Notice of Environmental Assessment Related to the Issuance of a License Amendment to Byproduct Material License No. 24-00196-07, for Unrestricted Release of a Facility for Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO, 55874-55876 [E8-22687]
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 188 / Friday, September 26, 2008 / Notices
devices. Furthermore, NRC inspections
have evaluated the Licensee’s
performance and determined that the
Licensee has safely handled these
unregistered sources for many years.
Accordingly, the NRC staff has
concluded that granting this exemption
is authorized by law and will not
endanger life or property or the common
defense and security, and is in the
public interest.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The proposed action is largely
administrative in nature. The Licensee
has handled sources and devices which
have not been registered by the NRC
under 10 CFR 32.210, or by an
Agreement State, for many years. The
Licensee is qualified by sufficient
training and experience and has
sufficient facilities and equipment to
handle these sources and devices.
Approving this exemption will have no
environmental impact.
Environmental Impacts of the
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Due to the largely administrative
nature of the proposed action, its
environmental impacts are small.
Additionally, denying the exemption
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 will not significantly
impact the quality of the human
environment; the NRC staff concludes
that the proposed action is the preferred
alternative.
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
Agencies and Persons Consulted
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
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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 exemption
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. License renewal application dated
June 29, 2005 [ML052130136]
2. Licensee letter dated October 31,
2005 [ML053130381]
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, O1 F21, One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR
reproduction contractor will copy
documents for a fee.
Dated at Region I, 475 Allendale Road,
King of Prussia, PA, this 11th day of
September, 2008.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I.
[FR Doc. E8–22689 Filed 9–25–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030–11789]
Notice of Environmental Assessment
Related to the Issuance of a License
Amendment to Byproduct Material
License No. 24–00196–07, for
Unrestricted Release of a Facility for
Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment.
AGENCY:
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
George M. McCann, Senior Health
Physicist, Decommissioning Branch,
Division of Nuclear Materials Safety,
Region III, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, 2443 Warrenville Road,
Lisle, Illinois 60532; telephone: (630)
829–9856; fax number: (630) 515–1259;
or by e-mail at Mike.McCann@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is considering the
issuance of an amendment to terminate
NRC Byproduct Materials License No.
24–00196–07, which is held by Saint
Louis University (licensee). The
issuance of the amendment would
authorize the unrestricted release of the
licensee’s Institute for Molecular
Virology (the facility), which consists of
a 25,000 square foot building located on
the licensee’s campus at 3681 Park
Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri.
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 request to release the
facility for unrestricted use in
accordance with 10 CFR Part 20,
Subpart E. The Licensee requested this
action in a letter dated July 9, 2008
(ADAMS Accession Number
ML081930612). The license was issued
on January 16, 1976, pursuant to 10 CFR
Part 30, and has been amended
periodically since that time. This
license authorized the Licensee to use
unsealed byproduct materials for
conducting research and development
activities involving medical research,
diagnostic and therapy medical
procedures, laboratory studies and
educational programs in the areas of
molecular virology, viral oncology, and
cancer biology.
The licensee performed a Historical
Site Assessment (HSA) in May and June
of 2008. The purpose of the HSA was to
determine the current status of the
facility including potential, likely, or
known sources of radioactive
contamination by gathering data from
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 188 / Friday, September 26, 2008 / Notices
various sources. This data included
physical characteristics and location of
the site as well as information gathered
from personnel interviews and
inspection of site operating records, and
from radiological surveys. Records
reviewed included: radioactive
materials licenses, license applications,
amendment requests, meeting minutes,
radiological surveys, radionuclide
receipt and distribution records,
incident reports, facility renovation
records, blueprints, plans and design
specifications. Personnel interviews
included radiation safety, research,
maintenance, operations, and facilities
personnel. Current employees having
knowledge of facility historical
operations were interviewed.
The licensee did not dispose of
radioactive waste via on-site burial. All
waste containing long lived
radioisotopes was shipped offsite to a
licensed landfill, approved to receive
and dispose of radioactive materials. No
waste-related environmental concerns
were identified during the record search
or interviews of the radiation safety
staff. There were no recorded spills or
loss of control that required additional
investigation.
Decontamination of the facility was
completed on June 20, 2008. The
licensee’s ‘‘SLU IMV Final Status
Report, Rev 4.pdf Institute for Molecular
Virology Decommissioning Final Status
Report,’’ dated June 24, 2008
(ML081930612), was submitted to the
NRC on July 9, 2008.
Based on the Licensee’s survey results
it was determined that only routine
decontamination activities, in
accordance with the licensee’s NRCapproved, operating radiation safety
procedures, were required. The Licensee
was not required to submit a
decommissioning plan to the NRC
because worker cleanup activities and
procedures are consistent with those
approved for routine operations. The
Licensee conducted surveys of the
facility and provided information to the
NRC to demonstrate that it meets the
criteria in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20
for unrestricted release.
