Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact For License Amendment to Byproduct Materials License No. 09-10672-03 for Unrestricted Release of the Environmental Protection Agency's Facility in Key Largo, FL, 8122-8123 [E9-3750]
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 34 / Monday, February 23, 2009 / Notices
Further Information
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of
the NRC’s ‘‘Rules of Practice,’’ the
details with respect to this action,
including the SER and accompanying
documentation, and license amendment
request, 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 ADAMS accession
numbers for the documents related to
this notice are:
1. NRC Order dated December. 23,
2008—ML083500508.
2. Amendment 85 to SNM–124: dated
December. 31, 2008—ML083530117.
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 via 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 Rockville, Maryland, this 9th day
of February, 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Kevin M. Ramsey,
Project Manager, Fuel Manufacturing Branch,
Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards,
Offfice of Nuclear Material Safety and
Safeguards.
[FR Doc. E9–3752 Filed 2–20–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
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[DOCKET NO. 030–32959; NRC–2009–0059]
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
Notice of Availability of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact For License
Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 09–10672–03 for
Unrestricted Release of the
Environmental Protection Agency’s
Facility in Key Largo, FL
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License
Amendment.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dennis Lawyer, Health Physicist,
VerDate Nov<24>2008
16:31 Feb 20, 2009
Jkt 217001
Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I,
475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia,
Pennsylvania; telephone 610–337–5366;
fax number 610–337–5269 or by e-mail:
dennis.lawyer@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. 09–
10672–03. This license is held by
Environmental Protection Agency, Gulf
Ecology Division (the Licensee), for its
Key Largo Laboratory NOAA Facility
located at 512 Caribbean Avenue in Key
Largo, Florida (the Facility). Issuance of
the amendment would authorize release
of the Facility for unrestricted use. The
Licensee requested this action in a letter
dated September 3, 2008. 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 September 3, 2008,
license amendment request, resulting in
release of the Facility for unrestricted
use. License No. 09–10672–03 was
issued on November 2, 1992, pursuant
to 10 CFR Part 30, and has been
amended periodically since that time.
This license authorizes the Licensee to
use unsealed byproduct material for
purposes of conducting research and
development activities on laboratory
bench tops. The proposed action
pertains only to the cessation of
licensed activities at the Facility. The
license authorizes use of licensed
material at other locations that will not
be affected by this action, and the
license will thus not be terminated if the
proposed action is approved.
The Facility is situated within a 2000
square foot building on 0.53 acres and
consists of general office, residential,
laboratory, and storage space. Within
the Facility, use of licensed materials
was confined to 120 square feet
laboratory. The Facility is located in a
mixed residential and commercial area.
Within the Facility, the radionuclide of
concern was Hydrogen-3 and carbon-14
PO 00000
Frm 00071
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
because their half-lives being greater
than 120 days.
In December 1996, the Licensee
ceased licensed activities at the Facility
and initiated survey and
decontamination actions there. 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,
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 the Facility, and
seeks the unrestricted use of its Facility.
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
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 on January 8 and 9, 2008. The
final status survey report was attached
to the Licensee’s amendment request
dated September 3, 2008. 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 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.
E:\FR\FM\23FEN1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 34 / Monday, February 23, 2009 / Notices
jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
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.
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
VerDate Nov<24>2008
16:31 Feb 20, 2009
Jkt 217001
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
Bureau of Radiation Control, Florida
Department of Health for review on
December 2, 2008. On December 9,
2008, the Florida Bureau of Radiation
Control responded by electronic mail.
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.
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
Documents 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. NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated
NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;’’
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
PO 00000
Frm 00072
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
8123
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;’’ and
5. United States Environmental
Protection Agency letter dated
September 3, 2008 [ML082690377].
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 Region I, 475 Allendale Road,
King of Prussia this 10th day of February
2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division
of Nuclear Materials Safety Region I.
[FR Doc. E9–3750 Filed 2–20–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Advisory Committee on Reactor
Safeguards (ACRS) Subcommittee
Meeting on Materials, Metallurgy &
Reactor Fuels; Revised
The ACRS Subcommittee on
Materials, Metallurgy & Reactor Fuels
scheduled for Wednesday, March 4,
2009, has been moved to the
Commission Hearing Room, 01–F16/01–
G16, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland, 20852. All other items
pertaining to this meeting remain the
same as published previously in the
Federal Register on Tuesday, February
10, 2009.
For future information contact:
Michael L. Benson, Designated Federal
Officer (Telephone: 301–415–6396)
between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. (ET) or by email Michael.Benson@nrc.gov.
Dated, February 17, 2009.
Cayetano Santos,
Branch Chief Reactor Safety Branch A,
Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards.
[FR Doc. E9–3753 Filed 2–20–09; 8:45 am]
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 34 (Monday, February 23, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8122-8123]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-3750]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[DOCKET NO. 030-32959; NRC-2009-0059]
Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact For License Amendment to Byproduct Materials
License No. 09-10672-03 for Unrestricted Release of the Environmental
Protection Agency's Facility in Key Largo, FL
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact for License Amendment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Lawyer, Health Physicist,
Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region
I, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; telephone 610-
337-5366; fax number 610-337-5269 or by e-mail: dennis.lawyer@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. 09-
10672-03. This license is held by Environmental Protection Agency, Gulf
Ecology Division (the Licensee), for its Key Largo Laboratory NOAA
Facility located at 512 Caribbean Avenue in Key Largo, Florida (the
Facility). Issuance of the amendment would authorize release of the
Facility for unrestricted use. The Licensee requested this action in a
letter dated September 3, 2008. 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 September 3, 2008,
license amendment request, resulting in release of the Facility for
unrestricted use. License No. 09-10672-03 was issued on November 2,
1992, pursuant to 10 CFR Part 30, and has been amended periodically
since that time. This license authorizes the Licensee to use unsealed
byproduct material for purposes of conducting research and development
activities on laboratory bench tops. The proposed action pertains only
to the cessation of licensed activities at the Facility. The license
authorizes use of licensed material at other locations that will not be
affected by this action, and the license will thus not be terminated if
the proposed action is approved.
The Facility is situated within a 2000 square foot building on 0.53
acres and consists of general office, residential, laboratory, and
storage space. Within the Facility, use of licensed materials was
confined to 120 square feet laboratory. The Facility is located in a
mixed residential and commercial area. Within the Facility, the
radionuclide of concern was Hydrogen-3 and carbon-14 because their
half-lives being greater than 120 days.
In December 1996, the Licensee ceased licensed activities at the
Facility and initiated survey and decontamination actions there. 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,
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 the
Facility, and seeks the unrestricted use of its Facility.
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 decontamination activities, as necessary, in the areas of the
Facility affected by these radionuclides.
The Licensee conducted a final status survey on January 8 and 9,
2008. The final status survey report was attached to the Licensee's
amendment request dated September 3, 2008. 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 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.
[[Page 8123]]
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. 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 Bureau
of Radiation Control, Florida Department of Health for review on
December 2, 2008. On December 9, 2008, the Florida Bureau of Radiation
Control responded by electronic mail. 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.
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 Documents 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. NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;''
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;'' and
5. United States Environmental Protection Agency letter dated
September 3, 2008 [ML082690377].
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 Region I, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia this 10th
day of February 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James P. Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial and R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety
Region I.
[FR Doc. E9-3750 Filed 2-20-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
