62352 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 209 / Monday, October 31, 2005 / Notices 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Notice of Public Workshop on Draft 

Report for Comment: ‘‘Estimating 

Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA) 

Frequencies Through the Elicitation 

Process,’’ NUREG–1829 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Announcement of public 

workshop. Revision of workshop date. 

DATES: Workshop date, November 9, 

2005. 

Background: The Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) issued draft 

NUREG–1829, ‘‘Estimating Loss-ofCoolant Accident (LOCA) Frequencies 

Through the Elicitation Process,’’ for 

public comment in June 2005. The 

report is available under ADAMS 

Accession Number ML051520574 and 

on the NRC Web site at http:// 

www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doccollections/nuregs/staff/sr1829/. A 

separate notice was published in the 

Federal Register on October 4, 2005, 

announcing the availability of this 

report (70 FR 57901). This report 

describes LOCA frequency estimates 

developed using an expert elicitation 

process in support of an effort to 

develop a risk-informed revision of the 

emergency core cooling system (ECCS) 

requirements for commercial nuclear 

power plants by redefinition of the 

design-basis break size. The expert 

elicitation process consolidates service 

history data and insights from 

probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) 

studies with knowledge of plant design, 

operation, and material performance to 

arrive at the LOCA frequency estimates. 

The ECCS requirements in the United 

States are contained in 10 CFR 50.46, 

Appendix K to part 50, and General 

Design Criterion (GDC) 35. Specifically, 

ECCS design, reliability, and operating 

requirements exist to ensure that the 

system can successfully mitigate 

postulated LOCAs. Consideration of an 

instantaneous break with a flow rate 

equivalent to a double-ended guillotine 

break (DEGB) of the largest pipe in the 

primary piping system of the plant 

generally provides the limiting 

condition in the required 10 CFR part 

50, Appendix K analysis. However, the 

DEGB is widely recognized as an 

extremely unlikely event, so NRC staff 

is performing a risk-informed revision of 

the design-basis break size 

requirements. 

A central consideration in selecting a 

risk-informed design basis break size is 

an evaluation of the LOCA frequency as 

a function of break size. The most recent 

NRC-sponsored study of pipe break 

failure frequencies is contained in 

NUREG/CR–5750 (Poloski, 1999). 

Unfortunately, these estimates are not 

sufficient for design basis break size 

selection because they do not address 

all current passive-system degradation 

concerns (e.g., primary water stress 

corrosion cracking) and they do not 

discriminate among breaks having 

effective diameters greater than 6 

inches. 

There have been two approaches 

traditionally used to estimate LOCA 

frequencies and their relationship to 

pipe size: (i) Estimates based on 

statistical analysis of service experience 

data, and (ii) PFM analysis of specific 

postulated failure mechanisms. Neither 

approach is fully suitable for evaluating 

LOCA event frequencies due to the 

rarity of these events and the modeling 

complexity. This study used an expert 

elicitation process, which is wellrecognized for quantifying 

phenomenological knowledge when 

data or modeling approaches are 

insufficient. Elicitation responses from a 

panel of 12 experts determined 

individual LOCA frequency estimates 

for the 5th percentile, median, mean 

and 95th percentile of the frequency 

distribution for each of six LOCA 

categories. Group estimates were 

determined by aggregating the 

individual estimates using the geometric 

mean of the individual estimates for 

each frequency parameter (i.e., median, 

mean, 5th and 95th percentiles). Group 

variability was estimated by calculating 

95% confidence bounds for each of the 

group frequency parameters. A number 

of sensitivity analyses were conducted 

to examine the effects on the 

quantitative results from variation of the 

assumptions, structure and techniques 

of the baseline analysis procedure. 

