Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact Related to Issuance of License Amendment for the Humboldt Bay Power Plant Unit 3 License DPR-007, Humboldt, CA, 18691-18692 [E7-7074]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 71 / Friday, April 13, 2007 / Notices Purpose of Meeting: To provide advice concerning the NSF programs in international science and engineering. Agenda: Discussion of current programs, initiatives and future budget cycle. Dated: April 10, 2007. Susanne Bolton, Committee Management Officer. [FR Doc. E7–7011 Filed 4–12–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7555–01–P NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket No. 50–133] Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact Related to Issuance of License Amendment for the Humboldt Bay Power Plant Unit 3 License DPR–007, Humboldt, CA U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact. AGENCY: FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Hickman, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop: T7E18, Washington, DC 20555–00001. Telephone: (301) 415–3017; e-mail: jbh@nrc.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Introduction The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering a request, dated December 20, 2006, by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PGE or the Licensee), to approve an amendment to Facility Operating License No. DPR–7 that would revise License Condition 2.B.3 to allow the receipt, possession, and use of byproduct, source, or special nuclear material without restriction to amount or atomic number, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated with radioactive apparatus or components. II. Environmental Assessment pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES Background Humboldt Bay Power Plant (HBPP) was permanently shut down in July 1976, and until recently was in safe storage condition (SAFSTOR). SAFSTOR is the decommissioning method in which a nuclear facility is placed and maintained in a condition VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:52 Apr 12, 2007 Jkt 211001 that allows the safe storage of radioactive components of the nuclear plant and subsequent decontamination to levels that permit license termination. A Decommissioning Plan (DP) was approved in July 1988. Subsequent to the 1996 License Termination rule, the licensee converted its DP into its Defueled Safety Analysis Report which is updated every two years. A Post Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report was issued by the licensee in February 1998. The licensee is now engaged in some incremental decommissioning activities. In December 2003, PG&E formally submitted a license application to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for approval of a dry-cask Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI) at the Humboldt Bay site. A license and safety evaluation report for the Humboldt Bay ISFSI were issued on November 17, 2005. PG&E plans to begin active decommissioning of the facility in 2007. This Environmental Assessment (EA) has been developed in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR Part 51.21. Proposed Action The change proposed by this amendment will replace the current license condition 2.B.3 which addresses the receipt, possession, and use of byproduct materials with one which allows the receipt, possession, and use of byproduct, source, or special nuclear material without restriction to chemical or physical form or atomic number, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated with radioactive apparatus or components. The proposed action is contained in the licensee’s application dated December 20, 2006. Need for Proposed Action The current license condition was included in the license that was issued by the NRC when HBPP entered the possess-but-not-operate SAFSTOR phase. The license, including License Condition 2.B.3(c), was proposed by PG&E on July 30, 1984, and approved and issued by the NRC on July 16, 1985, as Amendment No. 19 to the facility license. License Condition 2.B.3(c) was established based on the byproduct materials onsite at the time and not based on any safety issue. The licensee has now begun preparations for transfer of the spent fuel from the spent fuel pool to an onsite Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation and for active decommissioning. Offsite equipment will need to be received to perform these activities. However, review of potential equipment has revealed that PO 00000 Frm 00072 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 18691 some would be unsuitable due to radiological composition which contains atomic numbers not allowed by the current license condition. Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed amendments to the License and concludes the changes provide a minor revision of the existing provision for the receipt, possession, and use of special nuclear, source, and byproduct materials. The revised license condition is similar to the license condition currently in place for multiple decommissioning and operating nuclear power facilities. The NRC evaluated the safety impacts of the proposed changes and determined that the changes proposed by this license amendment request will provide reasonable assurance that the applicable radiation protection requirements of 10 CFR parts 20, 30, 40, and 70 will be met. The NRC has evaluated the change and determined that the revised license condition will not significantly change the types or quantities of special nuclear, source, and byproduct materials the license may receive, possess, or use and would therefore have no significant impacts to the environment. Due to the limited nature of the amendment which will not significantly change the licensed activities on site, the proposed action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites, would not increase the probability or consequences of accidents, would not change the types of effluents that may be released offsite, and would not increase occupation or public radiation exposure. Alternatives to the Proposed Action The alternative to the proposed action would be to deny the request. Denial of this amendment request would have the same environmental impact as the proposed action. Agencies and Persons Consulted This EA was prepared by John B. Hickman, Project Manager, Decommissioning Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection (DWMEP). NRC staff determined that the proposed action is not a major decommissioning activity and will not affect listed or proposed endangered species, nor critical habitat. Therefore, no further consultation is required under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. Likewise, NRC