[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 11 (Friday, January 16, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3110-3114]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-960]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2009-0028; Docket No. 70-1257]
Notice of Opportunity To Request a Hearing for License Amendment
Request From AREVA NP, Inc., Richland, WA and Order Imposing Procedures
for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards Information and
Safeguards Information for Contention Preparation
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of license amendment and opportunity to request a
hearing.
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DATES: A request for a hearing must be filed by March 17, 2009.
[[Page 3111]]
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rafael L. Rodriguez, Project Manager,
Fuel Manufacturing Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and
Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop EBB-2-C40M, Washington, DC
20555-0001, Telephone: (301) 492-3111; Fax number: (301) 492-3363; e-
mail: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received, by
letter dated August 22, 2008, a license amendment application from
AREVA, requesting an amendment to its Special Nuclear Materials License
No. SNM-1227 to install and operate a new process at an existing
building. License No. SNM-1227 authorizes the licensee to receive title
to, own, acquire, deliver, possess, use, and transfer uranium enriched
up to 5% wt. for the production of nuclear fuel assemblies for
commercial light water reactors. Specifically, the amendment would
allow AREVA to install and operate a process that would recover uranium
from waste material that contains a relatively low percentage of
uranium using supercritical carbon dioxide (CO2) at the
AREVA site located in Richland, Washington.
An administrative review, documented in a letter to AREVA dated
September 16, 2008, found the application acceptable to begin a
detailed technical review. If the NRC approves the amendment, the
approval will be documented in an amendment to NRC License No. SNM-
1227. However, before approving the proposed amendment, the NRC will
need to make the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended (the Act), and NRC's regulations. These findings will be
documented in a Safety Evaluation Report and an Environmental
Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement.
II. Opportunity To Request a Hearing
The NRC hereby provides notice that this is a proceeding on an
application for a license amendment regarding a proposed process to
extract uranium using supercritical CO2. Any person whose
interest may be affected by this proceeding and who desires to
participate as a party, must file a request for a hearing and a
specification of the contentions which the person seeks to have
litigated in the hearing, in accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule, 10
CFR 2.302. The E-Filing rule requires participants to submit and serve
documents over the Internet or in some cases, to mail copies on
electronic storage media. Participants may not submit paper copies of
their filings unless they seek a waiver in accordance with the
procedures described below.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least
ten (10) days prior to the filing deadline, the petitioner/requestor
must contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at
[email protected], or by calling (301) 415-1677, to request (1) a
digital ID certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or
representative) to digitally sign documents and access the E-Submittal
server for any proceeding in which it is participating; and/or (2)
creation of an electronic docket for the proceeding (even in instances
in which the petitioner/requestor (or its counsel or representative)
already holds an NRC-issued digital ID certificate). Each petitioner/
requestor will need to download the Workplace Forms Viewer
TM to access the Electronic Information Exchange (EIE), a
component of the E-Filing system. The Workplace Forms Viewer
TM is free and is available at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/install-viewer.html. Information about applying for a
digital ID certificate is available on NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html.
Once a petitioner/requestor has obtained a digital ID certificate,
had a docket created, and downloaded the EIE viewer, it can then submit
a request for hearing or petition for leave to intervene. Submissions
should be in Portable Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC
guidance available on the NRC public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the
time the filer submits its documents through EIE. To be timely, an
electronic filing must be submitted to the EIE system no later than
11:59 p.m., Eastern Time on the due date. Upon receipt of a
transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document and sends
the submitter an e-mail notice confirming receipt of the document. The
EIE system also distributes an e-mail notice that provides access to
the document to the NRC Office of the General Counsel and any others
who have advised the Office of the Secretary that they wish to
participate in the proceeding, so that the filer need not serve the
documents on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and
other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for
and receive a digital ID certificate before a hearing request/petition
to intervene is filed so that they can obtain access to the document
via the E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically may seek assistance through the
``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC technical help line,
which is available between 8:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m., Eastern Time,
Monday through Friday. The help line number is (800) 397-4209 or
locally, (301) 415-4737. Participants who believe that they have a good
cause for not submitting documents electronically must file a motion,
in accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing
requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper
format. Such filings must be submitted by: (1) First class mail
addressed to the Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention:
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or
expedited delivery service to the Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth
Floor, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland
20852, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff. Participants
filing a document in this manner are responsible for serving the
document on all other participants. Filing is considered complete by
first-class mail as of the time of deposit in the mail, or by courier,
express mail, or expedited delivery service upon depositing the
document with the provider of the service.
