Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Byproduct Materials License No. 20-00315-02, for Termination of the License and Unrestricted Release of the Department of the Army, Natick Soldier Center's Facility in Natick, MA, 54949-54951 [E7-19077]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 187 / Thursday, September 27, 2007 / Notices
4.0
Tiering
Tiering refers to the coverage of
general matters in broader
environmental impact statements with
subsequent narrower statements or
environmental analyses incorporating
by reference the general discussions and
concentrating solely on the issues
specific to the statement (40 CFR
1508.28). The NRC intends to use the
GEIS to address common issues
associated with environmental reviews
of ISL uranium milling facilities located
in the western United States and then
develop site-specific environmental
assessments or site-specific
environmental impact statements which
will tier off the common issues
identified and evaluated in the GEIS.
5.0
Scoping Meetings
This NOI is to encourage public
involvement in the GEIS process and to
solicit public comments on the
proposed scope and content of the GEIS.
NRC will hold public scoping meetings
as described above to solicit both oral
and written comments from interested
parties.
Scoping is an early and open process
designed to determine the range of
actions, alternatives, and potential
impacts to be considered in the GEIS,
and to identify the significant issues
related to the proposed action. Scoping
is intended to solicit input from the
public and other agencies so that the
analysis can be more clearly focused on
issues of genuine concern. The principal
goals of the scoping process are to:
—Identify public concerns;
—Ensure that concerns are identified
early and are properly studied;
—Identify alternatives that will be
examined;
—Identify significant issues that need to
be analyzed; and
—Eliminate unimportant issues.
The scoping meetings will begin with
NRC staff providing a description of
NRC’s role and mission followed by a
brief overview of NRC’s environmental
review process and goals of the scoping
meeting. The bulk of the meeting will be
allotted for attendees to make oral
comments.
rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
6.0
Scoping Comments
Written comments should be mailed
to the address listed above in the
ADDRESSES section. Scoping comments
may also be submitted electronically via
e-mail to URLGEIS@nrc.gov. The NRC
staff will prepare a scoping summary
report, in which it will summarize
public comments. The NRC will make
the scoping summary report and projectrelated materials available for public
VerDate Aug<31>2005
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review through its electronic reading
room: https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. Further, an NRC Web site
will be established in the near future to
keep the public abreast of the current
schedule and to post important
documents.
6.0 The NEPA Process
The GEIS will be prepared according
to NEPA and NRC’s NEPA
implementing regulations contained in
10 CFR part 51.
After the scoping process is complete,
the NRC will prepare a draft GEIS. The
draft GEIS is scheduled to be published
by April 2008. A 45-day comment
period on the draft GEIS is planned, and
a public meeting(s) to receive comments
will be held approximately three weeks
after publication of the draft GEIS.
Availability of the draft GEIS, the
dates of the public comment period, and
information about the public meeting
will be announced in the Federal
Register, on NRC’s web page, and in the
local news media. The final GEIS is
expected to be published in January
2009 and will be incorporate, as
appropriate, public comments received
on the draft GEIS.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 21st day
of September, 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory Suber,
Branch Chief, Environmental Review Branch,
Environmental Protection and Performance
Assessment Directorate, Division of Waste
Management and Environmental Protection,
Office of Federal and State Materials and
Environmental Management Programs.
[FR Doc. E7–19081 Filed 9–26–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030–04578]
Notice of Availability of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 20–00315–02, for
Termination of the License and
Unrestricted Release of the
Department of the Army, Natick Soldier
Center’s Facility in Natick, MA
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment.
AGENCY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Betsy Ullrich, Commercial and R&D
Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials
PO 00000
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54949
Safety, Region I, 475 Allendale Road,
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania 19406;
telephone (610) 337–5040; fax number
(610) 337–5269; or by e-mail:
exu@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. 20–
00315–02. This license is held by the
Department of the Army, Natick Soldier
Center, Research, Development and
Engineering Command (the Licensee),
for its Soldier Systems Center, located at
Kansas Street in Natick, Massachusetts
(the Facility). Issuance of the
amendment would authorize release of
the Facility for unrestricted use and
termination of the NRC license. The
Licensee requested this action in a letter
dated May 31, 2007. 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 License 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 May 31, 2007, license
amendment request, resulting in release
of the Facility for unrestricted use and
the termination of its NRC materials
license. License No. 20–00315–02 was
issued on April 23, 1958, 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 situated on 76 acres
and consists of office space and
laboratories. The Facility is located in a
residential and recreational area. Within
the Facility, use of licensed materials
was confined to Buildings 3, 4, 30, and
89.
