27190 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 88 / Friday, May 6, 2022 / Notices 

documentation, may be obtained by 

visiting www.Reginfo.gov. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted to the office listed in the 

address section below within 30 days 

from the date of this publication in the 

Federal Register. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments and 

recommendations for proposed 

information collection requests should 

be sent within 30 days of publication of 

this Notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/ 

do/PRAMain. Find this particular 

information collection request by 

selecting ‘‘National Endowment for the 

Arts’’ under ‘‘Currently Under Review;’’ 

then check ‘‘Only Show ICR for Public 

Comment’’ checkbox. Once you have 

found this information collection 

request, select ‘‘Comment,’’ and enter or 

upload your comment and information. 

Alternatively, comments should be sent 

to the Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk 

Officer for the National Endowment for 

the Arts, Office of Management and 

Budget, Room 10235, Washington, DC 

20503 202/395–7316, within 30 days 

from the date of this publication in the 

Federal Register. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The NEA 

is particularly interested in comments 

which: 

• Evaluate whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the agency, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; 

• Evaluate the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed collection of information 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; 

• Enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and 

• Minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on those who 

are to respond, including through the 

use of appropriate automated, 

electronic, mechanical, or other 

technological collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology, 

e.g., permitting electronic submissions 

of responses. 

Agency: National Endowment for the 

Arts. 

Title: 2022 Arts Supplement to the 

General Social Survey. 

OMB Number: 3135–0132. 

Frequency: One time. 

Affected Public: American adults. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

750. 

Estimated Time per Respondent: 10 

minutes. 

Total Burden Hours: 125 hours. 

Total Annualized Capital/Startup 

Costs: 0. 

Total Annual Costs (operating/ 

maintaining systems or purchasing 

services): 0. 

Description 

This request is for clearance of the 

2022 Arts Supplement to the General 

Social Survey (GSS) to be conducted by 

the National Opinion Research Center 

on behalf of the National Science 

Foundation. The Arts Supplement to the 

GSS will provide important data on the 

impact the COVID–19 pandemic has 

had on recent arts participation. The 

survey data will also complement data 

collected through the planned 2022 

Survey of Public Participation in the 

Arts. The data are circulated to 

interested researchers, and they are the 

basis for a range of NEA reports and 

independent research publications. An 

arts supplement to the GSS was also 

conducted in 2012 and 2016. The data 

will be made available to the public 

through the agency’s data archive, the 

National Archive of Data on Arts and 

Culture (NADAC). These data will also 

be used by the NEA as a contextual 

measure for one or more of its strategic 

goals. 

Dated: May 3, 2022. 

Meghan Jugder, 

Support Services Specialist, Office of 

Administrative Services & Contracts, National 

Endowment for the Arts. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09789 Filed 5–5–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7537–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[Docket No. 50–391; NRC–2021–0104] 

Tennessee Valley Authority; Watts Bar 

Nuclear Plant, Unit 2 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Exemption; issuance. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) has issued an 

exemption in response to an April 15, 

2022, request from Tennessee Valley 

Authority (the licensee), as 

supplemented by letter dated April 25, 

2022. The licensee requested one-time 

exemptions to allow the use of the less 

restrictive work hour limitations 

described in NRC regulations, for 

additional 60-day periods for the Watts 

Bar Nuclear Plant, Unit 2. 

DATES: The exemptions were issued on 

April 29, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID 

NRC–2021–0104 when contacting the 

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: 

• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2021–0104. Address 

questions about Docket IDs in 

Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 

telephone: 301–415–0624; email: 

Stacy.Schumann@nrc.gov. For technical 

questions, contact the individual listed 

in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section of this document. 

• 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, 301– 

415–4737, or by email to 

PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. The Request for 

Exemption from Requirements of 

paragraph 26.205(d)(4) of title 10 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), 

26.206(d)(6), and 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) is 

available in ADAMS under Accession 

No. ML22105A579. The Watts Bar 

Nuclear Plant, Unit 2—Response to 

Request for Additional Information and 

Clarification Regarding Request for 

Exemption from Requirements of 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(4), 26.205(d)(6) and 

26.205(d)(7), ‘‘Fitness for Duty 

Programs—Work Hours,’’ is available in 

ADAMS under Accession No. 

ML22115A232. 

• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and 

purchase copies of public documents, 

by appointment, at the NRC’s PDR, 

Room P1 B35, One White Flint North, 

11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland 20852. To make an 

appointment to visit the PDR, please 

send an email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov 

or call 1–800–397–4209 or 301–415– 

4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. 