Non-timely requests and/or petitions and contentions will not be
entertained absent a determination by the Commission, the presiding
officer, or the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board that the petition
and/or request should be granted and/or the contentions should be
admitted based on a balancing of the factors specified in 10 CFR
2.309(c)(1)(i)-(viii). To be timely, filings must be submitted no later
than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date.
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at
http://ehd.nrc.gov/EHD_Proceeding/home.asp, unless excluded pursuant
to an order of the Commission, an Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, or
a Presiding Officer. Participants are requested not to include social
security numbers in their filings. With respect to copyrighted works,
except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory
filings
[[Page 3112]]
and would constitute a Fair Use application, participants are requested
not to include copyrighted materials in their submission.
The formal requirements for documents contained in 10 CFR 2.304(c)-
(e) must be met. If the NRC grants an electronic document exemption in
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g)(3), then the requirements for paper
documents, set forth in 10 CFR 2.304(b) must be met.
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(b), a request for a hearing must be
filed by March 17, 2009.
In addition to meeting other applicable requirements of 10 CFR
2.309, a request for a hearing must state:
1. The name, address, and telephone number of the requester;
2. The nature of the requester's right under the Act to be made a
party to the proceeding;
3. The nature and extent of the requester's property, financial or
other interest in the proceeding;
4. The possible effect of any decision or order that may be issued
in the proceeding on the requester's interest; and
5. The circumstances establishing that the request for a hearing is
timely in accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(b).
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(f)(1), a request for hearing or
petitions for leave to intervene must set forth with particularity the
contentions sought to be raised. For each contention, the request or
petition must:
1. Provide a specific statement of the issue of law or fact to be
raised or controverted;
2. Provide a brief explanation of the basis for the contention;
3. Demonstrate that the issue raised in the contention is within
the scope of the proceeding;
4. Demonstrate that the issue raised in the contention is material
to the findings that the NRC must make to support the action that is
involved in the proceeding;
5. Provide a concise statement of the alleged facts or expert
opinions which support the requester's/petitioner's position on the
issue and on which the requester/petitioner intends to rely to support
its position on the issue; and
6. Provide sufficient information to show that a genuine dispute
exists with the applicant on a material issue of law or fact.
Requesters/petitioners should, when possible, consult with each
other in preparing contentions and combine similar subject matter
concerns into a joint contention, for which one of the co-sponsoring
requesters/petitioners is designated the lead representative. Further,
in accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(f)(3), any requester/petitioner that
wishes to adopt a contention proposed by another requester/petitioner
must do so, in accordance with the E-Filing rule, within ten days of
the date the contention is filed, and designate a representative who
shall have the authority to act for the requester/petitioner.
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(g), a request for hearing and/or
petition for leave to intervene may also address the selection of the
hearing procedures, taking into account the provisions of 10 CFR 2.310.
III. Further Information
Documents related to this action, including the application for
amendment and supporting documentation, are available electronically at
the NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, you can access the NRC's Agency wide
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:
1. ML082420070: August 22, 2008, letter from R.E. Link Regarding
Revised Application for Amendment to License No. SNM-11227;
Installation of Supercritical CO2 Uranium Recovery Process
(Docket No. 70-1257).
2. ML082420071: Non-Proprietary Revised Application for Amendment
to License No. SNM-11227; Installation of Supercritical CO2
Uranium Recovery Process (Docket No. 70-1257).
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 [email protected].
These documents may also be viewed electronically on the public
computers located at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), O 1 F21, One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR
reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 7th day of January, 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Peter J. Habighorst,
Chief, Fuel Manufacturing Branch, Fuel Facility Licensing Directorate,
Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, Office of Nuclear
Materials Safety and Safeguards.
