82 FR 16429 - In the Matter of Homestake Mining Company of California; Grants Reclamation Project

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 63 (April 4, 2017)

Page Range		16429-16435
FR Document		2017-06645

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing a confirmatory order (Order) to Homestake Mining Company of California (HMC), to memorialize the agreements reached during alternative dispute resolution mediation sessions held on December 12, 2016, and February 15, 2017. This Order will resolve the apparent violations that were identified during an NRC records review to determine if HMC was in compliance with regulatory and license requirements for HMC's activities at the Grants, New Mexico site. This Order is effective upon its issuance.

Federal Register, Volume 82 Issue 63 (Tuesday, April 4, 2017)

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 63 (Tuesday, April 4, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16429-16435]
From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06645]

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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 040-08903; EA-16-114; NRC-2017-0087]

In the Matter of Homestake Mining Company of California; Grants
Reclamation Project

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Confirmatory order; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing a
confirmatory order (Order) to Homestake Mining Company of California
(HMC), to memorialize the agreements reached during alternative dispute
resolution mediation sessions held on December 12, 2016, and February
15, 2017. This Order will resolve the apparent violations that were
identified during an NRC records review to determine if HMC was in
compliance with regulatory and license requirements for HMC's
activities at the Grants, New Mexico site. This Order is effective upon
its issuance.

DATES: Effective Date: This order was issued and was effective on March
28, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0087 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0087. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For questions about this order,
contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section of this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and
then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS,
please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at
1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it is available
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in this
document.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susanne Woods, Office of Enforcement,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-001;
telephone: 301-287-9446, email: S.Woods@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the Order is attached.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day of March 2017.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Patricia K. Holahan,
Director, Office of Enforcement.

United States of America

Nuclear Regulatory Commission

EA-16-114

In the Matter of Homestake Mining Company of California Grants
Reclamation Project Confirmatory Order Modifying License

Homestake Mining Company of California, (HMC or Licensee) is the
holder of Materials License No. SUA-1471 issued on November 10, 1986,
by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) pursuant to Part 40 of
title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). The license
authorizes HMC the possession, incidental to decommissioning, of
residual uranium and byproduct material in the form of uranium waste
tailings and other byproduct waste generated by the licensee's past
milling operations in accordance with their license. The facility is
located on the Licensee's site in Grants, New Mexico.
This Confirmatory Order is the result of an agreement reached
during Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mediation sessions
conducted on December 12, 2016, and February 15, 2017.

The NRC staff conducted a records review from approximately October
2014 to May 2016. The NRC staff reviewed records dated from 1998 to
2015, including a letter, dated May 14, 2015, sent by HMC to the NRC in
response to the NRC's request for information. The purpose of the
records review was to determine whether HMC was in compliance with
regulatory and license requirements for HMC's activities at the Grants,
New Mexico site. Based on the evidence developed during its records
review, the NRC identified five apparent violations.
On October 4, 2016, the NRC issued a letter (Agencywide Documents
Access and Management System [ADAMS] Accession No. ML16251A526) to HMC
that detailed the results of the records inspection and outlined five
apparent violations. The apparent violations involved: (1)
Implementation of the Reinjection Program in a manner inconsistent with
HMC's groundwater Corrective Action Program (CAP); (2) discharge of
liquid effluents from the Reverse Osmosis (RO) Plant in excess of the
site ground water protection standards established in the license; (3)
failure to report to the NRC the results of all effluent monitoring
required by the license; (4) failure to obtain monthly composite
samples as required by the license; and (5) the discharge of liquid
effluents containing byproduct material to land application areas
without first obtaining NRC approval.
In the October 4, 2016 letter, the NRC offered HMC the choice to:
(1) Request a Pre-decisional Enforcement Conference (PEC) or (2)
request ADR.
In response to the NRC's offer, HMC requested the use of the NRC's
ADR process. The ADR mediation sessions conducted on December 12, 2016
and February 15, 2017 between HMC and the NRC were mediated by a
professional mediator, arranged through Cornell University's Institute
on Conflict Resolution. The ADR process is one in which a neutral
mediator, with no decision-making authority, assists the parties in
reaching an agreement on resolving any differences regarding the
dispute. This Confirmatory Order is issued pursuant to the agreement
reached during the ADR process.