(ET), Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kimberly Green, Office of Nuclear 

Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555–0001, telephone: 301–415– 

1627, email: Kimberly.Green@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of 

the exemptions is attached. 

Dated: May 2, 2022. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 88 / Friday, May 6, 2022 / Notices 27191 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Kimberly J. Green, 

Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing 

Branch II–2, Division of Operating Reactor 

Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

Attachment—Exemption 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Docket No. 50–391 

Tennessee Valley Authority Watts Bar 

Nuclear Plant, Unit 2 Exemption 

I. Background 

The Tennessee Valley Authority 

(TVA, the licensee) is the holder of 

Facility Operating License No. NPF–96 

which authorizes operation of Watts Bar 

Nuclear Plant (Watts Bar), Unit 2. The 

license provides, among other things, 

that the facility is subject to all rules, 

regulations, and orders of the Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission (NRC, the 

Commission) now or hereafter in effect. 

The facility consists of two 

pressurized-water reactors located in 

Rhea County in Tennessee. 

II. Request/Action 

By letter dated April 15, 2022, as 

supplemented by letter dated April 25, 

2022 (Agencywide Documents Access 

and Management System (ADAMS) 

Accession Nos. ML22105A579 and 

ML22115A232, respectively), TVA 

requested one-time exemptions from the 

work hour requirements in Title 10 of 

the Code of Federal Regulations (10 

CFR), part 26, ‘‘Fitness for Duty 

Programs,’’ section 26.205(d)(7), 

pursuant to 10 CFR 26.9, ‘‘Specific 

exemptions.’’ 

Section 26.205(d)(7) of 10 CFR 

provides, in part, that licensees may, as 

an alternative to the minimum days off 

requirements in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(3), 

ensure that individuals subject to the 

work hour controls in Section 26.205(d) 

do not work more than a weekly average 

of 54 hours, calculated using an 

averaging period of up to 6 weeks. 

Section 26.205(d)(4) of 10 CFR provides 

that during the first 60 days of a unit 

outage, licensees need not meet the 

requirements of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(3) or 

(d)(7) for individuals specified in 10 

CFR 26.4(a)(1) through 10 CFR 

26.4(a)(4), while those individuals are 

working on outage activities. However, 

10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) also provides that 

the licensee shall ensure that the 

individuals specified in 10 CFR 

26.4(a)(1) through (a)(3) have at least 3 

days off in each successive (i.e., nonrolling) 15-day period and that the 

individuals specified in 10 CFR 

26.4(a)(4) have at least 1 day off in any 

7-day period. Section 26.205(d)(6) states 

that the 60-day periods in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) and (d)(5) may be extended 

for each individual in 7-day increments 

for each non-overlapping 7-day period 

the individual has worked not more 

than 48 hours during the unit or 

security system outage or increased 

threat condition, as applicable. 

Watts Bar, Unit 2, entered a refueling 

outage on March 1, 2022. During this 

refueling outage, the licensee also 

commenced a steam generator 

replacement (SGR) project. The outage, 

including the SGR project, was 

originally planned to be completed in 

mid-May, 2022, and TVA intended to 

administer work hour controls in 

accordance with 10 CFR 26.204(d)(4) 

and (d)(6). However, primarily due to 

adverse weather conditions and the 

emergent discovery of issues while 

removing the original steam generators 

and installing the replacement steam 

generators, the outage was delayed such 

that it is now scheduled to be completed 

by early June 2022. Due to these delays, 

TVA will not be able to complete outage 

activities within the period of time 

when outage work hour controls would 

be permitted in accordance with 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4), as extended by the 

allowances in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(6). 

Therefore, TVA requested one-time 

exemptions from 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) to 

allow personnel to work less restrictive 

hours for an additional period to 

support the refueling outage. 

Within the exemption request, TVA 

has identified two categories of affected 

personnel. Category A personnel are 

identified as those individuals 

performing activities directly in support 

of the SGR project; these activities 

constitute maintenance activities, as 

discussed in 10 CFR 26.4, ‘‘FFD [fitness 

for duty] program applicability to 

categories of individuals,’’ section (a)(4). 

Category A personnel include 

specialized craft workers such as, 

pipefitters, boilermakers, operating 

engineers, electricians, and iron 

workers. Category B personnel are 

identified as those individuals 

performing normal outage shutdown, 

startup, maintenance, fuel handling, and 

modification activities, which are not 

related to the SGR project, and are 

covered by 10 CFR 26.4(a)(1), (a)(2), and 

(a)(4). Category B personnel includes 

operations, health physics, chemistry, 

and maintenance personnel. 