Order Imposing Procedures for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-
Safeguards Information (SUNSI) and Safeguards Information (SGI) for
Contention Preparation
1. This order contains instructions regarding how potential parties
to this proceeding may request access to documents containing sensitive
unclassified information (including SUNSI and SGI).
2. Within ten (10) days after publication of this notice of
opportunity for hearing, any potential party as defined in 10 CFR 2.4
who believes access to SUNSI or SGI is necessary for a response to the
notice may request access to SUNSI or SGI. A ``potential party'' is any
person who intends or may intend to participate as a party by
demonstrating standing and the filing of an admissible contention under
10 CFR 2.309. Requests submitted later than ten (10) days will not be
considered absent a showing of good cause for the late filing,
addressing why the request could not have been filed earlier.
3. The requester shall submit a letter requesting permission to
access SUNSI and/or SGI to the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention:
Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, and provide a copy to the
Associate General Counsel for Hearings, Enforcement and Administration,
Office of the General Counsel, Washington, DC 20555-0001. The expedited
delivery or courier mail addresses for both offices is U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The
e-mail address for the Office of the Secretary and the Office of the
General Counsel are [email protected] and
[email protected], respectively. The request must include
the following information:
a. A description of the licensing action with a citation to this
Federal Register Notice of Opportunity for Hearing;
b. The name and address of the potential party and a description of
the potential party's particularized interest that could be harmed by
the action identified in (a);
c. If the request is for SUNSI, the identity of the individual
requesting access to SUNSI and the requester's need for the information
in order to meaningfully participate in this
[[Page 3113]]
adjudicatory proceeding, particularly why publicly available versions
of the application would not be sufficient to provide the basis and
specificity for a proffered contention;
d. If the request is for SGI, the identity of the individual
requesting access to SGI and the identity of any expert, consultant or
assistant who will aid the requester in evaluating the SGI, and
information that shows:
(i) Why the information is indispensable to meaningful
participation in this licensing proceeding; and
(ii) The technical competence (demonstrable knowledge, skill,
experience, training or education) of the requester to understand and
use (or evaluate) the requested information to provide the basis and
specificity for a proffered contention. The technical competence of a
potential party or its counsel may be shown by reliance on a qualified
expert, consultant or assistant who demonstrates technical competence
as well as trustworthiness and reliability, and who agrees to sign a
non-disclosure affidavit and be bound by the terms of a protective
order; and
e. If the request is for SGI, Form SF-85, ``Questionnaire for Non-
Sensitive Positions,'' Form FD-248 (fingerprint card), and a credit
check release form completed by the individual who seeks access to SGI
and each individual who will aid the requester in evaluating the SGI.
For security reasons, Form SF-85 can only be submitted electronically,
through a restricted-access database. To obtain online access to the
form, the requester should contact the NRC's Office of Administration
at 301-415-0320. The other completed forms must be signed in original
ink, accompanied by a check or money order payable in the amount of
$191.00 to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for each individual,
and mailed to the: Office of Administration, Security Processing Unit,
Mail Stop TWB-05 B32M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555-0012.
These forms will be used to initiate the background check, which
includes fingerprinting as part of a criminal history records check.
Note: Copies of these forms do not need to be included with the request
letter to the Office of the Secretary, but the request letter should
state that the forms and fees have been submitted as described above.
4. To avoid delays in processing requests for access to SGI, all
forms should be reviewed for completeness and accuracy (including
legibility) before submitting them to the NRC. Incomplete packages will
be returned to the sender and will not be processed.
5. Based on an evaluation of the information submitted under items
2 and 3.a through 3.d above, the NRC staff will determine within ten
days of receipt of the written access request whether (1) there is a
reasonable basis to believe the petitioner is likely to establish
standing to participate in this NRC proceeding, and (2) there is a
legitimate need for access to SUNSI or need to know the SGI requested.
For SGI, the need to know determination is made based on whether the
information requested is necessary (i.e., indispensable) for the
proposed recipient to proffer and litigate a specific contention in
this NRC proceeding and whether the proposed recipient has the
technical competence (demonstrable knowledge, skill, training,
education, or experience) to evaluate and use the specific SGI
requested in this proceeding.
