Duke Cogema Stone and Webster's Proposed Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility; Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Impact Statement, 6047-6049 [05-2137]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 23 / Friday, February 4, 2005 / Notices
In the event that the Licensee requests
a hearing as provided above, the issues
to be considered at such hearing shall
be:
(a) Whether the Licensee was in
violation of the Commission’s
requirements as set forth in the Notice
referred to in Section II above, and
(b) Whether, on the basis of such
violation, this Order should be
sustained.
Dated this 27th day of January 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Frank J. Congel,
Director, Office of Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 05–2136 Filed 2–3–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030–20885]
Notice of Availability of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment for Genzyme Biosurgery’s
Facility in Ridgefield, NJ
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
AGENCY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kathy Dolce Modes, Materials Security
& Industrial Branch, Division of Nuclear
Materials Safety, Region I, 475
Allendale Road, King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania 19406, telephone (610)
337–5251, fax (610) 337–5269; or by email: KAD@NRC.GOV.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) is issuing a license amendment to
Genzyme Biosurgery for Materials
License No. 29–23308–01, to authorize
release of its facility in Ridgefield, New
Jersey for unrestricted use. NRC has
prepared an Environmental Assessment
(EA) in support of this action in
accordance with the requirements of 10
CFR part 51. Based on the EA, the NRC
has concluded that a Finding of No
Significant Impact (FONSI) is
appropriate. The amendment will be
issued following the publication of this
notice.
II. EA Summary
The purpose of the action is to
authorize the release of the licensee’s
Ridgefield, New Jersey facility for
unrestricted use. Genzyme Biosurgery
was authorized by NRC from December
23, 1983, to use radioactive materials for
research and development purposes at
VerDate jul<14>2003
18:52 Feb 03, 2005
Jkt 205001
the site. On June 4, 2004, Genzyme
Biosurgery requested that NRC release
the facility for unrestricted use.
Genzyme Biosurgery has conducted
surveys of the facility and provided
information to the NRC to demonstrate
that the site meets the license
termination criteria in subpart E of 10
CFR part 20 for unrestricted use.
The NRC staff has prepared an EA in
support of the license amendment. The
facility was remediated and surveyed
prior to the licensee requesting the
license amendment. The NRC staff has
reviewed the information and final
status survey submitted by Genzyme
Biosurgery. Based on its review, the staff
has determined that there are no
additional remediation activities
necessary to complete the proposed
action. Therefore, the staff considered
the impact of the residual radioactivity
at the facility and concluded that since
the residual radioactivity meets the
requirements in subpart E of 10 CFR
part 20, a Finding of No Significant
Impact is appropriate.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The staff has prepared the EA
(summarized above) in support of the
license amendment to terminate the
license and release the facility for
unrestricted use. The NRC staff has
evaluated Genzyme Biosurgery’s request
and the results of the surveys and has
concluded that the completed action
complies with the criteria in subpart E
of 10 CFR part 20. The staff has found
that the environmental impacts from the
action are bounded by the impacts
evaluated by NUREG–1496, Volumes 1–
3, ‘‘Generic Environmental Impact
Statement in Support of Rulemaking on
Radiological Criteria for License
Termination of NRC-Licensed
Facilities’’ (ML042310492,
ML042320379, and ML042330385). On
the basis of the EA, the NRC has
concluded that the environmental
impacts from the action are expected to
be insignificant and has determined not
to prepare an environmental impact
statement for the action.
IV. Further Information
Documents related to this action,
including the application for the license
amendment and supporting
documentation, are available
electronically at the NRC’s Electronic
Reading Room at https://www.nrc.gov/
reading-rm/adams.html. From this site,
you can access the NRC’s Agencywide
Document Access and Management
System (ADAMS), which provides text
and image files of NRC’s public
documents. The ADAMS accession
numbers for the documents related to
PO 00000
Frm 00085
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
6047
this notice are: Environmental
Assessment (ADAMS Accession No.
ML050270048), ‘‘Report of the
Decommissioning of the Genzyme
Biosurgery Research and Development
Laboratories for the Purpose of
Surrendering the Company’s
Radioactive Materials License’’ included
with the licensee’s letter dated June 4,
2004 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML041800154) and additional
information dated October 15, 2004
(ADAMS Accession No. ML042990427).