For Category A personnel, TVA 

requested a one-time exemption from 

the requirements of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) 

that would be applicable for a period 

not to exceed 60 days beyond the end 

of the current 60-day unit outage period 

in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) that began on 

March 1, 2022. During this exemption 

period, TVA would continue to 

administer work hour controls for 

Category A personnel in accordance 

with the outage-related minimum day 

off requirements listed in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4), and TVA would also 

administer certain additional mitigating 

actions discussed in Section V of the 

Enclosure to the submittal letter. The 

exemption period for Category A 

personnel would conclude either at the 

end of the additional 60-day period (i.e., 

no later than June 29, 2022) or when 

Watts Bar, Unit 2, is connected to the 

electrical grid, whichever occurs first. 

For Category B personnel, TVA 

requested a one-time exemption from 

the requirements of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) 

that would begin upon completion of 

refueling outage Schedule Milestone 

SGM0184 (the SGR project schedule 

milestone for turnover of the polar crane 

from the SGR project team to the TVA 

outage team). During the exemption 

period, Category B personnel would be 

permitted to work in accordance with 

the minimum day off requirements in 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(4) for a 60-day period. 

Similar to the provisions of 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(6) for outages, this 60-day 

period could be extended for each 

individual in 7-day increments for each 

non-overlapping 7-day period of the 60- 

day period during which the individual 

has worked not more than 48 hours. 

Following the conclusion of the 60-day 

period for a given individual, normal 

(non-outage) work hour controls, would 

resume for that individual, in 

accordance with the requirements of 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(7). The exemption period 

for Category B personnel would 

conclude when Watts Bar, Unit 2, is 

connected to the electrical grid. 

III. Discussion 

Pursuant to 10 CFR 26.9, the 

Commission may, upon application by 

any interested person or upon its own 

initiative, grant exemptions from the 

requirements of 10 CFR part 26 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. 

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law 

The exemption for Category A 

personnel would authorize a one-time 

exemption from the requirements of 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(7) to allow the use the 

less restrictive work hour controls 

provided in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) for up 

to an additional 60 days, no later than 

June 29, 2022, or until the reactor unit 

is connected to the electrical grid, 

whichever occurs first, to allow SGR 

activities to be completed. The 


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exemption for Category B personnel 

would authorize a one-time exemption 

from the requirements of 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(7) to allow the use the less 

restrictive work hour controls provided 

in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) for a 60-day 

period that would begin upon 

completion of refueling outage Schedule 

Milestone SGM0184 and may be 

extended as described in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(6) (Category B personnel), or 

until the reactor unit is connected to the 

electrical grid, whichever occurs first, to 

allow normal outage activities to be 

completed. As stated above, 10 CFR 26.9 

allows the NRC to grant exemptions 

from the requirements of 10 CFR part 

26. The NRC staff has determined that 

granting of the exemptions is 

permissible under the Atomic Energy 

Act of 1954, as amended, and other 

regulatory requirements. Therefore, the 

exemptions are authorized by law. 

B. The Exemption Will Not Endanger 

Life or Property 

The underlying purpose of subpart I 

of 10 CFR part 26 is to ensure that 

cumulative fatigue does not compromise 

the abilities of individuals to perform 

their duties safely and competently. The 

underlying purpose of 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(7) is to provide a method for 

licensees to manage worker fatigue 

while a unit is in operation by limiting 

the number of hours that can be worked 

on a weekly basis, as averaged over a 6- 

week period. The underlying purpose of 

10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) is to provide 

licensees flexibility in scheduling 

required days off while accommodating 

more intense work schedules associated 

with a unit outage. The underlying 

purpose of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(6) is to 

allow the flexibilities provided by 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(4) to be extended when 

directly justified by an individual’s 

actual work history. 

For Category B personnel, TVA 

requested an exemption from the 

requirements of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) 

that would begin upon completion of 

refueling outage Schedule Milestone 

SGM0184 (the SGR project schedule 

milestone for turnover of the polar crane 

from the SGR project team to the TVA 

outage team). During the exemption 

period, Category B personnel would be 

permitted to work in accordance with 

the minimum day off requirements in 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(4) for a 60-day period. In 

addition, similar to the provisions of 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(6) for outages, this 60- 

day period could be extended for each 

individual in 7-day increments for each 

non-overlapping 7-day period of the 60- 

day period during which the individual 

has worked not more than 48 hours. 

