Entergy Nuclear Operations Inc; Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, 43186-43188 [2019-17888]
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43186
Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 161 / Tuesday, August 20, 2019 / Notices
access to NASA Headquarters. Foreign
nationals attending this meeting will be
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providing the following information no
less than 10 days prior to the meeting:
Full name; gender; date/place of birth;
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(number, country, telephone); visa
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(green card holders) are requested to
provide full name and citizenship status
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meeting. Information should be sent to
Mr. Andrew Rowe, at andrew.rowe@
nasa.gov.
Patricia Rausch,
Advisory Committee Management Officer,
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration.
Rutledge Simmons,
EVP & General Counsel/Corporate Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019–18039 Filed 8–16–19; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 7570–02–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Environmental assessment and
finding of no significant impact;
issuance.
AGENCY:
NEIGHBORHOOD REINVESTMENT
CORPORATION
Sunshine Act Meetings; Regular Board
of Directors Meeting
TIME & DATE: 3:00 p.m., Wednesday,
September 4, 2019.
PLACE: NeighborWorks America—
Gramlich Boardroom, 999 North Capitol
Street NE, Washington, DC 20002.
STATUS: Open (with the exception of
Executive Session).
MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: The
General Counsel of the Corporation has
certified that in his opinion, one or
more of the exemptions set forth in 5
U.S.C. 552 (b)(2) and (4) permit closure
of the following portion(s) of this
meeting:
• Report From CEO
• Board and Officer Elections
jbell on DSK3GLQ082PROD with NOTICES
Rutledge Simmons, EVP & General
Counsel/Secretary, (202) 760–4105;
Rsimmons@nw.org.
Entergy Nuclear Operations Inc;
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station
BILLING CODE 7510–13–P
Agenda
I. Call to Order
II. Approval of Minutes
III. Executive Session: Report from CEO
IV. Action Item Recognition of Service
for Senior Deputy Controller
Grovetta Gardineer
V. Action Item FY2020 Preliminary
Budget
VI. Action Item Investment Policy
Update
VII. Action Item Lapse Plan Policy
VIII. Discussion Item Corporate Goals
for FY2020
IX. Discussion Item FY2021 Budget
Submission Process
20:49 Aug 19, 2019
CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION:
[Docket No. 50–293; NRC–2019–0152]
[FR Doc. 2019–17944 Filed 8–19–19; 8:45 am]
VerDate Sep<11>2014
X. Discussion Item Non-Core Private
Funds
XI. Discussion Item Western Region—
Denver Office Lease Renewal
XII. Discussion Item 40th Anniversary
Event
XIII. Management Program Background
and Updates
XIV. Adjournment
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of an exemption in response to
a November 16, 2018, request from
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (ENOI
or the licensee) on behalf of Entergy
Nuclear Generation Company (ENGC)
(to be renamed Holtec Pilgrim, LLC) and
Holtec Decommissioning International,
LLC (HDI), related to Pilgrim Nuclear
Power Station (Pilgrim), located in
Plymouth County, Massachusetts. The
proposed action would permit Holtec
Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use funds from
the Pilgrim decommissioning trust fund
(the Trust) for management of spent fuel
and site restoration activities. The staff
is issuing a final environmental
assessment (EA) and a final finding of
no significant impact (FONSI)
associated with the proposed
exemption.
The EA and FONSI referenced in
this document are available on August
20, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID
NRC–2019–0152 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of
information regarding this document.
You may obtain publicly-available
information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2019–0152. Address
DATES:
PO 00000
Frm 00088
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
questions about NRC docket IDs in
Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges;
telephone: 301–287–9127; email:
Jennifer.Borges@nrc.gov. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed
in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
• NRC’s Agencywide Documents
Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publiclyavailable documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at
https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/
adams.html. To begin the search, select
‘‘Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.’’ For
problems with ADAMS, please contact
the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR)
reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301–
415–4737, or by email to pdr.resource@
nrc.gov. For the convenience of the
reader, instructions about obtaining
materials referenced in this document
are provided in the Availability of
Documents section.
• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and
purchase copies of public documents at
the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville
Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Scott P. Wall, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555–
0001; telephone: 301–415–2855; email:
Scott.Wall@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
Pursuant to section 50.12 of title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (10
CFR), ‘‘Specific exemptions,’’ the NRC
is considering issuance of an exemption
from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) for
Renewed Facility Operating License No.
