Southern California Edison Company; San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Unit 2 and Unit 3; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact, 51339-51340 [E9-24053]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 192 / Tuesday, October 6, 2009 / Notices
on September 11 and 12, 2009. The
notice provided an opportunity to
submit comments on the NRC staff’s
proposed NSHC determination.
The supplemental letter dated
September 8, 2009, provided additional
information that clarified the
application, did not expand the scope of
the application as originally noticed,
and did not change the NRC staff’s
original proposed no significant hazards
consideration determination as
published in The Tribune.
The Commission’s related evaluation
of the amendment, finding of exigent
circumstances, consideration of public
comments, state consultation, and final
NSHC determination are contained in a
safety evaluation dated September 17,
2009.
Attorney for licensee: Jennifer Post,
Esq., Pacific Gas and Electric Company,
P.O. Box 7442, San Francisco, California
94120.
NRC Branch Chief: Michael T.
Markley.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 25th day
of September 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Joseph G. Giitter,
Director, Division of Operating Reactor
Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. E9–23780 Filed 10–5–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[NRC–2008–0361]
Notice of Availability for Comment of
Draft Standard Review Plan for
Renewal of Independent Spent Fuel
Storage Installation Licenses and Dry
Cask Storage System Certificates of
Compliance
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability and
opportunity to provide comments.
jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
AGENCY:
DATES: Comments must be provided by
December 21, 2009.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ata
Istar, Structural Mechanics and
Materials Branch, Division of Spent
Fuel Storage and Transportation
Division, Office of Nuclear Material
Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20005–0001. Telephone: (301) 492–
3409; fax number: (301) 492–3342;
e-mail: ata.istar@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
VerDate Nov<24>2008
16:15 Oct 05, 2009
Jkt 220001
I. Introduction
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) has prepared a draft Standard
Review Plan (SRP) NUREG–1927,
entitled ‘‘Standard Review Plan for
Renewal of Independent Spent Fuel
Storage Installation Licenses and Dry
Cask Storage System Certificate of
Compliance.’’ This draft SRP would
provide guidance to the NRC staff when
reviewing Safety Analyses Reports
submitted by applicants for renewals of
specific Independent Spent Fuel Storage
Installation licenses or dry cask storage
system certificates of compliance under
10 CFR part 72. This draft SRP is related
to the proposed rule published in the
Federal Register on September 15, 2009
(74 FR 47126). The NRC is soliciting
public comments on this draft SRP,
which will be considered before the
NRC issues the final version.
II. Further Information
Documents related to this action 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 ADAMS
accession numbers for the documents
related to this notice are provided in the
following table. 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 ata.istar@nrc.gov.
Interim staff guidance
documents
Draft of SRP
NUREG–1927.
ADAMS accession
No.
ML092510340.
Frm 00087
Fmt 4703
Comments can also be submitted by
telephone, fax, or e-mail to the
following: Telephone: (301) 492–3409;
fax number: (301) 492–3342; e-mail:
ata.istar@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day
of September 2009.
For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
Christopher M. Regan,
Chief, Structural Mechanics and Materials
Branch, Division of Spent Fuel Storage and
Transportation, Office of Nuclear Material
Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. E9–24051 Filed 10–5–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50–361 and 50–362; NRC–
2009–0439]
Southern California Edison Company;
San Onofre Nuclear Generating
Station, Unit 2 and Unit 3;
Environmental Assessment and
Finding of No Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of a temporary exemption from
Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Section
50.46 and 10 CFR 50, Appendix K, for
Facility Operating License Nos. NPF–10
and NPF–15, issued to Southern
California Edison Company (SCE, the
licensee), for operation of the San
Onofre Nuclear Generating Station
(SONGS), Unit 2 and Unit 3,
respectively, located in San Diego
County, California. Therefore, as
required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is
issuing this environmental assessment
and finding of no significant impact.