TVA cited Position C.10 from 

Regulatory Guide 5.73, ‘‘Fatigue 

Management for Nuclear Power Plant 

Personnel,’’ which discusses the 

expectation that licensees should 

confirm that an individual transitioning 

from an outage at one plant to another 

‘‘has had a 34-hour break period within 

the 9 days that precede the day on 

which the individual begins working for 

the receiving licensee.’’ TVA stated that 

prior to the start of the additional 60- 

day period, Category B personnel would 

have a minimum of 3 consecutive days 

off. 

The NRC staff reviewed the schedules 

that had been worked by Category B 

personnel in various positions leading 

up to when TVA submitted the 

exemption request, as well as the 

originally planned work schedule for 

the remainder of the outage for Category 

B personnel (discussed in Table 1 of 

Enclosure 1 of TVA’s submittal letter) to 

determine whether it would be 

appropriate to allow for a 60-day period 

for Category B personnel to use the 

flexibilities in 10 CFR 26.206(d)(4) and 

(d)(6), in addition to the 60 days of the 

current unit outage, from a fatigue 

management standpoint. The NRC staff 

noted that, for all positions except for 

Chemistry, individuals will have 

worked less than the 54-hour-per-week 

limit established for normal operating 

conditions in accordance with 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(7) leading up to the start of 

the additional 60-day period for 

Category B personnel. 

With regards to Chemistry personnel, 

the NRC staff noted that, under the most 

extreme scheduling case in accordance 

with the scheduling plan discussed in 

Table 1 of Enclosure 1 of TVA’s 

submittal (including the 3 consecutive 

days off that will be provided to 

personnel), Chemistry personnel could 

potentially have worked up to 56 hours 

per week starting on March 14, 2022, 

and through the remainder of the first 

60 days of the unit outage. However, 

this slight increase in the average hours 

worked per week, above the 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(7) limits, is expected to be 

offset by the fact that the workers will 

be guaranteed 3 consecutive days off 

prior to transitioning into the exemption 

period for Category B personnel. 

The NRC staff further noted that, in 

accordance with the 60-day limit 

established by 10 CFR 26.205(d)(4), 

Chemistry personnel who are not 

eligible for an extension under 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(6) would need to return to a 

54-hour work week, in accordance with 

10 CFR 26(d)(7), starting at the end of 

the first 60-days of the unit outage. 

Therefore, depending on the actual date 

on which Schedule Milestone SGM0184 

is completed, there is a possibility that 

Chemistry personnel will have returned 

to a 54-hour work week leading up to 

the start of the exemption period for 

Category B personnel. 

Because Category B workers will be 

working a normal (or, in the case of 

Chemistry personnel, a near-normal) 

work schedule, in accordance with 10 

CFR 26.205(d)(7), leading up to the 

additional 60-day period, the NRC staff 

determined that administering the 

minimum days off during the exemption 

period in accordance with the 

requirements in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) 

and (d)(6) will allow TVA to adequately 

manage cumulative fatigue among 

Category B personnel. 

For Category A personnel, TVA 

requested authorization to apply the 

flexibilities allowed by 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) for an additional period of 

up to 60 days beyond the first 60 days 

of the refueling outage that began on 

March 1, 2022. TVA identified several 

mitigating factors to justify this request. 

For example, TVA stated that, during 

the first 60 days of the refueling outage 

that began on March 1, 2022, when 

Category A personnel were scheduled to 

work 72-hour work weeks, they were 

given additional time off when 

available. This is reflected by the perweek work hour averages shown for 

various worker positions in Table 2 of 

Enclosure 1 of TVA’s submittal letter. 

Additionally, TVA stated that during 

the exemption period it will implement 

alternative controls and mitigating 

actions, including the following: 

• Personnel will not work more than 

16 work-hours in any 24-hour period, 

and they will not work more than 72 

work-hours in any 7-day period, 

excluding shift turnover. 

• A minimum 10-hour break will be 

provided between successive work 

periods. 

• 12-hour shifts will be limited to 72 

work hours in a 7-day rolling period. 

• A minimum of 3 days off will be 

provided in each subsequent 15-day 

period after the first 60 days of the 

outage. 

• The calculation of work hours and 

days will include all work hours and 

days off during the applicable 

calculation periods, including those 

work hours and days off preceding 

initiation of the exemption period. 

• Requirements will be established 

for behavioral observation and selfdeclaration during the period of the 

exemption. Specifically, the station will 

perform targeted management and peer 

to peer fatigue observations and the 

station will provide briefings with 

station personnel on the capability and 

process for personnel to self-declare 

fatigue. 


