Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Byproduct Materials License No. 37-07438-15, for the Unrestricted Release of the Philadelphia Health & Education Corporation's Facility in Doylestown, PA, 71591-71593 [E6-20955]
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Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 237 / Monday, December 11, 2006 / Notices
or critical habitat. Therefore, no further
consultation is required under Section 7
of the Endangered Species Act. The
NRC staff has also determined that the
proposed action is not the type of
activity that has the potential to cause
effects on historic properties. Therefore,
no further consultation is required
under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act.
mstockstill on PROD1PC61 with NOTICES
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC staff has prepared this EA in
support of the proposed action. On the
basis of this EA, the NRC finds that
there are no significant environmental
impacts from the proposed action, and
that preparation of an environmental
impact statement is not warranted.
Accordingly, the NRC has determined
that a Finding of No Significant Impact
is appropriate.
IV. Further Information
Documents related to this action,
including the application for 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 documents related to
this action are listed below, along with
their ADAMS accession numbers.
NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated NMSS
Decommissioning Guidance;’’
Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations,
Part 20, Subpart E, ‘‘Radiological
Criteria for License Termination;’’
Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations,
Part 51, ‘‘Environmental Protection
Regulations for Domestic Licensing and
Related Regulatory Functions;’’
NUREG–1496, ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities;’’
Licensee letter dated June 21, 2005
and attachments—first request to
remove ARL facility from license
(ML051920272); and
Licensee letter dated August 28, 2006
and attachments—final request to
remove ARL facility from license
(ML062550071).
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.
These documents may also be viewed
electronically on the public computers
located at the NRC’s PDR, O 1 F21, One
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:15 Dec 08, 2006
Jkt 211001
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR
reproduction contractor will copy
documents for a fee.
Dated at U.S. NRC Region I Office located
in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania this 4th day
of December 2006.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Marie Miller,
Chief, Materials Security and Industrial
Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety,
Region I.
[FR Doc. E6–20957 Filed 12–8–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030–12998]
Notice of Availability of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 37–07438–15, for the
Unrestricted Release of the
Philadelphia Health & Education
Corporation’s Facility in Doylestown,
PA
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment.
AGENCY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dennis Lawyer, Health Physicist,
Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region 1,
475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania; telephone (610) 337–
5366; fax number (610) 337–5393; or by
e-mail: drl1@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is considering the
issuance of a license amendment to
Byproduct Materials License No. 37–
07438–15. This license is held by
Philadelphia Health & Education
Corporation, d/b/a/ Drexel University
College of Medicine (the Licensee), for
the area leased to the Licensee within
the Delaware Valley College of
Agriculture and Science’s Mandrell
Science Building (the Facility), located
at 700 E. Butler Avenue in Doylestown,
Pennsylvania. Issuance of the
amendment would authorize release of
the Facility for unrestricted use. The
Licensee requested this action in a letter
dated August 28, 2006. The NRC has
prepared an Environmental Assessment
(EA) in support of this proposed action
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Fmt 4703
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71591
in accordance with the requirements of
Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR), Part 51 (10 CFR Part 51). Based
on the EA, the NRC has concluded that
a Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI) is appropriate with respect to
the proposed action. The amendment
will be issued to the Licensee following
the publication of this FONSI and EA in
the Federal Register.
II. Environmental Assessment
Identification of Proposed Action
The proposed action would approve
the Licensee’s August 28, 2006, license
amendment request, resulting in release
of the Facility for unrestricted use.
License No. 37–07438–15 was issued on
July 17, 1977, pursuant to 10 CFR Part
30 and has been amended periodically
since that time. This license authorized
the Licensee to use unsealed byproduct
material for purposes of conducting
research and development activities on
laboratory bench tops and in hoods.
The Facility is a 15,000 square foot
leased area, within the 66,300 square
foot Mandrell Science Building, located
on the 80 acre Delaware Valley College
of Agriculture and Science Campus. The
Facility consists of office space and
laboratories. Within the Facility, use of
licensed materials was confined to
laboratories totaling 2,680 square feet.
On July 26, 2006, the Licensee ceased
licensed activities and initiated a survey
and decontamination of the Facility.