III

During the ADR mediation session on February 15, 2017, HMC and the
NRC reached a preliminary settlement agreement. Prior to the ADR
mediation session on February 15, 2017, HMC completed the following
corrective actions:
1. As of November 2012, HMC ceased discharging irrigation water
with effluents containing byproduct material, to land application
areas, which consisted of the following lands in Township 12 North,
Range 10 West:
a. Section 28 (approximately 100 acres).
b. Section 33 (approximately 150 acres and approximately 24 acres);
c. Section 34 (approximately 120 acres); and
2. As of August 2016, HMC ceased operation of the re-injection
system

[[Page 16430]]

described as apparent violation 1 in the NRC's October 4, 2016 letter.
The elements of the preliminary settlement agreement developed
during the ADR mediation sessions included the following:
1. The Parties' agreement is a voluntary settlement of a dispute
between the Parties and does not constitute any admission by HMC with
respect to non-compliance with License No. SUA-1471. The NRC and HMC
agree to disagree that the activities resulted in violations of NRC
requirements.
2. The NRC will issue the agreement as a Confirmatory Order
pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202.
3. In consideration of the commitments delineated herein, the NRC
agrees to forgo seeking an NOV or civil penalty in this matter. The NRC
will consider the Confirmatory Order as an escalated enforcement.
However, NRC agrees that it will not use this Confirmatory Order as an
element in any future action assessing civil penalties per the
Enforcement Policy unless the action involves a violation of this
Confirmatory Order.
4. This agreement is binding upon the successors and assigns of
License No. SUA-1471.
5. Unless otherwise specified, all documents required to be
submitted to the NRC pursuant to this agreement prior to NRC approval
of the revised groundwater Corrective Action Program (CAP) described in
Condition 11 of this section will be sent to: Director, Office of
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, One White Flint North,
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-2738, with a copy to the
Deputy Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery and
Waste Programs, Two White Flint North, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
MD 20852-2738.
6. HMC will submit its root cause protocol to an independent third
party consultant with expertise in root cause analysis and provide a
copy of the independent third party reviewed protocol to the NRC within
120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order. The root cause
protocol will also be available for review during future inspections.
The root cause protocol submitted to the NRC will identify any changes
made by the independent third party reviewer and include a
qualification statement for the independent third party reviewer. This
protocol will be used to complete Conditions 7, 8 and 9 of this
section.
7. Within 30 days of submitting to NRC the root cause protocol in
Condition 6 of this section, HMC will use the root cause protocol to
analyze the reasons for the apparent violations documented in the NRC's
October 4, 2016 letter (ADAMS Accession No. ML16251A526). HMC will
submit any proposed corrective actions to the NRC for review and
approval within 60 days of completing the root cause analyses.
8. HMC will complete an assessment of all HMC activities to
determine whether all activities are authorized and are being conducted
in compliance with NRC requirements. The assessment will identify areas
where clarity could be added to the license. The assessment will
include a written report that identifies all areas assessed, the scope
of the assessment, the method used to perform the assessment, the
results of each assessment and any corrective actions deemed
appropriate. This report will identify any proposed changes to the
license and procedures. This assessment will include a review of the
licensee's Safety Culture, to identify any actions that may be
necessary to improve upon or enhance the Safety Culture.
9. HMC will engage an independent third party consultant to review
and evaluate HMC's assessments described in Condition 8 of this
section. That review will include a written report that identifies all
areas assessed, the scope of the assessment, the method used to perform
the assessment, the results of each assessment, and any proposed
corrective actions. The evaluation will include the effectiveness of
any actions proposed by HMC.
a. HMC will submit the name and qualifications of the consultant
for NRC approval within 30 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
b. HMC will submit a copy of the assessment described in Condition
8 of this section to the independent third party consultant within 120
days of NRC approval of the independent third party consultant.
c. HMC will provide a copy of the HMC assessment, the consultant's
review report, and any modifications by HMC as a result of the third
party consultant's report to the NRC within 120 days of submission of
the HMC assessment to the independent third party consultant.
d. NRC will perform an audit of the assessment and the independent
third party report and provide NRC audit results in writing, including
any recommended changes. HMC will incorporate NRC audit results in the
actions described in Condition 10 of this section.
e. HMC will maintain copies of all reports at the site for NRC
inspection.
10. Unless otherwise specified, for any changes or additions to the
license or procedures resulting from this Confirmatory Order, HMC will
either (1) submit to the NRC a license amendment request(s), for NRC
approval, or (2) update the appropriate HMC procedure(s) after
notification of the NRC. All license amendment requests resulting from
this Confirmatory Order will be submitted to the NRC within 60 days of
receiving the results of NRC's audit(s). All notifications of updates
to procedures resulting from this Confirmatory Order will be made to
the NRC by the end of calendar year 2018.
11. HMC will submit a revised groundwater CAP to the NRC by the end
of calendar year 2018, including amendments to the license approved by
that date. The NRC and HMC will work, aggressively and in good faith,
toward a goal of final approval of the groundwater CAP within a year
from the date of submittal.
12. HMC will conduct initial and annual refresher training for all
individuals (employees and vendors, commensurate with their duties)
engaged in licensed activities.
a. The initial and annual training will address awareness and
understanding of regulatory and license No. SUA-1471 requirements,
including but not necessarily limited to informing HMC employees of the
jurisdiction of the NRC, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the
New Mexico Environment Department over the Grants site. The training
may be an electronic read and sign format.
b. HMC will maintain documentation for each training session
conducted. The training documentation will include a summary of the
contents of the training and the individuals in attendance. The
training documentation will be maintained available for NRC inspection
for 5 years after each training session.
13. HMC will use the mass balance methodology described in its
revised 2012 groundwater CAP submittal, incorporating the issues raised
in the Requests for Additional Information provided by NRC (ADAMS
Package No. ML13360A224), and adapting the methodology for the purpose
of completing an analysis of the re-injection system's impact to the
time estimate for completion of the groundwater CAP. The analysis will
be completed within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order. No
less than 30 days prior to its finalization of the re-injection
analysis, HMC will discuss with NRC the methodology, data, and
analysis. HMC will provide to NRC all discussion material at least 10
days prior to the discussion. NRC will perform an audit of the
analysis, and provide in writing NRC audit results,