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• Prior to personnel going to the field, 

the process will include discussion of 

self-declaration of fatigue, with regards 

to both self-awareness and keeping 

watch on crew members. 

• The station will promote fatigue 

awareness and perform targeted 

observations of fatigue signs using an 

observation program. 

The NRC staff reviewed TVA’s 

scheduling plan for Category A 

personnel. Because Category A workers 

have been provided with 1 day off every 

7 days, and because, as discussed in 

Section IV of Enclosure 1 of TVA’s 

submittal letter, those workers have 

typically worked consistent 12-hour 

schedules, there is a reasonable 

expectation that the day off, plus the 

time after a worker’s preceding shift and 

before a worker’s subsequent shift, will 

provide about 36 consecutive hours of 

time off once every 7 days. Furthermore, 

10 CFR 26.205(d)(2)(ii) requires that 

licensees shall ensure that individuals 

have, at a minimum, a 34-hour break in 

any 9-day period. Based on these 

considerations, the NRC staff 

determined that Category A personnel 

will receive at least a 34-hour break 

within the 9 days that precede the 60- 

day exemption period. 

The NRC staff noted that compliance 

with the 34-hour break requirement 

discussed in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(2)(ii) 

does not, on its own, constitute 

adequate management of cumulative 

fatigue for workers, and that this 

requirement is intended to be 

implemented with the other work hour 

control requirements discussed in the 

other sections of 10 CFR 26.205. 

However, the NRC staff considered the 

required minimum 34-hour break period 

in conjunction with the fact that, 

leading up to the 60-day exemption 

period, Category A personnel will not 

have worked the full 72 hours per week 

allowed in accordance with the 

minimum days off required by 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) for personnel performing 

maintenance activities in accordance 

with 10 CFR 26.4(a)(4). As shown by 

Table 2 of Enclosure 1 of the licensee’s 

submittal letter, personnel will have 

only worked, on average, 58 to 66 hours 

of the allowed 72 hours per week. 

Because personnel will have been 

working, on average, 6 to 14 hours less 

than the maximum number of hours that 

are permitted by regulation during 

outage conditions, there is added 

assurance that cumulative fatigue can be 

adequately managed by the minimum 

34-hour period they must provide prior 

to the start of the subsequent 60-day 

period. 

One additional factor that the NRC 

staff considered for Category A 

personnel is the fact that a significant 

portion of the work being performed by 

these personnel consists of maintenance 

activities that will be subject to 

verification (e.g., via non-destructive 

examination) or post-maintenance 

testing. This provides some assurance 

that potential fatigue-related errors that 

may occur will be identified and 

resolved. However, the NRC staff did 

not rely exclusively on the additional 

assurance provided by activities such as 

non-destructive evaluation (NDE) as a 

basis for its determination that the 

exemption would not endanger life or 

property, because (in accordance with 

Position C.2 of Regulatory Guide 5.73) 

individuals performing NDE are not 

necessarily subject to work hour 

controls and, as such, their performance 

could be potentially degraded by 

fatigue. 

The NRC staff determined that the 

added scheduling margin from Category 

A personnel not having worked full 72- 

hour weeks leading up to the exemption 

period, along with adherence to the 

alternative work hour controls 

discussed in Section V of Enclosure 1 of 

TVA’s submittal letter, will allow TVA 

to adequately manage cumulative 

fatigue among Category A personnel 

during the requested 60-day exemption 

period. 

Because TVA proposed adequate 

alternative controls and mitigation 

measures for managing cumulative 

fatigue among Category A and Category 

B personnel for the duration of the 

requested one-time exemptions, the 

NRC staff determined that the requested 

one-time exemptions will not endanger 

life or property. 

C. The Exemption Is Consistent With the 

Common Defense and Security 

The proposed exemptions would 

authorize one-time exemptions from the 

requirements of 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) to 

allow the use of the less restrictive work 

hour limitations provided in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) for up to an additional 60 

days for Category A personnel, and for 

60 days, which may be extended in 

accordance with 10 CFR 26.205(d)(6), 

for Category B personnel. The proposed 

exemptions are not applicable to 

security personnel nor do they have any 

relation to security issues. Therefore, 

the common defense and security is not 

impacted by these exemptions. 

