Follow up email to Tribes interested in participating

Date

Tribe Chairperson

Address

SUBJECT: [Tribe Name] REQUEST TO RECEIVE ADVANCE NOTICE OF SHIPMENTS OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL PURSUANT TO TITLE 10 OF THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PARTS 71 and 73

Dear

Thank you for the [Tribal nation name]’s interest in participating in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Advance Notification Program.¹  This program allows Tribal nations to receive advance notification of NRC licensed shipments of irradiated reactor fuel and other nuclear wastes passing across their reservation pursuant to title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 71, (nuclear waste) and part 73, (irradiated reactor fuel).  The NRC’s regulations require licensees to provide notification of shipments of certain radioactive material to Tribal nations that have opted to participate in this program when these shipments will pass within or through their reservation boundaries.

To opt into the program, the NRC needs to receive the following three items from an official of the [Tribal nation name]:

Contacts:

The name and contact information of the [Tribal nation name]’s designated representative(s) for the notifications that would be made pursuant to 10 CFR Parts 71 and 73. You may designate one individual as the [Tribal nation name]’s designated representative to receive the advance notifications and provide contact information for this individual or choose to designate a back-up (or alternate) designee for those instances where the [Tribal nation] designated representative is unavailable. The [Tribal nation name]’s designated representative may be identified through a position or title. The position or title should be specific enough to correspond to an individual (i.e., it should not be a generic position or title that may be held by more than one person at one time). Individuals designated are deemed trustworthy and reliable and have a need to know the information. The NRC will publish this contact information in a future Federal Register notice and on the NRC website for access by licensees.

Safeguards Information Protection:

Confirmation that each designee has taken, understands and will implement measures described in the attached self-directed Safeguards Information (SGI) training on protection of safeguards information. Information on shipments is considered SGI, which is a special category of sensitive unclassified information that must be protected from unauthorized disclosure and shared only on a need-to-know basis. 

[Tribal nation name]’s Map:

Confirmation that the NRC has the correct reservation boundaries.  The attached map shows the [Tribal nation name]’s reservation boundaries and current approved transportation routes that may be used for the movement of radioactive material.   Data from the United Stated Geological Survey was used to develop this map. Please review and submit changes, if needed. The existence of an intersecting route is not a requirement for opting in to participate in the program.  Once the NRC receives the [Tribal nation]’s confirmation of accuracy, the map will be added to the NRC website, so shippers are aware of the reservation boundaries.

The NRC appreciates your cooperation in maintaining the [Tribal nation name]’s designee information for the advance notification of certain shipments of radioactive material current. Please inform us of any changes to the designation. If you have questions, please contact, [Tribal liaison, phone, email].

Sincerely,

Branch Chief

Tribal Liaison Program

Enclosures: [Tribal name]’s reservation map

Safeguards information training

Safeguards information brochure

1 This information request has been approved by OMB 3150-XXXX expiration MM/DD/YYYY. The estimated burden per response to comply with this voluntary collection is approximately 5.5 hours. Comments regarding this collection may be submitted to the FOIA, Library and Information Collections Branch, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, or by e-mail to infocollects.resource@nrc.gov, and to the Desk Officer, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, NEOB-10202 (3150-XXXX), Office of Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503. If a means used to impose an information collection does not display a currently valid OMB control number, the NRC may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, the information collection.