DPR–35, issued to HDI for Pilgrim,
located in Plymouth County,
Massachusetts. By letter dated
November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession
No. ML18320A031), ENOI, on behalf of
itself, Entergy Nuclear Generation
Company (ENGC) (to be known as
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC), Holtec
International (Holtec), and HDI
submitted a License Transfer
Application (LTA) requesting that the
NRC consent to the proposed direct and
indirect transfer of the Pilgrim Renewed
Facility Operating License No. DPR–35
and the general license for the Pilgrim
ISFSI (collectively referred to as the
facility). Specifically, the Applicants
requested that the NRC consent to the
direct transfer of ENOI’s currently
licensed authority (licensed operator for
decommissioning) to HDI. In addition,
the Applicants requested the indirect
transfer of control of ENGC’s ownership
interests in the facility licenses to
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Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 161 / Tuesday, August 20, 2019 / Notices
Holtec. In Enclosure 2 of the November
16, 2018, LTA, HDI requested an
exemption from 10 CFR
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A). The exemption would
allow Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to
use funds from the Trust for spent fuel
management and site restoration
activities, in the same manner that
funds from the Trust are used under 10
CFR 50.82(a)(8) for radiological
decommissioning activities. This
exemption would only apply following
NRC approval of the LTA and closing of
the underlying transaction.
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.21, the
NRC has prepared an environmental
assessment (EA) that analyzes the
environmental effects of the proposed
action. Based on the results of this EA,
and in accordance with 10 CFR 51.31(a),
the NRC has determined not to prepare
an environmental impact statement for
the proposed licensing action and is
issuing a finding of no significant
impact (FONSI).
II. Environmental Assessment
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would partially
exempt Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI
from the requirements set forth in 10
CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A). Specifically, the
proposed action would allow Holtec
Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use funds from
the Trust for spent fuel management and
site restoration activities not associated
with radiological decommissioning
activities.
The proposed action is also described
in the licensee’s application dated
November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession
No. ML18320A031).
jbell on DSK3GLQ082PROD with NOTICES
Need for the Proposed Action
By letter dated November 10, 2015
(ADAMS Accession No. ML15328A053),
ENOI informed the NRC that it planned
to permanently cease power operations
at Pilgrim no later than June 1, 2019.
ENOI permanently ceased power
operations at Pilgrim on May 31, 2019.
ENOI permanently defueled Pilgrim on
June 9, 2019.
As required by 10 CFR
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), decommissioning trust
funds may be used by Holtec Pilgrim,
LLC and HDI if the withdrawals are for
legitimate decommissioning activity
expenses, consistent with the definition
of decommissioning in 10 CFR 50.2.
This definition addresses radiological
decontamination and does not include
activities associated with spent fuel
management or site restoration.
Therefore, exemption from 10 CFR
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) is needed to allow
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use
funds from the Trust for spent fuel
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:49 Aug 19, 2019
Jkt 247001
management and site restoration
activities.
HDI stated that Table 1 of the
application dated November 16, 2018,
demonstrates that the Trust contains the
amount needed to cover the estimated
costs of radiological decommissioning,
as well as spent fuel management and
site restoration activities. The adequacy
of funds in the Trust to cover the costs
of activities associated with spent fuel
management, site restoration, and
radiological decontamination through
license termination is supported by the
revised Pilgrim Post-Shutdown
Decommissioning Activities Report
submitted by HDI in a letter dated
November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession
No. ML18320A034), as supplemented
by letters dated January 9, 2019 and July
29, 2019 (ADAMS Accession Nos.
ML19015A020 and ML19210E470,
respectively). HDI stated that it needs
access to the funds in the Trust to
support spent fuel management and site
restoration activities not associated with
radiological decontamination.