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
Need for the Proposed Action
The licensee has ceased conducting
licensed activities at its facility and
seeks the termination of its NRC license.
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: Hydrogen3 and carbon-14. Prior to performing the
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18:07 Sep 25, 2008
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final status survey, the Licensee
conducted radiation surveys and
decontamination activities, as
necessary, in the areas of the Facility
affected by these radionuclides.
The Licensee conducted a final status
survey between June 17 and June 20,
2008, in the facility. The licensee’s
surveys included the liquid drain,
ventilation exhaust and vacuum
systems. No areas were considered to
have a potential for delivering a dose to
the public above the release criteria.
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 radionuclidespecific derived concentration guideline
levels (DCGLs), developed there by the
NRC, which comply with the dose
criterion in 10 CFR 20.1402. These
DCGLs define the maximum amount of
residual radioactivity on building
surfaces, equipment, and materials, and
in soils, that will satisfy the NRC
requirements in Subpart E of 10 CFR
Part 20 for unrestricted release. The
Licensee’s final status survey results
were below these DCGLs and are in
compliance with the As Low As
Reasonably Achievable (ALARA)
requirement of 10 CFR 20.1402. The
NRC thus finds that the Licensee’s final
status survey results are acceptable.
Based on its review, the staff has
determined that the affected
environment and any environmental
impacts associated with the proposed
action are bounded by the impacts
evaluated by the ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities’’ (NUREG–
1496) Volumes 1–3 (ML042310492,
ML042320379, and ML042330385). The
staff finds there were no significant
environmental impacts from the use of
radioactive material at the Facility. The
NRC staff reviewed the docket file
records and the final status survey
report to identify any non-radiological
hazards that may have impacted the
environment surrounding the Facility.
No such hazards or impacts to the
environment were identified. The NRC
has identified no other radiological or
non-radiological activities in the area
that could result in cumulative
environmental impacts.
The NRC staff finds that the proposed
release of the Facility for unrestricted
use is in compliance with 10 CFR
20.1402. Based on its review, the staff
considered the impact of the residual
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
55875
radioactivity at the Facility and
concluded that the proposed action will
not have a significant effect on the
quality of the human environment.
Environmental Impacts of the
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Due to the largely administrative
nature of the proposed action, its
environmental impacts are small.
Therefore, the only alternative the staff
considered is the no-action alternative,
under which the staff would leave
things as they are by simply denying the
amendment request. This no-action
alternative is not feasible because it
conflicts with 10 CFR 30.36(d) requiring
that decommissioning of byproduct
material facilities be completed and
approved by the NRC after licensed
activities cease. The NRC’s analysis of
the Licensee’s final status survey data
confirmed that the Facility meets the
requirements of 10 CFR 20.1402 for
unrestricted release. Additionally,
denying the amendment request would
result in no change in current
environmental impacts. The
environmental impacts of the proposed
action and the no-action alternative are
therefore similar, and the no-action
alternative is accordingly not further
considered.
Conclusion
The NRC staff has concluded that the
proposed action is consistent with the
NRC’s unrestricted release criteria
specified in 10 CFR 20.1402. Because
the proposed action will not
significantly impact the quality of the
human environment, the NRC staff
concludes that the proposed action is
the preferred alternative.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
The NRC provided a draft of this
Environmental Assessment to the
Missouri Department of Health and
Senior Services Waste, Division of
Community and Public Health, Office of
Emergency Coordination on September
3, 2008. On September 4, 2008, the State
responded by telephone to the NRC
indicating that the State did not have
any comments or concerns regarding the
release of the licensee’s facility.
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
E:\FR\FM\26SEN1.SGM
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55876
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 188 / Friday, September 26, 2008 / Notices
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.
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
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. Mark Haenschen, M.S., J.D., letter
to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Region III, dated July 9, 2008 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML081930612).
2. Title 10 Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
‘‘Radiological Criteria for License
Termination;’’
3. Title 10 Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 51, ‘‘Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic
Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;’’
4. NUREG–1496, ‘‘Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities;’’ NUREG–
1757, Consolidated Decommissioning
Guidance.
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.resource@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 Lisle, Illinois, this 16th day of
September 2008.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
18:07 Sep 25, 2008
Jkt 214001
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Christine A. Lipa,
Chief, Decommissioning Branch, Division of
Nuclear Materials Safety, Region III.