D. The Exemption Is in the Public 

Interest 

In considering whether the requested 

exemptions would be in the public 

interest, the NRC staff considered 

several factors, including: 

• The extent to which the need for an 

exemption was reasonably avoidable by 

the licensee; 

• the interests of the licensee; 

• the public health and safety 

interests of the communities that are 

impacted by the safe operation of the 

plant; and 

• the potential adverse impacts on 

communities resulting from the furtherextended shutdown of the unit, which 

would be prolonged if fewer resources 

were to be available as a result of TVA 

needing to resume usual (non-outage) 

work hours prior to completion of the 

refueling outage. 

Regarding the extent to which the 

issues that led to the outage delays 

could have been foreseen and 

prevented, TVA noted in the Enclosure 

to the supplemental letter that the SGR 

project was originally scheduled to 

occur during the fall 2023 outage, but 

that it was moved up to the spring 2022 

outage due to in-service inspection 

results on one of the aging steam 

generators that indicated degradation 

warranting expedited replacement. This 

discovery also resulted in the decision 

to commence with the spring 2022 

outage early (early March, as opposed to 

mid-April), to limit the runtime of the 

affected steam generator. This resulted 

in significant impact on the planning for 

the project. However, despite the 

accelerated nature of project planning 

necessitated by these circumstances, 

TVA also discussed its consideration of 

potential schedule risks in planning the 

project, as depicted in Table 1 in the 

Enclosure to the supplemental letter, 

which included margin built into the 

schedule to account for various 

potential issues/delays, including 

weather-related delays. TVA also 

provided, in Revised CNL–22054 Table 

4 of the Enclosure to the supplemental 

letter, explanations for the various 

emergent discovery issues that delayed 

the project after it commenced, 

including the reasons that several of 

these delays could not have been 

reasonably foreseeable. 

The NRC staff considered the fact that 

TVA took reasonable measures, in 

accordance with its processes, to 

consider possible issues that may arise 

and incorporated appropriate margin 

into the schedule. The NRC staff 

considered TVA’s explanations for 

issues that did arise and determined 

that a substantial portion of the delays 

experienced were not foreseeable and 

preventable. The NRC staff also noted 

that the decision to move up the SGR 

project was conservative in nature and 

was intended to ensure that the unit did 

not operate with unacceptable steam 


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27194 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 88 / Friday, May 6, 2022 / Notices 

generator degradation that could have 

been potentially adverse to safety. 

In the Enclosure to the supplemental 

letter, TVA discussed the potential 

impact of the requested exemption on 

the broader community. Earlier 

completion of the outage will 

potentially allow for a return of the unit 

to an operating status in time to support 

summer energy demands. TVA stated 

that, without exemption, and with the 

resulting delayed restart of the Unit 2, 

TVA will be challenged from a 

reliability and environmental 

compliance perspective, as the area 

supplied by the unit transitions further 

into a period of the year characterized 

by warmer weather and higher loads. 

TVA discussed the likelihood that 

additional generation from the 

company’s fossil-fuel-based sites would 

be necessary to make up for the lost 

generation from an extended outage of 

Watts Bar, Unit 2, which would result 

in reliance on a lower-reliability, higheremission sources of electricity 

production. 

The NRC staff considered the balance 

of public interest considerations, 

weighing the potential impact of the 

Watts Bar, Unit 2, outage needing to be 

further extended if the exemption were 

not approved, due to the reduced 

availability of personnel under a 

resumption of normal (non-operational) 

work hours. The NRC staff also 

considered the potential impacts 

resulting from an increase in overall 

cumulative fatigue due to personnel 

working longer work hours for an 

extended period, beyond that of a 

typical outage under the established 

regulatory limits. As explained above, 

TVA proposed adequate alternative 

controls and mitigation measures for 

managing cumulative fatigue among 

Category A personnel for the duration of 

the requested one-time exemption, and 

TVA will have adequately managed 

fatigue for Category B personnel leading 

up to the start of the requested 

exemption period. Based on these 

considerations, the NRC staff concluded 

that: There is not expected to be a 

significant impact on public health and 

safety as a result of the increase in 

cumulative fatigue; earlier conclusion of 

the Watts Bar, Unit 2, refueling outage 

may allow TVA to meet elevated 

electrical demands without reliance on 

additional fossil fuel sources; and TVA 

took reasonable measures in its project 

planning to foresee and prevent project/ 

outage delays where possible. Therefore, 

the NRC staff finds that approval of the 

requested exemptions is consistent with 

the public interest. 

E. Environmental Considerations 

The Commission has determined that 

granting the exemptions from the 

requirements 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) 

involves (1) no significant hazards 

consideration, (2) no significant change 

in the types or significant increase in 

the amounts of any effluents that may be 

released offsite, (3) no significant 

increase in individual or cumulative 

public or occupational radiation 

exposure, (4) no significant construction 

impact, and (5) no significant increase 

in the potential for or consequences 

from radiological accidents. 

