Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Source Materials License No. Sub-348, for Unrestricted Release of the Department of the Army, U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, Building 611b Facility in Picatinny, NJ, 68203-68205 [E7-23475]
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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 232 / Tuesday, December 4, 2007 / Notices
of 10 CFR Part 51, ‘‘Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic
Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions,’’ as referenced by Subpart A,
‘‘Early Site Permits,’’ of 10 CFR Part 52,
‘‘Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals
for Nuclear Power Plants,’’ and all
applicable requirements therein have
been satisfied. The permit holder’s
request for the proposed permit was
previously noticed in the Federal
Register on December 2, 2003 (68 FR
67489), with a notice of hearing and
opportunity to petition for leave to
intervene.
This ESP complies with the standards
and requirements of the Atomic Energy
Act of 1954, as amended, and the NRC’s
rules and regulations as set forth in 10
CFR Chapter I and the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
Accordingly, the NRC issued this ESP
on November 27, 2007, and it was
effective immediately.
II. Further Information
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
The NRC has prepared a Safety
Evaluation Report (SER) and a Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS)
that document the information that the
staff reviewed and NRC’s conclusion. In
accordance with 10 CFR 2.390, ‘‘Public
Inspections, Exemptions, Requests for
Withholding,’’ details with respect to
this action, including the SER and
accompanying documentation included
in the ESP package, are available
electronically via the NRC’s Electronic
Reading Room at https://www.nrc.gov/
reading-rm/adams.html. From this site,
users can access the NRC’s Agencywide
Documents Access and Management
System (ADAMS), which provides text
and image files of the NRC’s public
documents. The following ADAMS
accession numbers apply to the
documents related to this notice:
ML052710305 NUREG–1835, ‘‘Safety
Evaluation Report for an Early Site
Permit (ESP) at the North Anna ESP
Site,’’ September 2005
ML063170371 NUREG–1835, ‘‘Safety
Evaluation Report for an Early Site
Permit (ESP) at the North Anna ESP
Site (NUREG–1835 Supplement 1),’’
November 2006
ML063480261 NUREG–1811, Vol. 1,
‘‘Environmental Impact Statement for
an Early Site Permit (ESP) at the
North Anna ESP Site, Final Report,
Main Report,’’ December 31, 2006
ML063480263 NUREG–1811, Vol. 2,
‘‘Environmental Impact Statement for
an Early Site Permit (ESP) at the
North Anna ESP Site, Final Report,
Appendices E & F,’’ December 31,
2006
VerDate Aug<31>2005
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ML042010009 North Anna Early Site
Permit Application Package,
September 25, 2003
ML073180440 North Anna Early Site
Permit
Persons who do not have access to
ADAMS or who encounter problems in
accessing the documents located in
ADAMS should contact the NRC Public
Document Room (PDR) Reference staff
at 1–800–397–4209 or 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, One White
Flint North, Room O1 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852.
The PDR reproduction contractor will
copy documents for a fee.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 27th day
of November 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Mohammed Shuaibi,
Chief, ESBWR/ABWR Projects Branch 1,
Division of New Reactor Licensing, Office of
New Reactors.
[FR Doc. E7–23468 Filed 12–3–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 040–06377]
Notice of Availability of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment to Source Materials
License No. Sub-348, for Unrestricted
Release of the Department of the
Army, U.S. Army Research,
Development and Engineering
Command, Armament Research,
Development and Engineering Center,
Building 611b Facility in Picatinny, NJ
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment.
AGENCY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Betsy Ullrich, Senior Health Physicist,
Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I,
475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania; 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
Source Materials License No. SUB–348.
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
68203
This license is held by the Department
of the Army, U. S. Army Research,
Development and Engineering Center
(RDEC), Armament Research,
Development and Engineering Center
(ARDEC) (the Licensee), for its activities
at the Picatinny Arsenal located in
Picatinny, New Jersey. Issuance of the
amendment would authorize release of
Building 611B for unrestricted use. The
Licensee requested this action in a letter
dated May 14, 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 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 May 14, 2007 license
amendment request, resulting in release
of Building 611B for unrestricted use.