[FR Doc. E8–22687 Filed 9–25–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 52–016]
Calvert Cliffs 3 Nuclear Project, LLC,
and Unistar Nuclear Operating
Services, LLC Notice of Hearing and
Opportunity To Petition for Leave To
Intervene and Order Imposing
Procedures for Access to Sensitive
Unclassified Non-Safeguards
Information and Safeguards
Information for Contention Preparation
on a Combined License for the Calvert
Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant Unit 3
Pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of
1954, as amended, and the regulations
in Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 2, ‘‘Rules of
Practice for Domestic Licensing
Proceedings and Issuance of Orders,’’ 10
CFR Part 50, ‘‘Domestic Licensing of
Production and Utilization Facilities,’’
and 10 CFR Part 52, Licenses,
Certifications, and Approvals for
Nuclear Power Plants,’’ notice is hereby
given that a hearing will be held, at a
time and place to be set in the future by
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC, the Commission) or
designated by the Atomic Safety and
Licensing Board (Board). The hearing
will consider the application dated July
13, 2007, and March 14, 2008, filed by
Constellation Generation Group, LLC,
and UniStar Nuclear Operating Services,
LLC (CGG and UniStar), pursuant to
Subpart C of 10 CFR Part 52 for a
combined license (COL). The
application was supplemented by letters
dated July 16, August 2, September 11,
October 30, December 14, 2007, and
January 14, March 3, March 14, May 15,
May 30, June 20, July 31, August 18 and
August 19, 2008. The application was
revised by letter dated August 20, 2008,
which among other things changed the
applicants to Calvert Cliffs 3 Nuclear
Project, LLC, and UniStar Nuclear
Operating Services, LLC. The
application requests approval of a COL
for Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant
Unit 3, to be located in Calvert County,
Maryland. The two parts of the
application were accepted for docketing
on January 25, 2008 (73 FR 5877,
January 31, 2008) and June 3, 2008 (73
FR 32606, June 9, 2008). The docket
number established for this COL
application is 52–016. The Calvert Cliffs
PO 00000
Frm 00066
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
COL application incorporates by
reference the application for a Standard
Design Certification for the U.S. EPR,
which was submitted to the NRC by
AREVA NP on December 11, 2007, and
supplemented by AREVA on February
7, 2008, and February 18, 2008. The
Standard Design Certification for the
U.S. EPR is the subject of an ongoing
rulemaking under docket number 52–
020. By letter to AREVA dated February
25, 2008, the staff has accepted the
Standard Design Certification for the
U.S. EPR for docketing.
The hearing on the COL application
will be conducted by a Board that will
be designated by the Chairman of the
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board
Panel or will be conducted by the
Commission. Notice as to the
membership of the Board will be
published in the Federal Register at a
later date. The NRC staff will complete
a detailed technical review of the COL
application and will document its
findings in a safety evaluation report.
The Commission will refer a copy of the
COL application to the Advisory
Committee on Reactor Safeguards
(ACRS) in accordance with 10 CFR
52.87, ‘‘Referral to the ACRS,’’ and the
ACRS will report on those portions of
the application that concern safety.
Any person whose interest may be
affected by this proceeding and who
desires to participate as a party to this
proceeding must file a written petition
for leave to intervene in accordance
with 10 CFR 2.309. Those permitted to
intervene become parties to the
proceeding, subject to any limitations in
the order granting leave to intervene,
and have the opportunity to participate
fully in the conduct of the hearing.
All documents filed in NRC
adjudicatory proceedings, including a
request for hearing, a petition for leave
to intervene, any motion or other
document filed in the proceeding prior
to the submission of a request for
hearing or petition to intervene, and
documents filed by interested
governmental entities participating
under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in
accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule,
which the NRC promulgated in August
28, 2007, (72 FR 49139). The E-Filing
process requires participants to submit
and serve all adjudicatory documents
over the internet, or in some cases to
mail copies on electronic storage media.
Participants may not submit paper
copies of their filings unless they seek
an exemption in accordance with the
procedures described below.
To comply with the procedural
requirements of E-Filing, at least 10
days prior to the filing deadline, the
petitioner must contact the Office of the
E:\FR\FM\26SEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 188 (Friday, September 26, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55874-55876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-22687]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030-11789]
Notice of Environmental Assessment Related to the Issuance of a
License Amendment to Byproduct Material License No. 24-00196-07, for
Unrestricted Release of a Facility for Saint Louis University, St.
Louis, MO
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: George M. McCann, Senior Health
Physicist, Decommissioning Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials
Safety, Region III, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2443
Warrenville Road, Lisle, Illinois 60532; telephone: (630) 829-9856; fax
number: (630) 515-1259; or by e-mail at Mike.McCann@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering the
issuance of an amendment to terminate NRC Byproduct Materials License
No. 24-00196-07, which is held by Saint Louis University (licensee).
The issuance of the amendment would authorize the unrestricted release
of the licensee's Institute for Molecular Virology (the facility),
which consists of a 25,000 square foot building located on the
licensee's campus at 3681 Park Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri.
