17592 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 66 / Thursday, April 6, 1995 / Notices

prehearing conference scheduled in the

proceeding, but such an amended

petition must satisfy the specificity

requirements described above.

Not later than 15 days prior to the first

prehearing conference scheduled in the

proceeding, a petitioner shall file a

supplement to the petition to intervene

which must include a list of the

contentions which are sought to be

litigated in the matter. Each contention

must consist of a specific statement of

the issue of law or fact to be raised or

controverted. In addition, the petitioner

shall provide a brief explanation of the

bases of the contention and a concise

statement of the alleged facts or expert

opinion which support the contention

and on which the petitioner intends to

rely in proving the contention at the

hearing. The petitioner must also

provide references to those specific

sources and documents of which the

petitioner is aware and on which the

petitioner intends to rely to establish

those facts or expert opinion. Petitioner

must provide sufficient information to

show that a genuine dispute exists with

the applicant on a material issue of law

or fact. Contentions shall be limited to

matters within the scope of the

amendment under consideration. The

contention must be one which, if

proven, would entitle the petitioner to

relief. A petitioner who fails to file such

a supplement which satisfies these

requirements with respect to at least one

contention will not be permitted to

participate as a party.

Those permitted to intervene become

parties to the proceeding, subject to any

limitations in the order granting leave to

intervene, and have the opportunity to

participate fully in the conduct of the

hearing, including the opportunity to

present evidence and cross-examine

witnesses.

If the amendment is issued before the

expiration of the 30-day hearing period,

the Commission will make a final

determination on the issue of no

significant hazards consideration. If a

hearing is requested, the final

determination will serve to decide when

the hearing is held.

If the final determination is that the

amendment request involves no

significant hazards consideration, the

Commission may issue the amendment

and make it immediately effective,

notwithstanding the request for a

hearing. Any hearing held would take

place after issuance of the amendment.

If the final determination is that the

amendment request involves a

significant hazards consideration, any

hearing held would take place before

the issuance of any amendment.

A request for a hearing or a petition

for leave to intervene must be filed with

the Secretary of the Commission, U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

Washington, DC 20555, Attention:

Docketing and Services Branch, or may

be delivered to the Commission’s Public

Document Room, the Gelman Building,

2120 L Street, NW., Washington, DC, by

the above date. Where petitions are filed

during the last 10 days of the notice

period, it is requested that the petitioner

promptly so inform the Commission by

a toll-free telephone call to Western

Union at 1–(800) 248–5100 (in Missouri

1–(800) 342–6700). The Western Union

operator should be given Datagram

Identification Number N1023 and the

following message addressed to Robert

A. Capra, Director, Project Directorate

III–2: petitioner’s name and telephone

number, date petition was mailed, plant

name, and publication date and page

number of this Federal Register notice.

A copy of the petition should also be

sent to the Office of the General

Counsel, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, Washington, DC 20555,

and to Michael I. Miller, Espire; Sidley

and Austin, One First National Plaza,

Chicago, Illinois 60690, attorney for the

licensee.

Nontimely filings of petitions for

leave to intervene, amended petitions,

supplemental petitions and/or requests

for hearing will not be entertained

absent a determination by the

Commission, the presiding officer or the

presiding Atomic Safety and Licensing

Board that the petition and/or request

should be granted based upon a

balancing of the factors specified in 10

CFR 2.714(a)(1) (i)–(v) and 2.714(d).

For further details with respect to this

action, see the application for

amendment dated March 31, 1995,

which is available for public inspection

at the Commission’s Public Document

Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L

Street, NW., Washington, DC, and at the

local public document room, located at

the Public Library of Illinois Valley

Community College, Rural Route No. 1,

Oglesby, Illinois 61348.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day

of April 1995.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

William D. Reckley,

Project Manager, Project Directorate III–2,

Division of Reactor Projects—III/IV, Office of

Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 95–8575 Filed 4–5–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–M

[Docket No. 50–416]

Entergy Operations, Inc. (Grand Gulf

Nuclear Station Unit 1); Exemption

I

Entergy Operations, Inc., (the

licensee) is the holder of Facility

Operating License No. NPF–29, which

authorizes operation of the Grand Gulf

Nuclear Station, Unit 1. The operating

license provides, among other things,

that the licensee is subject to all rules,

regulations, and orders of the

Commission now and hereafter in effect.