Please note that on October 25, 2004,
the NRC terminated public access to
ADAMS and initiated an additional
security review of publicly available
documents to ensure that potentially
sensitive information is removed from
the ADAMS database accessible through
the NRC’s Web site. Interested members
of the public may obtain copies of the
referenced documents for review and/or
copying by contacting the Public
Document Room pending resumption of
public access to ADAMS. The NRC
Public Documents Room is located at
NRC Headquarters in Rockville, MD,
and can be contacted at (800) 397–4209,
(301) 415–4737 or by e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania this
27th day of January, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I.
[FR Doc. 05–2138 Filed 2–3–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 70–3098]
Duke Cogema Stone and Webster’s
Proposed Mixed Oxide Fuel
Fabrication Facility; Notice of
Availability of Final Environmental
Impact Statement
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability of final
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Matthew Blevins, Senior Project
Manager, Environmental and
Performance Assessment Directorate,
Division of Waste Management and
Environmental Protection, Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555. Telephone:
(301) 415–7684; e-mail: mxb6@nrc.gov.
SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
E:\FR\FM\04FEN1.SGM
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6048
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 23 / Friday, February 4, 2005 / Notices
Commission (NRC) is issuing a Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS)
on the proposed construction and
operation of a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel
fabrication facility at the Savannah
River Site in South Carolina. The FEIS
is being issued as part of the NRC’s
decision-making process on whether to
authorize Duke Cogema Stone &
Webster (DCS), a contractor of the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE), to
construct and operate the proposed
MOX fuel fabrication facility (MOX
facility).
The proposed MOX facility would
convert depleted uranium dioxide and
weapons-grade plutonium dioxide into
MOX fuel. The FEIS discusses the
purpose and need for the proposed
MOX facility, and reasonable
alternatives to the proposed action,
including the no-action alternative. The
FEIS also discusses the environment
potentially affected by the proposal,
presents and compares the potential
environmental impacts resulting from
the proposed action and its alternatives,
and identifies mitigation measures that
could eliminate or lessen the potential
environmental impacts.
The FEIS is being issued as part of the
NRC’s decision-making process on
whether to authorize DCS to begin
construction of the proposed MOX
facility. The FEIS will also be relevant
to any later decision on whether to
authorize DCS to operate the MOX
facility. Based on the evaluation in the
FEIS, the NRC environmental review
staff have concluded that the proposed
action will generally have small effects
on the public and existing environment.
This FEIS reflects the final analysis of
environmental impacts of DCS’s
proposal and its alternatives including
the consideration of public comments
received by the NRC. In addition, the
FEIS provides summaries of the
substantive public comments on the
draft EIS, and responses, as appropriate.
Several pages in the FEIS have been
removed from public access based on
the additional security reviews that the
NRC initiated on October 25, 2004. The
material on these pages is being
withheld pursuant to 10 CFR 2.390(a).1
ADDRESSES: The NRC maintains an
Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS), which
provides text and image files of NRC’s
public documents. The FEIS and its
appendices may be accessed through the
NRC’s Public Electronic Reading Room
on the Internet at https://www.nrc.gov/
1 Please note that the MOX proceeding is
governed by the old 10 CFR Part 2 provisions.
Under the old regulation, the material being
withheld is in accordance with 10 CFR 2.790(a).
VerDate jul<14>2003
18:52 Feb 03, 2005
Jkt 205001
reading-rm/adams.html. If you do not
have access to ADAMS or if there are
problems in accessing the documents
located in ADAMS, contact the NRC
Public Document Room (PDR) Reference
staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301–415–4737
or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. Please note
that on October 25, 2004, the NRC
suspended public access to ADAMS,
and initiated an additional security
review of publicly available documents
to ensure that potentially sensitive
information is removed from the
ADAMS database accessible through the
NRC’s Web site. Pending resumption of
public access to ADAMS, interested
members of the public may obtain
copies of the referenced documents that
have undergone security screening by
contacting the Public Document Room
at the above phone number.
The FEIS is also available for
inspection at the Commission’s Public
Document Room, U.S. NRC’s
Headquarters Building, 11555 Rockville
Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland.