In 2004, 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,
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 187 / Thursday, September 27, 2007 / Notices
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
and for license termination.
rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
Need for the Proposed Action
The Licensee has ceased conducting
licensed activities at the Facility, and
seeks the unrestricted use of its Facility
and the termination of its NRC materials
license. Termination of its license
would end the Licensee’s obligation to
pay annual license fees to the NRC.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The historical review of licensed
activities conducted at the Facility
shows that such activities involved use
of the following radionuclides with halflives greater than 120 days: hydrogen-3
and carbon-14 in unsealed forms, and
nickel-63 and other sealed sources. Prior
to 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 in December 2006. This survey
covered Buildings 3, 30, and 89.
Building 4 was surveyed previously in
1996 when licensed activities were
ceased in that location, and those survey
results were provided. The final status
survey report was attached to the
Licensee’s amendment request dated
May 31, 2007. 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
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16:40 Sep 26, 2007
Jkt 211001
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
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 and
for license termination. 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.
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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 Massachusetts,
Department of Public Health, Radiation
Control Program for review on July 23,
2007. On September 13, 2007, The
Commonwealth of Massachusetts,
Department of Public Health, Radiation
Control Program 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. Letter dated May 31, 2007,
requesting termination of the license
[ML071630222].
E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 187 / Thursday, September 27, 2007 / Notices
2. Final Status Survey Report, Natick
Soldier Center, Research, Development
and Engineering Command, Soldier
Systems Center, Natick, Massachusetts,
USA Project 2005–030, April 2007
[ML071630361 and ML071630369].
3. Sierra Army Depot Radiological
Survey and Assessment Report #01–04–
96, dated 18 June 1996, for the
Development Building (#4)
[ML071640172].
4. NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated
NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;’’
5. Title 10 Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
‘‘Radiological Criteria for License
Termination;’’
6. Title 10, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 51, ‘‘Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic
Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;’’
7. NUREG–1496, ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities.’’
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
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR
reproduction contractor will copy
documents for a fee.
Dated at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania this
21st day of September, 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety Region I.
[FR Doc. E7–19077 Filed 9–26–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES
TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
Request for Public Comments on
Annual Review of Country Eligibility
for Benefits Under the African Growth
and Opportunity Act
Office of the United States
Trade Representative.
ACTION: Notice and request for
comments.
rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The African Growth and
Opportunity Act Implementation
Subcommittee of the Trade Policy Staff
Committee (the ‘‘Subcommittee’’) is
requesting written public comments for
the annual review of the eligibility of
VerDate Aug<31>2005
16:40 Sep 26, 2007
Jkt 211001
sub-Saharan African countries to receive
the benefits of the African Growth and
Opportunity Act (AGOA). The
Subcommittee will consider these
comments in developing
recommendations on AGOA country
eligibility for the President. Comments
received related to the child labor
criteria may also be considered by the
Secretary of Labor for the preparation of
the Department of Labor’s report on
child labor as required under section
412(c) of the Trade and Development
Act of 2000. This notice identifies the
eligibility criteria that must be
considered under AGOA, and lists those
sub-Saharan African countries that are
currently eligible for the benefits of the
AGOA, and those that are currently
ineligible for such benefits.
DATES: Public comments are due at the
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
(USTR) by noon, Monday, October 22,
2007.
ADDRESSES: USTR prefers submission by
electronic mail: FR0720@ustr.eop.gov. If
you are unable to make a submission by
e-mail, submissions should be made by
facsimile to: Gloria Blue, Executive
Secretary, Trade Policy Staff Committee,
at (202) 395–6143. The public is
strongly encouraged to submit
documents electronically rather than by
facsimile. See requirements for
submissions below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
procedural questions, please contact
Gloria Blue, Office of the U.S. Trade
Representative, 600 17th Street, NW.,
Room F516, Washington, DC 20508, at
(202) 395–3475. All other questions
should be directed to Constance
Hamilton, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade
Representative for Africa, Office of the
U.S. Trade Representative, at (202) 395–
9514.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
AGOA (Title I of the Trade and
Development Act of 2000, Pub. L. 106–
200) (19 U.S.C. 3721 et seq.), as
amended, authorizes the President to
designate sub-Saharan African countries
as beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries eligible for duty-free treatment
for certain additional products under
the Generalized System of Preferences
(GSP) (Title V of the Trade Act of 1974
(19 U.S.C. 2461 et seq.) (the ‘‘1974
Act’’)), as well as for the preferential
treatment the AGOA provides for
certain textile and apparel articles.