Public Workshop: The NRC will 

conduct a public workshop on 

Wednesday, November 9, 2005, to be 

held in room O6B4 at NRC 

Headquarters, 11545 Rockville Pike, 

Rockville, Maryland. This is a revision 

to the October 31, 2005, workshop date 

announced in the Federal Register 

Notice published, October 4, 2005; 70 

FR 57901. The purpose of the workshop 

is to facilitate the comment process. In 

the workshop, the staff will provide an 

overview of the report and address 

clarification of items identified by the 

public. A preliminary agenda is 

attached. Persons planning to attend 

this meeting are urged to contact the 

below named individual at least two 

working days prior to the meeting to be 

advised of any potential changes to the 

agenda. The NRC seeks comments on 

the report and is especially interested in 

comments on the following questions: 

1. Is the structure of the expert 

elicitation process appropriate for the 

stated problem and goals of the study? 

2. Are the assumptions and 

methodology of the analysis framework 

used to process the panel responses 

appropriate and reasonable? Are they 

consistent with the type of information 

provided by the expert panel and the 

goals of the study? 

3. Is the geometric mean aggregation 

methodology appropriate for the panel 

responses and the study goals? Should 

other aggregation methodologies be 

considered and what are their 

advantages and disadvantages? 

As previously published in the 

Federal Register, October 4, 2005; 70 FR 

57901, the NRC will consider all written 

comments on draft NUREG–1829, 

‘‘Estimating Loss-of-Coolant Accident 

(LOCA) Frequencies Through the 

Elicitation Process,’’ received before 

November 30, 2005. Comments received 

after November 30, 2005, will be 

considered if time permits. Comments 

should be addressed to the contact 

listed below. An electronic version of 

the report and the accompanying 

experts’ raw data files, are available 

electronically at http://www.nrc.gov/ 

reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/ 

sr1829/ and through the NRC’s 

Electronic Reading Room at http:// 

www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. 

From the latter site, you can access the 

NRC’s Agencywide Document Access 

and Management System (ADAMS), 

which provides text and image files of 

NRC’s public documents. The ADAMS 

accession numbers for the documents 

related to this notice are: 

Document title ADAMS Accession 

No. File format 

NUREG–1829 ......................................................................................................................... ML051520574 ......... Adobe Acrobat Document. 

BWR Non-piping Raw Data for NUREG–1829 ....................................................................... ML051580341 ......... Adobe Acrobat Document. 

BWR Piping Raw Data for NUREG–1829 .............................................................................. ML051580344 ......... Adobe Acrobat Document. 

PWR Non-piping Raw Data for NUREG–1829 ....................................................................... ML051580346 ......... Adobe Acrobat Document. 

Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 209 / Monday, October 31, 2005 / Notices 62353 

Document title ADAMS Accession 

No. File format 

PWR Piping Raw Data for NUREG–1829 .............................................................................. ML051580347 ......... Adobe Acrobat Document. 

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 PDR, O1F21, One 

White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 

Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR 

reproduction contractor will copy 

documents for a fee. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Charles A. Greene, Mail Stop T10E10, 

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 

11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 

20852, telephone (301) 415–6177, 

facsimile number: (301) 415–5074, email cag2@nrc.gov. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 25th day 

of October 2005. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Jennifer Uhle, 

Chief, Materials Engineering Branch, Division 

of Engineering Technology, Office of Nuclear 

Regulatory Research. 

Attachment—Preliminary Agenda 

Public Workshop on Draft Report for 

Comment: ‘‘Estimating Loss-of-Coolant 

Accident (LOCA) Frequencies through 

the Elicitation Process,’’ NUREG–1829 

November 9, 2005*—9 a.m.–12 p.m., 

Room O–4B6 

Preliminary Agenda 

9 a.m.–9:15 a.m.—Introduction 

9:15 a.m.–9:45 a.m.—Overview of 

NUREG–1829 

9:45 a.m.–10:15 a.m.—Clarification of 

items identified by the public 

10:15 a.m.–10:30 a.m.—Break 

10:30 a.m.–12 noon—Clarification of 

items identified by the audience 

12 noon—Adjourn 

*Revised date 

[FR Doc. 05–21650 Filed 10–28–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL 

MANAGEMENT 

Excepted Service 

AGENCY: Office of Personnel 

Management. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This gives notice of OPM 

decisions granting authority to make 

appointments under Schedules A, B, 

and C in the excepted service as 

required by 5 CFR 6.6 and 213.103. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David Guilford, Center for Leadership 

and Executive Resources Policy, 

Division for Strategic Human Resources 

Policy, 202–606–1391. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Appearing 

in the listing below are the individual 

authorities established under Schedules 

A, B, and C between September 1, 2005, 

and September 30, 2005. 