License No. SUB–348 was issued on
July 13, 1961, pursuant to 10 CFR Part
40, and has been amended periodically
since that time. This license authorized
the Licensee to use uranium and
thorium in any form for purposes of
conducting research and development
activities.
The Picatinny Arsenal is situated on
6,500 acres of land and consists of office
space, laboratories, and specialized
facilities. The Picatinny Arsenal is
located in a mixed residential and
commercial area. Building 611B was
one of several buildings where use of
licensed material was performed under
the authority of RDEC/ARDEC, one of
the military tenants at Picatinny
Arsenal. Building 611B is a single-story
concrete structure of about 1,100 square
feet, containing two test-firing ranges.
One of the firing ranges was used for the
testing of depleted uranium munitions.
Building 611B is located in a cleared
area on a rocky and wooded hillside,
within a fenced area of approximately
40,000 square feet. Other structures
within the fenced area include an
Outdoor Storage Area and two movable
electrical storage shelters.
On November 19, 1998, the Licensee
notified the NRC that they had ceased
licensed activities and initiated a survey
and decontamination of Building 611B.
Based on the Licensee’s historical
knowledge of the site and the conditions
of the Building 611B, the Licensee
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68204
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 232 / Tuesday, December 4, 2007 / Notices
determined that only routine
decontamination activities, in
accordance with their NRC-approved,
operating radiation safety procedures,
were required. The Licensee submitted
a decommissioning plan for Building
611B. The NRC’s approval of the
Licensee’s decommissioning plan was
published in the Federal Register on
Friday, March 31, 2000 (65 FR 17322).
The Licensee conducted surveys of the
Building 611B and provided
information to the NRC to demonstrate
that it meets the criteria in Subpart E of
10 CFR Part 20 for unrestricted release.
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Need for the Proposed Action
The Licensee has ceased conducting
licensed activities at the Building 611B
and seeks the unrestricted use of this
facility.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The historical review of licensed
activities conducted at the Building
611B shows that such activities
involved use of depleted uranium, a
radionuclide with a half-life greater than
120 days. Prior to performing the final
status survey, the Licensee conducted
decontamination activities, as
necessary, in the areas of the Building
611B affected by this radionuclide.
The Licensee conducted a final status
survey during August and September,
2003. This survey covered areas inside
Building 611B including the DU
Tunnel, the Non-DU Tunnel, the Foyer,
the Instrument Room, and the Indoor
Storage Area; exterior surfaces of
building 611B; an Outdoor Storage Area;
two movable electrical storage
containers; and the open land area and
bunker within the fence line for the
Building 611B area. The final status
survey report was attached to the
Licensee’s amendment request dated
May 14, 2007. The Licensee elected to
demonstrate compliance with the
radiological criteria for unrestricted
release as specified in 10 CFR 20.1402
by developing derived concentration
guideline levels (DCGLs) for its Building
611B. The Licensee conducted sitespecific dose modeling using input
parameters specific to the Building
611B. For soil, the Licensee used the
RESRAD code, version 5.82, with all
default values except for a smaller
thickness of contaminated soil (0.25
meters instead of 2 meters) and a
smaller contaminated area (4000 squaremeters instead of 10,000 square-meters),
and did not use the pathways for milk
or meat ingestion because of the small
area. The soil DCGL was determined to
be 186 picocuries per gram of soil. For
contaminated building surfaces, the
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:38 Dec 03, 2007
Jkt 214001
Licensee used the RESRAD-Build code,
version 3.0 with all default values
except for the removable fractions (10
percent instead of 50 percent), the
fraction indoors (0.33 instead of 0.5) and
the exposure duration (250 days instead
of 365 days). The building surface DCGL
was determined to be 5,550
disintegrations per minute (dpm) per
100 square-centimeters area. The NRC
previously reviewed the Licensee’s
methodology and proposed DCGLs, and
concluded that the proposed DCGLs are
acceptable for use as release criteria at
the Building 611B. The Licensee’s final
status survey results were below these
DCGLs, and are thus 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 Building 611B.
