48278 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 199 / Tuesday, October 17, 2017 / Notices 

Director, Appalshop); and from 11:30 

a.m.–12:00 p.m.—Remarks from 

Members of Congress. 

Dated: October 12, 2017. 

Sherry P. Hale, 

Staff Assistant, National Endowment for the 

Arts. 

[FR Doc. 2017–22452 Filed 10–16–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7537–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[Docket No. 50–255; NRC–2017–0207] 

Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.; 

Palisades Nuclear Plant 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Exemption; issuance. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) is issuing an 

exemption in response to a June 29, 

2017, request from Entergy Nuclear 

Operations, Inc. (Entergy or the 

licensee) from certain regulatory 

requirements. The exemption would 

allow, as a minimum, a certified fuel 

handler (CFH), in addition to a licensed 

senior operator, to approve the 

suspension of security measures for 

Palisades Nuclear Plant (Palisades) 

during certain emergency conditions or 

during severe weather after the 

certifications of permanent cessation of 

operations and permanent removal of 

fuel from the reactor vessel are 

docketed. 

DATES: The exemption was issued on 

October 11, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID 

NRC–2017–0207 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 Web site: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and search 

for Docket ID NRC–2017–0207. Address 

questions about NRC dockets to Carol 

Gallagher; telephone: 301–415–3463; 

email: Carol.Gallagher@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 publiclyavailable documents online in the 

ADAMS Public Documents collection at 

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/ 

adams.html. To begin the search, select 

‘‘ADAMS Public Documents’’ and then 

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 

ADAMS accession number for each 

document referenced (if it is available in 

ADAMS) is provided the first time that 

a document is referenced. 

• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and 

purchase copies of public documents at 

the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One 

White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 

Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Scott P. Wall, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission, Washington, DC 20555– 

0001; telephone: 301–415–2855; email: 

Scott.Wall@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

Entergy is the holder of Renewed 

Facility Operating License No. DPR–20 

for Palisades. The license provides, 

among other things, that the facility is 

subject to all applicable rules, 

regulations, and orders of the NRC now 

or hereafter in effect. The Palisades 

facility consists of a pressurized-water 

reactor located in Van Buren County, 

Michigan. 

By letter dated January 4, 2017 

(ADAMS Accession No. ML17004A062), 

the licensee submitted a Notification of 

Permanent Cessation of Power 

Operations for Palisades. In this letter, 

Entergy provided notification to the 

NRC of its intent to permanently cease 

power operations at Palisades no later 

than October 1, 2018. 

In accordance with §§ 50.82(a)(1)(i) 

and (ii), and 50.82(a)(2) of title 10 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), 

the 10 CFR part 50 license for the 

facility will no longer authorize reactor 

operation or emplacement or retention 

of fuel in the reactor vessel after 

certifications of permanent cessation of 

operations and permanent removal of 

fuel from the reactor vessel are docketed 

for Palisades. 

By letter dated August 21, 2017 

(ADAMS Accession No. ML17151A350), 

the NRC approved the CFH Training 

and Retraining Program for Palisades. 

II. Request/Action 

By letter dated June 29, 2017 (ADAMS 

Accession No. ML17180A004), the 

licensee requested an exemption from 

§ 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii), pursuant to 

§ 73.5, ‘‘Specific exemptions.’’ Section 

73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) requires, in part, 

that the suspension of security measures 

during certain emergency conditions or 

during severe weather be approved as a 

minimum by a licensed senior operator 

before taking this action. Entergy 

requested an exemption from these rules 

to allow as a minimum either a licensed 

senior operator or a CFH to approve the 

suspension of security measures at 

Palisades after the certifications 

required by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have 

been submitted. There is no need for an 

exemption from these rules for a 

licensed senior operator to approve the 

suspension of security measures 

because the current regulation allows 

this. However, the exemption is needed 

to also allow, as a minimum, a CFH to 

provide this approval after the 

certifications required by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) 

and (ii) have been submitted. 

III. Discussion 

The NRC’s security rules have long 

recognized the potential need to 

suspend security or safeguards measures 

under certain conditions. Accordingly, 

§ 50.54(x) and (y), first published in 

1983, allow a licensee to take reasonable 

actions in an emergency that depart 

from license conditions or technical 

specifications when those actions are 

immediately ‘‘needed to protect the 

public health and safety,’’ and no 

actions consistent with license 

conditions and technical specifications 

that can provide adequate or equivalent 

protection are immediately apparent (48 

FR 13970; April 1, 1983). This departure 

from license conditions or technical 

specifications must be approved, as a 

minimum, by a licensed senior operator. 

