ML20125A379

Exemption from Select Requirements of 10 CFR Part 55, Operators' Licenses (EPID L-2020-LLE-0049 (COVID-19))

ML20125A379
Person / Time
Site:	Hope Creek
Issue date:	05/07/2020
From:	Craig Erlanger Division of Operating Reactor Licensing
To:	Carr E Public Service Enterprise Group
Kim, James
References
EPID L-2020-LLE-0049
Download: ML20125A379 (4)

Text

May 7, 2020 Mr. Eric Carr President and Chief Nuclear Officer PSEG Nuclear LLC - N09 P.O. Box 236 Hancocks Bridge, NJ 08038

SUBJECT:

HOPE CREEK GENERATING STATION - EXEMPTION FROM SELECT REQUIREMENTS OF 10 CFR PART 55, OPERATORS LICENSES (EPID L-2020-LLE-0049 [COVID-19])

Dear Mr. Carr:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved the requested exemption from specific requirements of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 55, Operators Licenses, for licensed operators at the Hope Creek Generating Station. This action is in response to the PSEG Nuclear LLC (facility licensee) application dated May 4, 2020 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML20126G379), related to an NRC letter dated April 14, 2020 (ADAMS Accession No. ML20104C071), describing a process to request expedited review of certain exemptions from 10 CFR Part 55 during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE).

Specifically, the application requested exemption from medical examination requirements in 10 CFR 55.21 and 10 CFR 55.53(i) and provided the following information:

The names and docket numbers of the licensed operators for whom the exemption is being requested.

A description of the interim compensatory measures that the facility licensee is using to address delay in receipt of recommendations from a licensed physician concerning the licensed operators health.

Consistent with 10 CFR 55.11, Specific exemptions, the NRC may, upon application by an interested person, or upon its own initiative, grant such exemptions from the requirements of the regulations in 10 CFR Part 55 as it determines are authorized by law and will not endanger life or property and are otherwise in the public interest.

Sections 55.21 and 55.53(i) of 10 CFR require a medical examination of each licensed operator every 2 years by a licensed physician who uses the applicable ANSI/ANS standard. Based on this examination, the physician certifies whether the licensed operator has been found to meet the medical requirements of 10 CFR 55.33(a)(1) and whether the licensed operators license should be conditioned based on an identified health problem. Consistent with 10 CFR 55.25, the facility licensee must notify the NRC if it learns that the licensed operator has developed a permanent condition that causes the licensed operator to fail to meet the health requirements. If the facility licensee alerts the NRC to a health concern, then the NRC uses a qualified medical

E. Carr expert to review the relevant medical information. Neither the facility licensee nor the NRC makes medical judgments of licensed operators.

A PHE requiring the use of social distancing and other practices intended to slow the spread of illness and the potential long-term unavailability of routine medical appointments due to a PHE were not considered during the rulemaking that established the medical examination requirements.

During the COVID-19 PHE, licensed operators might not be able to receive the required biennial medical examination from a licensed physician. The compensatory measure that the facility licensee (in coordination with the licensed operators) will implement during the exemption term will provide the results of a partial medical examination to the facility licensee, which will consider the recommendations as to whether the ANSI/ANS 3.4 standard appears to be met based on available information. Consistent with 10 CFR 55.25, the facility licensee must continue to notify the NRC of permanent conditions that cause licensed operators to fail to meet the health requirements.

Existing administrative controls for human performance error prevention, such as peer-checking, will help ensure the continued safe operation of the facility. Additionally, the requirements of 10 CFR 26.33, Behavioral observation, and 10 CFR 26.31, Drug and alcohol testing, remain in effect during the exemption term. These requirements continue to provide reasonable assurance that, should a licensed operator become unfit for duty, the impairment will be detected and addressed. Also, if an unknown (due to a partial medical examination) medical condition is causing symptoms (e.g., fatigue), these programs may provide the basis for a facility licensee to remove a licensed operator from shift. Based on the proposed compensatory measure and the continued compliance with existing administrative controls and the regulatory requirements in 10 CFR 55.25, 10 CFR 26.33, and 10 CFR 26.31, the NRC staff finds that the requested exemption will not endanger life or property.

The requested exemption from the biennial medical examination requirements addresses the fact that a licensed operator may not be able to obtain this examination during the COVID-19 PHE because of a limited availability of medical resources and the possibility that an in-office medical examination may expose the operator to COVID-19. The requested exemption ensures that licensed operators are not required to take actions that would conflict with practices recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to limit the spread of COVID-19.1 Therefore, the NRC staff finds that the requested exemption is in the public interest.

The NRC staff determined that exemption from the medical examination requirements is permissible under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and other regulatory requirements. Therefore, the NRC staff finds that the requested exemption is authorized by law.

NRC approval of this exemption request is categorically excluded under 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25) and there are no extraordinary circumstances present that would preclude reliance on this exclusion. The NRC staff determined, per 10 CFR 51.22(c)(25)(vi)(E), that the requirements from which the exemption is sought involve education, training, experience, qualification, requalification, or other employment suitability requirements. The NRC staff also determined that approval of this exemption involves no significant hazards consideration because it does 1

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, How to Protect Yourself and Others, April 18, 2020 (ADAMS Accession No. ML20125A069).

E. Carr not authorize any physical changes to the facility or any of its safety systems, nor does it change any of the assumptions or limits used in the facility licensees safety analyses or introduce any new failure modes; no significant change in the types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite because this exemption does not affect any effluent release limits as provided in the facility licensees technical specifications or by the regulations in 10 CFR Part 20, Standards for Protection Against Radiation; no significant increase in individual or cumulative public or occupational radiation exposure because this exemption does not affect limits on the release of any radioactive material or the limits provided in 10 CFR Part 20 for radiation exposure to workers or members of the public; no significant construction impact because this exemption does not involve any changes to a construction permit; and no significant increase in the potential for or consequences from radiological accidents because this exemption does not alter any of the assumptions or limits in the facility licensees safety analysis. In addition, the NRC staff determined that there would be no significant impacts to biota, water resources, historic properties, cultural resources, or socioeconomic conditions in the region. As such, there are no extraordinary circumstances present that would preclude reliance on this categorical exclusion. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the approval of this requested exemption.

Based on the above, the NRC staff finds that (1) the exemption is authorized by law, (2) the exemption will not endanger life or property, and (3) the exemption is otherwise in the public interest.

This exemption is effective upon issuance until 90 days after the COVID-19 PHE is ended or until December 31, 2020, whichever occurs first.

Sincerely, Craig G. Digitally signed by Craig G. Erlanger Erlanger Date: 2020.05.07 18:46:47 -04'00' Craig G. Erlanger, Director Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-354 cc: Listserv

ML20125A379 *via e-mail OFFICE NRR/DORL/PL1/PM NRR/DORL/LPL1/LA NRR/DORL/LPL1/BC NRR/DRO/IOLB/BC*

NAME JKim LRonewicz JDanna CCowdrey DATE 05/05/2020 05/05/2020 05/05/2020 05/05/2020 OFFICE OGC (NLO)* NRR/DORL/D NAME JWachutka CErlanger DATE 05/07/2020 05/07/2020