[[Page 16431]]

including any recommended changes. HMC will incorporate NRC audit
results in the actions described in Condition 10 of this section.
14. As soon as practicable, but not to exceed 30 days from issuance
of this Confirmatory Order, HMC will adjust operations to better ensure
compliance with the Ground Water Protection Standards (GWPS) in License
Condition 35B as required by License Condition 35C and described in
HMC's submittal dated January 15, 1998 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML12291A910) and the NRC's approval dated March 5, 1998 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML14203A023). HMC will evaluate the procedure required by
License Condition 23 to ensure that the process is adequate to reduce
constituent concentrations to values below the GWPS listed in License
Condition 35B before discharge.
15. HMC will use the methodology described in NUREG-1620 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML032250190) to analyze the impact of exceedances
documented in the NRC's October 4, 2016 letter to HMC. The analysis
will be completed within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory
Order. No less than 30 days prior to its finalization of the impact of
exceedances analysis, HMC will discuss with NRC the methodology, data,
and analysis. HMC will provide to the NRC all discussion material at
least 10 days prior to the discussion. The NRC will perform an audit of
the analysis and provide in writing, the NRC audit results, including
any recommended changes. HMC will incorporate the NRC audit results in
the actions described in Condition 10 of this section.
In the event of a future non-compliance related to the GWPS, HMC
will perform a similar assessment of the impacts of the non-compliance.
HMC will report the incident to the NRC in accordance with License
Condition 40 within 30 days of receipt of initial and confirmatory
laboratory results.
16. Condition 35C of License No. SUA-1471 is amended by this
Confirmatory Order to read as follows:
``Implement the corrective action program described in the
September 15, 1989 submittal, as modified by the reverse osmosis system
described in the January 15, 1998 submittal, excluding all sampling and
reporting requirements for Sample Point 1, with the objective of
achieving the concentrations of all constituents listed in License
Condition 35B. Composite samples from Sample Point 2 will be taken
monthly and analyzed for the constituents listed in License Condition
35B; the results of these analyses will be reported in the semi-annual
and annual reports required by License Conditions 15 and 42.''
17. HMC will develop written procedures to ensure that HMC will
sample all required composite samples from Sample Point 2 (SP2) monthly
and will report the results of those sample results in the semi-annual
and annual reports required by License Conditions 15 and 42. The
procedure will include a requirement that if sampling is not performed,
a justification will be provided in the semi-annual report required by
License Condition 15 for that sampling period, e.g., ``inadequate
volume of water collected per the appropriate sampling procedure due to
the RO plant being inoperable for 25 out of 30 days during that
sampling period.'' For clarity, this reporting requirement does not
apply to additional samples taken for operational purposes. For any
report submitted to NRC, HMC will clearly identify all values at SP2
that exceed GWPS or regulatory or license limits for the COCs
identified in License Condition 35B and corrective actions taken, if
any, as a result of the exceedances. HMC will submit these procedures
to NRC within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
18. Condition 15 of License No. SUA-1471 is amended by this
Confirmatory Order to read as follows:
``The results of all effluent and environmental monitoring required
by this license and regulation shall be reported semi-annually, by
March 31 and September 30. All groundwater monitoring data shall be
reported per the requirements in License Condition 35.''
19. HMC will identify sources of supply water, soil and groundwater
data, and reports, and will use those data to develop a land
application assessment of any impacts due to the use of the irrigation
water containing byproduct material to past, current, or foreseeable
future uses of the land application areas in Township 12 North, Range
10 West, Sections 28 (approximately 100 acres), 33 (approximately 150
acres and approximately 24 acres), and 34 (approximately 120 acres).
The land application assessment will establish background
concentrations, remedial action levels (radiological dose and non-
radiological risk), and current concentrations of COCs in its license
at all areas used for land application. The land application assessment
will also identify and assess impacts from soil pore water data at the
land application areas. HMC's land application assessment will be
consistent with the requirements of 10 CFR 20.2002 and in accordance
with Appendix F1.4 of NUREG-1620 (ADAMS Accession No. ML032250190) to
demonstrate that the discharge of byproduct material containing both
radiological and non-radiological constituents did not impact and will
not impact members of the public or the environment. In addition, HMC
will take immediate action to ensure that the land application areas
are not being used to produce crops for human consumption. The land
application assessment will be submitted for NRC review and approval
within 180 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
20. If the results of HMC's analysis discussed in Condition 19 of
this section indicates that radiological doses and non-radiological
risks are in excess of the NRC-approved remedial action levels, HMC
will propose appropriate measures to control both use and access to the
impacted areas, a corrective action plan, if necessary, to achieve the
NRC-approved remedial action levels, and final status survey plans to
demonstrate that the radiological doses and non-radiological risks are
below NRC-approved remedial action levels. If corrective actions are
needed, HMC will submit corrective actions (that include completion
timeframes), for NRC approval, within 60 days of NRC's approval of
HMC's land application assessment.
21. HMC will provide to the NRC an integrated table that sets forth
all actions taken pursuant to this Confirmatory Order. An updated
integrated table will be provided to the NRC semi-annually, until all
license and procedure changes under this Confirmatory Order are
completed.
22. The NRC considers the actions discussed above, along with the
NRC's specified approval, to be satisfactory, appropriately prompt, and
comprehensively responsive to the apparent violations identified in the
NRC's letter to HMC dated October 4, 2016.
Based on the completed actions described above, and the commitments
described in Section V below, the NRC agrees to not pursue any further
enforcement action based on the apparent violations identified in the
NRC's October 4, 2016 letter.
On March 21, 2017, HMC consented to issuing this Confirmatory Order
with the commitments, as described in Section V below. HMC further
agreed that this Confirmatory Order is to be effective upon issuance,
the agreement memorialized in this Confirmatory Order settles the
matter between the parties, and that HMC has waived its right to a
hearing.

