ML090140373

Federal Register Notice of Acceptance for Docketing of the Application an Notice of Opportunity for Hearing Regarding Renewal of License Duane Arnold Energy Center for Additional 20-Year Period

ML090140373
Person / Time
Site:	Duane Arnold
Issue date:	02/10/2009
From:	Brian Holian Division of License Renewal
To:
Heath, M, NRR/DLR/RLRA, 415-3137
Shared Package
ML090230701	List: ML090140373 ML090140399
References
Download: ML090140373 (8)

Text

7590-01-P UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION NOTICE OF ACCEPTANCE FOR DOCKETING OF THE APPLICATION AND NOTICE OF OPPORTUNITY FOR HEARING REGARDING RENEWAL OF FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-49 FOR AN ADDITIONAL 20-YEAR PERIOD FPL ENERGY DUANE ARNOLD, LLC DUANE ARNOLD ENERGY CENTER DOCKET NO. 50-331

[NRC-2008-0618]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) is considering an application for the renewal of operating license DPR-49, which authorizes FPL Energy Duane Arnold, LLC, to operate the Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC), at 1912 megawatts thermal.

The renewed license would authorize the applicant to operate DAEC for an additional 20 years beyond the period specified in the current license. DAEC is located near Cedar Rapids, IA, and its current operating license expires on February 21, 2014.

FPL Energy Duane Arnold, LLC submitted the application dated September 30, 2008, and Supplement 1 dated January 23, 2009, pursuant to Title 10, Part 54, of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 54), to renew operating license DPR-49 for DAEC. A notice of receipt and availability of the license renewal application (LRA) was published in the Federal Register on November 17, 2008 (73 FR 67895).

The Commissions staff has determined that FPL Energy Duane Arnold, LLC has submitted sufficient information in accordance with 10 CFR Sections 54.19, 54.21, 54.22, 54.23, 51.45, and 51.53(c), to enable the staff to undertake a review of the application, and the application is therefore acceptable for docketing. The current Docket No. 50-331, for operating

license DPR-49, will be retained. The determination to accept the license renewal application for docketing does not constitute a determination that a renewed license should be issued, and does not preclude the NRC staff from requesting additional information as the review proceeds.

Before issuance of the requested renewed license, the NRC will have made the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (the Act), as amended, and the Commissions rules and regulations. In accordance with 10 CFR 54.29, the NRC may issue a renewed license on the basis of its review if it finds that actions have been identified and have been or will be taken with respect to: (1) Managing the effects of aging during the period of extended operation on the functionality of structures and components that have been identified as requiring aging management review; and (2) time-limited aging analyses that have been identified as requiring review, such that there is reasonable assurance that the activities authorized by the renewed license will continue to be conducted in accordance with the current licensing basis (CLB), and that any changes made to the plants CLB will comply with the Act and the Commissions regulations.

Additionally, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.95(c), the NRC will prepare an environmental impact statement that is a supplement to the Commissions NUREG-1437, Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants, dated May 1996. In considering the LRA, the Commission must find that the applicable requirements of Subpart A of 10 CFR Part 51 have been satisfied, and that matters raised under 10 CFR 2.335 have been addressed. Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.26, and as part of the environmental scoping process, the staff intends to hold a public scoping meeting. Detailed information regarding the environmental scoping meeting will be the subject of a separate Federal Register notice.

Within 60 days of this notice, any person(s) whose interest may be affected may file a request for hearing/petition to intervene. As required by 10 CFR 2.309, a petition for leave to intervene shall set forth with particularity the interest of the petitioner/requestor in the proceeding, and how that interest may be affected by the results of the proceeding. The petition should specifically explain the reasons why intervention should be permitted with particular reference to the following general requirements: 1) the name, address and telephone number of the requestor or petitioner; 2) the nature of the requestors/petitioners right under the Act to be made a party to the proceeding; 3) the nature and extent of the requestors/petitioners property, financial, or other interest in the proceeding; and 4) the possible effect of any decision or order which may be entered in the proceeding on the requestors/petitioners interest. The petition must also identify the specific contentions which the petitioner/requestor seeks to have litigated at the proceeding.

Each contention must consist of a specific statement of the issue of law or fact to be raised or controverted. In addition, the petitioner/requestor shall provide a brief explanation of the bases for the contention and a concise statement of the alleged facts or the 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. The petition must include sufficient information to show that a genuine dispute exists with the applicant on a material issue of law or fact.1 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/requestor to relief. A 1

To the extent that the application contains attachments and supporting documents that are not publicly available because they are asserted to contain safeguards or proprietary information, petitioners desiring access to this information should contact the applicant or applicants counsel to discuss the need for a protective order.

petitioner/requestor who fails to satisfy these requirements with respect to at least one contention will not be permitted to participate as a party.

The Commission requests that each contention be given a separate numeric or alpha designation within one of the following groups: (1) Technical (primarily related to safety concerns); (2) environmental; or (3) miscellaneous.

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.

All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a request for hearing, a petition for leave to intervene, any motion or other document filed in the proceeding prior to the submission of a request for hearing or petition to intervene, and documents filed by interested governmental entities participating under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule, which the NRC promulgated in August 2007, 72 Fed. Reg. 49139 (Aug. 28, 2007). The E-Filing process requires participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory 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 an exemption 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 HEARINGDOCKET@NRC.GOV, 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 will need to download the Workplace Forms Viewer' to access the Electronic Information Exchange (EIE), a component of the E-Filing system. The Workplace Forms Viewer' 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 NRCs public website 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 website 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 using the agencys adjudicatory e-filing system may seek assistance through the Contact Us link located on the NRC website at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC electronic filing Help Desk, which is available between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, excluding government

holidays. The toll-free help line number is (866) 672-7640. A person filing electronically may also seek assistance by sending an e-mail to the NRC electronic filing Help Desk at MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov.

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 personal privacy

information, such as social security numbers, home addresses, or home phone numbers in their filings. With respect to copyrighted works, except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would constitute a Fair Use application, participants are requested not to include copyrighted materials in their submission.

Detailed information about the license renewal process can be found under the Nuclear Reactors icon at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal.html on the NRCs Web site. Copies of the application to renew the operating license for DAEC are available for public inspection at the Commissions PDR, located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland 20852-2738, and at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications.html, the NRCs Web site while the application is under review. The application may be accessed in ADAMS through the NRCs Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html under ADAMS Accession Numbers ML082980481 and ML090280418. As stated above, persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS may contact the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) Reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to PDR.resource@nrc.gov.

The NRC staff has verified that a copy of the license renewal application is also available to local residents near DAEC, at the Hiawatha Public Library, 150 West Willman Street, Hiawatha, Iowa 52233.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 10th day of February, 2009.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

Brian E. Holian, Director Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation