Unistar Nuclear, LLC; Calvert Cliffs Partial Combined License Application; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and Conduct Scoping Process, 8719-8720 [E8-2775]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 31 (Thursday, February 14, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8719-8720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-2775]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 52-016]


Unistar Nuclear, LLC; Calvert Cliffs Partial Combined License 
Application; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement and Conduct Scoping Process

    UniStar Nuclear, LLC (UniStar), has submitted a partial application 
for a combined license (COL) for its Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant 
(CCNPP) site to build Unit 3, located on approximately 2,057 acres in 
Calvert County, Maryland, approximately 40 miles southeast of 
Washington, DC, and 7.5 miles north of Solomons, Maryland, along the 
western bank of the Chesapeake Bay. Part 1 of the application for the 
COL was submitted by letter dated July 13, 2007, pursuant to the 
requirements of Title 10, Part 52, and in accordance with 10 CFR 
2.101(a)(5). Subsequent information was submitted on July 16, 2007, 
August 2, 2007, and October 30, 2007. In addition, the UniStar COL 
application references dose consequence information in UniStar's 
December 14, 2007, application for certification of the Evolutionary 
Power Reactor design. Accordingly, the NRC staff reviewed the design 
certification application and determined that it contains information 
sufficient to permit docketing of the environmental report (ER). A 
notice of receipt and availability of the partial application, which 
included the ER, was published in the Federal Register on August 15, 
2007 (72 FR 45832). A notice of acceptance for docketing of the partial 
application for the COL was published in the Federal Register on 
January 31, 2008 (73 FR 5877). The purpose of this notice is to inform 
the public that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will be 
preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) in support of the 
review of the COL partial application and to provide the public an 
opportunity to participate in the environmental scoping process, as 
defined in 10 CFR 51.29.
    In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR 800.8(c), ``Coordination with 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended,'' the 
NRC staff plans to coordinate compliance with Section 106 of the 
National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) with steps taken to meet the 
requirements of NEPA. Pursuant to 36 CFR 800.8(c), the NRC staff 
intends to use the process and documentation for the preparation of the 
EIS on the proposed action to comply with section 106 of the NHPA in 
lieu of the procedures set forth in 36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6.
    In accordance with 10 CFR 51.45, 10 CFR 51.50, and 10 CFR 
2.101(a)(5), UniStar submitted the ER along with portions of the Final 
Safety Analysis Report (FSAR) as part 1 of the partial application. The 
ER was prepared pursuant to 10 CFR Parts 51 and 52 and is available for 
public inspection at the NRC Public Document Room (PDR), located at One 
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, 
Maryland, or from the Publicly Available Records component of the NRC's 
Agency-wide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). ADAMS is 
accessible at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html, which provides 
access through the NRC's Electronic Reading Room (ERR) link. The 
accession number in ADAMS for part 1 of the partial application 
received on July 13, 2007, is ML071980294. The accession numbers in 
ADAMS for the supplemental information submitted by letters dated July 
16, 2007, August 2, 2007, October 30, 2007, and December 14, 2007, are 
ML072000363, ML072200533, ML072220589, ML073060128, ML073520192, 
ML073520211, and ML073520221. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS 
or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS 
should contact the NRC's PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-
415-4737, or by sending an e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. The partial 
application may also be viewed on the Internet at https://www.nrc.gov/
reactors/new-licensing/col/calvert-cliffs.html. In addition, the 
Calvert Library, Southern Branch located at 20 Appeal Lane, Lusby, 
Maryland, and Calvert Library, Prince Frederick located at 850 Costley 
Way, Prince Frederick, Maryland, have agreed to make the ER available 
for public inspection.
    The following key reference documents related to the COL partial 
application and the NRC staff's review process are available through 
the NRC's Web site at https://www.nrc.gov:
    a. 10 CFR Part 51, Environmental Protection Regulations for 
Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions,
    b. 10 CFR Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for 
Nuclear Power Plants,
    c. 10 CFR Part 100, Reactor Site Criteria,
    d. NUREG-1555, Standard Review Plans for Environmental Reviews for 
Nuclear Power Plants,
    e. NUREG/BR-0298, Brochure on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing 
Process,
    f. Fact Sheet on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing Process,
    g. Regulatory Guide 4.2, Preparation of Environmental Reports for 
Nuclear Power Stations,
    h. Regulatory Guide 1.206, Combined License Applications for 
Nuclear Power Plants, and
    i. NRR Office Instruction LIC-203, Procedural Guidance for 
Preparing Environmental Assessments and Considering Environmental 
Issues.
    The regulations, NUREG-series documents, regulatory guides, and 
fact sheet can be found under Document Collections in the Electronic 
Reading Room on the NRC Web page. Finally, Office Instruction LIC-203 
can be found in ADAMS in two parts under accession numbers ML011710073 
(main text) and ML011780314 (charts and figures).
    This notice advises the public that the NRC intends to gather the 
information necessary to prepare an EIS in support of the review of the 
partial application for the COL at the CCNPP COL site. Possible 
alternatives to the proposed action (issuance of the COL at the CCNPP 
COL site) include no action and consideration of alternative sites. The 
NRC is required by 10 CFR 51.20(b)(2) to prepare an EIS in connection 
with the issuance of a COL. This notice is being published in 
accordance with NEPA and NRC regulations found in 10 CFR Part 51.
    The NRC will first conduct a scoping process for the EIS and, as 
soon as practicable thereafter, will prepare a draft EIS for public 
comment. Participation in the scoping process by members of the public 
and local, State, Tribal, and Federal government agencies is 
encouraged. The scoping process for the EIS will be used to accomplish 
the following:

