Strata Energy, Inc., Ross Uranium Recovery Project; New Source Material License Application; Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, 71082-71083 [2011-29566]
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71082
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 221 / Wednesday, November 16, 2011 / Notices
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a
supplemental environmental impact
statement.
decommissioning of uranium in-situ
recovery (ISR), also known as in-situ
leach, facilities and restoration of the
aquifer from which the uranium is being
extracted. Strata submitted the
application for the new source material
license to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) by a letter dated
January 4, 2011. A notice of receipt and
availability of the license application,
including the Environmental Report
(ER), and opportunity to request a
hearing was published in the Federal
Register on July 13, 2011 (76 FR 41308).
The purpose of this notice of intent is
to inform the public that the NRC will
be preparing a site-specific
Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS) to the Generic
Environmental Impact Statement for InSitu Leach Uranium Milling Facilities
(ISR GEIS) for a new source material
license for the Ross Uranium Recovery
Project, as required by Title 10 of the
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
51.26. In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR
800.8, ‘‘Coordination with the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),’’ the
NRC plans to use the environmental
review process as reflected in 10 CFR
part 51 to coordinate compliance with
Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
general information on the NRC NEPA
process or the environmental review
process related to the Ross Uranium
Recovery Project application, please
contact the NRC Environmental Project
Manager, Alan Bjornsen, at (301) 415–
1195 or Alan.Bjornsen@nrc.gov.
Information and documents
associated with the Ross Uranium
Project, including the license
application, are available for public
review through the NRC electronic
reading room: https://www.nrc.gov/
reading-rm/adams.html and on the
NRC’s Ross Uranium Recovery Project
Web page: https://www.nrc.gov/
materials/uranium-recovery/licenseapps/ross.html. Documents may also be
obtained from NRC’s Public Document
Room at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission Headquarters, 11555
Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville,
Maryland.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Strata Energy, Inc. (Strata)
submitted an application for a new
source material license for the Ross
Uranium Recovery Project to be located
in Crook County, Wyoming, 32 miles
northeast of Gillette, Wyoming and 30
miles northwest of Sundance, Wyoming.
The application proposes the
construction, operation, and
1.0 Background
Strata submitted the application for a
new source material license to the NRC
for ISR facilities by a letter dated
January 4, 2011. A notice of receipt and
availability of the license application,
including the ER, and opportunity to
request a hearing was published in the
Federal Register on July 13, 2011 (76 FR
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—Role of Organizations Representing
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—Closing Remarks.
A detailed agenda and list of
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submitted to publicaircraft@ntsb.gov.
The deadline for receipt is November
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The forum will be held in the NTSB
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located at 429 L’Enfant Plaza, SW.,
Washington, DC. The public can view
the forum in person or by webcast at
https://www.ntsb.gov.
NTSB Media Contact: Bridget
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Georgia.Struhsaker@ntsb.gov.
Dated: November 10, 2011.
Candi R. Bing,
Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 2011–29626 Filed 11–15–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7533–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 40–9091; NRC–2011–0148]
Strata Energy, Inc., Ross Uranium
Recovery Project; New Source Material
License Application; Notice of Intent
To Prepare a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY:
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SUMMARY:
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41308). One request for hearing was
received on October 27, 2011.
The NRC is preparing a draft SEIS that
will tier off the ISR GEIS (NUREG–
1910). While NRC’s Part 51 regulations
do not require scoping for SEISs, the
NRC staff is planning to place ads in
newspapers serving communities near
the proposed site, requesting
information and comments from the
public regarding the proposed action.
Also, NRC staff met with, and gathered
information from, Federal, State, and
local agencies as well as with public
interest groups in conjunction with a
visit to the proposed site. NRC staff may
also use relevant information gathered
during scoping for the GEIS to define
the scope of the SEIS. In preparing the
SEIS, the NRC staff is consulting with
Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish
& Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers, Wyoming Department of
Environmental Quality, Wyoming State
Historic Preservation Office, Tribal
Historic Preservation Offices, Wyoming
Game and Fish Department, National
Park Service, and the Crook County
Natural Resource District in preparing
the SEIS. The Bureau of Land
Management is a cooperating agency
with the NRC, under the Memorandum
of Understanding, signed on November
30, 2009.
The NRC has begun evaluating the
potential environmental impacts
associated with the proposed ISR
facility in parallel with the review of the
license application. This environmental
evaluation will be documented in draft
and final SEISs in accordance with
NEPA and NRC’s implementing
regulations contained in 10 CFR part 51.
The NRC is required by 10 CFR
51.20(b)(8) to prepare an Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS), or supplement
to an EIS, for the issuance of a new
license to possess and use source
material for uranium milling. The ISR
GEIS and the site-specific SEIS fulfill
this regulatory requirement. The
purpose of the present notice is to
inform the public that the NRC staff will
prepare a site-specific supplement to the
ISR GEIS as part of the review of the
application.