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 request to release
the facility for unrestricted use in accordance with 10 CFR Part 20,
Subpart E. The Licensee requested this action in a letter dated July 9,
2008 (ADAMS Accession Number ML081930612). The license was issued on
January 16, 1976, pursuant to 10 CFR Part 30, and has been amended
periodically since that time. This license authorized the Licensee to
use unsealed byproduct materials for conducting research and
development activities involving medical research, diagnostic and
therapy medical procedures, laboratory studies and educational programs
in the areas of molecular virology, viral oncology, and cancer biology.
The licensee performed a Historical Site Assessment (HSA) in May
and June of 2008. The purpose of the HSA was to determine the current
status of the facility including potential, likely, or known sources of
radioactive contamination by gathering data from
[[Page 55875]]
various sources. This data included physical characteristics and
location of the site as well as information gathered from personnel
interviews and inspection of site operating records, and from
radiological surveys. Records reviewed included: radioactive materials
licenses, license applications, amendment requests, meeting minutes,
radiological surveys, radionuclide receipt and distribution records,
incident reports, facility renovation records, blueprints, plans and
design specifications. Personnel interviews included radiation safety,
research, maintenance, operations, and facilities personnel. Current
employees having knowledge of facility historical operations were
interviewed.
The licensee did not dispose of radioactive waste via on-site
burial. All waste containing long lived radioisotopes was shipped
offsite to a licensed landfill, approved to receive and dispose of
radioactive materials. No waste-related environmental concerns were
identified during the record search or interviews of the radiation
safety staff. There were no recorded spills or loss of control that
required additional investigation.
Decontamination of the facility was completed on June 20, 2008. The
licensee's ``SLU IMV Final Status Report, Rev 4.pdf Institute for
Molecular Virology Decommissioning Final Status Report,'' dated June
24, 2008 (ML081930612), was submitted to the NRC on July 9, 2008.
Based on the Licensee's survey results it was determined that only
routine decontamination activities, in accordance with the licensee's
NRC-approved, operating radiation safety procedures, were required. The
Licensee was not required to submit a decommissioning plan to the NRC
because worker cleanup activities and procedures are consistent with
those approved for routine operations. The Licensee conducted surveys
of the facility and provided information to the NRC to demonstrate that
it meets the criteria in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20 for unrestricted
release.
Need for the Proposed Action
The licensee has ceased conducting licensed activities at its
facility and seeks the termination of its NRC license.
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. Prior to performing the final status survey, the Licensee
conducted radiation surveys and decontamination activities, as
necessary, in the areas of the Facility affected by these
radionuclides.
The Licensee conducted a final status survey between June 17 and
June 20, 2008, in the facility. The licensee's surveys included the
liquid drain, ventilation exhaust and vacuum systems. No areas were
considered to have a potential for delivering a dose to the public
above the release criteria.
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 is in compliance with 10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its
review, the staff considered the impact of the residual radioactivity
at the Facility and concluded that the proposed action will not have a
significant effect on the quality of the human environment.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Due to the largely administrative nature of the proposed action,
its environmental impacts are small. Therefore, the only alternative
the staff considered is the no-action alternative, under which the
staff would leave things as they are by simply denying the amendment
request. This no-action alternative is not feasible because it
conflicts with 10 CFR 30.36(d) requiring that decommissioning of
byproduct material facilities be completed and approved by the NRC
after licensed activities cease. The NRC's analysis of the Licensee's
final status survey data confirmed that the Facility meets the
requirements of 10 CFR 20.1402 for unrestricted release. Additionally,
denying the amendment request would result in no change in current
environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action
and the no-action alternative are therefore similar, and the no-action
alternative is accordingly not further considered.
Conclusion
The NRC staff has concluded that the proposed action is consistent
with the NRC's unrestricted release criteria specified in 10 CFR
20.1402. Because the proposed action will not significantly impact the
quality of the human environment, the NRC staff concludes that the
proposed action is the preferred alternative.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
The NRC provided a draft of this Environmental Assessment to the
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Waste, Division of
Community and Public Health, Office of Emergency Coordination on
September 3, 2008. On September 4, 2008, the State responded by
telephone to the NRC indicating that the State did not have any
comments or concerns regarding the release of the licensee's facility.
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
[[Page 55876]]
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. Mark Haenschen, M.S., J.D., letter to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Region III, dated July 9, 2008 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML081930612).
2. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E,
``Radiological Criteria for License Termination;''
3. Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 51, ``Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions;''
4. NUREG-1496, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement in Support
of Rulemaking on Radiological Criteria for License Termination of NRC-
Licensed Nuclear Facilities;'' NUREG-1757, Consolidated Decommissioning
Guidance.
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.resource@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 Lisle, Illinois, this 16th day of September 2008.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Christine A. Lipa,
Chief, Decommissioning Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety,
Region III.
[FR Doc. E8-22687 Filed 9-25-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