The facility consists of a boiling water

reactor at the licensee’s site in Claiborne

County, Mississippi.

II

Title 10 CFR 73.55, ‘‘Requirements for

physical protection of licensed activities

in nuclear power reactors against

radiological sabotage,’’ paragraph (a), in

part, states that ‘‘The licensee shall

establish and maintain an onsite

physical protection system and security

organization which will have as its

objective to provide high assurance that

activities involving special nuclear

material are not inimical to the common

defense and security and do not

constitute an unreasonable risk to the

public health and safety.’’

10 CFR 73.55(d), ‘‘Access

Requirements,’’ paragraph (1), specifies

that ‘‘The licensee shall control all

points of personnel and vehicle access

into a protected area.’’ 10 CFR

73.55(d)(5) requires that ‘‘A numbered

picture badge identification system shall

be used for all individuals who are

authorized access to protected areas

without escort.’’ 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) also

states that an individual not employed

by the licensee (i.e., contractors) may be

authorized access to protected areas

without escort provided the individual

‘‘receives a picture badge upon entrance

into the protected area which must be

returned upon exit from the protected

area * * *’’

The licensee proposed to implement

an alternative unescorted access control

system which would eliminate the need

to issue and retrieve badges at each

entrance/exit location and would allow

all individuals with unescorted access

to keep their badge with them when

departing the site.

An exemption from 10 CFR

73.55(d)(5) is required to allow

contractors who have unescorted access

to take their badges offsite instead of

returning them when exiting the site. By

letter dated October 24, 1994, the

licensee requested an exemption from

certain requirements of 10 CFR

73.55(d)(5) for this purpose.
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 66 / Thursday, April 6, 1995 / Notices 17593

III

Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.5, ‘‘Specific

exemptions,’’ the Commission may,

upon application of any interested

person or upon its own initiative, grant

such exemptions from the requirements

of the regulations in this part as it

determines are authorized by law and

will not endanger life or property or the

common defense and security, and are

otherwise in the public interest.

Pursuant to 10 CFR 73.55, the

Commission may authorize a licensee to

provide alternative measures for

protection against radiological sabotage

provided the licensee demonstrates that

the alternative measures have ‘‘the same

high assurance objective’’ and meet ‘‘the

general performance requirements’’ of

the regulation, and ‘‘the overall level of

system performance provides protection

against radiological sabotage

equivalent’’ to that which would be

provided by the regulation.

Currently, employee and contractor

identification badges, coupled with

their associated access control cards, are

issued and retrieved on the occasion of

each entry to and exit from the

protected areas of the Grand Gulf site.

Station security personnel are required

to maintain control of the badges while

the individuals are offsite. This practice

has been in effect at the Grand Gulf

Nuclear Station, Unit 1 since the

operating license was issued. Security

personnel retain each identification

badge, as well as the associated access

control card, when not in use by the

authorized individual, within

appropriately designed storage

receptacles inside a bullet-resistant

enclosure. An individual who meets the

access authorization requirements is

issued an individual picture

identification card and an individual

access control card which allows entry

into preauthorized areas of the station.

While entering the plant in the present

configuration, an authorized individual

is ‘‘screened’’ by the required detection

equipment and by the issuing security

officer. Having received the badge, the

individual proceeds to the access portal,

inserts the access control card into the

card reader, enters a personal

identification number (PIN), and passes

through the turnstile which unlocks if

the preset criteria are met. Once inside

the station, the individual’s PIN is not

required in order to further utilize the

access authorization card.