2.0 Ross ISR Facilities
The proposed ISR facilities, if
licensed, would include a central
processing plant and appurtenant
features, accompanying wellfields, and
wastewater retention (storage) ponds.
The ISR process involves the
dissolution of the water-soluble
uranium from the mineralized host
sandstone rock by pumping oxidants
(oxygen or hydrogen peroxide) and
chemical compounds (sodium
E:\FR\FM\16NON1.SGM
16NON1
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 221 / Wednesday, November 16, 2011 / Notices
bicarbonate) through a series of
injection wells. The uranium-rich
solution is transferred from production
wells to either the central processing
plant or satellite facility for uranium
concentration using ion exchange
columns. Final processing is conducted
in the central processing plant to
produce yellowcake, which would be
sold to offsite facilities for further
processing and eventual use as
commercial fuel for use in nuclear
power reactors.
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
3.0 Alternatives To Be Evaluated
No-Action—The no-action alternative
would be to deny the license
application. Under this alternative, the
NRC would not issue the license. This
serves as a baseline for comparison.
Proposed action—The proposed
Federal action is to issue a license to use
or process source material at the
proposed ISR facilities. The license
review process analyzes the
construction, operation, and
decommissioning of ISR facilities and
restoration of the aquifer from which the
uranium is being extracted. The ISR
facilities would be located in Crook
County, Wyoming, 32 miles northeast of
Gillette, Wyoming and 30 miles
northwest of Sundance, Wyoming. The
applicant would be issued an NRC
license under the provisions of 10 CFR
part 40. Other alternatives not listed
here may be identified through the
environmental review process.
4.0 Environmental Impact Areas To
Be Analyzed
The following areas have been
tentatively identified for analysis in the
SEIS:
• Land Use: Plans, policies, and
controls;
• Transportation: Transportation
modes, routes, quantities, and risk
estimates;
• Geology and Soils: Physical
geography, topography, geology, and
soil characteristics;
• Water Resources: Surface and
groundwater hydrology, water use and
quality, and the potential for
degradation;
• Ecology: Wetlands, aquatic,
terrestrial, economically and
recreationally important species,
threatened and endangered species;
• Air Quality: Meteorological
conditions, ambient background,
pollutant sources, and the potential for
degradation;
• Noise: Ambient, sources, and
sensitive receptors;
• Historical and Cultural Resources:
Historical, archaeological, and
traditional cultural resources;
VerDate Mar<15>2010
17:45 Nov 15, 2011
Jkt 226001
• Visual and Scenic Resources:
Landscape characteristics, manmade
features and viewshed;
• Socioeconomics: Demography,
economic base, labor pool, housing,
transportation, utilities, public services/
facilities, and education;
• Environmental Justice: Potential
disproportionately high and adverse
impacts to minority and low-income
populations;
• Public and Occupational Health:
Potential public and occupational
consequences from construction,
routine operation, transportation, and
credible accident scenarios (including
natural events);
• Waste Management: Types of
wastes expected to be generated,
handled, stored and disposed of; and
• Cumulative Effects: Impacts from
past, present, and reasonably
foreseeable future actions at and near
the site(s).
This list is not intended to be all
inclusive, nor is it a predetermination of
potential environmental impacts.
5.0
The NEPA Process
The SEIS for the Ross Uranium
Recovery Project will be prepared
pursuant to the NRC’s NEPA
Regulations at 10 CFR part 51. The NRC
will continue its environmental review
of the application and as soon as
practicable, the NRC and its contractor
will prepare and publish a draft SEIS.
The NRC currently plans to have a 45day public comment period for the draft
SEIS. Availability of the draft SEIS and
the dates of the public comment period
will be announced in the Federal
Register and the NRC Web site: https://
www.nrc.gov. The final SEIS will
include responses to public comments
received on the draft SEIS.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 7th day
of November, 2011.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory Suber,
Acting Deputy Director, Environmental
Protection and Performance Assessment
Directorate, Division of Waste Management
and Environmental Protection, Office of
Federal and State Materials and
Environmental Management Programs.
[FR Doc. 2011–29566 Filed 11–15–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. A2012–43; Order No. 960]
Post Office Closing
Postal Regulatory Commission.
Notice.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
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71083
This document informs the
public that an appeal of the closing of
the Andover, Illinois post office has
been filed. It identifies preliminary
steps and provides a procedural
schedule. Publication of this document
will allow the Postal Service,
petitioners, and others to take
appropriate action.
