ML18059A464
| ML18059A464 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Palisades  |
| Issue date: | 10/26/1993 |
| From: | Taylor J NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | Collins C HOUSE OF REP. |
| Shared Package | |
| ML18059A466 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9311010024 | |
| Download: ML18059A464 (3) | |
Text
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UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555--0001 The Honorable_Cardiss Collins-United States House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515
Dear Congressman Collins:
October 26, 1993 I am responding to your letter of September 24, 1993, with regard to correspondence from your constituent, Alan J. Fredian, dated September 16, 1993.. Dr. Fredian expressed several concerns about storing spent fuel in the VSC-24 casks at the Palisades nuclear plant.
Section 218(a) of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA) includes the following directive:
"The Secretary [of DOE] shall establish a demonstration program in cooperation with the private sector, for the dry storage of spent nuclear fuel at civilian nuclear power reactor sites, with the objective of establishing one or more technologies that the [Nuclear Regulatory] Commission may, by rule, approve for use at the sites of civilian nuclear power reactors without, to the maximum extent practicable, the need for additional site-speci fic approvals by the Commission." Section 133 of the NWPA states, in part, that 11 *** the Commission shall, by rule, establish procedures for the licensing of any technology approved by the Commission under Section 218(a) for use at the site of any civilian nuclear reactor."
Therefore, the Commission approved dry storage of spent nuclear fuel in publishing a final rule on July 18, 1990 (55 FR 29181), that established a new Subpart K within 10 CFR Part 72 entitled, "General License for Storage of Spent Fuel at Power Reactor Sites, 11 and;a new Subpart L within 10 CFR Part 72 entitled, "Approval of Spent fuel.storage Casks.
11 On Apr-Jl 7,,)993, the Office of the Federal Register published a Notice of Final RuJ.!v'(58 FR 17948), which approved the VSC-24 cask, a cylindrical concrete cask storage system for spent fuel designed by the Pacific Sierra Nuclear Associates *(PSNA).
A copy of the Federal Register notice, including
.an analysis of the public comments, appears in Enclosure 1.
The Final.Rule, which became effective May 7, 1993, allows any power reactor licensee to use the VSC-24 system, as well as four previously appro_y~d_c~$~_systems,.tostore-- --* -***
-- -*----- - **spent-nuclear reactor-fuel-ons-ite -t.mde*r*a general license, provided the licensee can meet the conditions of the general license. Consumers Power Company is the first of three utilities that plan to use this cask system.
The rulemaking for this VSC-24 included a 9-month public comment period, during which we considered letters from about 200 persons and organizations, as well as a publ~c meeting with interested citizens and governmental
' officials. The analysis of public comments in the Federal Register notice in evidences the Commission's extensive consideration of, and constitutes the Commission's response to, the issues raised in those comments
.i::_/
and public meeting.
The comments included issues essentially identical to those raised by your constituent. The Commission's responses to the issues raised by your constituent are contained in the "Background" and responses to comments.
With respect to Dr. Fredian's assertion of the need for a full EIS, please see our answer to comment 61.
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_ 2_ October.~r 1993 i**.
T~.e Honorable Cardis_, 'ollin's
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The rulemaking on the VSC-24.cask followed an application by the VSC-24 cask
.vendor. fpr U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approval of the cask.
SpecificallyJ the vendor, PSNA, first submitted a Topical Report (TR) for the "Ventilated Storage Cask Systems" (VSC-24) on February 24, 1989.
NRC acc~pted the_~ask design as -~escribed--in-the TR and issued a Safety Evaluation Report (SER) on Marth -29, 1991.
On November 4, 1991, PSNA submitted a "Safety Analysis Report for the Ventilated Storage Cask Systems," (SAR) in support of its app 1 i cation for a certificate of comp 1 i ance to be used under a genera 1 license.
Based on the review rif the SAR, NRC issued an SER dated May 6, 1992, and a "Proposed Certificate of Compliance for the Ventilated Storage Cask
- ._(VSC-24) for Irradiated Fuel" dated May*S, 1992.
~
NRC issued a* final Certificate of Compliance after the rulemaking, on May 3, 1993.
W~ are providing a copy of the Certi.ficate of Compliance (see
.... *.Enclosure 2*)
a~d-the SER for the VSC-24 system (see Enclosure 3)'.
... f After*. the NRC rul emaki ~g generically approved th_e VSC-24 for use; the Mkhigan Attorney _General, together with-the Lake Michigan Federat_ion and three nearby *
- -.* -cottage owners,. petitioned the U; S. *District Court in Grand Rapids to stay the *
. rL~l 1;!, and *-stop.use~ qf the cask.. The court denied the 'petitioners' request, as r did:* the* U. S-,.. Cour,1:' -of *Appea.l s in Ci nc i nnat i.
- Petitioners subsequent 1 y *
-r~quest:ed th~. Court* of App'eal~ to 1nvalidate the NRC rulemaking approving the cCask,.
That r~quest. is pending, bri'efs will be_ filed in the litigation this
- '-;*:.*-.f,i:l'l n. an~ ~ deCi.. ~fon 'could be. rend~red lat.er this.year* or early next _year'.-'
/,, In'dealing with these issue~, we have.carefully considered the views of
'-.~~emb~rs of Congress~*the Mi~hi~an Attorney General., and a number of priv~te citizens and groups expressing concern about this storage system. *We ref]ect 9ur consi~eration of these views in the enclosures to this letter:
We will
.conti'nue to keep the *public health and safety of the citizens of 111 inois and all~other ~tat.es our* paramount* concern in th.ese a*ctfviti~s.
I trust-that this
-1 replyiand* the enclosed material'will help_to_re-~pond to your constituent's c6n'cerns:
- S-i ncere l y, I I l
- ed by.
.
- Orig na s gn James M. TaylorJamesM.:taylor *.
Executive Director*
for Opera~ ions :
Encl6sur~s~
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__ --~ ___ L-- fR -17948
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2*.
- Cert i fiC11te' of Comp l i a nee
- 3.
Safety Evalu~tion Report Di~tribution: see attached sheet
. EKrau~ c~ncurred ~imilar letter 8/4/93 OGC concurred similar le~ter 8/4/93
- see previous concurrence STSB*. I c 1 *c l:*N DD:IMNS* I.
I
. OFC STSB*
STSB*
D: IMNS*
DD:NMSS NAME JCurry:jc FSturz CJHauqhney WBrach CPaperiello GArlotto DATE 10/13/93 10/13/93 10/13/93 10/13/93 10/13/93 10/14/93 OFC D:NMSS* I OED~~
OCA.
I mo/' I I
NAME RMBernero
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HTHompson 11/L*
JT) ill OV"'
~93 DATE 10/20/93 10/~/93 10/J,/93 10/
C=COPY E = COVER & ENCLOSUR.
N = NO COPY A:\\ED0.9387
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Tht Honorable Cardiss Collins Di stri but ion: EDO #00938l __ w/9_ encl.._ NRC
-- -- -IMNS Centra 1 r-11 es- -- -
NMSS r /f NMSS Director Off r/f DMorris, EDO*
H. Thompson (CRC #93-0856)
A. Masciantonio JSniezek TMurley JMartin, RIII SECY OPA FBrowri
- Ei 1 e-Center-Docket 72-1007 *so-255-'50-266/3-or PDR -LPDlf' --
IMTB r/f CE.step LGerky JBl aha*
AHsai MKnapp IMIF r/f EDO r/f CPoland.
_JTaylor O_CA
. OSP AGody, Jr; JKnubel JScinto, OGC.
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