Based on the Licensee’s historical
knowledge of the site and the conditions
of the Facility, the Licensee determined
that only routine decontamination
activities, in accordance with their NRCapproved, operating radiation safety
procedures, were required. The Licensee
was not required to submit a
decommissioning plan to the NRC
because worker cleanup activities and
procedures are consistent with those
approved for routine operations. The
Licensee conducted surveys of the
Facility and provided information to the
NRC to demonstrate that it meets the
criteria in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20
for unrestricted release.
Need for the Proposed Action
The Licensee has ceased conducting
licensed activities at the Facility, and
seeks release of the Facility for
unrestricted use.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The historical review of licensed
activities conducted at the Facility
shows that such activities involved use
of hydrogen-3, which has a half-life
greater than 120 days. Prior to
E:\FR\FM\11DEN1.SGM
11DEN1
mstockstill on PROD1PC61 with NOTICES
71592
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 237 / Monday, December 11, 2006 / Notices
performing the final status survey, the
Licensee conducted decontamination
activities, as necessary, in the areas of
the Facility affected by these
radionuclides.
The Licensee conducted a final status
survey on August 15, 2006. This survey
covered areas of material use within the
Facility. The final status survey report
was attached to the Licensee’s
amendment request dated August 28,
2006. A previous survey was performed
on July 30, 2004, after the use of
hydrogen-3 had been completed at the
Facility. The Licensee elected to
demonstrate compliance with the
radiological criteria for unrestricted
release as specified in 10 CFR 20.1402
by using the screening approach
described in NUREG–1757,
‘‘Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning
Guidance,’’ Volume 2. The Licensee
used the radionuclide-specific derived
concentration guideline levels (DCGLs),
developed there by the NRC, which
comply with the dose criterion in 10
CFR 20.1402. These DCGLs define the
maximum amount of residual
radioactivity on building surfaces,
equipment, and materials, and in soils,
that will satisfy the NRC requirements
in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20 for
unrestricted release. The Licensee’s
final status survey results were below
these DCGLs and are in compliance
with the As Low As Reasonably
Achievable (ALARA) requirement of 10
CFR 20.1402. The NRC thus finds that
the Licensee’s final status survey results
are acceptable. Based on its review, the
staff has determined that the affected
environment and any environmental
impacts associated with the proposed
action are bounded by the impacts
evaluated by the ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities’’ (NUREG–
1496) Volumes 1–3 (ML042310492,
ML042320379, and ML042330385). The
staff finds there were no significant
environmental impacts from the use of
radioactive material at the Facility. The
NRC staff reviewed the docket file
records and the final status survey
report to identify any non-radiological
hazards that may have impacted the
environment surrounding the Facility.
No such hazards or impacts to the
environment were identified. The NRC
has identified no other radiological or
non-radiological activities in the area
that could result in cumulative
environmental impacts.
The NRC staff finds that the proposed
release of the Facility for unrestricted
use and the termination of the NRC
materials license is in compliance with
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:15 Dec 08, 2006
Jkt 211001
10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its review,
the staff considered the impact of the
residual radioactivity at the Facility and
concluded that the proposed action will
not have a significant effect on the
quality of the human environment.
Environmental Impacts of the
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Due to the largely administrative
nature of the proposed action, its
environmental impacts are small.
Therefore, the only alternative the staff
considered is the no-action alternative,
under which the staff would leave
things as they are by simply denying the
amendment request. This no-action
alternative is not feasible because it
conflicts with 10 CFR 30.36(d),
requiring that decommissioning of
byproduct material facilities be
completed and approved by the NRC
after licensed activities cease. The
NRC’s analysis of the Licensee’s final
status survey data confirmed that the
Facility meets the requirements of 10
CFR 20.1402 for unrestricted release.
Additionally, denying the amendment
request would result in no change in
current environmental impacts. The
environmental impacts of the proposed
action and the no-action alternative are
therefore similar, and the no-action
alternative is accordingly not further
considered.