[[Page 16432]]

I find that the HMC actions completed, as described in Section III
above, combined with the commitments as set forth in Section V are
acceptable and necessary, and conclude that with these commitments the
public health and safety are reasonably assured. In view of the
foregoing, I have determined that public health and safety require that
HMC's commitments be confirmed by this Confirmatory Order. Based on the
above and HMC's consent, this Confirmatory Order is effective upon
issuance.

Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 81,161b, 161i, 161o, 182 and 186
of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the Commission's
regulations in 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR part 40.71, it is hereby
ordered, EFFECTIVE UPON ISSUANCE, THAT LICENSE NO. SUA-1471 IS MODIFIED
AS FOLLOWS:
1. HMC will submit its root cause protocol to an independent third
party consultant with expertise in root cause analysis and provide a
copy of the independent third party reviewed protocol to the NRC within
120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order. The root cause
protocol will also be available for review during future inspections.
The root cause protocol submitted to the NRC will identify any changes
made by the independent third party reviewer and include a
qualification statement for the independent third party reviewer. This
protocol will be used to complete Conditions 2, 3, and 4 of this
section.
2. Within 30 days of submitting to NRC the root cause protocol in
Condition 1 of this section, HMC will use the root cause protocol to
analyze the reasons for the apparent violations documented in the NRC's
October 4, 2016 letter (ADAMS Accession No. ML16251A526). HMC will
submit any proposed corrective actions to the NRC for review and
approval within 60 days of completing the root cause analyses.
3. HMC will complete an assessment of all HMC activities to
determine whether all activities are authorized and are being conducted
in compliance with NRC requirements. The assessment will identify areas
where clarity could be added to the license. The assessment will
include a written report that identifies all areas assessed, the scope
of the assessment, the method used to perform the assessment, the
results of each assessment and any corrective actions deemed
appropriate. This report will identify any proposed changes to the
license and procedures. This assessment will include a review of the
licensee's Safety Culture, to identify any actions that may be
necessary to improve upon or enhance the Safety Culture.
4. HMC will engage an independent third party consultant to review
and evaluate HMC's assessments described in Condition 3 of this
section. That review will include a written report that identifies all
areas assessed, the scope of the assessment, the method used to perform
the assessment, the results of each assessment, and any proposed
corrective actions. The evaluation will include the effectiveness of
any actions proposed by HMC.
a. HMC will submit the name and qualifications of the consultant
for NRC approval within 30 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
b. HMC will submit a copy of the assessment described in Condition
3 of this section to the independent third party consultant within 120
days of NRC approval of the independent third party consultant.
c. HMC will provide a copy of the HMC assessment, the consultant's
review report, and any modifications by HMC as a result of the third
party consultant's report to the NRC within 120 days of submission of
the HMC assessment to the independent third party consultant.
d. NRC will perform an audit of the assessment and the independent
third party report and provide NRC audit results in writing, including
any recommended changes. HMC will incorporate NRC audit results in the
actions described in Condition 5 of this section.
e. HMC will maintain copies of all reports at the site for NRC
inspection.
5. Unless otherwise specified, for any changes or additions to the
license or procedures resulting from this Confirmatory Order, HMC will
either (1) submit to the NRC a license amendment request(s), for NRC
approval, or (2) update the appropriate HMC procedure(s) after
notification of the NRC. All license amendment requests resulting from
this Confirmatory Order will be submitted to the NRC within 60 days of
receiving the results of NRC's audit(s). All notifications of updates
to procedures resulting from this Confirmatory Order will be made to
the NRC by the end of calendar year 2018.
6. HMC will submit a revised groundwater CAP to the NRC by the end
of calendar year 2018, including amendments to the license approved by
that date. The NRC and HMC will work, aggressively and in good faith,
toward a goal of final approval of the groundwater CAP within a year
from the date of submittal.
7. HMC will conduct initial and annual refresher training for all
individuals (employees and vendors, commensurate with their duties)
engaged in licensed activities.
a. The initial and annual training will address awareness and
understanding of regulatory and license No. SUA-1471 requirements,
including but not necessarily limited to informing HMC employees of the
jurisdiction of the NRC, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the
New Mexico Environment Department over the Grants site. The training
may be an electronic read and sign format.
b. HMC will maintain documentation for each training session
conducted. The training documentation will include a summary of the
contents of the training and the individuals in attendance. The
training documentation will be maintained available for NRC inspection
for 5 years after each training session.
8. HMC will use the mass balance methodology described in its
revised 2012 groundwater CAP submittal, incorporating the issues raised
in the Requests for Additional Information provided by NRC (ADAMS
Package No. ML13360A224), and adapting the methodology for the purpose
of completing an analysis of the re-injection system's impact to the
time estimate for completion of the groundwater CAP. The analysis will
be completed within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order. No
less than 30 days prior to its finalization of the re-injection
analysis, HMC will discuss with NRC the methodology, data, and
analysis. HMC will provide to NRC all discussion material at least 10
days prior to the discussion. NRC will perform an audit of the
analysis, and provide in writing NRC audit results, including any
recommended changes. HMC will incorporate NRC audit results in the
actions described in Condition 5 of this section.
9. As soon as practicable, but not to exceed 30 days from issuance
of this Confirmatory Order, HMC will adjust operations to better ensure
compliance with the Ground Water Protection Standards (GWPS) in License
Condition 35B as required by License Condition 35C (as amended by this
Confirmatory Order) and described in HMC's submittal dated January 15,
1998 (ADAMS Accession No. ML12291A910) and the NRC's approval dated
March 5, 1998 (ADAMS Accession No. ML14203A023). HMC will evaluate the
procedure required by License Condition 23 to ensure that the process
is adequate to reduce constituent

[[Page 16433]]

concentrations to values below the GWPS listed in License Condition 35B
before discharge.
10. HMC will use the methodology described in NUREG-1620 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML032250190) to analyze the impact of exceedances
documented in the NRC's October 4, 2016 letter to HMC. The analysis
will be completed within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory
Order. No less than 30 days prior to its finalization of the impact of
exceedances analysis, HMC will discuss with NRC the methodology, data,
and analysis. HMC will provide to NRC all discussion material at least
10 days prior to the discussion. The NRC will perform an audit of the
analysis and provide in writing, the NRC audit results, including any
recommended changes. HMC will incorporate NRC audit results in the
actions described in Condition 5 of this section.
In the event of a future non-compliance related to the GWPS, HMC
will perform a similar assessment of the impacts of the non-compliance.
HMC will report the incident to the NRC in accordance with License
Condition 40 within 30 days of receipt of initial and confirmatory
laboratory results.
11. Condition 35C of License No. SUA-1471 is amended by this
Confirmatory Order to read as follows:
``Implement the corrective action program described in the
September 15, 1989 submittal, as modified by the reverse osmosis system
described in the January 15, 1998 submittal, excluding all sampling and
reporting requirements for Sample Point 1, with the objective of
achieving the concentrations of all constituents listed in License
Condition 35B. Composite samples from Sample Point 2 (SP2) will be
taken monthly and analyzed for the constituents listed in License
Condition 35B; the results of these analyses will be reported in the
semi-annual and annual reports required by License Conditions 15 and
42.''
12. HMC will develop written procedures to ensure that HMC will
sample all required composite samples from Sample Point 2 (SP2) monthly
and will report the results of those sample results in the semi-annual
and annual reports required by License Conditions 15 and 42. The
procedure will include a requirement that if sampling is not performed,
a justification will be provided in the semi-annual report required by
License Condition 15 for that sampling period, e.g., ``inadequate
volume of water collected per the appropriate sampling procedure due to
the RO plant being inoperable for 25 out of 30 days during that
sampling period.'' For clarity, this reporting requirement does not
apply to additional samples taken for operational purposes. For any
report submitted to NRC, HMC will clearly identify all values at SP2
that exceed GWPS or regulatory or license limits for the COCs
identified in License Condition 35B and corrective actions taken, if
any, as a result of the exceedances. HMC will submit these procedures
to NRC within 120 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
13. Condition 15 of License No. SUA-1471 is amended by this
Confirmatory Order to read as follows:
``The results of all effluent and environmental monitoring required
by this license and regulation shall be reported semi-annually, by
March 31 and September 30. All groundwater monitoring data shall be
reported per the requirements in License Condition 35.''
14. HMC will identify sources of supply water, soil and groundwater
data, and reports, and will use those data to develop a land
application assessment of any impacts due to the use of the irrigation
water containing byproduct material to past, current, or foreseeable
future uses of the land application areas in Township 12 North, Range
10 West, Sections 28 (approximately 100 acres), 33 (approximately 150
acres and approximately 24 acres), and 34 (approximately 120 acres).
The land application assessment will establish background
concentrations, remedial action levels (radiological dose and non-
radiological risk), and current concentrations of COCs in its license
at all areas used for land application. The land application assessment
will also identify and assess impacts from soil pore water data at the
land application areas. HMC's land application assessment will be
consistent with the requirements of 10 CFR 20.2002 and in accordance
with Appendix F1.4 of NUREG-1620 (ADAMS Accession No. ML032250190) to
demonstrate that the discharge of byproduct material containing both
radiological and non-radiological constituents did not impact and will
not impact members of the public or the environment. In addition, HMC
will take immediate action to ensure that the land application areas
are not being used to produce crops for human consumption. The land
application assessment will be submitted for NRC review and approval
within 180 days of issuance of this Confirmatory Order.
15. If the results of HMC's analysis discussed in Condition 14 of
this section indicates that radiological doses and non-radiological
risks are in excess of the NRC-approved remedial action levels, HMC
will propose appropriate measures to control both use and access to the
impacted areas, a corrective action plan, if necessary, to achieve the
NRC-approved remedial action levels, and final status survey plans to
demonstrate that the radiological doses and non-radiological risks are
below NRC-approved remedial action levels. If corrective actions are
needed, HMC will submit corrective actions (that include completion
timeframes), for NRC approval, within 60 days of NRC's approval of
HMC's land application assessment.
16. HMC will provide to the NRC an integrated table that sets forth
all actions taken pursuant to this Confirmatory Order. An updated
integrated table will be provided to the NRC semi-annually, until all
license and procedure changes under this Confirmatory Order are
completed.
In the event of the transfer of license SUA-1471 to another entity,
the terms and conditions set forth hereunder shall continue to apply to
the new entity and accordingly survive any transfer of ownership or
license.
Unless otherwise specified, all dates are from the date of issuance
of the Confirmatory Order. The term ``days'' in the Confirmatory Order
means calendar days.
Unless otherwise specified, all documents required to be submitted
to the NRC pursuant to this Confirmatory Order prior to NRC approval of
the revised groundwater CAP described in Condition 6 of this section
will be sent to: Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike,
Rockville, MD 20852-2738, with a copy to the Deputy Director, Division
of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery and Waste Programs, Two White
Flint North, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-2738.
The Director, Office of Enforcement, may, in writing, relax or
rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration by HMC or its
successors of good cause.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202 and 2.309, any person adversely
affected by this Confirmatory Order, other than HMC, may request a
hearing within thirty (30) days of the issuance date of this
Confirmatory Order. Where good cause is shown, consideration will be
given to extending the time to request a hearing. A request for
extension of time must be directed to the Director, Office of
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555,

[[Page 16434]]

