| (a) The term of the specific license is for a fixed
term not to exceed ten years.
(b) Expiration of the specific license does not relieve
the licensee of the requirements of this chapter.
(c) All license provisions continue in effect beyond
the expiration date with respect to possession of radioactive material
until the agency notifies the former licensee in writing that the
provisions of the license are no longer binding. During this time,
the former licensee must:
(1) be limited to actions involving radioactive material
that are related to decommissioning; and
(2) continue to control entry to restricted areas until
the location(s) is suitable for release for unrestricted use in accordance
with the requirements of subsection (e) of this section.
(d) Within 60 days of the occurrence of any of the
following, each licensee must provide notification to the agency in
writing and either begin decommissioning its site, or any separate
buildings or outdoor areas that contain residual radioactivity in
accordance with the closure plan in §336.1111(1)(B) of this title
(relating to Special Requirements for a License Application for Source
Material Recovery and By-product Material Disposal Facilities), so
that the buildings or outdoor areas are suitable for release in accordance
with subsection (e) of this section if:
(1) the license has expired in accordance with subsection
(a) of this section; or
(2) the licensee has decided to permanently cease principal
activities, as defined in §336.1105(30) of this title (relating
to Definitions), at the entire site or in any separate building or
outdoor area; or
(3) no principal activities have been conducted for
a period of 24 months in any building or outdoor area that contains
residual radioactivity such that the building or outdoor area is unsuitable
for release in accordance with agency requirements.
(e) Outdoor areas are considered suitable for release
for unrestricted use if the following limits are not exceeded.
(1) The concentration of radium-226 or radium-228 (in
the case of thorium by-product material) in soil, averaged over any
100 square meters (m2 ), may not exceed
the background level by more than:
(A) 5 picocuries per gram (pCi/g) (0.185 becquerel
per gram (Bq/g)), averaged over the first 15 centimeters (cm) of soil
below the surface; and
(B) 15 pCi/g (0.555 Bq/g), averaged over 15 cm thick
layers of soil more than 15 cm below the surface.
(2) The contamination of vegetation may not exceed
5 pCi/g (0.185 Bq/g), based on dry weight, for radium-226 or radium-228.
(3) By-product material containing concentrations of
radionuclides other than radium in soil (e.g., natural uranium, natural
thorium, lead-210), and surface activity on remaining structures,
must not result in a total effective dose equivalent (TEDE) exceeding
the dose from cleanup of radium contaminated soil to the standard
in paragraph (1) of this subsection (radium benchmark dose), and must
be at levels which are as low as reasonably achievable. If more than
one residual radionuclide is present in the same 100 m2 area, the sum of the ratios for each radionuclide
of concentration present to the calculated radium benchmark dose equivalent
concentration limits will not exceed "1" (unity). A calculation of
the potential peak annual TEDE within 1,000 years to the average member
of the critical group that would result from applying the radium standard
(not including radon) must be submitted for approval, using the United
States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff guidance on the Radium
Benchmark Dose Approach.
(f) Coincident with the notification required by subsection
(c) of this section, the licensee shall maintain in effect all decommissioning
financial security established by the licensee in accordance with §336.1125
of this title (relating to Financial Assurance Requirements) in conjunction
with a license issuance or renewal or as required by this section.
The amount of the financial security must be increased, or may be
decreased, as appropriate, with agency approval, to cover the detailed
cost estimate for decommissioning established in accordance with subsection
(l)(5) of this section.
(g) In addition to the provisions of subsection (h)
of this section, each licensee must submit an updated closure plan
to the agency within 12 months of the notification required by subsection
(d) of this section. The updated closure plan must meet the requirements
of §336.1111(1)(B) and §336.1125 of this title. The updated
closure plan must describe the actual conditions of the facilities
and site and the proposed closure activities and procedures.
(h) The agency may grant a request to delay or postpone
initiation of the decommissioning process if the agency determines
that such relief is not detrimental to the occupational and public
health and safety and is otherwise in the public interest. The request
must be submitted no later than 30 days before notification in accordance
with subsection (d) of this section. The schedule for decommissioning
in subsection (d) of this section may not begin until the agency has
made a determination on the request.
(i) A decommissioning plan must be submitted if required
by license condition or if the procedures and activities necessary
to carry out decommissioning of the site or separate building or outdoor
area have not been previously approved by the agency and these procedures
could increase potential health and safety impacts to workers or to
the public, such as in any of the following cases:
(1) procedures would involve techniques not applied
routinely during cleanup or maintenance operations;
(2) workers would be entering areas not normally occupied
where surface contamination and radiation levels are significantly
higher than routinely encountered during operation;
(3) procedures could result in significantly greater
airborne concentrations of radioactive materials than are present
during operation; or
(4) procedures could result in significantly greater
releases of radioactive material to the environment than those associated
with operation.
(j) The agency may approve an alternate schedule for
submittal of a decommissioning plan required in accordance with subsection
(d) of this section if the agency determines that the alternative
schedule is necessary to the effective conduct of decommissioning
operations and presents no undue risk from radiation to the occupational
and public health and safety and is otherwise in the public interest.
(k) The procedures listed in subsection (i) of this
section may not be carried out prior to approval of the decommissioning
plan.