Conclusion
The NRC staff has concluded that the
proposed action is consistent with the
NRC’s unrestricted release criteria
specified in 10 CFR 20.1402. Because
the proposed action will not
significantly impact the quality of the
human environment, the NRC staff
concludes that the proposed action is
the preferred alternative.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
NRC provided a draft of this
Environmental Assessment to the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s
Department of Environmental
Protection, Bureau of Radiation
Protection, for review on November 13,
2006. On November 14, 2006, the
Commonwealth responded by e-mail.
The Commonwealth agreed with the
conclusions of the EA and otherwise
had no comments.
The NRC staff has determined that the
proposed action is of a procedural
nature, and will not affect listed species
or critical habitat. Therefore, no further
consultation is required under Section 7
of the Endangered Species Act. The
NRC staff has also determined that the
proposed action is not the type of
activity that has the potential to cause
effects on historic properties. Therefore,
PO 00000
Frm 00090
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
no further consultation is required
under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC staff has prepared this EA in
support of the proposed action. On the
basis of this EA, the NRC finds that
there are no significant environmental
impacts from the proposed action, and
that preparation of an environmental
impact statement is not warranted.
Accordingly, the NRC has determined
that a Finding of No Significant Impact
is appropriate.
IV. Further Information
Documents related to this action,
including the application for 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 documents related to
this action are listed below, along with
their ADAMS accession numbers.
1. NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated
NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;’’
2. Title 10 Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
‘‘Radiological Criteria for License
Termination;’’
3. Title 10, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 51, ‘‘Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic
Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;’’
4. NUREG–1496, ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities;’’
5. Philadelphia Health & Education
Corp. d/b/a/ Drexel University College
of Medicine, Amendment Request Letter
dated August 28, 2006. (ML062550419)
6. Philadelphia Health & Education
Corp. d/b/a/ Drexel University College
of Medicine, Deficiency Response Letter
dated October 10, 2006. (ML062960347)
7. Philadelphia Health and Education
Corporation d/b/a/ Drexel University
College of Medicine, RAI, Previous
Transfer of Location of Use of the
Mandell Science Building located in
Doylestown, PA, telephone log dated
October 30, 2006. (ML063060010)
8. Thomas Jefferson University
Hospital, additional information
facsimile dated July 30, 2004.
(ML042190441)
If you do not have access to ADAMS,
or if there are problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS, contact
E:\FR\FM\11DEN1.SGM
11DEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 237 / Monday, December 11, 2006 / Notices
the NRC Public Document Room (PDR)
Reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301–
415–4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov.
These documents may also be viewed
electronically on the public computers
located at the NRC’s PDR, O 1 F21, One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR
reproduction contractor will copy
documents for a fee.
Dated at Region 1, 475 Allendale Road,
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, this 4th day of
December 2006.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region 1.
[FR Doc. E6–20955 Filed 12–8–06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[EA–06–290]
In the Matter of All Licensees Identified
in Attachment 1 to Order EA–06–289
and all Other Persons Who Seek or
Obtain Access to Safeguards
Information Described Herein; Order
Imposing Fingerprinting and Criminal
History Records Check Requirements
for Access to Safeguards Information;
(Effective Immediately)
I
mstockstill on PROD1PC61 with NOTICES
The Licensees identified in
Attachment 1 1 to Order EA–06–289
hold licenses issued in accordance with
the Atomic Energy Act (AEA) of 1954,
as amended, by the U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC or
Commission) or Agreement States,
authorizing them to engage in an
activity subject to regulation by the
Commission or Agreement States. On
August 8, 2005, the Energy Policy Act
of 2005 (EPAct) was enacted. Section
652 of the EPAct amended Section 149
of the AEA to require fingerprinting and
a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
identification and criminal history
records check of any person who is to
be permitted to have access to
Safeguards Information (SGI) 2. The
NRC’s implementation of this
requirement cannot await the
completion of the SGI rulemaking,
which is underway, because the EPAct
fingerprinting and criminal history
records check requirements for access to
1 Attachment 1 to Order EA–06–289 contains
sensitive information and will not be released to the
public.