Upon written request and to the extent
supplies are available, a single copy of
the FEIS can be obtained for a fee by
writing to the Office of the Chief
Information Officer, Reproduction and
Distribution Services Section, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555–0001; by
electronic mail at
DISTRIBUTION@nrc.gov; or by fax at
(301) 415–2289.
A selected group of documents
associated with the MOX facility may
also be obtained from the Internet on
NRC’s MOX facility Web page: https://
www.nrc.gov/materials/fuel-cycle-fac/
mox/licensing.html (case sensitive).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In January
2000, the DOE issued a Record of
Decision pertaining to its surplus
plutonium disposition program and the
DOE’s 1999 EIS related to this program
(65 FR 1608). The fundamental purpose
of the DOE program is to ensure that
plutonium produced for nuclear
weapons and declared excess to
national security needs is converted to
forms that are inaccessible and
unattractive for use in nuclear weapons.
The FEIS for the proposed MOX
facility was prepared by the staff of the
NRC and its contractor, Argonnne
National Laboratory, in compliance with
the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), and the NRC’s regulations for
implementing NEPA (10 CFR part 51).
The proposed action involves a decision
by NRC of whether to authorize DCS to
construct and later operate the proposed
MOX facility at the Savannah River Site
to convert surplus weapons plutonium
into MOX fuel.
PO 00000
Frm 00086
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
If approved by the NRC, the proposed
MOX facility would be built in the FArea of the DOE’s Savannah River Site
(SRS). Feedstock (surplus plutonium
dioxide and depleted uranium dioxide)
would have to be transported to SRS to
make the MOX fuel. To support
operation of the proposed MOX facility,
two other new facilities would have to
be built by the DOE at the SRS.
Infrastructure upgrades, such as
construction waste transfer pipelines,
electric utility line realignment, and
addition of access roads, would also be
required. Any MOX fuel made at the
proposed MOX facility would be
transported to mission reactors, where it
would be irradiated.
The NRC published a Notice of Intent
to prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement for the proposed MOX
facility, and to conduct a scoping
process, in the Federal Register on
March 7, 2001 (66 FR 13794). NRC staff
subsequently held scoping meetings,
and issued a Scoping Summary Report
in August 2001. In April 2002, DOE
issued an amended Record of Decision
changing its planned approach for
surplus weapons plutonium disposition
(67 FR 19432). On August 22, 2002, the
NRC announced public meetings to
discuss changes in DCS Environmental
Report (ER) that resulted from changes
in DOE’s plans (67 FR 54501). The
meetings were held on September 17,
2002, in Savannah, Georgia, September
18, 2002, in Augusta, Georgia, and
September 19, 2002, in Charlotte, North
Carolina. On June 20, 2003, DCS
submitted Revision 3 of its ER, and on
August 13, 2003, DCS submitted
Revision 4 of its ER, and on June 10,
2004, DCS submitted Revision 5 of its
ER. These revisions are summarized in
Appendix J of the FEIS.
The FEIS describes the proposed
action, and alternatives to the proposed
action, including the no-action
alternative. The FEIS discussion of the
no-action alternative evaluates the
environmental impacts of the continued
storage of surplus plutonium in various
DOE locations nationwide, in the event
NRC decides not to approve the
proposed MOX facility. Alternatives
considered but not analyzed in detail
include alternate locations for the
proposed MOX facility in the F-Area,
alternative technology and design
options, immobilization of surplus
plutonium instead of producing MOX
fuel, deliberately making offspecification MOX fuel, and the Parallex
Project, the latter of which involves
irradiating the MOX fuel in Canadian
Deuterium-Natural Uranium Reactors.
Additionally, the FEIS compares the
impacts of using high-efficiency
E:\FR\FM\04FEN1.SGM
04FEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 23 / Friday, February 4, 2005 / Notices
particulate air filters to the impacts of
using sand filters for removal of
particulate air emissions.
After weighing the impacts, costs, and
benefits of the proposed action and
comparing alternatives (see Chapter 4 of
the FEIS), the NRC staff, in accordance
with 10 CFR 51.91(d), sets forth its final
NEPA recommendation regarding the
proposed action. The NRC staff
recommends that, unless safety issues
mandate otherwise, the action called for
is the issuance of the proposed license
to DCS with conditions to protect
environmental values.
