ML20029C492
| ML20029C492 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 02/14/1990 |
| From: | Rogers K NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| To: | Chilk S NRC OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY (SECY) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20028G725 | List: |
| References | |
| AD04-1-118, AD4-1-118, NUDOCS 9203250159 | |
| Download: ML20029C492 (2) | |
Text
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N 0 T A T I. 0 N V0TE RESPONSE SHEET T0:
SAfiUEL J. CHILK, SECRETARY OF THE C0f4HSSION FROM:
C0f41ISSIONER ROGERS
SUBJECT:
SECY-90-021 - REPORT ON LICENSE RENEWAL WORKSHOP AND PROPOSED REVISIONS TO THE PROGRN1 PLAN AND SCHEDULE FOR RULEMAKING l
i soucu a APPROVED "%e~rs DISAPPROVED ABSTAIN NOT PARTICIPATING REQUEST DISCUSSION C0ffiENTS:
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-A RELEASE VOTE
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ENTERED ON "AS" YES j{0 2pr
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Commissioner Rogers' comments on SECY-90-21 February 14, 1990 Subject to the following comments, I approve the staff's program plan and schedule which would result in publication of a proposed license renewal rule in June 1990, a final rule in May 1991, a draft generic environmental impact document and proposed changes to Part 51 in May 1991, and the final generic environmental document and final changes to Part 51 in April 1992.
I commend the staff's work to date and particularly support their plan to separate rulemaking on Parts 54 and 51 with uncoupled schedules for those two activities.
Furthermore, I encourage the staff to carefully track hearing schedules in the future and be prepared to suggest any additional guidance that might help to dvoid unnecessary delays.
Backfit Rule applicability:
a.) I do not believe that the Backfit Rule should be invoked as part of the license renewal rulemaking.
b.)
I agree with General Counsel Parler's recommendation during the staff briefing to the Commission on this subject on January 30.
He indicated that age degradation requirements could be regarded as an addition to the floor of the current licensing basis (which is deemed to provide adequate protection to the public health and safety) and ~ therefore would not require a backfit analysis.
Current Licensing Basis:
A detailed description of the current Licensing Basis should not be a required integral part of the application for license renewal.
Rather, each utility should have on file with the NRC documents which include the current licensing basis, and this file should be appropriately referenced in the Application.
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UNIVED STATES Murley, NRR
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Sniezek April 6, 1990 Thompson Blaha
$,$Ql Scroggins, OC Lieberman, OE Jordan, AE00 DCleary, DES FAkstulewicz, NRR MEMORANDUM FOR:
James M.
Taylor JScinto, 0GC Executive Director for Operations h
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Chilk, Secretary FROM:
SUBJECT:
SECY-90-021 - REPORT ON LICENSE RENEWAL WORKSHOP AND PROPOSED REVISIONS TO THE
. PROGRAM PLAN AND SCHEDULE FOR RULEMAKING This is to advise you that the Commission (with all Commissioners agreeing except as noted below) has approved the proposed program plan and schedule for the license renewal rulemaking subject to the following:
1.
The Commission has agreed that the Current Licensing I
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Basis (CLB) will provide an adeque.te level of safety I
for continued operation during the renewal period, however, the Commission does not believe that licensees OGC/RES/NRR should be required to include the CLB as a part of'the license renewal application.
The Commission believes the rule should provide an alternate means of ensuring the current licensing basis is enforceable for.the term l
of the renewed license (e g.,.by. license condition in a renewed license that the licensee will comply with the.
CLB in the renewal term).
If there are reasons, other than ensuring enforceability, why we should require l
licensees to document their current licensing basis the staff should provide a discussion of those reasons.
The staff should evaluate whether we should request the two pilot plants to document their current licensing basis for the purpose of verifying that the screening methodology is adequately performed.
l OGC/RES 2.
With respect to the applicability of the Backfit Rule:
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a.
The Commission believes that the backfit rule should not apply to this procedural license renewal rulemaking.
b.
The Commission believes that 10 CFR 50.109 should apply to backfits imposed as conditions for i
license renewal, whether through rulemaking or in l
SECY NOTE:
THIS SRM WILL BE MADE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE IN 10 WORKING DAYS FROM THE DATE OF THE MEMORANDUM.