[[Page 8720]]

    a. Define the proposed action which is to be the subject of the 
EIS;
    b. Determine the scope of the EIS and identify the significant 
issues to be analyzed in depth;
    c. Identify and eliminate from detailed study those issues that are 
peripheral or that are not significant;
    d. Identify any environmental assessments and other EISs that are 
being or will be prepared that are related to, but are not part of the 
scope of the EIS being considered;
    e. Identify other environmental review and consultation 
requirements related to the proposed action;
    f. Identify parties consulting with the NRC under the NHPA, as set 
forth in 36 CFR 800.8(c)(1)(i);
    g. Indicate the relationship between the timing of the preparation 
of the environmental analyses and the Commission's tentative planning 
and decision-making schedule;
    h. Identify any cooperating agencies and, as appropriate, allocate 
assignments for preparation and schedules for completing the EIS to the 
NRC and any cooperating agencies; and
    i. Describe how the EIS will be prepared and include any contractor 
assistance to be used.
    The NRC invites the following entities to participate in the 
scoping process:
    a. The applicant, UniStar Nuclear;
    b. Any Federal agency that has jurisdiction by law or special 
expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved or that is 
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
    c. Affected State and local government agencies, including those 
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
    d. Any affected Indian tribe;
    e. Any person who requests or has requested an opportunity to 
participate in the scoping process; and
    f. Any person who intends to petition for leave to intervene.
    In accordance with 10 CFR 51.26, the scoping process for an EIS may 
include a public scoping meeting to help identify significant issues 
related to a proposed activity and to determine the scope of issues to 
be addressed in an EIS. The NRC will hold two identical public scoping 
meetings for the EIS regarding the CCNPP COL partial application. The 
scoping meetings are scheduled for Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at the 
Holiday Inn Select, 155 Holiday Drive, Solomons, Maryland. The first 
meeting will convene at 1 p.m. and will continue until approximately 4 
p.m. The second meeting will convene at 7 p.m. and will continue until 
approximately 10 p.m. The meetings will be transcribed and will 
include: (1) An overview by the NRC staff of the NEPA environmental 
review process, the proposed scope of the EIS, the proposed review 
schedule, and (2) the opportunity for interested government agencies, 
organizations, and individuals to submit comments or suggestions on the 
environmental issues or the proposed scope of the EIS. Additionally, 
the NRC staff will host informal discussions one hour before the start 
of the two meetings at the Holiday Inn Select. No formal comments on 
the proposed scope of the EIS will be accepted during the informal 
discussions. To be considered, comments must be provided either at the 
transcribed public meeting or in writing, as discussed below. Persons 
may register to attend or present oral comments at the meeting on the 
scope of the NEPA review by contacting Mr. Thomas L. Fredrichs at 1-
800-368-5642, extension 5971, or by e-mail to the NRC at 
CalvertCliffs.COLAEIS@nrc.gov, no later than March 11, 2008.
    Members of the public may also register to speak at the meeting 
within 15 minutes of the start of the meeting. Individual oral comments 
may be limited by the time available, depending on the number of 
persons who register. Members of the public who have not registered may 
also have an opportunity to speak, if time permits. Public comments 
will be considered in the scoping process for the EIS. Mr. Fredrichs 
will need to be contacted no later than March 11, 2008, if special 
equipment or accommodations are needed to attend or present information 
at the public meeting, so that the NRC staff can determine whether the 
request can be accommodated.
    Members of the public may send written comments on the 
environmental scope of the CCNPP COL review to the Chief, Rules and 
Directives Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of 
Administration, Mailstop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001 and should cite the publication date and page 
number of this Federal Register notice. Comments may also be delivered 
to Room T-6D59, Two White Flint North, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 
Maryland from 7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., during Federal workdays. To be 
considered in the scoping process, comments should be received by the 
end of the scoping comment period, which is April 14, 2008. Written 
comments should be postmarked by April 14, 2008. Electronic comments 
may be sent via the Internet to the NRC at 
CalvertCliffsCOLAEIS@nrc.gov. Submissions should be sent no later than 
April 14, 2008, to be considered in the scoping process. Comments will 
be available in the meeting summary report electronically and 
accessible through the NRC's ERR link at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html.
    Participation in the scoping process for the EIS does not entitle 
participants to become parties to the proceeding to which the EIS 
relates. Notice of a hearing regarding the complete application for a 
COL will be the subject of a future Federal Register notice if UniStar 
submits the remaining portion of the Calvert Cliffs COL application and 
the NRC staff finds it acceptable for docketing.
    At the conclusion of the scoping process, the NRC staff will 
prepare a concise summary of the determination and conclusions reached, 
including the significant issues identified, and will send a copy of 
the summary to each participant in the scoping process. The summary 
will also be available for inspection through the NRC's ERR link. The 
staff will then prepare and issue for comment the draft EIS, which will 
be the subject of separate notices and a separate public meeting. A 
copy of the draft EIS will be available for public inspection at the 
above-mentioned address, and one copy per request will be provided free 
of charge. After receipt and consideration of the comments, the NRC 
staff will prepare a final EIS, (which will also be available for 
public inspection).
    Information about the proposed EIS and the scoping process may be 
obtained from Mr. Thomas L. Fredrichs, Senior Environmental Project 
Manager at (301) 415-5971.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of February 2008.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
R. W. Borchardt,
Director, Office of New Reactors.
[FR Doc. E8-2775 Filed 2-13-08; 8:45 am]
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