Environmental Assessment
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. Comments and
questions on this draft SRP should be
directed to Ata Istar, Structural
Mechanics and Materials Branch,
Division of Spent Fuel Storage and
Transportation, Office of Nuclear
Materials Safety and Safeguards, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20005–0001 by
December 21, 2009. Comments received
after this date will be considered if it is
practical to do so, but assurance of
consideration cannot be given to
comments received after this date.
PO 00000
51339
Sfmt 4703
Identification of the Proposed Action
The requirements in 10 CFR 50.46
specifically, and 10 CFR 50, Appendix
K implicitly, refer to the use of Zircaloy
or ZIRLO cladding. Therefore, a
temporary exemption is required to use
fuel rods clad with an advanced
zirconium-based alloy that is not either
Zircaloy or ZIRLO. Unlike the current
fuel assemblies, the lead fuel assemblies
(LFAs) manufactured by AREVA NP
will contain M5 alloy cladding material.
The licensee has requested a temporary
exemption to allow the use of M5 alloy
cladding.
The temporary exemption would
allow up to 16 LFAs manufactured by
AREVA NP with M5 alloy cladding
material to be inserted into the SONGS
Unit 2 or Unit 3 reactor cores during the
E:\FR\FM\06OCN1.SGM
06OCN1
51340
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 192 / Tuesday, October 6, 2009 / Notices
upcoming (Cycle 16) refueling outages
for each unit. The temporary exemption
would allow the LFAs to be used for up
to three operating cycles (Cycles 16, 17,
and 18). Currently, eight AREVA NP
LFAs are scheduled for installation in
SONGS Unit 2 for Cycle 16.
The proposed action is in accordance
with the licensee’s request for
exemption dated January 30, 2009, as
supplemented by letter dated March 16,
2009.
jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
The Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed temporary exemption is
needed by SCE to allow the use of M5
alloy clad LFAs to evaluate cladding
material for use in future fuel
assemblies and to provide a more robust
design to eliminate grid to rod fretting
fuel failures. The regulations specify
standards and acceptance criteria only
for fuel rods clad with Zircaloy or
ZIRLO. Consistent with 10 CFR 50.46, a
temporary exemption is required to use
fuel rods clad with an advanced alloy
that is not Zircaloy or ZIRLO. Therefore,
the licensee needs a temporary
exemption to insert up to 16 LFAs
containing new cladding material into
the SONGS Unit 2 or Unit 3 reactor
cores.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The NRC has completed its safety
evaluation of the proposed action and
concludes that the proposed exemption
will not present any undue risk to the
public health and safety. The safety
evaluation performed by Framatome
ANP, Inc., ‘‘BAW–10227P–A,
Evaluation of Advanced Cladding and
Structural Material (M5) in PWR Reactor
Fuel, Framatome Cogema Fuels,
February 2000,’’ demonstrates that the
predicted chemical, mechanical, and
material performance characteristics of
the M5 cladding are within those
approved for Zircaloy under anticipated
operational occurrences and postulated
accidents. Furthermore, the LFAs will
be placed in non-limiting locations. In
the unlikely event that cladding failures
occur in the LFAs, the environmental
impact would be minimal and is
bounded by previous accident analyses.
The proposed action will not
significantly increase the probability or
consequences of accidents. No changes
are being made in the types of effluents
that may be released offsite. There is no
significant increase in the amount of
any effluent released offsite. There is no
significant increase in occupational or
public radiation exposure. Therefore,
there are no significant radiological
environmental impacts associated with
the proposed action.
VerDate Nov<24>2008
16:15 Oct 05, 2009
Jkt 220001
With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have a potential to affect
any historic sites. It does not affect nonradiological plant effluents, does not
affect any environmental resources, and
has no other environmental impact.
Therefore, there are no significant nonradiological environmental impacts
associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that
there are no significant environmental
impacts associated with the proposed
action.
The details of the staff’s safety
evaluation will be provided in the
exemption that will be issued as part of
the letter to the licensee approving the
exemption to the regulation.