staff determined that the proposed action is not the type of activity that has the potential to cause E:\FR\FM\13APN1.SGM 13APN1 18692 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 71 / Friday, April 13, 2007 / Notices previously unconsidered effects on historic properties, as consultation for site decommissioning has been conducted previously. There are no additional impacts to historic properties associated with the disposal method and location for demolition debris. Therefore, no consultation is required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The NRC discussed the proposed action with the State of California Radiologic Health Branch. The state official had no comments. III. Finding of No Significant Impact On the basis of the environmental assessment, the NRC concludes that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment. Accordingly, preparation of an environmental impact statement for the proposed action is not warranted. IV. Further Information pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the licensee’s letter dated December 20, 2006. (ADAMS Accession No. ML063560061) The NRC Public Documents Room is located at NRC Headquarters in Rockville, MD, and can be contacted at (800) 397–4209. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System’s (ADAMS) Public Library component on the NRC Web site, https://www.nrc.gov (the Public Electronic Reading Room). Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS should contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone at 1–800–397–4209, or 301– 415–4737, or by e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 5th day of April, 2007. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Keith I. McConnell, Deputy Director, Decommissioning and Uranium Recovery Licensing Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management Programs. [FR Doc. E7–7074 Filed 4–12–07; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590–01–P VerDate Aug<31>2005 17:52 Apr 12, 2007 Jkt 211001 PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION Proposed Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment Request; Procedures for Implementing Multiemployer Plan Elections Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. ACTION: Notice of intention to request OMB approval. AGENCY: SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) intends to request that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve, under the Paperwork Reduction Act, a collection of information under its procedures on multiemployer plan elections. This notice informs the public of the PBGC’s intent and solicits public comment on the collection of information. DATES: Comments should be submitted by June 12, 2007. ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods: • Federal eRulemaking Portal: https:// www.regulations.gov. Follow the Web site instructions for submitting comments. • E-mail: paperwork.comments@pbgc.gov. • Fax: 202–326–4224. • Mail or Hand Delivery: Legislative and Regulatory Department, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005– 4026. Comments received will be posted to https://www.pbgc.gov. Copies of the collection of information may be obtained without charge by writing to the Disclosure Division of the Office of the General Counsel of PBGC at the above address or by visiting the Disclosure Division or calling 202–326–4040 during normal business hours. (TTY and TDD users may call the Federal relay service tollfree at 1–800–877–8339 and ask to be connected to 202–326–4040.) FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Constance Markakis, Attorney, Legislative and Regulatory Department, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005–4026, 202–326–4000, ext. 6779. (For TTY and TDD, call 800–877–8339 and request connection to 202–326– 4000, ext. 6779.) SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 1106 of the Pension Plan Protection Act of 2006 (‘‘PPA 2006’’) amends the definition of a ‘‘multiemployer plan’’ in Title I of ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow certain plans to elect to be multiemployer plans PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 pursuant to procedures prescribed by PBGC. A plan is eligible for the election if it is (i) a plan revoking a previous election to remain a single-employer plan under section 3(37)(E) of ERISA, or (ii) a plan with respect to which substantially all employer contributions were made by tax-exempt employers. In either case, for the three plan years preceding the enactment of PPA 2006, the plan must have been a plan to which more than one employer was required to contribute that was maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements. PPA 2006 also imposes other requirements for an election, and provides certain exemptions from the requirements. All elections must be made by August 17, 2007. PBGC’s proposed procedures for implementing the multiemployer plan election requires a plan to submit specified information to PBGC to demonstrate that it meets the statutory eligibility requirements. The information collection includes names of contributing employers, copies of collective bargaining agreements that require contributions to the plan, numbers of participants and contributions to the plan under those collective bargaining agreements and the plan as a whole, information on common control among contributing employers to the plan, copies of the plan and trust documents, and evidence of the tax-exempt status of contributing employers and the percentage of total plan contributions attributable to these employers. For the limited purposes of the election under section 1106 of PPA 2006, the procedures provide a safe harbor provision for meeting the multiemployer criterion that a plan be ‘‘maintained pursuant to collective bargaining agreements.’’ The PBGC intends to request that OMB approve this collection of information for three years. (Although plans must make an election by August 17, 2007, PBGC may request additional information, after that date, that is needed to review the election.) An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The PBGC estimates that from 20 to 50 plans will respond to this collection of information. The PBGC further estimates that the average burden of this collection of information is 5 hours and $1,875 per plan, with an average total burden of 175 hours and $65,625. The PBGC is soliciting public comments to— E:\FR\FM\13APN1.SGM 13APN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 71 (Friday, April 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18691-18692]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-7074]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-133]


Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact 
Related to Issuance of License Amendment for the Humboldt Bay Power 
Plant Unit 3 License DPR-007, Humboldt, CA

AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Hickman, Division of Waste 
Management and Environmental Protection, Office of Federal and State 
Materials and Environmental Management Programs, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop: T7E18, Washington, DC 20555-00001. 
Telephone: (301) 415-3017; e-mail: jbh@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering a 
request, dated December 20, 2006, by the Pacific Gas and Electric 
Company (PGE or the Licensee), to approve an amendment to Facility 
Operating License No. DPR-7 that would revise License Condition 2.B.3 
to allow the receipt, possession, and use of byproduct, source, or 
special nuclear material without restriction to amount or atomic 
number, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated 
with radioactive apparatus or components.

II. Environmental Assessment

Background

    Humboldt Bay Power Plant (HBPP) was permanently shut down in July 
1976, and until recently was in safe storage condition (SAFSTOR). 
SAFSTOR is the decommissioning method in which a nuclear facility is 
placed and maintained in a condition that allows the safe storage of 
radioactive components of the nuclear plant and subsequent 
decontamination to levels that permit license termination. A 
Decommissioning Plan (DP) was approved in July 1988. Subsequent to the 
1996 License Termination rule, the licensee converted its DP into its 
Defueled Safety Analysis Report which is updated every two years. A 
Post Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report was issued by the 
licensee in February 1998. The licensee is now engaged in some 
incremental decommissioning activities. In December 2003, PG&E formally 
submitted a license application to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC) for approval of a dry-cask Independent Spent Fuel 
Storage Installation (ISFSI) at the Humboldt Bay site. A license and 
safety evaluation report for the Humboldt Bay ISFSI were issued on 
November 17, 2005. PG&E plans to begin active decommissioning of the 
facility in 2007.
    This Environmental Assessment (EA) has been developed in accordance 
with the requirements of 10 CFR Part 51.21.

Proposed Action

    The change proposed by this amendment will replace the current 
license condition 2.B.3(copyright) which addresses the receipt, 
possession, and use of byproduct materials with one which allows the 
receipt, possession, and use of byproduct, source, or special nuclear 
material without restriction to chemical or physical form or atomic 
number, for sample analysis or instrument calibration or associated 
with radioactive apparatus or components. The proposed action is 
contained in the licensee's application dated December 20, 2006.

Need for Proposed Action

    The current license condition was included in the license that was 
issued by the NRC when HBPP entered the possess-but-not-operate SAFSTOR 
phase. The license, including License Condition 2.B.3(c), was proposed 
by PG&E on July 30, 1984, and approved and issued by the NRC on July 
16, 1985, as Amendment No. 19 to the facility license. License 
Condition 2.B.3(c) was established based on the byproduct materials 
onsite at the time and not based on any safety issue. The licensee has 
now begun preparations for transfer of the spent fuel from the spent 
fuel pool to an onsite Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation and 
for active decommissioning. Offsite equipment will need to be received 
to perform these activities. However, review of potential equipment has 
revealed that some would be unsuitable due to radiological composition 
which contains atomic numbers not allowed by the current license 
condition.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed amendments to 
the License and concludes the changes provide a minor revision of the 
existing provision for the receipt, possession, and use of special 
nuclear, source, and byproduct materials. The revised license condition 
is similar to the license condition currently in place for multiple 
decommissioning and operating nuclear power facilities. The NRC 
evaluated the safety impacts of the proposed changes and determined 
that the changes proposed by this license amendment request will 
provide reasonable assurance that the applicable radiation protection 
requirements of 10 CFR parts 20, 30, 40, and 70 will be met.
    The NRC has evaluated the change and determined that the revised 
license condition will not significantly change the types or quantities 
of special nuclear, source, and byproduct materials the license may 
receive, possess, or use and would therefore have no significant 
impacts to the environment.
    Due to the limited nature of the amendment which will not 
significantly change the licensed activities on site, the proposed 
action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites, would 
not increase the probability or consequences of accidents, would not 
change the types of effluents that may be released offsite, and would 
not increase occupation or public radiation exposure.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    The alternative to the proposed action would be to deny the 
request. Denial of this amendment request would have the same 
environmental impact as the proposed action.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    This EA was prepared by John B. Hickman, Project Manager, 
Decommissioning Directorate, Division of Waste Management and 
Environmental Protection (DWMEP). NRC staff determined that the 
proposed action is not a major decommissioning activity and will not 
affect listed or proposed endangered species, nor critical habitat. 
Therefore, no further consultation is required under Section 7 of the 
Endangered Species Act. Likewise, NRC staff determined that the 
proposed action is not the type of activity that has the potential to 
cause

[[Page 18692]]

previously unconsidered effects on historic properties, as consultation 
for site decommissioning has been conducted previously. There are no 
additional impacts to historic properties associated with the disposal 
method and location for demolition debris. Therefore, no consultation 
is required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation 
Act. The NRC discussed the proposed action with the State of California 
Radiologic Health Branch. The state official had no comments.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    On the basis of the environmental assessment, the NRC concludes 
that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment. Accordingly, preparation of an 
environmental impact statement for the proposed action is not 
warranted.

IV. Further Information

    For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the 
licensee's letter dated December 20, 2006. (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML063560061) The NRC Public Documents Room is located at NRC 
Headquarters in Rockville, MD, and can be contacted at (800) 397-4209. 
Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public 
Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 
Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records 
will be accessible electronically from the Agencywide Documents Access 
and Management System's (ADAMS) Public Library component on the NRC Web 
site, https://www.nrc.gov (the Public Electronic Reading Room). Persons 
who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing 
the documents located in ADAMS should contact the NRC PDR Reference 
staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at 
pdr@nrc.gov.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 5th day of April, 2007.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Keith I. McConnell,
Deputy Director, Decommissioning and Uranium Recovery Licensing 
Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental Protection, 
Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental Management 
Programs.
[FR Doc. E7-7074 Filed 4-12-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
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