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 Building
611B. No such hazards or impacts to the
environment were identified, except the
presence of unexploded ordnance
identified by the Licensee. Department
of the Army personnel surveyed the area
for unexploded ordnance prior to, and
during, all activities performed in the
outdoor area surrounding Building
611B, and removed any unexploded
ordnance found. 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 Building 611B for
unrestricted use is in compliance with
10 CFR 20.1402. Although the Licensee
will continue to perform licensed
activities at other parts of the Picatinny
Arsenal, the Licensee must ensure that
this decommissioned area does not
become recontaminated. Before the
license can be terminated, the Licensee
will be required to show that the entire
Picatinny Arsenal, including
previously-released areas, complies
with the radiological criteria in 10 CFR
20.1402. Based on its review, the staff
considered the impact of the residual
radioactivity at the Building 611B and
concluded that the proposed action will
PO 00000
Frm 00083
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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 40.42(d),
requiring that decommissioning of
source 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 Building 611B 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 State
of New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection (NJDEP) for
review on October 2, 2007. On
November 8, 2007, NJDEP responded by
letter. The State 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.
E:\FR\FM\04DEN1.SGM
04DEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 232 / Tuesday, December 4, 2007 / 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.
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
1. Letter dated November 29, 1999, with
the ‘‘Picatinny Arsenal Decommissioning
Plan for Building 611B’’ [ML003683836];
2. Letter dated November 24, 2000
[ML003772619] with Amendment No. 23
[ML003773181];
3. Letter dated May 9, 2002 with the ‘‘Final
Survey Plan for the TACOM–ARDEC
Picatinny Arsenal Building 611B, Revision 1,
January 2002’’ [ML021400335];
4. Letter dated October 16, 2002 with
Amendment No. 26 [ML022970431];
5. Inspection 040–06377/2003–001,
September 4, 18 and 22, 2003
[ML032930404];
6. Letter dated May 14, 2007 with the
‘‘Final Survey Report for the TACOM–
ARDEC Picatinny Arsenal Building 611B’’
[ML071620348];
7. NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated NMSS
Decommissioning Guidance;’’
8. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations,
Part 20, Subpart E, ‘‘Radiological Criteria for
License Termination;’’
9. Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations,
Part 51, ‘‘Environmental Protection
Regulations for Domestic Licensing and
Related Regulatory Functions;’’ and
10. 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
VerDate Aug<31>2005
17:38 Dec 03, 2007
Jkt 214001
68205
reproduction contractor will copy
documents for a fee.
to the meeting to be advised of any
potential changes in the agenda.
Dated at King of Prussia, Pennsylvania this
27th day of November 2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I.
[FR Doc. E7–23475 Filed 12–3–07; 8:45 am]
Dated: November 27, 2007.
Antonio F. Dias,
Chief, Nuclear Waste & Materials Branch.
[FR Doc. E7–23466 Filed 12–3–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Sunshine Federal Register Notice
Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste
and Materials; Meeting on Planning
and Procedures; Notice of Meeting
The Advisory Committee on Nuclear
Waste and Materials (ACNW&M) will
hold a Planning and Procedures meeting
on December 17, 2007, 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&M, 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:
Monday, December 17, 2007—11 a.m.–
12 p.m.
The Committee will discuss proposed
ACNW&M 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
comments should notify the Designated
Federal Officer, Dr. Antonio F. Dias
(Telephone: 301/415–6805) between
8:15 a.m. and 5 p.m. (ET) 5 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.
Detailed procedures for the conduct of
and participation in ACNW&M meetings
were published in the Federal Register
on September 26, 2007 (72 FR 54693).