Environmental Impacts of the
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed
action, the staff considered denial of the
proposed action (i.e., the ‘‘no-action’’
alternative). Denial of the application
would result in no change in current
environmental impacts. The
environmental impacts of the proposed
action and the alternative action are
similar.
Alternative Use of Resources
The action does not involve the use of
any different resources than those
previously considered in the Final
Environmental Statement for SONGS
Units 2 and 3, dated May 12, 1981.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
In accordance with its stated policy,
on April 8, 2009, the NRC staff
consulted with the California State
official, Mr. Steve Hsu of the Radiologic
Health Branch of the California
Department of Public Health, regarding
the environmental impact of the
proposed action. The State official had
no comments.
Finding of No Significant Impact
On the basis of the environmental
assessment, the NRC concludes that the
proposed action will not have a
significant effect on the quality of the
human environment. Accordingly, the
NRC has determined not to prepare an
environmental impact statement for the
proposed action.
For further details with respect to the
proposed action, see the licensee’s letter
dated January 30, 2009, as
supplemented by letter dated March 16,
2009, Agency Documents Access and
Management System (ADAMS)
Accession Nos. ML090360738 and
ML090780251, respectively. Documents
may be examined, and/or copied for a
fee, at the NRC’s Public Document
PO 00000
Frm 00088
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Room (PDR), located at One White Flint
North, Public File Area O1 F21, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville,
Maryland. Publicly available records
will be accessible electronically from
the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading
Room on the Internet at the NRC Web
site, https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. Persons who do not have
access to ADAMS or who encounter
problems in accessing the documents
located in ADAMS should contact the
NRC PDR Reference staff by telephone
at 1–800–397–4209 or 301–415–4737, or
send an e-mail to pdr.resource@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day
of September 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James R Hall,
Senior Project Manager,
Plant Licensing Branch IV, Division of
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E9–24053 Filed 10–5–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Sunshine Act; Notice of Meetings
DATES: Weeks of October 5, 12, 19, 26,
November 2, 9, 2009.
PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference
Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland.
STATUS: Public and Closed.
Week of October 5, 2009
There are no meetings scheduled for
the week of October 5, 2009.
Week of October 12, 2009—Tentative
Tuesday, October 13, 2009.
9:30 a.m.—Discussion of Security
Issues (Closed—Ex. 3)
Week of October 19, 2009—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the week of October 19, 2009.
Week of October 26, 2009—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the week of October 26, 2009.
Week of November 2, 2009—Tentative
Tuesday, November 3, 2009.
9:30 a.m.—Briefing on Fire Protection
Lessons Learned from Shearon
Harris (Public Meeting) (Contact:
Alex Klein, 301–415–2822)
This meeting will be webcast live at
the Web address—https://www.nrc.gov.
Week of November 9, 2009—Tentative
Tuesday, November 10, 2009.
9:30 a.m.—Briefing on NRC
International Activities (Public
E:\FR\FM\06OCN1.SGM
06OCN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 192 (Tuesday, October 6, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51339-51340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-24053]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-361 and 50-362; NRC-2009-0439]
Southern California Edison Company; San Onofre Nuclear Generating
Station, Unit 2 and Unit 3; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of a temporary exemption from Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Section 50.46 and 10 CFR 50, Appendix K,
for Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-10 and NPF-15, issued to
Southern California Edison Company (SCE, the licensee), for operation
of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), Unit 2 and Unit
3, respectively, located in San Diego County, California. Therefore, as
required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing this environmental
assessment and finding of no significant impact.
Environmental Assessment
Identification of the Proposed Action
The requirements in 10 CFR 50.46 specifically, and 10 CFR 50,
Appendix K implicitly, refer to the use of Zircaloy or ZIRLO cladding.
Therefore, a temporary exemption is required to use fuel rods clad with
an advanced zirconium-based alloy that is not either Zircaloy or ZIRLO.
