ML20207A787
| ML20207A787 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 03/16/1988 |
| From: | Treby S NRC OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL (OGC) |
| To: | Morris B NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REGULATORY RESEARCH (RES) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20195E797 | List: |
| References | |
| FRN-53FR32914, RULE-PR-20, RULE-PRM-20-15 AC14-1, AC14-1-30, NUDOCS 8803210336 | |
| Download: ML20207A787 (34) | |
Text
- - - - - - - - -
[putog 'o I UNITED STATES
}N ., (g; NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION AC14-1
,,< .-a wAssinatou. o. c. rosss pop
" a !
%, C ,o# liarch 16, 1988 MECORANDUM FOR: Bill M. Morris, Director Division of Regulatory Applications Office of Nuclear Regulatory Pesearch -
FROM: Stuart A. Treby Assistant General Counsel for Rulemaking and Fuel Cycle Office of the General Counsel i
SUPJECT: PROPOSED RULE TO AMEND 10 CFR 20.305 TO ALLOW ONSITE INCINERATION OF SLlGHTLY !
CONTAMINATED WASTE OIL AT NUCLEAR i P,E ACTO RS In response to your February 24, 1988 request, we have reviewed your draft 2
proposal to amend 10 CFR 20.305 to permit nuclear power reactor licensees to incinerate contaminated waste oil on site without obtaining a license amendment. It is our understanding that the staff has developed this proposal as an alternative to the proposal submitted by the Edison Electric Institute (eel) and the Utility Nuclear Waste Management Group (UN%MG) in a petition for rulemaking ( P R M-20-15, July 31, 1984) requesting NRC to promulgate a regulation establishing "de minimis" radionuclide concentrat ons for waste oil that would permit disposal to be carried out without regard to the radioactive material content of the waste. In addition to the suggested revisions made on the attached marked copy of the draft, we have the following general comments.
- 1. The proposal to amend 10 CFR 20.305 to permit nuclear power reactor l licensees to incinerate certain waste oils on the site where generated appears to rest on the premise that the effluents released during the incineration process will conform to the requirements of Appendix ! to ;
Part 50 of the Commission's regulations and to the technical specifications established for the nuclear power reactor at the site
- These Part 50 pursuant to i 50.36a and Appendix l to Part 50. i requirements were promulgated to implement the ALARA standard in 10 CFR Part 20 !see i 20.1(c)) for nuclear power reactor licensees, thereby providing addec: assurance that the radiological health and safety of the public would be adequately protected. Although the .
propnsed rule would require effluent relt.ases from the waste oil '
incineration process to remain within the ALARA limits specified in 5 50.36a and Appendix l to Part 50, the draft Federal Reglster notice does not contain a clear and unequivocal statement--to the effect, for ;
example, that the effluent releases resulting from waste oil incineration '
will be subject to these requirements and therefore will be ALARA and ;
will be safe--Justifying the soundness of the proposai from a radiological health and safety standpoint. Instead, the preamble of the proposed .
QLe&LeDW w
A;
- rule emphasizes the difficulties inherent in making a generh determination on the level of radioactive contamination in waste oil which would he below regulatory concern and the excessive costs of disposing of waste oil in licensed land burla! facilities. ( See, e.g. , Encl . 1, p.
3, next to last pa ragraph, p. 5, first paragraph under heading "Analysis of Comments," p. 7, first full paragraph stating that "the proposed rule would allow a licensee to adopt a potentially more cost . .
. effective means of disposing of this class of waste. . . " Also, see discussion of costs in draft Environmental Assessment anc; Finding of No Significant Environmental impact, Enr.l. 3, p. 4. ) In our opinion, the draft Federal Register notice should be modified to change the present emphasis and tone.
l The Commission's task is to protect the radiological health and safety of the public, not to give nuclear power reactor licensees economic relief.
Accordingly, the draft Federal Register notice should be appropriately revised to make clear that publication of this proposed rule will adnuatcly assure the radiological health and safety of the public and therefore constitutes a proper exercise of the Commission's regulatory responsibilities. In addition, the preamble of the rule should 61so be revised so that the connection between the proposed regulatory renuirements and radiological health and safety is more readily apparent.
We have revised the text of the proposed rule, copy attacheo. in making this revision, we have also added a paragraph, which tracks the text of f 20.306(d), to make clear that the authorization to dispose of c(rtain waste oils does not relieve the licensee from complying with other appilcable Federal, State and local regulations governing any other toxic or hazardous property of these materials.
- 2. Although one of the stated put poses of the draft proposed ruft is to perrrit nuclear power reactor licensees to incinerate contaminated waste oli on site without applying for a license amendment, this may not be possible in every case. In some instances, modification of the ilcense or technical specifications may be required to reflect changed release points.