2 Safeguards Information is a form of sensitive,
unclassified, security-related information that the
Commission has the authority to designate and
protect under section 147 of the AEA.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
15:15 Dec 08, 2006
Jkt 211001
SGI were immediately effective upon
enactment of the EPAct. Although the
EPAct permits the Commission by rule
to except certain categories of
individuals from the fingerprinting
requirement, which the Commission has
done [see 10 CFR 73.59, 71 FR 33,989
(June 13, 2006)], it is unlikely that
licensee employees or others are
excepted from the fingerprinting
requirement by the ‘‘fingerprinting
relief’’ rule. Individuals relieved from
fingerprinting and criminal history
records checks under the relief rule
include Federal, State, and local
officials and law enforcement
personnel; Agreement State inspectors
who conduct security inspections on
behalf of the NRC; members of Congress
and certain employees of members of
Congress or Congressional Committees,
and representatives of the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) or certain
foreign government organizations. In
addition, individuals who have a
favorably-decided U.S. Government
criminal history records check within
the last five (5) years, or individuals
who have active federal security
clearances (provided in either case that
they make available the appropriate
documentation), have satisfied the
EPAct fingerprinting requirement and
need not be fingerprinted again.
Therefore, in accordance with Section
149 of the AEA, as amended by the
EPAct, the Commission is imposing
additional requirements for access to
SGI, as set forth by this Order, so that
affected licensees can obtain and grant
access to SGI. This Order also imposes
requirements for access to SGI by any
person, from any person 3, whether or
not a Licensee, Applicant, or Certificate
Holder of the Commission or Agreement
States.
II
The Commission has broad statutory
authority to protect and prohibit the
unauthorized disclosure of SGI. Section
147 of the AEA grants the Commission
explicit authority to issue such Orders
as necessary to prohibit the
unauthorized disclosure of SGI.
Furthermore, Section 652 of the EPAct
3 Person means (1) any individual, corporation,
partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public
or private institution, group, government agency
other than the Commission or the Department of
Energy, except that the Department of Energy shall
be considered a person with respect to those
facilities of the Department of Energy specified in
section 202 of the Energy Reorganization Act of
1974 (88 Stat. 1244), any State or any political
subdivision of, or any political entity within a State,
any foreign government or nation or any political
subdivision of any such government or nation, or
other entity; and (2) any legal successor,
representative, agent, or agency of the foregoing.
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71593
amended Section 149 of the AEA to
require fingerprinting and an FBI
identification and criminal history
records check of each individual who
seeks access to SGI. In addition, no
person may have access to SGI unless
the person has an established need-toknow the information and satisfies the
trustworthy and reliability requirements
described in Attachment 3 to Order EA–
06–289.
In order to provide assurance that the
Licensees identified in Attachment 1 to
Order EA–06–289 are implementing
appropriate measures to comply with
the fingerprinting and criminal history
records check requirements for access to
SGI, all Licensees identified in
Attachment 1 to Order EA–06–289 shall
implement the requirements of this
Order. In addition, pursuant to 10 CFR
2.202, I find that in light of the common
defense and security matters identified
above, which warrant the issuance of
this Order, the public health, safety and
interest require that this Order be
effective immediately.
III
Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 81,
147, 149, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182 and 186
of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended, and the Commission’s
regulations in 10 CFR 2.202, 10 CFR
Parts 30 and 73, it is hereby ordered,
effective immediately, that all licensees
identified in attachment 1 to order ea06–289 and all other persons who seek
or obtain access to safeguards
information, as described above, shall
comply with the requirements set forth
in this order and its attachment.
A. 1. No person may have access to
SGI unless that person has a need-toknow the SGI, has been fingerprinted or
who has a favorably-decided FBI
identification and criminal history
records check, and satisfies all other
applicable requirements for access to
SGI. Fingerprinting and the FBI
identification and criminal history
records check are not required,
however, for any person who is relieved
from that requirement by 10 CFR 73.59
[71 FR 33,989 (June 13, 2006)], or who
has a favorably-decided U.S.
Government criminal history records
check within the last five (5) years, or
who has an active federal security
clearance, provided in the latter two
cases that the appropriate
documentation is made available to the
Licensee’s NRC-approved reviewing
official.
