ML22066A569

GEH Vallecitos Nuclear Center, NRCs Response to the GEH Description of Process for Decommissioning the Shutdown Reactors

ML22066A569
Person / Time
Site:	Vallecitos, Vallecitos Nuclear Center
Issue date:	04/08/2022
From:	Ashley Roberts Reactor Decommissioning Branch
To:	Feyrer M GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy
Parrott J
References
Download: ML22066A569 (4)

Text

April 8, 2022 Matt Feyrer, Site Manager GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy Vallecitos Nuclear Center 6705 Vallecitos Rd Sunol, CA 94586

SUBJECT:

GE HITACHI NUCLEAR ENERGY, VALLECITOS NUCLEAR CENTER -

RESPONSE TO THE DESCRIPTION FOR DECOMMISSIONING THE SHUTDOWN REACTORS

Dear Mr. Feyrer:

By letter dated October 12, 2021 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System

[ADAMS] Accession No. ML21258A042), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff identified the applicable regulations from Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) 50.82(a) to the Vallecitos Boiling Water Reactor (VBWR) and the Empire State Atomic Development Associates (ESADA) Vallecitos Experimental Steam Reactor (EVESR) (shutdown power reactors), and the General Electric Test Reactor (GETR) (shutdown non-power reactor),

at the GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, LLC (GEH) Vallecitos Nuclear Center (VNC). The NRC staff sent this letter in response to GEHs request to withdraw its request for exemptions from NRC regulations that would have supported an alternate decommissioning schedule for the shutdown reactors.

Specifically, the NRC identified that 10 CFR 50.82(a)(6), 10 CFR 50.82(a)(7),

10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(v)-(vi), and 10 CFR 50.82(a)(9) must be implemented as part of the decommissioning process for the VBWR and EVESR. For the GETR, the NRC identified the timeline for submittal of an application for license termination and a decommissioning plan (DP) in compliance with 10 CFR 50.82(b)(1), that the content of the DP shall comply with the requirements in 10 CFR 50.82(b)(4), and that the DP will be approved by license amendment (10 CFR 50.82(b)(5)).

By letter dated November 11, 2021 (ADAMS Accession No. ML21315A005), GEH described its planned process and schedule to be used for the continued decommissioning of the VBWR, EVESR, and GETR shutdown facilities within the requirements identified above. This response to your November 11, 2021, letter, identifies the NRCs planned review approach, once GEH implements its planned process and schedule.

The November 11, 2021, GEH letter described the intention to submit a limited Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report (PSDAR) or LPSDAR for the VBWR and EVESR reactor facilities, to demonstrate compliance with 10 CFR 50.82(a)(6) and 50 82(a)(7), on a projected date of September 1, 2022. This is referred to as a LPSDAR because the NRCs requirements for contents of a PSDAR in 10 CFR 50.82(a)(4) do not apply to GEH. While the requirements of

M. Feyrer 2 10 CFR 50.82(a)(4) do not apply to GEH, the NRC still intends to publish a notice of the submittal of the LPSDAR and make it available for public comment.

In addition, GEH indicated that, under 10 CFR 50.82(a)(9), an application for license termination and a license termination plan (LTP) would be submitted for the VBWR on a projected date of September 8, 2023. In accordance with section 50.82(a)(9), the NRC would notice receipt of the VBWR LTP, make it available for public comment, and schedule a public meeting in the vicinity of the VNC. The NRC would take these same actions after GEHs application for license termination and submission of an LTP for the EVESR, projected to be submitted to the NRC on April 15, 2028.

The November 11, 2021, letter also described that GEH plans to remove the VBWR vessel in 2023 and submit a license amendment request to transfer the VBWR residual activity and facilities to the EVESR license and to terminate the VBWR license by September 9, 2025. If the NRC determines that this license amendment request should be granted, the NRC would issue an amendment to the EVESR license to include the remaining VBWR facilities and structures.

In addition, to complete the termination of the VBWR license, after transferring the residual contamination to the EVESR license by license amendment, GEH would need to request an exemption to 10 CFR 50.82(a)(11)(ii)the requirement that a power reactor facility and site meet the decommissioning criteria in 10 CFR Part 20, subpart E before the license can be terminatedunder the exemption criteria of 10 CFR 50.12. Such an exemption would allow for decommissioning of the VBWR and EVESR sites together. Should the NRC staff issue the exemption, the NRC would then terminate the VBWR license and publish a notice of termination. For the GETR, the DP would be evaluated as a license amendment (10 CFR 50.82(b)(5)). The NRC would notice the consideration of the license amendment in the Federal Register and offer the public an opportunity to comment and to request a hearing. There is no requirement to conduct a public meeting for the consideration of DPs for non-power reactors.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRCs Agency Rules of Practice and Procedure, a copy of this letter will be available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the Publicly Available Records component of the NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.

M. Feyrer 3 If you have any questions, please contact the GEH Shutdown Reactor Project Manager, Jack Parrott, at 301-415-6634, or via e-mail at Jack.Parrott@nrc.gov.

Sincerely, Signed by Roberts, Ashley on 04/08/22 Ashley Roberts, Deputy Director Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery and Waste Programs Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and Safeguards Docket Nos. 50-18, 50-70, and 50-183 cc: GEH ListServ

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/NLO*

NAME JParrott JP BWatson BW JMcManus JM ARoberts AR DATE Mar 7, 2022 Mar 7, 2022 Apr 7, 2022 Apr 8, 2022