In summary, by letter dated November
16, 2018, HDI requested an exemption
from NRC regulations to allow Trust
withdrawals for spent fuel management
and site restoration activities.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed
Action
The proposed action involves
regulatory requirements that are of a
financial or administrative nature and
that do not have an impact on the
environment. The NRC has completed
its evaluation of the proposed action
and concludes that there is reasonable
assurance that adequate funds are
available in the Trust to complete all
activities associated with radiological
decommissioning. There would be no
decrease in safety associated with the
use of the Trust to fund activities
associated with spent fuel management
and site restoration. The NRC
regulations in 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(v)
require licensees to submit a financial
assurance status report annually
between the time of submitting their
decommissioning cost estimate until
they submit their final radiation survey
and demonstrate that residual
radioactivity has been reduced to a level
that permits termination of the
operating license. Section 50.82(a)(8)(vi)
of 10 CFR requires that if the sum of the
balance of any remaining
decommissioning funds, plus expected
rate of return, plus any other financial
surety mechanism relied upon by the
licensee, does not cover the estimated
costs to complete the decommissioning,
the financial assurance status report
must include additional financial
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43187
assurance to cover the cost of
completion. These annual reports
provide a means for the NRC to monitor
the adequacy of available funding. The
proposed exemption would allow
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use
Trust funds to support spent fuel
management and site restoration
activities not associated with
radiological decontamination. The NRC
staff has determined that there is
reasonable assurance of adequate
funding for radiological
decommissioning based on the
remaining Trust funds dedicated for
radiological decontamination.
Specifically, HDI has provided detailed,
site-specific, cost-estimates for
radiological decommissioning that the
NRC staff finds sufficiently demonstrate
that the Trust funds dedicated to
radiological decommissioning are
adequate. Thus, there is reasonable
assurance that there will be no
environmental effect due to lack of
adequate funding for decommissioning.
The proposed action will not
significantly increase the probability or
consequences of radiological accidents
or change the types of effluents released
offsite. In addition, there would be no
significant increase in the amount of
any radiological effluent released offsite,
and no significant increase in
occupational or public radiation
exposure. There would be no materials
or chemicals introduced into the plant
affecting the characteristics or types of
effluents released offsite. In addition,
waste processing systems would not be
affected by the proposed exemption.
Therefore, there would be no significant
radiological environmental impacts
associated with the proposed action.
Regarding potential nonradiological
impacts, the proposed action would
have no direct impacts on land use or
water resources, including terrestrial
and aquatic biota, as it involves no new
construction or modification of plant
operational systems. There would be no
changes to the quality or quantity of
nonradiological effluents, and no
changes to the plant’s National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System permits
would be needed. In addition, there
would be no noticeable effect on
socioeconomic and environmental
justice conditions in the region, no air
quality impacts, and no potential to
affect historic properties. Therefore,
there would be no significant
nonradiological environment impacts
associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that
there would be no significant
environmental impacts associated with
the proposed action.
E:\FR\FM\20AUN1.SGM
20AUN1
43188
Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 161 / Tuesday, August 20, 2019 / Notices
Environmental Impacts of the
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed
action, the NRC staff considered the
denial of the proposed action (i.e., the
‘‘no-action’’ alternative). Denial of the
exemption request would result in no
change in current environmental
impacts. The environmental impacts of
the proposed action and the alternative
action would be similar.
Alternative Use of Resources
There are no unresolved conflicts
concerning alternative uses of available
resources under the proposed action.
Agencies or Persons Consulted
No additional agencies or persons
were consulted regarding the
environmental impact of the proposed
action. On August 14, 2019, the NRC
notified the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts representative of the EA
and FONSI.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The requested exemption from 10
CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) would allow
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use
funds from the Trust for spent fuel
management and site restoration
activities.
The NRC is considering issuing the
requested exemption. The proposed
action would not significantly affect
plant safety, would not have a
significant adverse effect on the
probability of an accident occurring,
and would not have any significant
radiological or nonradiological impacts.
The reason the human environment
would not be significantly affected is
that the proposed action involves an
exemption from requirements that are of
a financial or administrative nature that
do not have an impact on the human
environment. Consistent with 10 CFR
51.21, the NRC conducted the EA for the
proposed action, and this FONSI
incorporates by reference the EA
included in Section II of this document.
Therefore, 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 there is no need to
prepare an environmental impact
statement for the proposed action.
As required by 10 CFR 51.32(a)(5), the
related environmental document is the
‘‘Generic Environmental Impact
Statement for License Renewal of
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the
following table are available to
interested persons through one or more
of the following methods, as indicated.
Date
Title
ADAMS
Accession No.
6/10/2019 ........................
Letter from Entergy to NRC titled ‘‘Certifications of Permanent Cessation of Power Operations and
Permanent Removal of Fuel from the Reactor Vessel’’.