Unlike the current fuel assemblies, the lead fuel assemblies (LFAs)
manufactured by AREVA NP will contain M5 alloy cladding material. The
licensee has requested a temporary exemption to allow the use of M5
alloy cladding.
The temporary exemption would allow up to 16 LFAs manufactured by
AREVA NP with M5 alloy cladding material to be inserted into the SONGS
Unit 2 or Unit 3 reactor cores during the
[[Page 51340]]
upcoming (Cycle 16) refueling outages for each unit. The temporary
exemption would allow the LFAs to be used for up to three operating
cycles (Cycles 16, 17, and 18). Currently, eight AREVA NP LFAs are
scheduled for installation in SONGS Unit 2 for Cycle 16.
The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's request
for exemption dated January 30, 2009, as supplemented by letter dated
March 16, 2009.
The Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed temporary exemption is needed by SCE to allow the use
of M5 alloy clad LFAs to evaluate cladding material for use in future
fuel assemblies and to provide a more robust design to eliminate grid
to rod fretting fuel failures. The regulations specify standards and
acceptance criteria only for fuel rods clad with Zircaloy or ZIRLO.
Consistent with 10 CFR 50.46, a temporary exemption is required to use
fuel rods clad with an advanced alloy that is not Zircaloy or ZIRLO.
Therefore, the licensee needs a temporary exemption to insert up to 16
LFAs containing new cladding material into the SONGS Unit 2 or Unit 3
reactor cores.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC has completed its safety evaluation of the proposed action
and concludes that the proposed exemption will not present any undue
risk to the public health and safety. The safety evaluation performed
by Framatome ANP, Inc., ``BAW-10227P-A, Evaluation of Advanced Cladding
and Structural Material (M5) in PWR Reactor Fuel, Framatome Cogema
Fuels, February 2000,'' demonstrates that the predicted chemical,
mechanical, and material performance characteristics of the M5 cladding
are within those approved for Zircaloy under anticipated operational
occurrences and postulated accidents. Furthermore, the LFAs will be
placed in non-limiting locations. In the unlikely event that cladding
failures occur in the LFAs, the environmental impact would be minimal
and is bounded by previous accident analyses.
The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability
or consequences of accidents. No changes are being made in the types of
effluents that may be released offsite. There is no significant
increase in the amount of any effluent released offsite. There is no
significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure.
Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental impacts
associated with the proposed action.
With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites. It does
not affect non-radiological plant effluents, does not affect any
environmental resources, and has no other environmental impact.
Therefore, there are no significant non-radiological environmental
impacts associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there are no significant
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
The details of the staff's safety evaluation will be provided in
the exemption that will be issued as part of the letter to the licensee
approving the exemption to the regulation.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed action, the staff considered
denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action'' alternative).
Denial of the application would result in no change in current
environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action
and the alternative action are similar.
Alternative Use of Resources
The action does not involve the use of any different resources than
those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement for
SONGS Units 2 and 3, dated May 12, 1981.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
In accordance with its stated policy, on April 8, 2009, the NRC
staff consulted with the California State official, Mr. Steve Hsu of
the Radiologic Health Branch of the California Department of Public
Health, regarding the environmental impact of the proposed action. The
State official had no comments.
Finding of No Significant Impact
On the basis of the environmental assessment, the NRC concludes
that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the
quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the NRC has determined
not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed
action.
For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the
licensee's letter dated January 30, 2009, as supplemented by letter
dated March 16, 2009, Agency Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS) Accession Nos. ML090360738 and ML090780251, respectively.
Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public
Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, Public File Area
O1 F21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland.
Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the
ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the NRC Web
site, https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do not have
access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the documents
located in ADAMS should contact the NRC PDR Reference staff by
telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or send an e-mail to
pdr.resource@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day of September 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James R Hall,
Senior Project Manager,
Plant Licensing Branch IV, Division of Operating Reactor
Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E9-24053 Filed 10-5-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