(l) The proposed decommissioning plan for the site
or separate building or outdoor area must include:
(1) a description of the conditions of the site, separate
buildings, or outdoor area sufficient to evaluate the acceptability
of the plan;
(2) a description of planned decommissioning activities;
(3) a description of methods used to ensure protection
of workers and the environment against radiation hazards during decommissioning;
(4) a description of the planned final radiation survey;
(5) an updated detailed cost estimate for decommissioning,
comparison of that estimate with present funds set aside for decommissioning,
and a plan for assuring the availability of adequate decommissioning;
and
(6) for decommissioning plans calling for completion
of decommissioning later than 24 months after plan approval, a justification
for the delay based on the criteria in subsection (p) of this section.
(m) The proposed decommissioning plan may be approved
by the agency if the information in the plan demonstrates that the
decommissioning will be completed as soon as practicable and that
the occupational health and safety of workers and the public will
be adequately protected.
(n) Except as provided subsection (p) of this section,
licensees shall complete decommissioning of the site or separate building
or outdoor area as soon as practicable but no later than 24 months
following the initiation of decommissioning.
(o) Except as provided in subsection (p) of this section,
when decommissioning involves the entire site, the licensee must request
license termination as soon as practicable but no later than 24 months
following the initiation of decommissioning.
(p) The agency may approve a request for an alternate
schedule for completion of decommissioning of the site or separate
buildings or outdoor areas and the license termination if appropriate,
if the agency determines that the alternative is warranted by the
consideration of the following:
(1) whether it is technically feasible to complete
decommissioning within the allotted 24-month period;
(2) whether sufficient waste disposal capacity is available
to allow completion of decommissioning within the allotted 24-month
period; and
(3) other site-specific factors that the agency may
consider appropriate on a case-by-case basis, such as the regulatory
requirements of other government agencies, lawsuits, groundwater treatment
activities, monitored natural groundwater restoration, actions that
could result in more environmental harm than deferred cleanup, and
other factors beyond the control of the licensee.
(q) As the final step in decommissioning, the licensee
must:
(1) certify the disposition of all radioactive material,
including accumulated by-product material;
(2) conduct a radiation survey of the premises where
the licensed activities were carried out and submit a report of the
results of this survey unless the licensee demonstrates that the premises
are suitable for release in accordance with subsection (e) of this
section. The licensee shall, as appropriate:
(A) report the following levels:
(i) gamma radiation in units of microroentgen per hour
(µR/hr) (millisieverts per hour (mSv/hr)) at 1 meter (m) from
surfaces;
(ii) radioactivity, including alpha and beta, in units
of disintegrations per minute (dpm) or microcuries (µCi) (megabecquerels
(MBq)) per 100 cm2 for surfaces;
(iii) µCi (MBq) per milliliter for water; and
(iv) picocuries (pCi) (becquerels (Bq)) per gram (g)
for solids such as soils or concrete; and
(B) specify the manufacturer's name, and model and
serial number of survey instrument(s) used and certify that each instrument
is properly calibrated and tested.
(r) The executive director will provide written notification
to specific licensees, including former licensees with license provisions
continued in effect beyond the expiration date in accordance with
subsection (d) of this section, that the provisions of the license
are no longer binding. The executive director will provide such notification
when the executive director determines that:
(1) radioactive material has been properly disposed;
(2) reasonable effort has been made to eliminate residual
radioactive contamination, if present;
(3) a radiation survey has been performed that demonstrates
that the premises are suitable for release in accordance with agency
requirements;
(4) other information submitted by the licensee is
sufficient to demonstrate that the premises are suitable for release
in accordance with the requirements of subsection (e) of this section;
(5) all records required by §336.343 of this title
(relating to Records of Surveys) have been submitted to the agency;
(6) the licensee has paid any outstanding fees required
by this chapter and has resolved any outstanding notice(s) of violation
issued to the licensee;
(7) the licensee has met the applicable technical and
other requirements for closure and reclamation of a by-product material
disposal site; and
(8) the NRC has made a determination that all applicable
standards and requirements have been met.
(s) Licenses for source material recovery or by-product
material disposal are exempt from subsections (d)(3), (g), and (h)
of this section with respect to reclamation of by-product material
impoundments or disposal areas. Timely reclamation plans for by-product
material disposal areas must be submitted and approved in accordance
with §336.1129(p) - (aa) of this title (relating to Technical
Requirements).
(t) A licensee may request that a subsite or a portion
of a licensed site be released for unrestricted use before full license
termination as long as release of the area of concern will not adversely
impact the remaining unaffected areas and will not be recontaminated
by ongoing authorized activities. When the licensee is confident that
the area of concern will be acceptable to the agency for release for
unrestricted use, a written request for release for unrestricted use
and agency confirmation of closeout work performed shall be submitted
to the agency. The request should include a comprehensive report,
accompanied by survey and sample results that show contamination is
less than the limits specified in subsection (e) of this section and
an explanation of how ongoing authorized activities will not adversely
affect the area proposed to be released. Upon confirmation by the
agency that the area of concern is releasable for unrestricted use,
the licensee may apply for a license amendment, if required.
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