Further information regarding this
meeting can be obtained by contacting
the Designated Federal Officer between
8:15 a.m. and 5 p.m. (ET). Persons
planning to attend this meeting are
urged to contact the above-named
individual at least 2 working days prior
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
AGENCY HOLDING THE MEETINGS: Nuclear
Regulatory Commission.
DATES: Weeks of December 3, 10, 17, 24,
31, 2007; January 7, 2008.
PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference
Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland.
STATUS: Public and Closed.
MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:
Week of December 3, 2007—Tentative
Friday, December 7, 2007
10 a.m.
Discussion of Intragovernmental
Issues (Closed—Ex. 1 & 9).
2 p.m.
Briefing on Threat Environment
Assessment (Closed—Ex. 1).
Week of December 10, 2007—Tentative
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
9:30 a.m.
Discussion of Management Issues
(Closed—Ex. 2).
Week of December 17, 2007—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the Week of December 17, 2007.
Week of December 24, 2007—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the Week of December 24, 2007.
Week of December 31, 2007—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the Week of December 31, 2007.
Week of January 7, 2008—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the Week of January 7, 2007.
* The schedule for Commission
meetings is subject to change on short
notice. To verify the status of meetings,
call (recording)—(301) 415–1292.
Contact person for more information:
Michelle Schroll, (301) 415–1662.
The NRC Commission Meeting
Schedule can be found on the Internet
at: https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/policymaking/schedule.html.
The NRC provides reasonable
accommodation to individuals with
disabilities where appropriate. If you
E:\FR\FM\04DEN1.SGM
04DEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 4, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68203-68205]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-23475]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 040-06377]
Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Source Materials License
No. Sub-348, for Unrestricted Release of the Department of the Army,
U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command, Armament
Research, Development and Engineering Center, Building 611b Facility in
Picatinny, NJ
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Betsy Ullrich, Senior Health
Physicist, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials
Safety, Region I, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania;
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 Source Materials License No. SUB-
348. This license is held by the Department of the Army, U. S. Army
Research, Development and Engineering Center (RDEC), Armament Research,
Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC) (the Licensee), for its
activities at the Picatinny Arsenal located in Picatinny, New Jersey.
Issuance of the amendment would authorize release of Building 611B for
unrestricted use. The Licensee requested this action in a letter dated
May 14, 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 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 May 14, 2007
license amendment request, resulting in release of Building 611B for
unrestricted use. License No. SUB-348 was issued on July 13, 1961,
pursuant to 10 CFR Part 40, and has been amended periodically since
that time. This license authorized the Licensee to use uranium and
thorium in any form for purposes of conducting research and development
activities.
The Picatinny Arsenal is situated on 6,500 acres of land and
consists of office space, laboratories, and specialized facilities. The
Picatinny Arsenal is located in a mixed residential and commercial
area. Building 611B was one of several buildings where use of licensed
material was performed under the authority of RDEC/ARDEC, one of the
military tenants at Picatinny Arsenal. Building 611B is a single-story
concrete structure of about 1,100 square feet, containing two test-
firing ranges. One of the firing ranges was used for the testing of
depleted uranium munitions. Building 611B is located in a cleared area
on a rocky and wooded hillside, within a fenced area of approximately
40,000 square feet. Other structures within the fenced area include an
Outdoor Storage Area and two movable electrical storage shelters.
On November 19, 1998, the Licensee notified the NRC that they had
ceased licensed activities and initiated a survey and decontamination
of Building 611B. Based on the Licensee's historical knowledge of the
site and the conditions of the Building 611B, the Licensee
[[Page 68204]]
determined that only routine decontamination activities, in accordance
with their NRC-approved, operating radiation safety procedures, were
required. The Licensee submitted a decommissioning plan for Building
611B. The NRC's approval of the Licensee's decommissioning plan was
published in the Federal Register on Friday, March 31, 2000 (65 FR
17322). The Licensee conducted surveys of the Building 611B 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
Building 611B and seeks the unrestricted use of this facility.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The historical review of licensed activities conducted at the
Building 611B shows that such activities involved use of depleted
uranium, a radionuclide with a half-life greater than 120 days. Prior
to performing the final status survey, the Licensee conducted
decontamination activities, as necessary, in the areas of the Building
611B affected by this radionuclide.
