New regs for Wednesday: nuclear disasters, porbeagle sharks, ozone standards and Lithuanian meat

Wednesday’s edition of the Federal Register includes rules from the Department of Energy for nuclear liability insurance, new rules for commercial fishing of porbeagle sharks, revised standards from the Environmental Protection Agency for ozone pollution and a rule from the Department of Agriculture allowing U.S. imports of Lithuanian meat. 

Here’s what is happening:

Nuclear damage liability: The Department of Energy is a considering a rule that would require nuclear suppliers to pay into a pool of funds to cover damages resulting from a nuclear incident not already covered by the Price-Anderson Act, which forces the nuclear energy industry to maintain liability insurance.  

Suppliers would be expected to pay the same amount as what the U.S. government would be obligated to contribute to an international supplementary fund under the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, which establishes a global liability fund.

The U.S. is obligated to pay 22 percent, which could mean as little as $70 million or $150 million depending on how many countries join the Convention on Supplementary Compensation.

The new rule would require U.S. nuclear suppliers to report on their nuclear export transactions and, if called upon, contribute a risk premium payment to a retrospective risk-pooling program. Payment premiums will be based on risk assessments, which will be determined by either nuclear sector or nuclear goods and services 

The Energy Department will hold a public information session from 10 a.m. to noon on Jan. 7 in Washington, D.C. The public has 90 days to comment.

Porbeagle sharks: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is closing the commercial fishing season for porbeagle sharks, a member of the mackerel shark family, until further notice.

As of Dec. 10, fishers had overfished the 300-pound shark, which swims in cold waters in the North Atlantic, so much so that there isn’t enough of a shark populous left to fill quotas for 2015. The fishing season will remain closed until NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service issues a subsequent document. 

The closure will take effect at 11:30 p.m. Dec. 17. 

Ozone: The Environmental Protection Agency is considering revising its 8-hour standard for ozone pollution. 

The rule would drop the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone pollution and related photochemical oxidants in an 8-hour period from 75 parts per billion to a rage of 60 to 70 pars per billion. 

The public has 90 days to comment. The EPA is also planning to hold three public hearings in January, which will be announced in a subsequent filing. 

The EPA said it wants to revise its rule to increase public health protections for “at-risk” populations – children, older adults, and people with asthma or other lung diseases. Short-term exposures to ozone pollution can cause decreased lung function, increased respiratory symptoms and pulmonary inflammation. 

Lithuanian meat: The Department of Agriculture is considering adding Lithuania to the list of countries eligible to export meat and meat products to the U.S. 

The agency’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) reviewed Lithuania’s laws, regulations and inspection process and found that its meat inspection system requirements are on par with the Federal Meat Inspection Act. 

The proposed rule would make meat from cattle, sheep, swine and goats, slaughtered in Lithuania, or parts of products processed in Lithuanian establishments, eligible for export to the U.S. FSIS inspectors would re-inspect all products at U.S. ports of entry. 

The public has 60 days to comment.