2. No person may have access to any
SGI if the NRC has determined, based
on fingerprinting and an FBI
identification and criminal history
E:\FR\FM\11DEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 237 (Monday, December 11, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71591-71593]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-20955]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030-12998]
Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 37-07438-15, for the Unrestricted Release of the
Philadelphia Health & Education Corporation's Facility in Doylestown,
PA
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Lawyer, Health Physicist,
Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region
1, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; telephone (610)
337-5366; fax number (610) 337-5393; or by e-mail: drl1@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering the
issuance of a license amendment to Byproduct Materials License No. 37-
07438-15. This license is held by Philadelphia Health & Education
Corporation, d/b/a/ Drexel University College of Medicine (the
Licensee), for the area leased to the Licensee within the Delaware
Valley College of Agriculture and Science's Mandrell Science Building
(the Facility), located at 700 E. Butler Avenue in Doylestown,
Pennsylvania. Issuance of the amendment would authorize release of the
Facility for unrestricted use. The Licensee requested this action in a
letter dated August 28, 2006. The NRC has prepared an Environmental
Assessment (EA) in support of this proposed action in accordance with
the requirements of Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part
51 (10 CFR Part 51). Based on the EA, the NRC has concluded that a
Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is appropriate with respect to
the proposed action. The amendment will be issued to the Licensee
following the publication of this FONSI and EA in the Federal Register.
II. Environmental Assessment
Identification of Proposed Action
The proposed action would approve the Licensee's August 28, 2006,
license amendment request, resulting in release of the Facility for
unrestricted use. License No. 37-07438-15 was issued on July 17, 1977,
pursuant to 10 CFR Part 30 and has been amended periodically since that
time. This license authorized the Licensee to use unsealed byproduct
material for purposes of conducting research and development activities
on laboratory bench tops and in hoods.
The Facility is a 15,000 square foot leased area, within the 66,300
square foot Mandrell Science Building, located on the 80 acre Delaware
Valley College of Agriculture and Science Campus. The Facility consists
of office space and laboratories. Within the Facility, use of licensed
materials was confined to laboratories totaling 2,680 square feet.
On July 26, 2006, the Licensee ceased licensed activities and
initiated a survey and decontamination of the Facility. Based on the
Licensee's historical knowledge of the site and the conditions of the
Facility, the Licensee determined that only routine decontamination
activities, in accordance with their NRC-approved, operating radiation
safety procedures, were required. The Licensee was not required to
submit a decommissioning plan to the NRC because worker cleanup
activities and procedures are consistent with those approved for
routine operations. The Licensee conducted surveys of the Facility and
provided information to the NRC to demonstrate that it meets the
criteria in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20 for unrestricted release.
Need for the Proposed Action
The Licensee has ceased conducting licensed activities at the
Facility, and seeks release of the Facility for unrestricted use.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The historical review of licensed activities conducted at the
Facility shows that such activities involved use of hydrogen-3, which
has a half-life greater than 120 days. Prior to
[[Page 71592]]
performing the final status survey, the Licensee conducted
decontamination activities, as necessary, in the areas of the Facility
affected by these radionuclides.
The Licensee conducted a final status survey on August 15, 2006.
This survey covered areas of material use within the Facility. The
final status survey report was attached to the Licensee's amendment
request dated August 28, 2006. A previous survey was performed on July
30, 2004, after the use of hydrogen-3 had been completed at the
Facility. The Licensee elected to demonstrate compliance with the
radiological criteria for unrestricted release as specified in 10 CFR
20.1402 by using the screening approach described in NUREG-1757,
``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance,'' Volume 2. The Licensee
used the radionuclide-specific derived concentration guideline levels
(DCGLs), developed there by the NRC, which comply with the dose
criterion in 10 CFR 20.1402. These DCGLs define the maximum amount of
residual radioactivity on building surfaces, equipment, and materials,
and in soils, that will satisfy the NRC requirements in Subpart E of 10
CFR Part 20 for unrestricted release. The Licensee's final status
survey results were below these DCGLs and are in compliance with the As
Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) requirement of 10 CFR 20.1402. The
NRC thus finds that the Licensee's final status survey results are
acceptable. Based on its review, the staff has determined that the
affected environment and any environmental impacts associated with the
proposed action are bounded by the impacts evaluated by the ``Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRC-Licensed Nuclear Facilities''
(NUREG-1496) Volumes 1-3 (ML042310492, ML042320379, and ML042330385).