6. If standing and need to know SGI are shown, the NRC staff will
further determine, based upon completion of the background check,
whether the proposed recipient is trustworthy and reliable. The NRC
staff will conduct (as necessary) an inspection to confirm that the
recipient's information protection systems are sufficient to protect
SGI from inadvertent release or disclosure. Recipients may opt to view
SGI at the NRC's facility rather than establish their own SGI
protection program to meet SGI protection requirements.
7. A request for access to SUNSI or SGI will be granted if:
a. The request has demonstrated that there is a reasonable basis to
believe that a potential party is likely to establish standing to
intervene or to otherwise participate as a party in this proceeding;
b. The proposed recipient of the information has demonstrated a
need for SUNSI or a need to know for SGI, and that the proposed
recipient of SGI is trustworthy and reliable;
c. The proposed recipient of the information has executed a Non-
Disclosure Agreement or Affidavit and agrees to be bound by the terms
of a Protective Order setting forth terms and conditions to prevent the
unauthorized or inadvertent disclosure of SUNSI and/or SGI; and
d. The presiding officer has issued a protective order concerning
the information or documents requested. Any protective order issued
shall provide that the petitioner must file SUNSI or SGI contentions 25
days after receipt of (or access to) that information. However, if more
than 25 days remain between the petitioner's receipt of (or access to)
the information and the deadline for filing all other contentions (as
established in the notice of hearing or opportunity for hearing), the
petitioner may file its SUNSI or SGI contentions by that later
deadline.
8. If the request for access to SUNSI or SGI is granted, the terms
and conditions for access to sensitive unclassified information will be
set forth in a draft protective order and affidavit of non-disclosure
appended to a joint motion by the NRC staff, any other affected parties
to this proceeding, and the petitioner(s). If the diligent efforts by
the relevant parties or petitioner(s) fail to result in an agreement on
the terms and conditions for a draft protective order or non-disclosure
affidavit, the relevant parties to the proceeding or the petitioner(s)
should notify the presiding officer within five (5) days, describing
the obstacles to the agreement.
9. If the request for access to SUNSI is denied by the NRC staff or
a request for access to SGI is denied by NRC staff either after a
determination on standing and need to know or, later, after a
determination on trustworthiness and reliability, the NRC staff shall
briefly state the reasons for the denial. Before the Office of
Administration makes an adverse determination regarding access, the
proposed recipient must be provided an opportunity to correct or
explain information. The requester may challenge the NRC staff's
adverse determination with respect to access to SUNSI or with respect
to standing or need to know for SGI, by filing a challenge within five
(5) days of receipt of that determination with (a) the presiding
officer designated in this proceeding; (b) if no presiding officer has
been appointed, the Chief Administrative Judge, or if he or she is
unavailable, another administrative judge, or an administrative law
judge with jurisdiction pursuant to Sec. 2.318(a); or (c) if another
officer has been designated to rule on information access issues, with
that officer. In the same manner, an SGI requester may challenge an
adverse determination on trustworthiness and reliability by filing a
challenge within fifteen (15) days of receipt of that determination.
In the same manner, a party other than the requester may challenge
an NRC staff determination granting access to SUNSI whose release would
harm that party's interest independent of the proceeding. Such a
challenge must be filed within five (5) days of the notification by the
NRC staff of its grant of such a request.
If challenges to the NRC staff determinations are filed, these
procedures give way to the normal
[[Page 3114]]
process for litigating disputes concerning access to information. The
availability of interlocutory review by the Commission of orders ruling
on such NRC staff determinations (whether granting or denying access)
is governed by 10 CFR Sec. 2.311.
10. The Commission expects that the NRC staff and presiding
officers (and any other reviewing officers) will consider and resolve
requests for access to SUNSI and/or SGI, and motions for protective
orders, in a timely fashion in order to minimize any unnecessary delays
in identifying those petitioners who have standing and who have
propounded contentions meeting the specificity and basis requirements
in 10 CFR Part 2.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day of January, 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Annette L. Vietti-Cook,
Secretary of the Commission.