The NRC staff in the Division of Fuel
Cycle Safety and Safeguards are
currently completing the safety review
of DCS’ construction authorization
request. The final decision is currently
scheduled for the Spring of 2005.
Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 21st day
of December, 2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Scott C. Flanders,
Deputy Director, Environmental and
Performance Assessment Directorate,
Division of Waste Management and
Environmental Protection, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 05–2137 Filed 2–3–05; 8:45 am]
Advisory Committee on Nuclear
Waste; Meeting on Planning and
Procedures; Notice of Meeting
The Advisory Committee on Nuclear
Waste (ACNW) will hold a Planning and
Procedures meeting on February 23,
2005, Room T–2B3, 11545 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, Maryland.
The entire meeting will be open to
public attendance, with the exception of
a portion that may be closed pursuant
to 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(2) and (6) to discuss
organizational and personnel matters
that relate solely to internal personnel
rules and practices of ACNW, and
information the release of which would
constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy.
The agenda for the subject meeting
shall be as follows:
Wednesday, February 23, 2005—8:30
a.m.–10 a.m.
The Committee will discuss proposed
ACNW activities and related matters.
The purpose of this meeting is to gather
information, analyze relevant issues and
facts, and formulate proposed positions
and actions, as appropriate, for
deliberation by the full Committee.
Members of the public desiring to
provide oral statements and/or written
18:52 Feb 03, 2005
Agreements with State and Local
Governments,’’ and Title 2 Code of
Federal Regulations Part 215 (OMB
Circular A–110, ‘‘Uniform
Administrative Requirements for Grants
and Agreements with Institutions of
Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other
Non-Profit Organizations.’’ These eight
forms will continue to be used while
interagency teams working under two
streamlining initiatives (the Grants.gov
E-Gov effort and the P.L.106–107
implementation work groups) complete
the final consolidated data standards.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before March 7, 2005. Late comments
will be considered to the extent
practicable.
Dated: January 27, 2005.
John H. Flack,
Acting Branch Chief, ACRS/ACNW.
[FR Doc. 05–2135 Filed 2–3–05; 8:45 am]
Due to potential delays in
OMB’s receipt and processing of mail
sent through the U.S. Postal Service, we
encourage respondents to submit
comments electronically to ensure
timely receipt. We cannot guarantee that
comments mailed will be received
before the comment closing date.
Electronic mail comments may be
submitted to: ahunt@omb.eop.gov.
Please include ‘‘Grant Forms’’ in the
subject line and place the full body of
your comments in the text of the
electronic message (and as an
attachment if you wish). Please include
your name, title, organization, postal
address, telephone number, and E-mail
address in the text of the message.
Comments may also be submitted via
Facsimile to 202–395–7285. Comments
may be mailed to Alexander Hunt,
Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget, Room 10236, New Executive
Office Building, 725 17th Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20503.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Elizabeth Phillips, Office of Federal
Financial Management, Office of
Management and Budget, (202) 395–
3993. The standard forms can be
downloaded from the OMB Grants
Management home page (https://
www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants) by
selecting the ‘‘Forms’’ option.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND
BUDGET
Grants Related Information Collections
Under OMB Review
Office of Management and
Budget.
ACTION: Notice of submission for OMB
review, comment request.
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
VerDate jul<14>2003
comments should notify the Designated
Federal Official, Mr. Michael P. Lee
(Telephone: (301) 415–6887) between
7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. (e.t.) five days
prior to the meeting, if possible, so that
appropriate arrangements can be made.
Electronic recordings will be permitted
only during those portions of the
meeting that are open to the public.
Further information regarding this
meeting can be obtained by contacting
the Designated Federal Official between
7:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. (e.t.). Persons
planning to attend this meeting are
urged to contact the above named
individual at least two working days
prior to the meeting to be advised of any
potential changes in the agenda.