- 3. Neither the Commission paper nor the draft Federal Register notice provide adequtte justification for the decision to deny the balance of PPM-20-15 without prejudice. The petition (cr rulemaking requests the Commission to amend Part 20 by establishinD radionuclide concentrations in waste oil below v.-hich disposal may be carried out without regard to the radioactive content of the waste. Although a number of comments
r were received in response to this proposal, apparently no attempt has i been made to deal with these comments on the merits. Instead, the preamble of the proposed rule recites various reasons why the NRC staff does not intend to address the substantive issues raised by the .
petition at this time. Although no final decisions have been made, the
! Commission is actively involved in efforts to develop a de minimis policy, the central issue raised by the petitioners with respect to levels ;
of radioactive contamination in certain waste oil streams. For example, a pubile briefing on the status of efforts to develop a de minimis policy .
was held March 14, 198P. Unoer these circumstances, we believe it
. might he more appropriate to defer action on the balonce of the petition until after the Comrrission has completed its consideration of the generic problems involved in establishinD de minimis levels or levels "below
' regulatory concern" insteed of denying the balance of the petition without prejudice. This view, however, is subject to one caveat. The sta f f's, Penulatory Analysis states, among uther things, that "the petitlener has not supplied sufficient information to make a specific ,
waste stream 'below regulatory concern' determination. . . ." (See, t
I Encl. 2, p. 3.) If this is indeed the case, perhaps it wculd be more appropriate to deny the petition with prejudice.
- 4. Because PRM-20-15 raises issues relating to appropriate de minimis !
levels of radioactive contamination in waste oils and thus presents {
significant questions of polley which the Commission has not yet resolved, we cuestion the propriety of EDO issuance of the proposed E
')
rule pursuant to delegated authority. We wculd also point out that the ;
citation to 10 CFR 1.40(d) as authority for the EDO's rulemaking functions, which appears on p. 2, line 1 of the draft SECY paper, is inaccurate. On August 19,1927, Part 1 of the Commission's regulations was completely revised (52 FR 31601, August 21, 1987.) The correct citation should read: 10 CFR 1.31(a)(3) as implemented in NRC Manual l Chspter 0103, paragraphs 0213, 038, 039, and 0310.
i l 5. Sec tior.s 51.35 a rid 51.119 of the Commission's regulations require a i Findino of No Significant Environmental Impact to be published in the Federal Register before the Commission can take the proposed action.
Section 51.110 also provides that the publisheo Finding must contain the information specified in il 51.32 or 51.33, as appropriate. The i
- information contained in the draft Federal Register notice under the heading "Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant ,
- Environmental impact" (Encl. 1, pp. 7-E) is not sufficiently complete to l
- satisfy this requirement. ,
i.
?
i
- 4
- .g.
e
'6. Because the provisions of the proposed rule apply to nuclear power reactors, it will be necessary to submit the proposal to the. CRGR for review.
p- ,
/,h
' -f[h '/7 ?,*
'Stuart A. Treby Assistant General Cou set for Rulemaking and Fuel Cycle Office of the General Counsel
Enclosures:
As stated cc w/ eracis:
C. Mattsen, PES K. Dragonette, NMSS Y'. Meinke, NR R S. Ylioginton, ARM
x Section 20.305 is revised to read as follows:
i 20.305 Treatment or disposal by incineration.
(a) No licensee shall treat or dispose of licensed material by s
incineration except:
(1) As authorized by paragraph (b) of this section; (2) For materials listed under i 20.306 +f-tM4-part; or (3) As specifically approved by the Commission purent to
~
il 20.1C6(b) or 20.302 ef-this part.
(b)(1) Waste oils (water immiscible, organic hydrocarbons used principally as lubricants or hydraulic fluids) that have been con-taminated in the course of the operation of a nuclear power reactor licensed under Part 50 of this chapter may be incinerated on the site where generated provided that the total radioactive effluents from
'he facility, including the effluents from such incineration, shall conform to -tha requirements of Appendix Lta_Part.50.of-.this-chapter
.and to the technical specifications established for the nuclear power reactor pursuant to 5 50.36a and Appendix ! to Part 50 of this chapter.
Tile licensee shall report any changes or additions to the information supplied under i 50.34a of this chapter associated with this incineration within six months of commencement of incineration and shall maintain records of this information until the date of termination of the license or three years after cessation of incineration, whichever is earlier.
(2) Solid residues produced in the process of incinerating waste oils shall be disposed of as provided by 6 20.301 of this part.
(c) Nothing in paragraph (b) of this section relieves the licensee from complying with other applicable Federal, State,and local regulations governing any other toxic or hazardous property of these materials.