DATES: November 14, 2011:
Administrative record due (from Postal
Service); December 5, 2011, 4:30 p.m.,
Eastern Time: Deadline for notices to
intervene. See the Procedural Schedule
in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
section for other dates of interest.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments
electronically by accessing the ‘‘Filing
Online’’ link in the banner at the top of
the Commission’s Web site (https://
www.prc.gov) or by directly accessing
the Commission’s Filing Online system
at https://www.prc.gov/prc-pages/filingonline/login.aspx. Commenters who
cannot submit their views electronically
should contact the person identified in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section as the source for case-related
information for advice on alternatives to
electronic filing.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Stephen L. Sharfman, General Counsel,
at (202) 789–6820 (case-related
information) or DocketAdmins@prc.gov
(electronic filing assistance).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is
hereby given that, pursuant to 39 U.S.C.
404(d), on October 28, 2011, the
Commission received a petition for
review of the Postal Service’s
determination to close the Andover post
office in Andover, Illinois. The petition
for review was filed by Ron Peterson
(Petitioner) and is postmarked October
20, 2011. The Commission hereby
institutes a proceeding under 39 U.S.C.
404(d)(5) and establishes Docket No.
A2012–43 to consider Petitioner’s
appeal. If Petitioner would like to
further explain his position with
supplemental information or facts,
Petitioner may either file a Participant
Statement on PRC Form 61 or file a brief
with the Commission no later than
December 2, 2011.
Categories of issues apparently raised.
Petitioner contends that (1) There were
factual errors contained in the Final
Determination; and (2) the Postal
Service failed to provide substantial
evidence in support of the
determination (see 39 U.S.C.
404(d)(5)(c)).
After the Postal Service files the
administrative record and the
Commission reviews it, the Commission
may find that there are more legal issues
than those set forth above, or that the
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\16NON1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 221 (Wednesday, November 16, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71082-71083]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-29566]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 40-9091; NRC-2011-0148]
Strata Energy, Inc., Ross Uranium Recovery Project; New Source
Material License Application; Notice of Intent To Prepare a
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a supplemental environmental impact
statement.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Strata Energy, Inc. (Strata) submitted an application for a
new source material license for the Ross Uranium Recovery Project to be
located in Crook County, Wyoming, 32 miles northeast of Gillette,
Wyoming and 30 miles northwest of Sundance, Wyoming. The application
proposes the construction, operation, and decommissioning of uranium
in-situ recovery (ISR), also known as in-situ leach, facilities and
restoration of the aquifer from which the uranium is being extracted.
Strata submitted the application for the new source material license to
the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) by a letter dated January
4, 2011. A notice of receipt and availability of the license
application, including the Environmental Report (ER), and opportunity
to request a hearing was published in the Federal Register on July 13,
2011 (76 FR 41308). The purpose of this notice of intent is to inform
the public that the NRC will be preparing a site-specific Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to the Generic Environmental
Impact Statement for In-Situ Leach Uranium Milling Facilities (ISR
GEIS) for a new source material license for the Ross Uranium Recovery
Project, as required by Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10
CFR) 51.26. In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR 800.8, ``Coordination
with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),'' the NRC plans to
use the environmental review process as reflected in 10 CFR part 51 to
coordinate compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act (NHPA).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information on the NRC
NEPA process or the environmental review process related to the Ross
Uranium Recovery Project application, please contact the NRC
Environmental Project Manager, Alan Bjornsen, at (301) 415-1195 or
Alan.Bjornsen@nrc.gov.
Information and documents associated with the Ross Uranium Project,
including the license application, are available for public review
through the NRC electronic reading room: https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html and on the NRC's Ross Uranium Recovery Project Web page:
https://www.nrc.gov/materials/uranium-recovery/license-apps/ross.html.
Documents may also be obtained from NRC's Public Document Room at the
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Headquarters, 11555 Rockville Pike
(first floor), Rockville, Maryland.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1.0 Background
Strata submitted the application for a new source material license
to the NRC for ISR facilities by a letter dated January 4, 2011. A
notice of receipt and availability of the license application,
including the ER, and opportunity to request a hearing was published in
the Federal Register on July 13, 2011 (76 FR 41308). One request for
hearing was received on October 27, 2011.
The NRC is preparing a draft SEIS that will tier off the ISR GEIS
(NUREG-1910). While NRC's Part 51 regulations do not require scoping
for SEISs, the NRC staff is planning to place ads in newspapers serving
communities near the proposed site, requesting information and comments
from the public regarding the proposed action. Also, NRC staff met
with, and gathered information from, Federal, State, and local agencies
as well as with public interest groups in conjunction with a visit to
the proposed site. NRC staff may also use relevant information gathered
during scoping for the GEIS to define the scope of the SEIS. In
preparing the SEIS, the NRC staff is consulting with Bureau of Land
Management, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Wyoming State Historic
Preservation Office, Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, Wyoming Game
and Fish Department, National Park Service, and the Crook County
Natural Resource District in preparing the SEIS. The Bureau of Land
Management is a cooperating agency with the NRC, under the Memorandum
of Understanding, signed on November 30, 2009.