In 1986, in its final rule, ‘‘Miscellaneous 

Amendments Concerning the Physical 

Protection of Nuclear Power Plants’’ (51 

FR 27817; August 4, 1986), the 

Commission issued § 73.55(a), which 

provided, in part, that, in accordance 

with § 50.54(x) and (y), the licensee may 

suspend any safeguards measures 

pursuant to § 73.55 in an emergency 

when this action is immediately needed 

to protect the public health and safety 

and no action consistent with license 

conditions and technical specifications 

that can provide adequate or equivalent 

protection is immediately apparent. The 

regulation further requires that this 

suspension be approved as a minimum 

by a licensed senior operator prior to 

taking the action. 

In 1996, the NRC made a number of 

regulatory changes to address 

decommissioning. One of the changes 

was to amend § 50.54(x) and (y) to 

authorize a non-licensed operator called 

a ‘‘Certified Fuel Handler,’’ in addition 

to a licensed senior operator, to approve 

such protective actions in an emergency 

situation. In addressing the role of the 

CFH during emergencies in § 50.54(y), 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 199 / Tuesday, October 17, 2017 / Notices 48279 

the Commission stated in the proposed 

rule, ‘‘Decommissioning of Nuclear 

Power Reactors’’ (60 FR 37374; July 20, 

1995) that it was proposing to amend 10 

CFR 50.54(y) to permit a certified fuel 

handler at nuclear power reactors that 

have permanently ceased operations 

and permanently removed fuel from the 

reactor vessel, subject to the 

requirements of § 50.82(a) and 

consistent with the proposed definition 

of ‘‘Certified Fuel Handler’’ specified in 

§ 50.2, to make these evaluations and 

judgments. The Commission stated that 

a nuclear power reactor that has 

permanently ceased operations and no 

longer has fuel in the reactor vessel does 

not require a licensed individual to 

monitor core conditions. The 

Commission noted that a certified fuel 

handler at a permanently shutdown and 

defueled nuclear power reactor 

undergoing decommissioning is an 

individual who has the requisite 

knowledge and experience to evaluate 

plant conditions and make these 

judgments. 

In the final rule (61 FR 39298; July 29, 

1996), the NRC added ‘‘certified fuel 

handler’’ to the definitions in § 50.2 and 

defined it to mean, for a nuclear power 

reactor facility, a non-licensed operator 

who has qualified in accordance with a 

fuel handler training program approved 

by the Commission. However, the 

decommissioning rule did not propose 

or make parallel changes to § 73.55(a), 

and did not discuss the role of a nonlicensed CFH. 

In the final rule, ‘‘Power Reactor 

Security Requirements’’ (74 FR 13926; 

March 27, 2009), the NRC relocated the 

security suspension requirements from 

§ 73.55(a) to § 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii). The 

role of a CFH was not discussed in this 

rulemaking; therefore, the suspension of 

security measures in accordance with 

§ 73.55(p) continued to require approval 

as a minimum by a licensed senior 

operator, even for a facility that had 

permanently ceased operations and 

permanently defueled. 

However, pursuant to § 73.5, the 

Commission may, upon application of 

any interested person or upon its own 

initiative, grant exemptions from the 

requirements of part 73, 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. 

A. The Exemption Is Authorized by Law 

The requested exemption from 

§ 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) would allow, as 

a minimum, a CFH, in addition to a 

licensed senior operator, to approve the 

suspension of security measures for 

Palisades during certain emergency 

conditions or during severe weather 

after the certifications required by 

§ 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have been 

submitted. The licensee’s intent with 

the requested exemption is to align the 

requirements of § 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) 

with the requirements of § 50.54(y). 

Per § 73.5, the Commission may grant 

exemptions from the regulations in part 

73, as are authorized by law. The NRC 

staff has determined that granting the 

licensee’s proposed exemption will not 

result in a violation of the Atomic 

Energy Act of 1954, as amended, or 

other laws. Therefore, the exemption is 

authorized by law. 

B. Will Not Endanger Life or Property or 

the Common Defense and Security 

Relaxing the requirement to allow a 

CFH, in addition to a licensed senior 

operator, to approve the suspension of 

security measures for Palisades during 

certain emergency conditions or during 

severe weather after the certifications 

required by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have 

been submitted will not endanger life or 

property or the common defense and 

security for the reasons described in this 

section. 

First, § 73.55(p)(2) will continue to 

require that ‘‘[s]uspended security 

measures must be reinstated as soon as 

conditions permit.’’ 