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3 issues in the Statement of Considerations seems to 4
confuse the important distinction between age-related and non-age-related issues by implying a relationship of some sort between license renewal proceedings and severe accident issues.
Clearly, timely resolution of severe accident issues is something that the Commission has endorsed.
But in view of the statement already made to date by the Commission on this subject (e.a.,
" Policy Statement on Severe Reactor Accidents Regarding Future Designs and Existing Plants"), it is unnecessary to state once again the Commission interest in seeing severe accident issues resolved in a timely manner, particularly if it might be read to imply that the Commission intends to entertain non-age-related issues in license renewal proceedings.
Accordingly, the discussion of severe accidents should be deleted from the Statement of Considerations.
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RES/0GC 4.
In regard to further development of the proposed rule, l
staff should seek to incorporate as much of the screening methodology as possible in the rule itself.
When the proposed rule is submitted to the Commission for consideration, the staff should discuss the extent to which this has been accomplished.
R RES/0GC/NRR Following review of the two pilot applications, the (when applicable) staff should incorporate the standards for addressing age related degradation in an amended license renewal rule to the extent possible given the existing knowledge base on age related degradation.
RES/NRR 5.
The staff should evaluate the schedule for completion of the regulatory guide and safety evaluation reports on the industry technical reports, to determine if we can make improvements in providing this important regulatory guidance to the early renewal applicants.
In addition, the staff should incorporate the schedule for completion of the industry technical reports and the staff's issuance of safety evaluation reports in the overall schedule for license renewal activities.
RES/NRR 6.
Finally, the Commission places great importance on this program and strongly stresses the need for adequate resource allocation, high caliber technical reviews, and timely resolution of the technical issues.
The staff should periodically monitor the resource requirements for this program and within the Five Year Plan clearly identify this program, the resources required to develop and implement this program, and the coordination and review responsibilities between NRR and RES.
In view of the magnitude of the task and the ambitious schedule which confront the staff, the need for ongoing high-level NRC management involvement in coordinating the activities of both NRR and RES in the
s I
2 the individual plant renewal proceedings.
This would lead to the following approach:
Any age related requirements that are necessary to ensure
" adequate protaction" during.the extended life would be imposed without respect to cost.
Application of the " compliance exemption" of the 3
Backfit Rule (10 CFR 50.109 (a) (4) (i) ) in those l
circumstances where a clear showing can be made that proposed requirements to address age-related I
degradation are necessary to ensure that the plant I
will operate in accordance with the CLB during the license renewal term would permit the staff to impose such requirements without regard to cost as well.
Any proposed requirements addressing age-related degradation issues that go beyond what is necessary to ensure that the facility will cperate in conformity with the CLB during the renewal term would be subject to a backfit analysis, including the_ cost-benefit analysis and justification provisions of the backfit rule.
l Chairman Carr believes that it is'not appropriate to apply the backfit rule to the establishment of age related requirements.
Neither, should it be applied in the review of individual license renewal applications prior to incorporating these requirements into the license renewal rule.
As yet, standards for addressing age related degradation beyond the current 40 year operating license have not been established by the staff and incorporated into our regulations.
After age related standards are incorporated.in the license l
renewal rule, the backfit rule should apply in the
.eview of individual license renewal applications.
l 1
3.
In regard to the scope of the individual license renewal proceedings, the Commission believes they should be limited to matters pertaining to age-related degradation over the license renewal term.
Issues unrelated to age-related degradation should be OGC/RES addressed outside the scope of the individual license renewal proceedings.
In the event that staff should identify non-age-related safety enhancements during the course of the license renewal process that the staff desires to pursue, there should be a process for distinguishing these safety enhancements from the age-related matters that will be the subject of the license renewal proceeding.
OGC should explore how best to codify such a distinction, so as to ensure that it is understood at the outset that non-age-related issues are not properly within the scope of individual license renewal proceedings.
RES Also, the suggestion that the Commission highlight its interest in seeing timely resolution of severe accident i
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licence renewal effort cannot be overemphasized.
Any difficulties encountered in this regard, including any uncertainties which may arise concerning the scope of each office's responsibilities, should be raised to appropriate levels of management for prompt resolution, cc:
Chairman Carr Commissioner Roberts Commissioner Rogers Commissioner Curtiss Commissioner Remick a
OGC GPA i
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