The NRC has begun evaluating the potential environmental impacts
associated with the proposed ISR facility in parallel with the review
of the license application. This environmental evaluation will be
documented in draft and final SEISs in accordance with NEPA and NRC's
implementing regulations contained in 10 CFR part 51. The NRC is
required by 10 CFR 51.20(b)(8) to prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS), or supplement to an EIS, for the issuance of a new
license to possess and use source material for uranium milling. The ISR
GEIS and the site-specific SEIS fulfill this regulatory requirement.
The purpose of the present notice is to inform the public that the NRC
staff will prepare a site-specific supplement to the ISR GEIS as part
of the review of the application.
2.0 Ross ISR Facilities
The proposed ISR facilities, if licensed, would include a central
processing plant and appurtenant features, accompanying wellfields, and
wastewater retention (storage) ponds. The ISR process involves the
dissolution of the water-soluble uranium from the mineralized host
sandstone rock by pumping oxidants (oxygen or hydrogen peroxide) and
chemical compounds (sodium
[[Page 71083]]
bicarbonate) through a series of injection wells. The uranium-rich
solution is transferred from production wells to either the central
processing plant or satellite facility for uranium concentration using
ion exchange columns. Final processing is conducted in the central
processing plant to produce yellowcake, which would be sold to offsite
facilities for further processing and eventual use as commercial fuel
for use in nuclear power reactors.
3.0 Alternatives To Be Evaluated
No-Action--The no-action alternative would be to deny the license
application. Under this alternative, the NRC would not issue the
license. This serves as a baseline for comparison.
Proposed action--The proposed Federal action is to issue a license
to use or process source material at the proposed ISR facilities. The
license review process analyzes the construction, operation, and
decommissioning of ISR facilities and restoration of the aquifer from
which the uranium is being extracted. The ISR facilities would be
located in Crook County, Wyoming, 32 miles northeast of Gillette,
Wyoming and 30 miles northwest of Sundance, Wyoming. The applicant
would be issued an NRC license under the provisions of 10 CFR part 40.
Other alternatives not listed here may be identified through the
environmental review process.
4.0 Environmental Impact Areas To Be Analyzed
The following areas have been tentatively identified for analysis
in the SEIS:
Land Use: Plans, policies, and controls;
Transportation: Transportation modes, routes, quantities,
and risk estimates;
Geology and Soils: Physical geography, topography,
geology, and soil characteristics;
Water Resources: Surface and groundwater hydrology, water
use and quality, and the potential for degradation;
Ecology: Wetlands, aquatic, terrestrial, economically and
recreationally important species, threatened and endangered species;
Air Quality: Meteorological conditions, ambient
background, pollutant sources, and the potential for degradation;
Noise: Ambient, sources, and sensitive receptors;
Historical and Cultural Resources: Historical,
archaeological, and traditional cultural resources;
Visual and Scenic Resources: Landscape characteristics,
manmade features and viewshed;
Socioeconomics: Demography, economic base, labor pool,
housing, transportation, utilities, public services/facilities, and
education;
Environmental Justice: Potential disproportionately high
and adverse impacts to minority and low-income populations;
Public and Occupational Health: Potential public and
occupational consequences from construction, routine operation,
transportation, and credible accident scenarios (including natural
events);
Waste Management: Types of wastes expected to be
generated, handled, stored and disposed of; and
Cumulative Effects: Impacts from past, present, and
reasonably foreseeable future actions at and near the site(s).
This list is not intended to be all inclusive, nor is it a
predetermination of potential environmental impacts.
5.0 The NEPA Process
The SEIS for the Ross Uranium Recovery Project will be prepared
pursuant to the NRC's NEPA Regulations at 10 CFR part 51. The NRC will
continue its environmental review of the application and as soon as
practicable, the NRC and its contractor will prepare and publish a
draft SEIS. The NRC currently plans to have a 45-day public comment
period for the draft SEIS. Availability of the draft SEIS and the dates
of the public comment period will be announced in the Federal Register
and the NRC Web site: https://www.nrc.gov. The final SEIS will include
responses to public comments received on the draft SEIS.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 7th day of November, 2011.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory Suber,
Acting Deputy Director, Environmental Protection and Performance
Assessment Directorate, Division of Waste Management and Environmental
Protection, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental
Management Programs.
[FR Doc. 2011-29566 Filed 11-15-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