Second, the suspension for nonweather emergency conditions under 

§ 73.55(p)(1)(i) will continue to be 

invoked only ‘‘when this action is 

immediately needed to protect the 

public health and safety and no action 

consistent with license conditions and 

technical specifications that can provide 

adequate or equivalent protection is 

immediately apparent.’’ Thus, the 

exemption would not prevent the 

licensee from meeting the underlying 

purpose of § 73.55(p)(1)(i) to protect the 

public health and safety. 

Third, the suspension for severe 

weather under § 73.55(p)(1)(ii) will 

continue to be used only when ‘‘the 

suspension of affected security 

measures is immediately needed to 

protect the personal health and safety of 

security force personnel and no other 

immediately apparent action consistent 

with the license conditions and 

technical specifications can provide 

adequate or equivalent protection.’’ The 

requirement to receive input from the 

security supervisor or manager will 

remain. Thus, the exemption would not 

prevent the licensee from meeting the 

underlying purpose of § 73.55(p)(1)(ii) 

to protect the health and safety of the 

security force. 

Additionally, by letter dated August 

21, 2017, the NRC approved Entergy’s 

CFH Training and Retraining Program 

for Palisades. The NRC staff found that, 

among other things, the program 

addresses the safe conduct of 

decommissioning activities, the safe 

handling and storage of spent fuel, and 

the appropriate response to plant 

emergencies. Because a CFH at 

Palisades will be sufficiently trained 

and qualified under an NRC-approved 

program, the NRC staff considers the 

CFH to have sufficient knowledge of 

operational and safety concerns, such 

that allowing the CFH to suspend 

security measures during emergencies 

or severe weather will not result in 

undue risk to the public health and 

safety. 

Finally, the exemption does not 

reduce the overall effectiveness of the 

Palisades physical security plan and has 

no adverse impacts to Entergy’s ability 

to physically secure the site or protect 

special nuclear material at Palisades, 

and thus would not have an effect on 

the common defense and security. The 

NRC staff has determined that the 

exemption would not reduce security 

measures currently in place to protect 

against radiological sabotage. Instead, 

the exemption would align the 

requirements of § 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) 

with the existing requirements of 

§ 50.54(y). 

For these reasons, the NRC staff 

concludes that relaxing the requirement 

to allow a CFH, in addition to a licensed 

senior operator, to approve the 

suspension of security measures for 

Palisades in an emergency or during 

severe weather after the certifications 

required by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have 

been submitted will not endanger life or 

property or the common defense and 

security. 

C. The Exemption Is Otherwise in the 

Public Interest 

Entergy’s proposed exemption would 

relax the current requirements by 

allowing a CFH, in addition to a 

licensed senior operator, to approve the 

suspension of security measures for 

Palisades in an emergency when 

‘‘immediately needed to protect the 

public health and safety’’ or during 

severe weather when ‘‘immediately 

needed to protect the personal health 

and safety of security force personnel’’ 

after the certifications required by 

§ 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have been 

submitted. Without the exemption, the 

licensee cannot implement changes to 

its security plan to authorize a CFH to 

approve the temporary suspension of 

security measures during an emergency 

or severe weather, comparable to the 

authority given to the CFH by the NRC 

when it promulgated § 50.54(y). Instead, 

the regulations would continue to 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
48280 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 199 / Tuesday, October 17, 2017 / Notices 

require that, as a minimum, a licensed 

senior operator be available to make 

these decisions even though, after the 

docketing of the certifications required 

by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) and as a 

permanently shutdown and defueled 

plant, Palisades would no longer 

otherwise require licensed senior 

operators. 

This exemption is in the public 

interest for two reasons. First, the 

exemption would allow the licensee to 

make decisions pursuant to 

§ 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii) without having 

to maintain a staff of licensed senior 

operators at a nuclear power reactor that 

has permanently ceased operations and 

permanently removed fuel from the 

reactor vessel. The exemption would 

also allow the licensee to have an 

established procedure in place to allow 

a trained CFH to suspend security 

measures in the event of an emergency 

or severe weather after the certifications 

required by § 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have 

been submitted. Second, the consistent 

and efficient regulation of nuclear 

power plants serves the public interest. 

This exemption would assure 

consistency between the regulations in 

§ 73.55(p) and § 50.54(y), and the 

requirements concerning licensed 

operators in 10 CFR part 55. The NRC 

staff has determined that granting the 

licensee’s proposed exemption would 

allow the licensee to designate a CFH, 

with qualifications appropriate for a 

permanently shutdown and defueled 

reactor, to approve the suspension of 

security measures during an emergency 

to protect the public health and safety, 

and during severe weather to protect the 

personal health and safety of the 

security force, consistent with the 

similar authority provided by § 50.54(y) 

after the certifications required by 

§ 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have been 

submitted. For these reasons, the 

exemption is in the public interest. 