The staff finds there were no significant environmental impacts from
the use of radioactive material at the Facility. The NRC staff reviewed
the docket file records and the final status survey report to identify
any non-radiological hazards that may have impacted the environment
surrounding the Facility. No such hazards or impacts to the environment
were identified. The NRC has identified no other radiological or non-
radiological activities in the area that could result in cumulative
environmental impacts.
The NRC staff finds that the proposed release of the Facility for
unrestricted use and the termination of the NRC materials license is in
compliance with 10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its review, the staff
considered the impact of the residual radioactivity at the Facility and
concluded that the proposed action will not have a significant effect
on the quality of the human environment.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Due to the largely administrative nature of the proposed action,
its environmental impacts are small. Therefore, the only alternative
the staff considered is the no-action alternative, under which the
staff would leave things as they are by simply denying the amendment
request. This no-action alternative is not feasible because it
conflicts with 10 CFR 30.36(d), requiring that decommissioning of
byproduct material facilities be completed and approved by the NRC
after licensed activities cease. The NRC's analysis of the Licensee's
final status survey data confirmed that the Facility meets the
requirements of 10 CFR 20.1402 for unrestricted release. Additionally,
denying the amendment request would result in no change in current
environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action
and the no-action alternative are therefore similar, and the no-action
alternative is accordingly not further considered.
Conclusion
The NRC staff has concluded that the proposed action is consistent
with the NRC's unrestricted release criteria specified in 10 CFR
20.1402. Because the proposed action will not significantly impact the
quality of the human environment, the NRC staff concludes that the
proposed action is the preferred alternative.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
NRC provided a draft of this Environmental Assessment to the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection,
Bureau of Radiation Protection, for review on November 13, 2006. On
November 14, 2006, the Commonwealth responded by e-mail. The
Commonwealth agreed with the conclusions of the EA and otherwise had no
comments.
The NRC staff has determined that the proposed action is of a
procedural nature, and will not affect listed species or critical
habitat. Therefore, no further consultation is required under Section 7
of the Endangered Species Act. The NRC staff has also determined that
the proposed action is not the type of activity that has the potential
to cause effects on historic properties. Therefore, no further
consultation is required under Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC staff has prepared this EA in support of the proposed
action. On the basis of this EA, the NRC finds that there are no
significant environmental impacts from the proposed action, and that
preparation of an environmental impact statement is not warranted.
Accordingly, the NRC has determined that a Finding of No Significant
Impact is appropriate.
IV. Further Information
Documents related to this action, including the application for
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 documents
related to this action are listed below, along with their ADAMS
accession numbers.
1. NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;''
2. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
``Radiological Criteria for License Termination;''
3. Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 51, ``Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;''
4. NUREG-1496, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement in Support
of Rulemaking on Radiological Criteria for License Termination of NRC-
Licensed Nuclear Facilities;''
5. Philadelphia Health & Education Corp. d/b/a/ Drexel University
College of Medicine, Amendment Request Letter dated August 28, 2006.
(ML062550419)
6. Philadelphia Health & Education Corp. d/b/a/ Drexel University
College of Medicine, Deficiency Response Letter dated October 10, 2006.
(ML062960347)
7. Philadelphia Health and Education Corporation d/b/a/ Drexel
University College of Medicine, RAI, Previous Transfer of Location of
Use of the Mandell Science Building located in Doylestown, PA,
telephone log dated October 30, 2006. (ML063060010)
8. Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, additional information
facsimile dated July 30, 2004. (ML042190441)
If you do not have access to ADAMS, or if there are problems in
accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact
[[Page 71593]]
the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209,
301-415-4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. These documents may also be
viewed electronically on the public computers located at the NRC's PDR,
O 1 F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD
20852. The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee.
Dated at Region 1, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania, this 4th day of December 2006.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety,
Region 1.
[FR Doc. E6-20955 Filed 12-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