(1) Under 10 CFR 50.92(c), there is no 

significant hazards consideration if the 

action does not (1) involve a significant 

increase in the probability or 

consequences of an accident previously 

evaluated; or (2) create the possibility of 

a new or different kind of accident from 

any accident previously evaluated; or 

(3) involve a significant reduction in a 

margin of safety. 

The proposed exemptions are 

administrative in nature because they 

extend the timeframe when less 

restrictive hours can be worked for 

Category A and Category B personnel. 

The proposed exemptions have no effect 

on systems, and components (SSCs) and 

no effect on the capability of the SSCs 

to perform their design function. The 

proposed exemptions do not make any 

changes to the facility or operating 

procedures and do not alter the design, 

function, or operation of any plant 

equipment. Therefore, the exemptions 

do not increase the probability or 

consequences of an accident previously 

evaluated. 

The proposed exemptions do not 

make any changes to the facility or 

operating procedures and do not alter 

the design, function, or operation of any 

plant equipment. Similarly, the 

proposed exemptions do not authorize 

any physical changes to any SSCs 

involved in the mitigation of any 

accidents. Therefore, the exemptions do 

not create the possibility of a new or 

different kind of accident from any 

accident previously evaluated. 

The proposed exemptions do not 

authorize alteration of the design basis 

or any safety limits for the plant. The 

exemptions would not impact station 

operation or any SSC that is relied upon 

for accident mitigation. Therefore, the 

exemptions do not involve a significant 

reduction in a margin of safety. 

For these reasons, the NRC has 

determined that approval of the 

exemptions requested involves no 

significant hazards consideration. 

(2) The proposed exemptions do not 

authorize any changes to the design 

basis requirements for the SSCs at Watts 

Bar, Unit 2, that function to limit the 

release of non-radiological effluents, 

radiological liquid effluents, or 

radiological gaseous effluents during 

and following postulated accidents. 

Additionally, the exemptions do not 

change any requirements with respect to 

the conduct of radiation surveys and 

monitoring. Therefore, there is no 

significant change in the types or 

significant increase in the amounts of 

any effluents that may be released 

offsite. 

(3) The proposed exemptions do not 

affect the limits on the release of any 

radioactive material or the limits 

provided in 10 CFR part 20 for radiation 

exposure to workers or members of the 

public. Additionally, the exemptions 

will not increase or decrease the amount 

of work activities that must be 

completed in order to connect the 

reactor unit to the electrical grid. 

Therefore, there is no significant 

increase in individual or cumulative 

public or occupational radiation 

exposure. 

(4) The exemptions do not involve 

any changes to a construction permit; 

therefore, there is no significant 

construction impact. 

(5) The proposed exemptions do not 

alter any of the assumptions or limits in 

the licensee’s accident analyses. 

Therefore, there is no significant 

increase in the potential for or 

consequences from radiological 

accidents. 

(6) In addition, the requirements from 

which these exemptions are sought 

involve other requirements of an 

administrative, managerial, or 

organizational nature. Accordingly, the 

exemptions meets the eligibility criteria 

for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 

CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(I). Therefore, in 

accordance with 10 CFR 51.22(b), no 

environmental impact statement or 

environmental assessment need be 

prepared in connection with the NRC’s 

consideration of these exemption 

requests. 

IV. Conclusions 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 

26.9, the exemptions are authorized by 

law, will not endanger life or property 

or the common defense and security, 

and are otherwise in the public interest. 

The Commission hereby grants 

Tennessee Valley Authority a one-time 

exemption from 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) for 

Category A personnel (i.e., those 

performing maintenance or directing 

maintenance activities as discussed in 

10 CFR 26.205(d)(4) and in direct 

support of the spring 2022 SGR project) 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 88 / Friday, May 6, 2022 / Notices 27195 

to allow the use of the minimum days 

off requirements discussed in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) for a 60-day period starting 

on May 1, 2022 (following the current 

60-day outage period that began on 

March 1, 2022). While the exemption is 

in effect, TVA will also implement 

alternate work hour controls for 

Category A personnel, as discussed in 

Section V of Enclosure 1 to their 

submittal letter dated April 15, 2022. 

The exemption for Category A personnel 

shall end either at the end of the 

approved 60-day period (not to exceed 

June 29, 2022) or at the time when Watts 

Bar, Unit 2, is connected to the 

electrical grid, whichever occurs first. 