D. Environmental Considerations 

The NRC’s approval of the requested 

exemption belongs to a category of 

actions that the Commission, by rule or 

regulation, has declared to be a 

categorical exclusion, after first finding 

that the category of actions does not 

individually or cumulatively have a 

significant effect on the human 

environment. Specifically, the NRC’s 

approval of the requested exemption is 

categorically excluded from further 

environmental analysis under 

§ 51.22(c)(25). 

Under § 51.22(c)(25), the granting of 

an exemption from the requirements of 

any regulation of Chapter I to 10 CFR is 

a categorical exclusion provided that: (i) 

There is no significant hazards 

consideration; (ii) there is no significant 

change in the types or significant 

increase in the amounts of any effluents 

that may be released offsite; (iii) there is 

no significant increase in individual or 

cumulative public or occupational 

radiation exposure; (iv) there is no 

significant construction impact; (v) 

there is no significant increase in the 

potential for or consequences from 

radiological accidents; and (vi) the 

requirements from which an exemption 

is sought involve: Safeguard plans, and 

materials control and accounting 

inventory scheduling requirements; or 

involve other requirements of an 

administrative, managerial, or 

organizational nature. 

The NRC staff has determined that the 

approval of the requested exemption 

involves no significant hazards 

consideration because allowing a CFH, 

in addition to a licensed senior operator, 

to approve the security suspension at a 

permanently shutdown and defueled 

power plant 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 requested 

exemption is unrelated to any 

operational restriction. Accordingly, 

there is no significant change in the 

types or significant increase in the 

amounts of any effluents that may be 

released offsite and no significant 

increase in individual or cumulative 

public or occupational radiation 

exposure. The requested exemption is 

not associated with construction, so 

there is no significant construction 

impact. The requested exemption does 

not concern the source term (i.e., 

potential amount of radiation in an 

accident), nor mitigation. Thus, there is 

no significant increase in the potential 

for, or consequences from, radiological 

accidents. Finally, the requirement to 

have a licensed senior operator approve 

suspensions of security measures from 

which the exemption is sought involves 

either safeguards, materials control, or 

managerial/organizational matters. 

Therefore, pursuant to § 51.22(b) and 

(c)(25), no environmental impact 

statement or environmental assessment 

need be prepared in connection with the 

approval of this exemption request. 

IV. Conclusions 

Accordingly, the Commission has 

determined that, pursuant to § 73.5, the 

exemption is authorized by law and will 

not endanger life or property or the 

common defense and security, and is 

otherwise in the public interest. 

Therefore, the Commission hereby 

grants the licensee’s request for an 

exemption from the requirements of 

§ 73.55(p)(1)(i) and (ii), to authorize, 

after the certifications required by 

§ 50.82(a)(1)(i) and (ii) have been 

submitted, that the suspension of 

security measures for Palisades during 

certain emergency conditions or during 

severe weather must be approved as a 

minimum by either a licensed senior 

operator or a CFH before taking this 

action. 

The exemption is effective upon 

receipt. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, on October 

11, 2017. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Kathryn M. Brock, 

Deputy Director, Division of Operating 

Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor 

Regulation. 

[FR Doc. 2017–22372 Filed 10–16–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

[NRC–2017–0001] 

Sunshine Act Meeting Notice 

DATE: Weeks of October 16, 23, 30, 

November 6, 13, 20, 2017. 

PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference 

Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland. 

STATUS: Public and Closed. 

Week of October 16, 2017 

Monday, October 16, 2017 

10:30 a.m. Affirmation Session (Public 

Meeting) (Tentative) 

Final Rule: Modified Small Quantities 

Protocol (RIN 3150–AJ70; NRC– 

2015–0263) (Tentative) 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION By a vote of 

3–0 on October 10 and 11, 2017, the 

Commission determined pursuant to 

U.S.C. 552b(e) and § 9.107(a) of the 

Commission’s rules that the above 

referenced Affirmation Session be held 

with less than one week notice to the 

public. The meeting is scheduled on 

October 16, 2017 

Week of October 23, 2017—Tentative 

Tuesday, October 24, 2017 

10:00 a.m. Strategic Programmatic 

Overview of the Operating Reactors 

Business Line (Public) (Contact: 

Trent Wertz: 301–415–1568) 

This meeting will be webcast live at 

the Web address—http://www.nrc.gov/. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES