82 FR 60219 - Global Nuclear Fuels-Americas, L.L.C.

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 242 (December 19, 2017)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a confirmatory order (Order) to Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C., (the licensee), confirming the agreement reached in an Alternative Dispute Resolution mediation session held on October 25, 2017. This Order will ensure the licensee restores compliance with NRC's regulations.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 19, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60219-60223]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-27294]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-1113; License No. SNM-1097; EA-17-090; NRC-2017-0234]


Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C.

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Confirmatory order; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued a 
confirmatory order (Order) to Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C., 
(the licensee), confirming the agreement reached in an Alternative 
Dispute Resolution mediation session held on October 25, 2017. This 
Order will ensure the licensee restores compliance with NRC's 
regulations.

DATES: The Order was issued on December 14, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0234 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 website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0234. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, 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 [email protected]. The 
ADAMS accession number for each

[[Page 60220]]

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: Scott Sparks, Region II, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-1257; telephone: 404-997-
4422; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The text of the Order is attached.

    Dated at Atlanta, Georgia, this 14th day of December 2017.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Catherine Haney,
Regional Administrator.

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-1113; License No. SNM-1097; EA-17-090; NRC-2017-0234]

Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C.

In the Matter of Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C.

Confirmatory Order (Effective Upon Issuance)

I

    Global Nuclear Fuels--Americas, L.L.C. (GNF-A, or the licensee) is 
the holder of NRC License No. SNM-1097, issued by the U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) pursuant to Part 70 of Title 
10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), on May 19, 2009. The 
primary purpose of the GNF-A facility is the manufacture of fuel 
assemblies for commercial nuclear reactors. Nuclear materials enriched 
to less than or equal to 5 weight percent Uranium-235 are utilized in 
the product manufacturing operations authorized by the license. The 
facility is located on the licensee's site in Wilmington, North 
Carolina.
    This Confirmatory Order (CO) is the result of an agreement reached 
during an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mediation session 
conducted on October 25, 2017.

II

    NRC Inspection Report (IR) 70-1113/2017-003, dated July 25, 2017, 
documented a transportation incident occurring in September of 2016, 
when GNF-A made arrangements with a private industrial contractor to 
ship a dumpster of scrap metal piping to a local metal recycling 
facility. On September 29, 2016, the dumpster was loaded onto a truck 
and shipped offsite to a scrap metal recycling facility, located 
approximately 15 minutes from GNF-A. Prior to entering the recycling 
facility, the shipment was checked by a radiation portal monitor as 
part of the normal receipt process of the scrap metal recycling 
facility. The dumpster of scrap metal piping from GNF-A caused the 
radiation portal monitor to alarm. The shipment was not allowed to 
enter the scrap metal facility, and was returned to GNF-A's facility 
soon thereafter that same day.
    The NRC's IR documented five apparent violations (AVs). Three AVs 
were considered for escalated enforcement:
    1. Failure to make or cause to be made surveys of scrap metal 
piping prior to its release and transportation as required by 10 CFR 
20.1501(a).
    2. Failure to comply with applicable Department of Transportation 
(DOT) regulations appropriate to the mode of transport of contaminated 
materials as required per 10 CFR 71.5(a).
    3. Failure to notify the NRC as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1) 
when removable radioactive surface contamination exceeds the limits of 
10 CFR 71.87(i).
    Two additional non-escalated AVs were also documented in the IR:
    4. Failure to perform the monitoring within 3 hours after receiving 
the shipment back at the site as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(c).
    5. Failure to maintain records of surveys as required by 10 CFR 
20.2103(a).
    In response to the NRC's inspection report of July 25, 2017, GNF-A 
advised the NRC of its desire to participate in the Agency's ADR 
program to resolve the enforcement aspects of this matter.

III

    On October 25, 2017, the NRC and GNF-A met in an ADR session 
mediated by a professional mediator, arranged through Cornell 
University's Institute on Conflict Resolution. The ADR is a process in 
which a neutral mediator with no decision-making authority assists the 
parties in reaching an agreement or resolving any differences regarding 
their dispute. This CO is issued pursuant to the agreement reached 
during the ADR process. The elements of the agreement consist of the 
following:
    1. During the ADR, GNF-A expressed agreement with the following 
four AVs: (1) Failure to make or cause to be made surveys of scrap 
metal piping prior to its release and transportation as required by 10 
CFR 20.1501(a); (2) Failure to comply with applicable Department of 
Transportation (DOT) regulations appropriate to the mode of transport 
of contaminated materials as required per 10 CFR 71.5(a); (3) Failure 
to perform the monitoring within 3 hours after receiving the shipment 
back at the site as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(c); (4) Failure to 
maintain records of surveys as required by 10 CFR 20.2103(a).
    GNF-A raised reservations regarding the AV associated with 
notifying the NRC as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1). In particular, 
GNF-A questioned whether the circumstances of the contaminated scrap 
metal required NRC notification per 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1).
    The NRC continues to conclude that this issue represents a 
violation of 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1).
    At the ADR, the NRC and GNF-A agreed to disagree regarding whether 
this issue represents a violation of 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1).
    Consequently, within 30 days after the issuance of the CO, GNF-A 
will make a report to the NRC Operations Center, pursuant to 10 CFR 
20.1906(d)(1), stating that the NRC has concluded that GNF-A received a 
package on September 29, 2016, which had removable radioactive surface 
contamination on its external surfaces that exceeded the applicable 
limits set forth in 10 CFR 71.87(i). GNF-A will make this report solely 
for the purposes of reaching resolution at ADR because it maintains 
that the removable radioactive surface contamination on the external 
surfaces of the package (an open metal dumpster) and the removable 
surface contamination on the scrap pipes contained in the dumpster did 
not exceed the applicable limits set forth in 10 CFR 71.87(i).
    2. The NRC views the safety significance of three violations (i.e., 
failure to make surveys as required by 10 CFR 20.1501(a), failure to 
comply with DOT regulations as required by 10 CFR 71.5(a), and failure 
to notify the NRC as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1)) as interrelated 
to one incident and consistent with a Severity Level III problem in 
accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy.
    The NRC views the safety significance of two additional violations 
(i.e., failure to perform the monitoring within 3 hours after receiving 
the shipment back at the site as required by 10 CFR 20.1906(c), and 
failure to maintain records of surveys as required by 10 CFR 
20.2103(a)) as consistent with Severity Level IV violations in 
accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy.
    Based on GNF-A's view of the low actual and potential safety 
significance of the shipment, GNF-A does not

[[Page 60221]]

believe the violations merited escalated enforcement action.
    3. Based on a review of the incident, GNF-A completed a number of 
corrective actions and enhancements to preclude recurrence of the 
violations, including but not limited to the following:
    a. GNF-A revised its procedures, including, among others:
    i. WI-27-105-05 ``Control of Radioactive Material,'' to clarify 
survey requirements for the release of radioactive material; and
    ii. WI-27-105-08 ``Contamination Measurement and Control,'' to 
provide clear instructions on contamination surveys required.
    b. GNF-A provided enhanced training to the Radiation Protection 
Monitors to include:
    i. historical knowledge of facility operations; and
    ii. survey practices and the need to select the proper survey 
instrument for the type of contamination expected.
    c. GNF-A revised the Senior Radiological Engineer's and the 
Radiation Protection Manager's qualification cards to require training 
on historical knowledge of facility operations.
    d. GNF-A augmented its recordkeeping process to ensure radiation 
protection survey records are properly documented and maintained.
    e. Senior management communicated lessons learned from this event 
to the GNF-A and Hitachi Nuclear Energy--Americas, LLC (GEH-A) 
organizations.
    f. GNF-A conducted a Root Cause Analysis of the transportation 
incident.
    g. GEH-A initiated a Nuclear Safety Culture (NSC) assessment of the 
Wilmington site. The assessment included a survey, interviews, and data 
trending to include a review of relevant entries into the corrective 
action program.
    4. Based on GNF-A's review of the incident and NRC's concerns with 
respect to precluding recurrence of the violations, GNF-A agreed to 
implement the corrective actions and enhancements delineated in Section 
V of this CO.
    5. Within 3 months of completion of the terms of the CO, GNF-A 
shall provide the NRC with a letter discussing its basis for concluding 
that the CO has been satisfied.
    6. In consideration of GNF-A's completed corrective actions and 
enhancements, and GNF-A's commitments delineated herein, the NRC agrees 
to refrain from proposing a civil penalty or issuing a Notice of 
Violation for all AVs identified in NRC Inspection Report 70-1113/2017-
003 (EA-17-090).
    7. The NRC and GNF-A agree that the above elements shall be 
incorporated into a CO.
    8. This agreement is binding upon successors and assigns of GNF-A.
    On December 7, 2017, GNF-A consented to issuance of this CO with 
the commitments, as described in Section V below. GNF-A further agreed 
that this CO is to be effective upon issuance and that it has waived 
its right to a hearing.

IV

    Because GNF-A has taken corrective actions to address NRC concerns, 
as set forth in Section III above, and has agreed to take additional 
corrective actions as set forth in Section V below, the NRC has 
concluded that its concerns can be resolved through issuance of this 
CO.
    I find that GNF-A's 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 
GNF-A's commitments be confirmed by this CO. Based on the above and 
GNF-A's consent, this CO is effective upon issuance.

V

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 104b., 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 70, it is 
hereby ordered, that license No. SNM-1097 be modified as follows:
    1. Consistent with paragraph III (1) above, within thirty (30) days 
after the issuance of the CO, GNF-A will make a report to the NRC 
Operations Center, pursuant to 10 CFR 20.1906(d)(1), stating that the 
NRC has concluded that GNF-A received a package on September 29, 2016, 
which had removable radioactive surface contamination on its external 
surfaces that exceeded the applicable limits set forth in 10 CFR 
71.87(i).
    2. Within one (1) year after issuance of the CO, GNF-A shall 
install a vehicle portal monitor with a sensitivity to detect vehicle 
surface radiation levels specified in 10 CFR 20.1301(a)(2). GNF-A 
agrees to continue to perform surveys for unrestricted release in 
accordance with the License Application Section 1.3.2. Procedures shall 
be developed and implemented to ensure that all non-manifested vehicle 
shipments from the Controlled Access Area are monitored and to 
validate, investigate, and to respond to alarms prior to releasing 
shipments off-site. Once installed, if for any reason the vehicle 
portal monitor is not available, compensatory measures shall be taken 
by GNF-A to detect non-manifested vehicle shipments in excess of 
radiation levels of 10 CFR 20.1301(a)(2).
    3. Within sixty (60) days of issuance of the CO, or within 60 days 
of completion of the NSC assessment referenced in Section III.3.g, 
whichever is later, GNF-A shall make the results of the assessment 
available to the NRC for review.
    4. Approximately two (2) years (+/-6 months) after issuance of the 
CO, GNF-A shall conduct a NSC assessment of the GNF-A organization by a 
third party independent of GNF-A who is experienced with NRC nuclear 
safety culture and safety conscious work environment policies. GNF-A 
shall compare the results of this assessment to the results of the 
assessment performed under Section III.3.g of this CO in an effort to 
identify trends. Corrective actions arising from the assessment and 
comparison will be entered into the corrective action program and 
tracked to completion. GNF-A shall make results of the final assessment 
and comparison available to the NRC for review.
    5. Within nine (9) months of issuance of the CO, GNF-A shall 
augment, with the assistance of an individual independent of GNF-A who 
is experienced with NRC nuclear safety culture and safety conscious 
work environment policies, its existing training for all workers with 
unescorted access to the GNF-A Controlled Access Area, that reinforces 
nuclear safety culture traits emphasizing questioning attitude, problem 
identification, effective corrective actions, and effective self-
assessment. Training records shall be retained consistent with 
applicable GNF-A record retention policies and shall be made available 
to the NRC upon request. New employees shall complete the training 
prior to the granting of unescorted access to GNF-A. This training 
shall be provided on an annual basis, for at least three years after 
issuance of the CO.
    6. Within one (1) year after the issuance of the CO, GNF-A shall 
conduct a benchmark assessment of the GNF-A Radiation Protection 
Program (RPP) with at least two external RPP organizations in the Fuel 
Cycle industry, to identify and implement, as GNF-A deems appropriate, 
best practices and enhancements to increase the effectiveness of its RP 
program. The benchmark assessment shall be performed by an individual 
or entity

[[Page 60222]]

experienced in Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) radiation 
protection standards, and the assessment shall be made available for 
NRC review.
    7. Within one (1) year after issuance of the CO, GNF-A shall expand 
its Difference of Professional Opinion process to include all technical 
safety matters related to GNF-A licensed activities.
    8. Within one (1) year of issuance of the CO, existing GNF-A 
supervisors engaged in licensed facility (SNM-1097) activities, as of 
the date of issuance of the CO, will complete initial Front Line 
Supervisor Nuclear Safety Leadership training, which will be informed 
by INPO 04-003, Guidelines for Effective Nuclear Supervisor 
Performance. For a period of 3 years after issuance of the CO, new GNF-
A frontline supervisors engaged in licensed facility (SNM-1097) 
activities shall complete this training within 6 months of assuming 
supervisory responsibilities. GNF-A shall make the training materials 
available to the NRC for review.
    9. Within three (3) months of completion of the terms of the CO, 
GNF-A shall provide the NRC with a letter discussing its basis for 
concluding that the CO has been satisfied.
    The Regional Administrator, Region II, may relax or rescind, in 
writing, any of the above conditions upon a showing by GNF-A of good 
cause.

VI

    In accordance with 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR 2.309, any person 
adversely affected by this CO, other than GNF-A, may request a hearing 
within 30 calendar days of the date of issuance of this CO. 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 made in 
writing to the Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555, and include a statement of good cause 
for the extension.
    All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a 
request for hearing and petition for leave to intervene (petition), any 
motion or other document filed in the proceeding prior to the 
submission of a request for hearing or petition to intervene, and 
documents filed by interested governmental entities that request to 
participate 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 at 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. Detailed 
guidance on making electronic submissions may be found in the Guidance 
for Electronic Submissions to the NRC and on the NRC website at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. 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 e-mail at [email protected], 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 the NRC's public website 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 website 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[dash]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[dash]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 website at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by 
email to [email protected], 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

[[Page 60223]]

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.
    If a person (other than GNF-A) requests a hearing, that person 
shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his interest is 
adversely affected by this CO 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 hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered 
at such hearing shall be whether this CO 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 CO 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.

    Dated at Atlanta, Georgia, this 14th day of December, 2017.
    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Catherine Haney,
Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2017-27294 Filed 12-18-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P