and include a statement of good cause for the extension.
All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a
request for hearing, a petition for leave to intervene, any motion or
other document filed in the proceeding prior to the submission of a
request for hearing or petition to intervene (hereinafter
``petition''), and documents filed by interested governmental entities
participating under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in accordance with
the NRC's E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139; August 28, 2007, as amended by 77
FR 46562; August 3, 2012). The E-Filing process requires participants
to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents over the internet, or in
some cases to mail copies on electronic storage media. Participants may
not submit paper copies of their filings unless they seek an exemption
in accordance with the procedures described below.
To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the
Office of the Secretary by email at hearing.docket@nrc.gov, or by
telephone at 301-415-1677, to (1) request a digital identification (ID)
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or
other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the hearing in this
proceeding if the Secretary has not already established an electronic
docket.
Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is
available on NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/getting-started.html. Once a participant has obtained a
digital ID certificate and a docket has been created, the participant
can then submit adjudicatory documents. Submissions must be in Portable
Document Format (PDF). Additional guidance on PDF submissions is
available on the NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.html. A filing is considered complete at the
time the document is submitted through the NRC's E Filing system. To be
timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing system
no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date. Upon receipt of
a transmission, the E Filing system time-stamps the document and sends
the submitter an email notice confirming receipt of the document. The
E-Filing system also distributes an email notice that provides access
to the document to the NRC's Office of the General Counsel and any
others who have advised the Office of the Secretary that they wish to
participate in the proceeding, so that the filer need not serve the
document on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and
other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for
and receive a digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are
filed so that they can obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing
system.
A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic
Filing Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC's
public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by
email to MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov, or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-
7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m.
and 6 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, excluding government
holidays.
Participants who believe that they have a good cause for not
submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing
stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically and
requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper
format. Such filings must be submitted by: (1) First class mail
addressed to the Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention:
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or
expedited delivery service to the Office of the Secretary, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, Attention: Rulemaking and
Adjudications Staff. Participants filing adjudicatory documents in this
manner are responsible for serving the document on all other
participants. Filing is considered complete by first-class mail as of
the time of deposit in the mail, or by courier, express mail, or
expedited delivery service upon depositing the document with the
provider of the service. A presiding officer, having granted an
exemption request from using E-Filing, may require a participant or
party to use E-Filing if the presiding officer subsequently determines
that the reason for granting the exemption from use of E-Filing no
longer exists.
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at
https://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the
Commission or the presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued
digital ID certificate as described above, click cancel when the link
requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to the
NRC's electronic hearing dockets where you will be able to access any
publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket.
Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information,
such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone
numbers in their filings, unless an NRC regulation or other law
requires submission of such information. For example, in some
instances, individuals provide home addresses in order to demonstrate
proximity to a facility or site. With respect to copyrighted works,
except for limited excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory
filings and would constitute a Fair Use application, participants are
requested not to include copyrighted materials in their submission.
The Commission will issue a notice or order granting or denying a
hearing request or intervention petition, designating the issues for
any hearing that will be held and designating the Presiding Officer. A
notice granting a hearing will be published in the Federal Register and
served on the parties to the hearing.
If a person (other than HMC) requests a hearing, that person shall
set forth with particularity the manner in which his interest is
adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order and shall address the
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d) and (f).
If a hearing is requested by a person whose interest is adversely
affected, the Commission will issue an order designating the time and
place of any hearings. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered
at such hearing shall be whether this Confirmatory Order should be
sustained.
In the absence of any request for hearing, or written approval of
an extension of time in which to request a hearing, the provisions
specified in Section V above shall be final 30 days from the date of
this Confirmatory Order without further order or proceedings. If an
extension of time for requesting a hearing has been approved, the
provisions specified in Section V shall be final when the extension
expires if a hearing request has not been received.

[[Page 16435]]

A REQUEST FOR HEARING SHALL NOT STAY THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THIS
ORDER.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day of March 2017.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Patricia K. Holahan,
Director, Office of Enforcement

[FR Doc. 2017-06645 Filed 4-3-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 63 / Tuesday, April 4, 2017 / Notices 16431