AGENCY:
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
Jkt 205001
6049
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980, as
amended (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this
notice announces that eight information
collection renewal requests were
submitted to the Office of Management
and Budget’s (OMB) Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs
(OIRA) for processing under 5 CFR
1320.10. The first notice of these
information collection renewals was
published in the Federal Register, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act, on October 29, 2004 [69 FR 63186],
and invited the general public and
Federal agencies to comment on the
renewal without change of eight (8)
standard forms: the SF–269, Financial
Status Report (long form); SF–269A,
Financial Status Report (short form);
SF–272, Federal Cash Transactions
Report; SF–272A, Federal Cash
Transactions Report (continuation); SF–
424A, Budget Information—
Nonconstruction Programs; SF–424B,
Assurances—Non-construction
Programs; SF–424C, Budget
Information—Construction Programs;
and SF–424D, Assurances—
Construction Programs. These forms are
currently required by OMB Circular A–
102, ‘‘Grants and Cooperative
PO 00000
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ADDRESSES:
A. Background
OMB Control No.: 0348–0039.
Title: Financial Status Report (Long
Form).
Form No.: SF–269.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Respondents: States, Local
Governments, non-profit organizations.
Number of Responses: 100,000.
Estimated Time Per Response: 60
minutes.
E:\FR\FM\04FEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 23 (Friday, February 4, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6047-6049]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2137]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 70-3098]
Duke Cogema Stone and Webster's Proposed Mixed Oxide Fuel
Fabrication Facility; Notice of Availability of Final Environmental
Impact Statement
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability of final environmental impact statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Blevins, Senior Project
Manager, Environmental and Performance Assessment Directorate, Division
of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555. Telephone: (301) 415-7684; e-mail: mxb6@nrc.gov.
SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
[[Page 6048]]
Commission (NRC) is issuing a Final Environmental Impact Statement
(FEIS) on the proposed construction and operation of a mixed oxide
(MOX) fuel fabrication facility at the Savannah River Site in South
Carolina. The FEIS is being issued as part of the NRC's decision-making
process on whether to authorize Duke Cogema Stone & Webster (DCS), a
contractor of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), to construct and
operate the proposed MOX fuel fabrication facility (MOX facility).
The proposed MOX facility would convert depleted uranium dioxide
and weapons-grade plutonium dioxide into MOX fuel. The FEIS discusses
the purpose and need for the proposed MOX facility, and reasonable
alternatives to the proposed action, including the no-action
alternative. The FEIS also discusses the environment potentially
affected by the proposal, presents and compares the potential
environmental impacts resulting from the proposed action and its
alternatives, and identifies mitigation measures that could eliminate
or lessen the potential environmental impacts.
The FEIS is being issued as part of the NRC's decision-making
process on whether to authorize DCS to begin construction of the
proposed MOX facility. The FEIS will also be relevant to any later
decision on whether to authorize DCS to operate the MOX facility. Based
on the evaluation in the FEIS, the NRC environmental review staff have
concluded that the proposed action will generally have small effects on
the public and existing environment. This FEIS reflects the final
analysis of environmental impacts of DCS's proposal and its
alternatives including the consideration of public comments received by
the NRC. In addition, the FEIS provides summaries of the substantive
public comments on the draft EIS, and responses, as appropriate.
Several pages in the FEIS have been removed from public access
based on the additional security reviews that the NRC initiated on
October 25, 2004. The material on these pages is being withheld
pursuant to 10 CFR 2.390(a).\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Please note that the MOX proceeding is governed by the old
10 CFR Part 2 provisions. Under the old regulation, the material
being withheld is in accordance with 10 CFR 2.790(a).
ADDRESSES: The NRC maintains an Agencywide Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and image files of NRC's
public documents. The FEIS and its appendices may be accessed through
the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at https://
www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. If you do not have access to ADAMS
or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS,
contact the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-
397-4209, 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. Please note that on
October 25, 2004, the NRC suspended public access to ADAMS, and
initiated an additional security review of publicly available documents
to ensure that potentially sensitive information is removed from the
ADAMS database accessible through the NRC's Web site. Pending
resumption of public access to ADAMS, interested members of the public
may obtain copies of the referenced documents that have undergone
security screening by contacting the Public Document Room at the above
phone number.
The FEIS is also available for inspection at the Commission's
Public Document Room, U.S. NRC's Headquarters Building, 11555 Rockville
Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Upon written request and to
the extent supplies are available, a single copy of the FEIS can be
obtained for a fee by writing to the Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Reproduction and Distribution Services Section, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; by electronic mail at
DISTRIBUTION@nrc.gov; or by fax at (301) 415-2289.
A selected group of documents associated with the MOX facility may
also be obtained from the Internet on NRC's MOX facility Web page:
https://www.nrc.gov/materials/fuel-cycle-fac/mox/licensing.html (case
sensitive).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In January 2000, the DOE issued a Record of
Decision pertaining to its surplus plutonium disposition program and
the DOE's 1999 EIS related to this program (65 FR 1608). The
fundamental purpose of the DOE program is to ensure that plutonium
produced for nuclear weapons and declared excess to national security
needs is converted to forms that are inaccessible and unattractive for
use in nuclear weapons.
The FEIS for the proposed MOX facility was prepared by the staff of
the NRC and its contractor, Argonnne National Laboratory, in compliance
with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the NRC's
regulations for implementing NEPA (10 CFR part 51). The proposed action
involves a decision by NRC of whether to authorize DCS to construct and
later operate the proposed MOX facility at the Savannah River Site to
convert surplus weapons plutonium into MOX fuel.
If approved by the NRC, the proposed MOX facility would be built in
the F-Area of the DOE's Savannah River Site (SRS). Feedstock (surplus
plutonium dioxide and depleted uranium dioxide) would have to be
transported to SRS to make the MOX fuel. To support operation of the
proposed MOX facility, two other new facilities would have to be built
by the DOE at the SRS. Infrastructure upgrades, such as construction
waste transfer pipelines, electric utility line realignment, and
addition of access roads, would also be required. Any MOX fuel made at
the proposed MOX facility would be transported to mission reactors,
where it would be irradiated.
The NRC published a Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental
Impact Statement for the proposed MOX facility, and to conduct a
scoping process, in the Federal Register on March 7, 2001 (66 FR
13794). NRC staff subsequently held scoping meetings, and issued a
Scoping Summary Report in August 2001. In April 2002, DOE issued an
amended Record of Decision changing its planned approach for surplus
weapons plutonium disposition (67 FR 19432). On August 22, 2002, the
NRC announced public meetings to discuss changes in DCS Environmental
Report (ER) that resulted from changes in DOE's plans (67 FR 54501).
The meetings were held on September 17, 2002, in Savannah, Georgia,
September 18, 2002, in Augusta, Georgia, and September 19, 2002, in
Charlotte, North Carolina. On June 20, 2003, DCS submitted Revision 3
of its ER, and on August 13, 2003, DCS submitted Revision 4 of its ER,
and on June 10, 2004, DCS submitted Revision 5 of its ER. These
revisions are summarized in Appendix J of the FEIS.
The FEIS describes the proposed action, and alternatives to the
proposed action, including the no-action alternative. The FEIS
discussion of the no-action alternative evaluates the environmental
impacts of the continued storage of surplus plutonium in various DOE
locations nationwide, in the event NRC decides not to approve the
proposed MOX facility. Alternatives considered but not analyzed in
detail include alternate locations for the proposed MOX facility in the
F-Area, alternative technology and design options, immobilization of
surplus plutonium instead of producing MOX fuel, deliberately making
off-specification MOX fuel, and the Parallex Project, the latter of
which involves irradiating the MOX fuel in Canadian Deuterium-Natural
Uranium Reactors. Additionally, the FEIS compares the impacts of using
high-efficiency
[[Page 6049]]
particulate air filters to the impacts of using sand filters for
removal of particulate air emissions.
After weighing the impacts, costs, and benefits of the proposed
action and comparing alternatives (see Chapter 4 of the FEIS), the NRC
staff, in accordance with 10 CFR 51.91(d), sets forth its final NEPA
recommendation regarding the proposed action. The NRC staff recommends
that, unless safety issues mandate otherwise, the action called for is
the issuance of the proposed license to DCS with conditions to protect
environmental values.
The NRC staff in the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards
are currently completing the safety review of DCS' construction
authorization request. The final decision is currently scheduled for
the Spring of 2005.
Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 21st day of December, 2004.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Scott C. Flanders,
Deputy Director, Environmental and Performance Assessment Directorate,
Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 05-2137 Filed 2-3-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