The President may designate a
country as a beneficiary sub-Saharan
African country eligible for both the
additional GSP benefits and the textile
and apparel benefits of the AGOA for
countries meeting certain statutory
requirements intended to prevent
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
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54951
unlawful transshipment of such articles,
if he determines that the country meets
the eligibility criteria set forth in: (1)
Section 104 of the AGOA; and (2)
section 502 of the 1974 Act. For 2007,
39 countries have been designated as
beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries. These countries, as well as
the 9 countries currently ineligible, are
listed below. Section 506A of the 1974
Act provides that the President shall
monitor, review, and report to Congress
annually on the progress of each subSaharan African country in meeting the
foregoing eligibility criteria in order to
determine whether each beneficiary
sub-Saharan African country should
continue to be eligible, and whether
each sub-Saharan African country that
is currently not a beneficiary subSaharan African country, should be
designated as such a country. The
President’s determinations will be
included in the annual report submitted
to Congress as required by Section 106
of the AGOA. Section 506A of the 1974
Act requires that, if the President
determines that a beneficiary subSaharan African country is not making
continual progress in meeting the
eligibility requirements, he must
terminate the designation of the country
as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African
country.
The Subcommittee is seeking public
comments in connection with the
annual review of the eligibility of
beneficiary sub-Saharan African
countries for the AGOA’s benefits. The
Subcommittee will consider any such
comments in developing
recommendations on country eligibility
for the President. Comments related to
the child labor criteria may also be
considered by the Secretary of Labor in
making the findings required under
section 504 of the 1974 Act.
The following sub-Saharan African
countries were designated as beneficiary
sub-Saharan African countries in 2007:
Angola
Republic of Benin
Republic of Botswana
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Republic of Cape Verde
Republic of Cameroon
Republic of Chad
Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo
Republic of Djibouti
Ethiopia
Gabonese Republic
The Gambia
Republic of Ghana
Republic of Guinea
Republic of Guinea-Bissau
Republic of Kenya
E:\FR\FM\27SEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 187 (Thursday, September 27, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54949-54951]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-19077]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030-04578]
Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 20-00315-02, for Termination of the License and
Unrestricted Release of the Department of the Army, Natick Soldier
Center's Facility in Natick, MA
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Betsy Ullrich, Commercial and R&D
Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I, 475 Allendale
Road, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania 19406; telephone (610) 337-5040;
fax number (610) 337-5269; or by e-mail: exu@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. 20-
00315-02. This license is held by the Department of the Army, Natick
Soldier Center, Research, Development and Engineering Command (the
Licensee), for its Soldier Systems Center, located at Kansas Street in
Natick, Massachusetts (the Facility). Issuance of the amendment would
authorize release of the Facility for unrestricted use and termination
of the NRC license. The Licensee requested this action in a letter
dated May 31, 2007. 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 License 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 May 31, 2007,
license amendment request, resulting in release of the Facility for
unrestricted use and the termination of its NRC materials license.
License No. 20-00315-02 was issued on April 23, 1958, 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 situated on 76 acres and consists of office space
and laboratories. The Facility is located in a residential and
recreational area. Within the Facility, use of licensed materials was
confined to Buildings 3, 4, 30, and 89.
In 2004, 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,
[[Page 54950]]
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 and
for license termination.
Need for the Proposed Action
The Licensee has ceased conducting licensed activities at the
Facility, and seeks the unrestricted use of its Facility and the
termination of its NRC materials license. Termination of its license
would end the Licensee's obligation to pay annual license fees to the
NRC.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The historical review of licensed activities conducted at the
Facility shows that such activities involved use of the following
radionuclides with half-lives greater than 120 days: hydrogen-3 and
carbon-14 in unsealed forms, and nickel-63 and other sealed sources.
Prior to 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 in December 2006. This
survey covered Buildings 3, 30, and 89. Building 4 was surveyed
previously in 1996 when licensed activities were ceased in that
location, and those survey results were provided. The final status
survey report was attached to the Licensee's amendment request dated
May 31, 2007. 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 and for license
termination. 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 Massachusetts, Department of Public Health, Radiation
Control Program for review on July 23, 2007. On September 13, 2007, The
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Public Health, Radiation
Control Program 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. Letter dated May 31, 2007, requesting termination of the license
[ML071630222].
[[Page 54951]]
2. Final Status Survey Report, Natick Soldier Center, Research,
Development and Engineering Command, Soldier Systems Center, Natick,
Massachusetts, USA Project 2005-030, April 2007 [ML071630361 and
ML071630369].
3. Sierra Army Depot Radiological Survey and Assessment Report
01-04-96, dated 18 June 1996, for the Development Building
(4) [ML071640172].
4. NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;''
5. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
``Radiological Criteria for License Termination;''
6. Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 51, ``Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;''
7. NUREG-1496, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement in Support
of Rulemaking on Radiological Criteria for License Termination of NRC-
Licensed Nuclear Facilities.''
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 White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852.
The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee.
Dated at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania this 21st day of
September, 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety
Region I.
[FR Doc. E7-19077 Filed 9-26-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