Letter from Entergy to NRC titled ‘‘Application for Order Consenting to Direct and Indirect Transfers
of Control of Licenses and Approving Conforming License Amendment; and Request for Exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A)’’.
Letter from HDI to NRC titled ‘‘Notification of Revised Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities
Report and Revised Site-Specific Decommissioning Cost Estimate for Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station’’.
Letter from Entergy to NRC titled ‘‘Notification of Permanent Cessation of Power Operations’’ ..........
NUREG–1437, Supplement 29, ‘‘Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of
Nuclear Plants: Regarding Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station,’’ Volumes 1 and 2.
ML19161A033
11/16/2018 ......................
11/16/2018 ......................
11/10/2015 ......................
7/2007 .............................
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day
of August, 2019.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Scott P. Wall,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing
Branch III, Division of Operating Reactor
Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2019–17888 Filed 8–19–19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50–289; NRC–2019–0079]
Exelon Generation Company LLC;
Three Mile Island Nuclear Station Unit
1
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: License amendment application;
withdrawal by applicant.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) has granted the
request of Exelon Generation Company,
LLC to withdraw its application dated
December 14, 2018, for a proposed
amendment to Renewed Facility
Operating License No. DPR–50 for the
Three Mile Island Nuclear Station, Unit
SUMMARY:
jbell on DSK3GLQ082PROD with NOTICES
Nuclear Plants: Regarding Pilgrim
Nuclear Power Station, Final Report,’’
January 2007 (NUREG–1437,
Supplement 29, Volumes 1 and 2),
which provides the latest environmental
review of current operations and
description of environmental conditions
at Pilgrim.
The finding and other related
environmental documents may be
examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the
NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR),
located at One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland
20852. Publicly-available records are
accessible electronically from ADAMS
Public Electronic Reading Room on the
internet at the NRC’s website: 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’s PDR
Reference staff by telephone at 1–800–
397–4209 or 301–415–4737, or by email
to pdr.resource@nrc.gov.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:49 Aug 19, 2019
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PO 00000
Frm 00090
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Sfmt 4703
ML18320A031
ML18320A040
ML15328A053
ML071990020;
ML071990027
1. The proposed amendment would
have revised Technical Specification
6.8.5 ‘‘Reactor Building Leakage Rate
Testing Program,’’ to allow for a onecycle extension to the 10-year frequency
of the containment leakage rate test (i.e.,
Integrated Leakage Rate Test (ILRT) or
Type A test).
DATES: The withdrawal of the proposed
amendment takes effect on August 20,
2019.
Please refer to Docket ID
NRC–2019–0079 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of
information regarding this document.
You may obtain publicly-available
information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
• Federal Rulemaking website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
ADDRESSES:
E:\FR\FM\20AUN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 161 (Tuesday, August 20, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43186-43188]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-17888]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-293; NRC-2019-0152]
Entergy Nuclear Operations Inc; Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact;
issuance.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of an exemption in response to a November 16, 2018, request
from Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (ENOI or the licensee) on behalf
of Entergy Nuclear Generation Company (ENGC) (to be renamed Holtec
Pilgrim, LLC) and Holtec Decommissioning International, LLC (HDI),
related to Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (Pilgrim), located in Plymouth
County, Massachusetts. The proposed action would permit Holtec Pilgrim,
LLC and HDI to use funds from the Pilgrim decommissioning trust fund
(the Trust) for management of spent fuel and site restoration
activities. The staff is issuing a final environmental assessment (EA)
and a final finding of no significant impact (FONSI) associated with
the proposed exemption.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on
August 20, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0152 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0152. Address
questions about NRC docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges;
telephone: 301-287-9127; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS
Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public
Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or
by email to [email protected]. For the convenience of the reader,
instructions about obtaining materials referenced in this document are
provided in the Availability of Documents section.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Scott P. Wall, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-2855; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
Pursuant to section 50.12 of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), ``Specific exemptions,'' the NRC is considering
issuance of an exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) for Renewed
Facility Operating License No. DPR-35, issued to HDI for Pilgrim,
located in Plymouth County, Massachusetts. By letter dated November 16,
2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18320A031), ENOI, on behalf of itself,
Entergy Nuclear Generation Company (ENGC) (to be known as Holtec
Pilgrim, LLC), Holtec International (Holtec), and HDI submitted a
License Transfer Application (LTA) requesting that the NRC consent to
the proposed direct and indirect transfer of the Pilgrim Renewed
Facility Operating License No. DPR-35 and the general license for the
Pilgrim ISFSI (collectively referred to as the facility). Specifically,
the Applicants requested that the NRC consent to the direct transfer of
ENOI's currently licensed authority (licensed operator for
decommissioning) to HDI. In addition, the Applicants requested the
indirect transfer of control of ENGC's ownership interests in the
facility licenses to
[[Page 43187]]
Holtec. In Enclosure 2 of the November 16, 2018, LTA, HDI requested an
exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A). The exemption would allow
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use funds from the Trust for spent fuel
management and site restoration activities, in the same manner that
funds from the Trust are used under 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8) for radiological
decommissioning activities. This exemption would only apply following
NRC approval of the LTA and closing of the underlying transaction.