Attachment 1--General Target Schedule for Processing and Resolving
Requests for Access to Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards
Information (SUNSI) and Safeguards Information (SGI) in This Proceeding
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Day Event/activity
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0...................... Publication of Federal Register, including
order with instructions for access requests.
10..................... Deadline for submitting requests for access to
SUNSI and/or SGI with information: Supporting
the standing of a potential party identified
by name and address; describing the need for
the information in order for the potential
party to participate meaningfully in an
adjudicatory proceeding; demonstrating that
access should be granted (e.g., showing
technical competence for access to SGI); and,
for SGI, including application fee for
fingerprint/background check.
20..................... NRC staff informs the requester of the staff's
determination whether the request for access
provides a reasonable basis to believe
standing can be established and shows (1) need
for SUNSI or (2) need to know for SGI. (For
SUNSI, NRC staff also informs any party to the
proceeding whose interest independent of the
proceeding would be harmed by the release of
the information.) If NRC staff makes the
finding of need for SUNSI and likelihood of
standing, NRC staff begins document processing
(preparation of redactions or review of
redacted documents). If NRC staff makes the
finding of need to know for SGI and likelihood
of standing, NRC staff begins background check
(including fingerprinting for a criminal
history records check), information processing
(preparation of redactions or review of
redacted documents), and readiness
inspections.
25..................... If NRC staff finds no ``need,'' ``need to
know,'' or likelihood of standing, the
deadline for petitioner/requester to file a
motion seeking a ruling to reverse the NRC
staff's denial of access; NRC staff files copy
of access determination with the presiding
officer (or Chief Administrative Judge or
other designated officer, as appropriate). If
NRC staff finds ``need'' for SUNSI, the
deadline for any party to the proceeding whose
interest independent of the proceeding would
be harmed by the release of the information to
file a motion seeking a ruling to reverse the
NRC staff's grant of access.
30..................... Deadline for NRC staff reply to motions to
reverse NRC staff determination(s).
40..................... (Receipt +30) If NRC staff finds standing and
need for SUNSI, deadline for NRC staff to
complete information processing and file
motion for Protective Order and draft Non-
Disclosure Affidavit. Deadline for applicant/
licensee to file Non-Disclosure Agreement for
SUNSI.
60..................... Deadline for submitting petition for
intervention containing: (i) Demonstration of
standing; (ii) all contentions whose
formulation does not require access to SUNSI
and/or SGI (+25 Answers to petition for
intervention; +7 petitioner/requestor reply).
190.................... (Receipt +180) If NRC staff finds standing,
need to know for SGI, and trustworthiness and
reliability, deadline for NRC staff to file
motion for Protective Order and draft Non-
disclosure Affidavit (or to make a
determination that the proposed recipient of
SGI is not trustworthy or reliable). Note:
Before the Office of Administration makes an
adverse determination regarding access, the
proposed recipient must be provided an
opportunity to correct or explain information.
205.................... Deadline for petitioner to seek reversal of a
final adverse NRC staff determination either
before the presiding officer or another
designated officer.
A...................... If access granted: Issuance of presiding
officer or other designated officer decision
on motion for protective order for access to
sensitive information (including schedule for
providing access and submission of
contentions) or decision reversing a final
adverse determination by the NRC staff.
A + 3.................. Deadline for filing executed Non-Disclosure
Affidavits. Access provided to SUNSI and/or
SGI consistent with decision issuing the
protective order.
A + 28................. Deadline for submission of contentions whose
development depends upon access to SUNSI and/
or SGI. However, if more than 25 days remain
between the petitioner's receipt of (or access
to) the information and the deadline for
filing all other contentions (as established
in the notice of hearing or opportunity for
hearing), the petitioner may file its SUNSI or
SGI contentions by that later deadline.
A + 53................. (Contention receipt +25) Answers to contentions
whose development depends upon access to SUNSI
and/or SGI.
A + 60................. (Answer receipt +7) Petitioner/Intervener reply
to answers.
B...................... Decision on contention admission.
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[FR Doc. E9-960 Filed 1-15-09; 8:45 am]
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