The Commission hereby grants 

Tennessee Valley Authority a one-time 

exemption from 10 CFR 26.205(d)(7) for 

Category B personnel (i.e., those 

individuals performing normal outage 

shutdown, startup, maintenance, fuel 

handling, and modification activities, 

who are covered by 10 CFR 26.4(a)(1), 

(a)(2), and (a)(4), and are not directly 

related to the SGR project) to allow the 

use of the work minimum day off 

requirements discussed in 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(4) for a 60-day period that 

shall begin upon completion of 

Schedule Milestone SGM0184 (i.e., 

turnover of the polar crane from SGR 

project team to the TVA outage team). 

This 60-day period may be extended for 

each individual subject to the 

exemption in 7-day increments for each 

non-overlapping 7-day period the 

individual has worked not more than 48 

hours during the 60-day period as 

described in 10 CFR 26.205(d)(6). 

Following the conclusion of the 60-day 

period for a given individual, normal 

(non-outage) work hour controls, in 

accordance with requirements of 10 CFR 

26.205(d)(7), shall resume for that 

individual. The exemption for Category 

B personnel shall end when Watts Bar, 

Unit 2, is connected to the electrical 

grid. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day 

of April, 2022. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

/RA/ 

Gregory F. Suber, 

Deputy Director, Division of Operating 

Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

[FR Doc. 2022–09709 Filed 5–5–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[NRC–2021–0162] 

Safety Review of Light-Water PowerReactor Construction Permit 

Applications 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Draft interim staff guidance; 

reopening of comment period. 

SUMMARY: On December 14, 2021, the 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

(NRC) solicited public comment on its 

draft interim staff guidance (ISG), 

‘‘Safety Review of Light-Water PowerReactor Construction Permit 

Applications.’’ The public comment 

period closed on January 28, 2022. The 

NRC has decided to reopen the 

comment period for this draft ISG for an 

additional 15 days to receive comments 

on two topics addressed by comments 

submitted during the initial comment 

period. 

DATES: The comment period for the 

document published on December 14, 

2021 (86 FR 71101) has been reopened. 

Submit comments by May 23, 2022. 

Comments received after this date will 

be considered if it is practical to do so, 

but the Commission is able to ensure 

consideration only for comments 

received before this date. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by any of the following methods; 

however, the NRC encourages electronic 

comment submission through the 

Federal rulemaking website: 

• Federal rulemaking website: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2021–0162. Address 

questions about Docket IDs in 

Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 

telephone: 301–415–0624; email: 

Stacy.Schumann@nrc.gov. For technical 

questions, contact the individual listed 

in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section of this document. 

• Mail comments to: Office of 

Administration, Mail Stop: TWFN–7– 

A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 

0001, ATTN: Program Management, 

Announcements and Editing Staff. 

For additional direction on obtaining 

information and submitting comments, 

see ‘‘Obtaining Information and 

Submitting Comments’’ in the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Carolyn Lauron, Office of Nuclear 

Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, Washington, 

DC 20555–0001, telephone: 301–415– 

2736, email: Carolyn.Lauron@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Obtaining Information and 

Submitting Comments 

A. Obtaining Information 

Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2021– 

0162 when contacting the NRC about 

the availability of information for this 

action. You may obtain publicly 

available information related to this 

action by any of the following methods: 

• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2021–0162. 

• 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, 301– 

415–4737, or by email to 

PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. The draft ISG 

for the ‘‘Safety Review of Light-Water 

Power-Reactor Construction Permit 

Applications’’ is available in ADAMS 

under Accession No. ML21165A157. 

• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and 

purchase copies of public documents, 

by appointment, at the NRC’s PDR, 

Room P1 B35, One White Flint North, 

11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland 20852. To make an 

appointment to visit the PDR, please 

send an email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov 

or call 1–800–397–4209 or 301–415– 

4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. 

(ET), Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

B. Submitting Comments 

The NRC encourages electronic 

comment submission through the 

Federal rulemaking website (https://

www.regulations.gov). Please include 

Docket ID NRC–2021–0162 in your 

comment submission. 

The NRC cautions you not to include 

identifying or contact information that 

you do not want to be publicly 

disclosed in your comment submission. 

The NRC will post all comment 

submissions at https://

www.regulations.gov as well as enter the 

comment submissions into ADAMS. 

The NRC does not routinely edit 

comment submissions to remove 

identifying or contact information. 

If you are requesting or aggregating 

comments from other persons for 

submission to the NRC, then you should 

inform those persons not to include 


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