including any recommended changes. required by License Conditions 15 and NUREG–1620 (ADAMS Accession No.
HMC will incorporate NRC audit results 42.’’ ML032250190) to demonstrate that the
in the actions described in Condition 10 17. HMC will develop written discharge of byproduct material
of this section. procedures to ensure that HMC will containing both radiological and non-
14. As soon as practicable, but not to sample all required composite samples radiological constituents did not impact
exceed 30 days from issuance of this from Sample Point 2 (SP2) monthly and and will not impact members of the
Confirmatory Order, HMC will adjust will report the results of those sample public or the environment. In addition,
operations to better ensure compliance results in the semi-annual and annual HMC will take immediate action to
with the Ground Water Protection reports required by License Conditions ensure that the land application areas
Standards (GWPS) in License Condition 15 and 42. The procedure will include are not being used to produce crops for
35B as required by License Condition a requirement that if sampling is not human consumption. The land
35C and described in HMC’s submittal performed, a justification will be application assessment will be
dated January 15, 1998 (ADAMS provided in the semi-annual report submitted for NRC review and approval
Accession No. ML12291A910) and the required by License Condition 15 for within 180 days of issuance of this
NRC’s approval dated March 5, 1998 that sampling period, e.g., ‘‘inadequate Confirmatory Order.
(ADAMS Accession No. ML14203A023). volume of water collected per the 20. If the results of HMC’s analysis
HMC will evaluate the procedure appropriate sampling procedure due to discussed in Condition 19 of this
required by License Condition 23 to the RO plant being inoperable for 25 out section indicates that radiological doses
ensure that the process is adequate to of 30 days during that sampling period.’’ and non-radiological risks are in excess
reduce constituent concentrations to For clarity, this reporting requirement of the NRC-approved remedial action
values below the GWPS listed in does not apply to additional samples levels, HMC will propose appropriate
License Condition 35B before discharge. taken for operational purposes. For any measures to control both use and access
15. HMC will use the methodology report submitted to NRC, HMC will to the impacted areas, a corrective
described in NUREG–1620 (ADAMS clearly identify all values at SP2 that action plan, if necessary, to achieve the
Accession No. ML032250190) to analyze exceed GWPS or regulatory or license NRC-approved remedial action levels,
the impact of exceedances documented limits for the COCs identified in License and final status survey plans to
in the NRC’s October 4, 2016 letter to Condition 35B and corrective actions demonstrate that the radiological doses
HMC. The analysis will be completed taken, if any, as a result of the and non-radiological risks are below
within 120 days of issuance of this exceedances. HMC will submit these NRC-approved remedial action levels. If
Confirmatory Order. No less than 30 procedures to NRC within 120 days of corrective actions are needed, HMC will
days prior to its finalization of the issuance of this Confirmatory Order. submit corrective actions (that include
impact of exceedances analysis, HMC 18. Condition 15 of License No. SUA–
completion timeframes), for NRC
will discuss with NRC the methodology, 1471 is amended by this Confirmatory
approval, within 60 days of NRC’s
data, and analysis. HMC will provide to Order to read as follows:
‘‘The results of all effluent and approval of HMC’s land application
the NRC all discussion material at least
environmental monitoring required by assessment.
10 days prior to the discussion. The
NRC will perform an audit of the this license and regulation shall be 21. HMC will provide to the NRC an
