power plants during 

emergencies. The NRC will provide the 

Commonwealth of Virginia, up to 10 

digital certificates for use by designated 

personnel within the VDH and VDEM in 

accessing ERDS data during 

emergencies at nuclear power plants 

which have implemented an ERDS 

interface, and for which any portion of 

the plant’s 10-mile EPZ lies within the 

Commonwealth of Virginia. The NRC 

reserves the right to revoke digital 

certificates at any time. 

V. VDH General Responsibilities 

A. VDH, through its lead radiological 

agency, will, in cooperation with the 

NRC, establish a capability to receive 

ERDS data. To this end, VDH will 

provide the necessary computer 

hardware and commercially licensed 

software required for ERDS data transfer 

to users. 

B. VDH will provide the NRC with an 

initial, and periodically updated, list of 

designated persons serving as holders of 

ERDS digital certificates. 

C. VDH will use ERDS only to access 

data, at the Alert level or higher, from 

nuclear power plants for which all or a 

portion of the 10-mile EPZ falls within 

the boundaries of the Commonwealth of 

Virginia. 

D. For the purpose of minimizing the 

impact on plant operators, the 

Commonwealth of Virginia will seek 

clarification of ERDS data through the 

NRC. 

VI. Implementation 

A. VDH and the NRC agree to work in 

concert to assure that the following 

communications and information 

exchange protocol regarding ERDS are 

followed: 

a. VDH and the NRC agree in good 

faith to make available to each other 

information within the intent and scope 

of this MOU. 

b. NRC and VDH agree to meet as 

necessary to exchange information on 

matters of common concern pertinent to 

this MOU. Unless otherwise agreed, 

such meetings will be held in the NRC 

Headquarters Operations Center. The 

affected utilities will be kept informed 

of pertinent information covered by this 

MOU. 

c. To preclude the premature release 

of sensitive information, NRC will 

protect sensitive information to the 

extent permitted by the Freedom of 

Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, Title 10 

of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 

2.790, and all other applicable 

authority. VDH and its Division of 

Radiological Health and Safety 

Regulation will protect sensitive 

information to the extent permitted by 

the Virginia Freedom of Information Act 

(Va-Code Ann. 2.2–3700 through 2.2– 

3715), and all other applicable 

authority. 

d. NRC will conduct periodic tests of 

licensee ERDS data links. A copy of the 

test schedule will be provided to the 

VDH, through its Division of 

Radiological Health and Safety 

Regulation (Virginia’s lead radiological 

agency) by the NRC. The VDH Division 

of Radiological Health and Safety 

Regulation may test its ability to access 

ERDS data during these scheduled tests, 

or may schedule independent tests of 

the State link with the NRC. 

e. NRC will provide access to ERDS 

for emergency exercises with reactor 

units capable of transmitting exercise 

data to ERDS. For exercises in which the 

NRC is not participating, the VDH, 

through its Division of Radiological 

Health and Safety Regulation will 

coordinate with the NRC in advance to 

ensure ERDS availability. NRC reserves 

the right to preempt ERDS use for any 

exercise in progress in the event of an 

actual event at any licensed nuclear 

power plant. 

VII. Contacts 

A. The principal senior management 

contacts for this MOU will be Director, 

Division of Preparedness and Response, 

Office of Nuclear Security and Incident 

Response for the NRC, and the Director, 

Division of Radiological Health and 

Safety Regulation for the VDH. These 

individuals may designate appropriate 

staff representatives for the purpose of 

administering this MOU. 

B. Identification of these contacts is 

not intended to restrict communication 

between NRC and VDH staff members, 

in particular those within the Division 

of Radiological Health and Safety 

Regulation, on technical and other dayto-day activities. 

VIII. Resolution of Disagreements 

A. If disagreements arise about 

matters within the scope of this MOU, 

NRC and the VDH will work together to 

resolve these differences. 

B. Differences between the VDH and 

NRC staff over issues arising out of this 

MOU will, if they cannot be resolved in 

accordance with Section VIII.A, be 

resolved by the Director of the NRC 

Division of Preparedness and Response, 

Office of Nuclear Security and Incident 

Response. 

C. Differences which cannot be 

resolved in accordance with Sections 

VIII.A and VIII.B will be reviewed and 

resolved by the NRC’s Director, Office of 

Nuclear Security and Incident 

Response. 

D. The NRC’s General Counsel has the 

final authority to provide legal 

interpretation of the Commission’s 

regulations. 

IX. Effective Date 

This MOU will take effect after it has 

been signed by both parties. 

X. Duration 

A formal review, not less than 1 year 

after the effective date, will be 

performed by the NRC to evaluate 

implementation of the MOU and resolve 

any problems identified. This MOU will 

be subject to periodic reviews and may 

be amended or modified upon written 

agreement by both parties, and may be 

terminated upon 30 days written notice 

by either party. 

XI. Separability 

If any provision(s) of this MOU or the 

application of any provision(s) to any 

person or circumstances is held invalid, 

the remainder of this MOU and the 

application of such provisions to other 

persons or circumstances will not be 

affected. 

For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

Martin Virgilio for R. William Borchardt, 

Executive Director for Operations. 

For the Commonwealth of Virginia, 

Virginia Department of Health. 

Dated: July 9, 2008. 

Dr. Carl Armstrong, 

Director, Office of Epidemiology, Virginia 

Department of Health. 

[FR Doc. E9–966 Filed 1–15–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

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