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC has prepared an
environmental assessment (EA) that analyzes the environmental effects
of the proposed action. Based on the results of this EA, and in
accordance with 10 CFR 51.31(a), the NRC has determined not to prepare
an environmental impact statement for the proposed licensing action and
is issuing a finding of no significant impact (FONSI).
II. Environmental Assessment
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would partially exempt Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and
HDI from the requirements set forth in 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A).
Specifically, the proposed action would allow Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and
HDI to use funds from the Trust for spent fuel management and site
restoration activities not associated with radiological decommissioning
activities.
The proposed action is also described in the licensee's application
dated November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18320A031).
Need for the Proposed Action
By letter dated November 10, 2015 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML15328A053), ENOI informed the NRC that it planned to permanently
cease power operations at Pilgrim no later than June 1, 2019. ENOI
permanently ceased power operations at Pilgrim on May 31, 2019. ENOI
permanently defueled Pilgrim on June 9, 2019.
As required by 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A), decommissioning trust
funds may be used by Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI if the withdrawals are
for legitimate decommissioning activity expenses, consistent with the
definition of decommissioning in 10 CFR 50.2. This definition addresses
radiological decontamination and does not include activities associated
with spent fuel management or site restoration. Therefore, exemption
from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) is needed to allow Holtec Pilgrim, LLC
and HDI to use funds from the Trust for spent fuel management and site
restoration activities.
HDI stated that Table 1 of the application dated November 16, 2018,
demonstrates that the Trust contains the amount needed to cover the
estimated costs of radiological decommissioning, as well as spent fuel
management and site restoration activities. The adequacy of funds in
the Trust to cover the costs of activities associated with spent fuel
management, site restoration, and radiological decontamination through
license termination is supported by the revised Pilgrim Post-Shutdown
Decommissioning Activities Report submitted by HDI in a letter dated
November 16, 2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18320A034), as supplemented by
letters dated January 9, 2019 and July 29, 2019 (ADAMS Accession Nos.
ML19015A020 and ML19210E470, respectively). HDI stated that it needs
access to the funds in the Trust to support spent fuel management and
site restoration activities not associated with radiological
decontamination.
In summary, by letter dated November 16, 2018, HDI requested an
exemption from NRC regulations to allow Trust withdrawals for spent
fuel management and site restoration activities.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The proposed action involves regulatory requirements that are of a
financial or administrative nature and that do not have an impact on
the environment. The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed
action and concludes that there is reasonable assurance that adequate
funds are available in the Trust to complete all activities associated
with radiological decommissioning. There would be no decrease in safety
associated with the use of the Trust to fund activities associated with
spent fuel management and site restoration. The NRC regulations in 10
CFR 50.82(a)(8)(v) require licensees to submit a financial assurance
status report annually between the time of submitting their
decommissioning cost estimate until they submit their final radiation
survey and demonstrate that residual radioactivity has been reduced to
a level that permits termination of the operating license. Section
50.82(a)(8)(vi) of 10 CFR requires that if the sum of the balance of
any remaining decommissioning funds, plus expected rate of return, plus
any other financial surety mechanism relied upon by the licensee, does
not cover the estimated costs to complete the decommissioning, the
financial assurance status report must include additional financial
assurance to cover the cost of completion. These annual reports provide
a means for the NRC to monitor the adequacy of available funding. The
proposed exemption would allow Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use Trust
funds to support spent fuel management and site restoration activities
not associated with radiological decontamination. The NRC staff has
determined that there is reasonable assurance of adequate funding for
radiological decommissioning based on the remaining Trust funds
dedicated for radiological decontamination. Specifically, HDI has
provided detailed, site-specific, cost-estimates for radiological
decommissioning that the NRC staff finds sufficiently demonstrate that
the Trust funds dedicated to radiological decommissioning are adequate.