analysis and provide in writing, the reported semi-annually, by March 31 integrated table that sets forth all actions
NRC audit results, including any and September 30. All groundwater taken pursuant to this Confirmatory
recommended changes. HMC will monitoring data shall be reported per Order. An updated integrated table will
incorporate the NRC audit results in the the requirements in License Condition be provided to the NRC semi-annually,
actions described in Condition 10 of this 35.’’ until all license and procedure changes
section. 19. HMC will identify sources of under this Confirmatory Order are
In the event of a future non- supply water, soil and groundwater completed.
compliance related to the GWPS, HMC data, and reports, and will use those 22. The NRC considers the actions
will perform a similar assessment of the data to develop a land application discussed above, along with the NRC’s
impacts of the non-compliance. HMC assessment of any impacts due to the specified approval, to be satisfactory,
will report the incident to the NRC in use of the irrigation water containing appropriately prompt, and
accordance with License Condition 40 byproduct material to past, current, or comprehensively responsive to the
within 30 days of receipt of initial and foreseeable future uses of the land apparent violations identified in the
confirmatory laboratory results. application areas in Township 12 North, NRC’s letter to HMC dated October 4,
16. Condition 35C of License No. Range 10 West, Sections 28 2016.
SUA–1471 is amended by this (approximately 100 acres), 33 Based on the completed actions
Confirmatory Order to read as follows: (approximately 150 acres and described above, and the commitments
‘‘Implement the corrective action approximately 24 acres), and 34 described in Section V below, the NRC
program described in the September 15, (approximately 120 acres). The land agrees to not pursue any further
1989 submittal, as modified by the application assessment will establish enforcement action based on the
reverse osmosis system described in the background concentrations, remedial apparent violations identified in the
January 15, 1998 submittal, excluding action levels (radiological dose and non- NRC’s October 4, 2016 letter.
all sampling and reporting requirements radiological risk), and current On March 21, 2017, HMC consented
for Sample Point 1, with the objective of concentrations of COCs in its license at to issuing this Confirmatory Order with
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

achieving the concentrations of all all areas used for land application. The the commitments, as described in
constituents listed in License Condition land application assessment will also Section V below. HMC further agreed
35B. Composite samples from Sample identify and assess impacts from soil that this Confirmatory Order is to be
Point 2 will be taken monthly and pore water data at the land application effective upon issuance, the agreement
analyzed for the constituents listed in areas. HMC’s land application memorialized in this Confirmatory
License Condition 35B; the results of assessment will be consistent with the Order settles the matter between the
these analyses will be reported in the requirements of 10 CFR 20.2002 and in parties, and that HMC has waived its
semi-annual and annual reports accordance with Appendix F1.4 of right to a hearing.

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Document Created: 2017-04-03 23:54:05
Document Modified: 2017-04-03 23:54:05

Category		Regulatory Information
Collection		Federal Register
sudoc Class		AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106:
Publisher		Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
Section		Notices
Action		Confirmatory order; issuance.
Dates		Effective Date: This order was issued and was effective on March 28, 2017.
Contact		Susanne Woods, Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-001; telephone: 301-287-9446, email: [email protected]
FR Citation		82 FR 16429