Future notices will be published on 

the fourth Tuesday of each month, or as 

soon as possible thereafter. 

A consolidated listing of all 

authorities as of June 30 is published 

each year. 

Schedule A 

No Schedule A appointments were 

approved for September 2005. 

Schedule B 

No Schedule B appointments were 

approved for September 2005. 

Schedule C 

The following Schedule C 

appointments were approved during 

September 2005: 

Section 213.3303 Executive Office of 

the President 

Office of Management and Budget 

BOGS60150 Confidential Assistant to 

the Controller, Office of Federal 

Financial Management. 

Effective September 29, 2005. 

Office of National Drug Control Policy 

QQGS00041 Legislative Assistant to 

the Associate Director, Legislative 

Affairs. Effective September 20, 2005. 

Section 213.3304 Department of State 

DSGS60987 Program Support 

Assistant to the Deputy Chief of 

Protocol. Effective September 02, 

2005. 

DSGS60988 Special Assistant to the 

Assistant Secretary, Bureau for 

Educational and Cultural Affairs. 

Effective September 09, 2005. 

DSGS60990 Senior Advisor to the 

Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern 

and South Asian Affairs. Effective 

September 16, 2005. 

DSGS60965 Public Affairs Specialist 

to the Deputy Chief of Protocol. 

Effective September 27, 2005. 

DSGS60997 Public Affairs Specialist 

to the Assistant Secretary for Public 

Affairs. Effective September 30, 2005. 

Section 213.3305 Department of the 

Treasury 

DYGS00424 Senior Advisor to the 

Assistant Secretary (Economic 

Policy). Effective September 20, 2005. 

DYGS00410 Senior Advisor to the 

Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. 

Effective September 29, 2005. 

DYGS00359 Senior Advisor to the 

Under Secretary for International 

Affairs. Effective September 29, 2005. 

DYGS00463 Special Assistant to the 

Assistant Secretary (Management) and 

Chief Financial Officer. Effective 

September 29, 2005. 

Section 213.3306 Office of the 

Secretary of Defense 

DDGS16888 Staff Assistant to the 

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense 

(Eurasia). Effective September 06, 

2005. 

DDGS16890 Special Assistant to the 

Deputy Under Secretary of Defense 

(Resource Planning/Management). 

Effective September 06, 2005. 

DDGS16894 Personal and Confidential 

Assistant to the Principal Under 

Secretary of Defense (Policy). 

Effective September 06, 2005. 

DDGS16895 Staff Assistant to the 

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense 

(Negotiations Policy). Effective 

September 20, 2005. 

Section 213.3307 Department of the 

Army 

DWGS60084 Personal and 

Confidential Assistant to the Principal 

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the 

Army (Manpower and Reserve 

Affairs)/Deputy Assistant Secretary 

(Training, Readiness and 

Mobilization). Effective September 08, 

2005. 

DWGS60018 Special Assistant to the 

Assistant Secretary of the Army 

(Installations and Environment). 

Effective September 27, 2005. 

Section 213.3309 Department of the 

Air Force 

DFGS60014 Personal and Confidential 

Assistant to the General Counsel. 

Effective September 27, 2005. 

Section 213.3310 Department of 

Justice 

DJGS00403 Public Affairs Specialist to 

the Director, Office of Public Affairs. 

Effective September 02, 2005. 

DJGS00135 Special Assistant to the 

Assistant Attorney General, Tax