(a) The purpose of this part is to establish approval requirements for proposed sites for stationary power and testing reactors subject to part 50 or part 52 of this chapter.

(b) There exists a substantial base of knowledge regarding power reactor siting, design, construction and operation. This base reflects that the primary factors that determine public health and safety are the reactor design, construction and operation.

(c) Siting factors and criteria are important in assuring that radiological doses from normal operation and postulated accidents will be acceptably low, that natural phenomena and potential man-made hazards will be appropriately accounted for in the design of the plant, that site characteristics are such that adequate security measures to protect the plant can be developed, and that physical characteristics unique to the proposed site that could pose a significant impediment to the development of emergency plans are identified.

(d) This approach incorporates the appropriate standards and criteria for approval of stationary power and testing reactor sites. The Commission intends to carry out a traditional defense-in-depth approach with regard to reactor siting to ensure public safety. Siting away from densely populated centers has been and will continue to be an important factor in evaluating applications for site approval.

[61 FR 65175, Dec. 11, 1996]

The siting requirements contained in this part apply to applications for site approval for the purpose of constructing and operating stationary power and testing reactors pursuant to the provisions of part 50 or part 52 of this chapter.

[61 FR 65175, Dec. 11, 1996]

As used in this part:

Combined license means a combined construction permit and operating license with conditions for a nuclear power facility issued pursuant to subpart C of part 52 of this chapter.

Early Site Permit means a Commission approval, issued pursuant to subpart A of part 52 of this chapter, for a site or sites for one or more nuclear power facilities.

Exclusion area means that area surrounding the reactor, in which the reactor licensee has the authority to determine all activities including exclusion or removal of personnel and property from the area. This area may be traversed by a highway, railroad, or waterway, provided these are not so close to the facility as to interfere with normal operations of the facility and provided appropriate and effective arrangements are made to control traffic on the highway, railroad, or waterway, in case of emergency, to protect the public health and safety. Residence within the exclusion area shall normally be prohibited. In any event, residents shall be subject to ready removal in case of necessity. Activities unrelated to operation of the reactor may be permitted in an exclusion area under appropriate limitations, provided that no significant hazards to the public health and safety will result.

Low population zone means the area immediately surrounding the exclusion area which contains residents, the total number and density of which are such that there is a reasonable probability that appropriate protective measures could be taken in their behalf in the event of a serious accident. These guides do not specify a permissible population density or total population within this zone because the situation may vary from case to case. Whether a specific number of people can, for example, be evacuated from a specific area, or instructed to take shelter, on a timely basis will depend on many factors such as location, number and size of highways, scope and extent of advance planning, and actual distribution of residents within the area.

Population center distance means the distance from the reactor to the nearest boundary of a densely populated center containing more than about 25,000 residents.

Power reactor means a nuclear reactor of a type described in § 50.21(b) or § 50.22 of this chapter designed to produce electrical or heat energy.

Response spectrum is a plot of the maximum responses (acceleration, velocity, or displacement) of idealized single-degree-of-freedom oscillators as a function of the natural frequencies of the oscillators for a given damping value. The response spectrum is calculated for a specified vibratory motion input at the oscillators' supports.

Safe Shutdown Earthquake Ground Motion is the vibratory ground motion for which certain structures, systems, and components must be designed pursuant to appendix S to part 50 of this chapter to remain functional.

Surface deformation is distortion of geologic strata at or near the ground surface by the processes of folding or faulting as a result of various earth forces. Tectonic surface deformation is associated with earthquake processes.

Testing reactor means a testing facility as defined in § 50.2 of this chapter.

[61 FR 65175, Dec. 11, 1996]

Except where otherwise specified, all communications and reports concerning the regulations in this part and applications filed under them should be sent by mail addressed to: ATTN: Document Control Desk, Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; by hand delivery to the NRC's offices at 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland; or, where practicable, by electronic submission, for example, via Electronic Information Exchange, or CD-ROM. Electronic submissions must be made in a manner that enables the NRC to receive, read, authenticate, distribute, and archive the submission, and process and retrieve it a single page at a time. Detailed guidance on making electronic submissions can be obtained by visiting the NRC's Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html; by e-mail to [email protected]; or by writing the Office of the Chief Information Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001. The guidance discusses, among other topics, the formats the NRC can accept, the use of electronic signatures, and the treatment of nonpublic information. Copies should be sent to the appropriate Regional Office and Resident Inspector.

[73 FR 5726, Jan. 31, 2008, as amended at 74 FR 62686, Dec. 1, 2009; 80 FR 74982, Dec. 1, 2015; 84 FR 65646, Nov. 29, 2019]

(a) The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has submitted the information collection requirements contained in this part to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). The NRC may not conductor sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. OMB has approved the information collection requirements contained in this part under control number 3150-0093.

(b) The approved information collection requirements contained in this part appear in §§ 100.21, 100.23 and appendix A to this part.

[61 FR 65176, Dec. 11, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 52190, Oct. 6, 1997; 67 FR 67101, Nov. 4, 2002]