The Licensee conducted a final status survey during August and
September, 2003. This survey covered areas inside Building 611B
including the DU Tunnel, the Non-DU Tunnel, the Foyer, the Instrument
Room, and the Indoor Storage Area; exterior surfaces of building 611B;
an Outdoor Storage Area; two movable electrical storage containers; and
the open land area and bunker within the fence line for the Building
611B area. The final status survey report was attached to the
Licensee's amendment request dated May 14, 2007. The Licensee elected
to demonstrate compliance with the radiological criteria for
unrestricted release as specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 by developing
derived concentration guideline levels (DCGLs) for its Building 611B.
The Licensee conducted site-specific dose modeling using input
parameters specific to the Building 611B. For soil, the Licensee used
the RESRAD code, version 5.82, with all default values except for a
smaller thickness of contaminated soil (0.25 meters instead of 2
meters) and a smaller contaminated area (4000 square-meters instead of
10,000 square-meters), and did not use the pathways for milk or meat
ingestion because of the small area. The soil DCGL was determined to be
186 picocuries per gram of soil. For contaminated building surfaces,
the Licensee used the RESRAD-Build code, version 3.0 with all default
values except for the removable fractions (10 percent instead of 50
percent), the fraction indoors (0.33 instead of 0.5) and the exposure
duration (250 days instead of 365 days). The building surface DCGL was
determined to be 5,550 disintegrations per minute (dpm) per 100 square-
centimeters area. The NRC previously reviewed the Licensee's
methodology and proposed DCGLs, and concluded that the proposed DCGLs
are acceptable for use as release criteria at the Building 611B. The
Licensee's final status survey results were below these DCGLs, and are
thus 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 Building 611B. 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 Building 611B. No such hazards or impacts
to the environment were identified, except the presence of unexploded
ordnance identified by the Licensee. Department of the Army personnel
surveyed the area for unexploded ordnance prior to, and during, all
activities performed in the outdoor area surrounding Building 611B, and
removed any unexploded ordnance found. 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 Building 611B
for unrestricted use is in compliance with 10 CFR 20.1402. Although the
Licensee will continue to perform licensed activities at other parts of
the Picatinny Arsenal, the Licensee must ensure that this
decommissioned area does not become recontaminated. Before the license
can be terminated, the Licensee will be required to show that the
entire Picatinny Arsenal, including previously-released areas, complies
with the radiological criteria in 10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its review,
the staff considered the impact of the residual radioactivity at the
Building 611B 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 40.42(d), requiring that decommissioning of
source 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 Building 611B 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 State
of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) for review
on October 2, 2007. On November 8, 2007, NJDEP responded by letter. The
State 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.
[[Page 68205]]
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 November 29, 1999, with the ``Picatinny Arsenal
Decommissioning Plan for Building 611B'' [ML003683836];
2. Letter dated November 24, 2000 [ML003772619] with Amendment
No. 23 [ML003773181];
3. Letter dated May 9, 2002 with the ``Final Survey Plan for the
TACOM-ARDEC Picatinny Arsenal Building 611B, Revision 1, January
2002'' [ML021400335];
4. Letter dated October 16, 2002 with Amendment No. 26
[ML022970431];
5. Inspection 040-06377/2003-001, September 4, 18 and 22, 2003
[ML032930404];
6. Letter dated May 14, 2007 with the ``Final Survey Report for
the TACOM-ARDEC Picatinny Arsenal Building 611B'' [ML071620348];
7. NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;''
8. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
``Radiological Criteria for License Termination;''
9. Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 51,
``Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and
Related Regulatory Functions;'' and
10. 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 27th day of November
2007.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety,
Region I.
[FR Doc. E7-23475 Filed 12-3-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