Thus, there is reasonable assurance that there will be no environmental
effect due to lack of adequate funding for decommissioning.
The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability
or consequences of radiological accidents or change the types of
effluents released offsite. In addition, there would be no significant
increase in the amount of any radiological effluent released offsite,
and no significant increase in occupational or public radiation
exposure. There would be no materials or chemicals introduced into the
plant affecting the characteristics or types of effluents released
offsite. In addition, waste processing systems would not be affected by
the proposed exemption. Therefore, there would be no significant
radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Regarding potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed action
would have no direct impacts on land use or water resources, including
terrestrial and aquatic biota, as it involves no new construction or
modification of plant operational systems. There would be no changes to
the quality or quantity of nonradiological effluents, and no changes to
the plant's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits
would be needed. In addition, there would be no noticeable effect on
socioeconomic and environmental justice conditions in the region, no
air quality impacts, and no potential to affect historic properties.
Therefore, there would be no significant nonradiological environment
impacts associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there would be no significant
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
[[Page 43188]]
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff considered
the denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action''
alternative). Denial of the exemption request would result in no change
in current environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the
proposed action and the alternative action would be similar.
Alternative Use of Resources
There are no unresolved conflicts concerning alternative uses of
available resources under the proposed action.
Agencies or Persons Consulted
No additional agencies or persons were consulted regarding the
environmental impact of the proposed action. On August 14, 2019, the
NRC notified the Commonwealth of Massachusetts representative of the EA
and FONSI.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The requested exemption from 10 CFR 50.82(a)(8)(i)(A) would allow
Holtec Pilgrim, LLC and HDI to use funds from the Trust for spent fuel
management and site restoration activities.
The NRC is considering issuing the requested exemption. The
proposed action would not significantly affect plant safety, would not
have a significant adverse effect on the probability of an accident
occurring, and would not have any significant radiological or
nonradiological impacts. The reason the human environment would not be
significantly affected is that the proposed action involves an
exemption from requirements that are of a financial or administrative
nature that do not have an impact on the human environment. Consistent
with 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC conducted the EA for the proposed action,
and this FONSI incorporates by reference the EA included in Section II
of this document. Therefore, 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 there is no need to
prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed action.
As required by 10 CFR 51.32(a)(5), the related environmental
document is the ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License
Renewal of Nuclear Plants: Regarding Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station,
Final Report,'' January 2007 (NUREG-1437, Supplement 29, Volumes 1 and
2), which provides the latest environmental review of current
operations and description of environmental conditions at Pilgrim.
The finding and other related environmental documents may be
examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room
(PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike,
Rockville, Maryland 20852. Publicly-available records are accessible
electronically from ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room on the
internet at the NRC's website: 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's PDR Reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-
4737, or by email to [email protected].
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as
indicated.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADAMS Accession
Date Title No.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
6/10/2019.................... Letter from Entergy ML19161A033
to NRC titled
``Certifications of
Permanent Cessation
of Power Operations
and Permanent
Removal of Fuel from
the Reactor Vessel''.
11/16/2018................... Letter from Entergy ML18320A031
to NRC titled
``Application for
Order Consenting to
Direct and Indirect
Transfers of Control
of Licenses and
Approving Conforming
License Amendment;
and Request for
Exemption from 10
CFR
50.82(a)(8)(i)(A)''.
11/16/2018................... Letter from HDI to ML18320A040
NRC titled
``Notification of
Revised Post-
Shutdown
Decommissioning
Activities Report
and Revised Site-
Specific
Decommissioning Cost
Estimate for Pilgrim
Nuclear Power
Station''.
11/10/2015................... Letter from Entergy ML15328A053
to NRC titled
``Notification of
Permanent Cessation
of Power
Operations''.
7/2007....................... NUREG-1437, ML071990020;
Supplement 29, ML071990027
``Generic
Environmental Impact
Statement for
License Renewal of
Nuclear Plants:
Regarding Pilgrim
Nuclear Power
Station,'' Volumes 1
and 2.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of August, 2019.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Scott P. Wall,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch III, Division of
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2019-17888 Filed 8-19-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