This present procedure is labor

intensive since security personnel are

required to verify badge issuance,

ensure badge retrieval, and maintain the

badges in orderly storage until the next

entry into the protected area. The

regulations permit employees to remove

their badges from the site, but an

exemption from 10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) is

required to permit contractors to take

their badges offsite instead of returning

them when exiting the site.

Under the proposed system, all

individuals authorized to gain

unescorted access will have the physical

characteristics of their hand (hand

geometry) recorded with their badge

number. Since the hand geometry is

unique to each individual and its

application in the entry screening

function would preclude unauthorized

use of a badge, the requested exemption

would allow employees and contractors

to keep their badges at the time of

exiting the protected area. The process

of verifying badge issuance, ensuring

badge retrieval, and maintaining badges

could be eliminated while the balance

of the access procedure would remain

intact. Firearm, explosive, and metal

detection equipment and provisions for

conducting searches will remain as

well. The security officer responsible for

the last access control function

(controlling admission to the protected

area) will also remain isolated within a

bullet-resistant structure in order to

assure his or her ability to respond or

to summon assistance.

Use of a hand geometry biometrics

system exceeds the present verification

methodology’s capability to discern an

individual’s identity. Unlike the

photograph identification badge, hand

geometry is nontransferable. During the

initial access authorization or

registration process, hand

measurements are recorded and the

template is stored for subsequent use in

the identity verification process

required for entry into the protected

area. Authorized individuals insert their

access authorization card into the card

reader and the biometrics system

records an image of the hand geometry.

The unique features of the newly

recorded image are then compared to

the template previously stored in the

database. Access is ultimately granted

based on the degree to which the

characteristics of the image match those

of the ‘‘signature’’ template.

Since both the badge and hand

geometry would be necessary for access

into the protected area, the proposed

system would provide for a positive

verification process. Potential loss of a

badge by an individual, as a result of

taking the badge offsite, would not

enable an unauthorized entry into

protected areas.

The access process will continue to be

under the observation of security

personnel. The system of identification

badges coupled with their associated

access control cards will continue to be

used for all individuals who are

authorized access to protected areas

without escorts. Badges will continue to

be displayed by all individuals while

inside the protected area. Addition of a

hand geometry biometrics system will

provide a significant contribution to

effective implementation of the security

plan at each site.

IV

For the foregoing reasons, pursuant to

10 CFR 73.55, the NRC staff has

determined that the proposed

alternative measures for protection

against radiological sabotage meet ‘‘the

same high assurance objective,’’ and

‘‘the general performance requirements’’

of the regulation and that ‘‘the overall

level of system performance provides

protection against radiological sabotage

equivalent’’ to that which would be

provided by the regulation.

Accordingly, the Commission has

determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR

73.5, an exemption is authorized by law,

will not endanger life or property or

common defense and security, and is

otherwise in the public interest.

Therefore, the Commission hereby

grants Entergy Operations, Inc. an

exemption from those requirements of

10 CFR 73.55(d)(5) relating to the

returning of picture badges upon exit

from the protected area such that

individuals not employed by the

licensee, i.e., contractors, who are

authorized unescorted access into the

protected area, can take their badges

offsite.

Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the

Commission has determined that the

granting of this exemption will have no

significant impact on the quality of the

human environment (60 FR 16683). This

exemption is effective upon issuance.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 31st day

of March 1995.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Elinor Adensam,

Acting Director, Division of Reactor Projects—

III/IV, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 95–8452 Filed 4–5–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–M

[Docket No. 50–286]

Power Authority of the State of New

York, (Indian Point Nuclear Generating

Unit No. 3); Exemption

I

The Power Authority of the State of

New York (the licensee) is the holder of

Facility Operating License No. DPR–64,

which authorizes operation of the

Indian Point Nuclear Generating Unit