Systematic Assessment for How the NRC Addresses Environmental Justice in Its Programs, Policies, and Activities, 50745-50747 [2021-19549]
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 173 / Friday, September 10, 2021 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
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Notice of Lodging of Proposed
Consent Decree Under the Clean Water
Act
On August 30, 2021, the Department
of Justice filed a complaint and lodged
a proposed consent decree with the
United States District Court for the
District of Montana in the lawsuit
entitled United States v. Northern
Cheyenne Utilities Commission, Civil
Action No. 1:21-cv-00094–SPW–TJC.
The United States filed this lawsuit
against the Northern Cheyenne Utilities
Commission (‘‘Defendant’’) for
violations of the Clean Water Act at the
Lame Deer Wastewater Treatment
Facility (‘‘Facility’’). The Facility is
operated and maintained by the
Defendant and located in Lame Deer,
Montana, within the exterior boundaries
of the Northern Cheyenne Indian
Reservation. The Complaint seeks
injunctive relief and civil penalties for
the following violations of the Clean
Water Act: Unpermitted discharge of
pollutants from the Facility,
noncompliance with the terms and
conditions of the National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System
(‘‘NPDES’’) permit issued to the Facility,
and Defendant’s failure to comply with
the requirements of an administrative
Order for Compliance issued to
Defendant by the United States
Environmental Protection Agency on
July 7, 2015 (Docket No. CWA–08–
2015–0020).
Under the proposed Consent Decree,
Defendant will perform injunctive relief,
including: Completion of certain
Facility related physical improvements;
the acquisition and maintenance of
equipment spare parts; development of
a Plan of Operations to operate and
maintain the Facility in a manner
consistent with its NPDES permit and
the Clean Water Act; training and hiring
of certified waste operators;
development of an annual Facility
budget; completion of an interim service
rates study and implementation of
service rates based on the study;
development of an updated billing and
collection policy; and development of a
communication and notification plan to
improve coordination on issues related
to wastewater collection and treatment
services provided by Defendant. In
addition, Defendant will pay a
$1,500.00 civil penalty, based on certain
ability to pay limitations. The Consent
Decree resolves the civil claims alleged
by the United States in the Complaint.
The publication of this notice opens
a period for public comment on the
Consent Decree. Comments on the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:09 Sep 09, 2021
Jkt 253001
Consent Decree should be addressed to
the Assistant Attorney General,
Environment and Natural Resources
Division, and should refer to United
States v. Northern Cheyenne Utilities
Commission, D.J. Ref. No. 90–5–1–1–
11646. All comments must be submitted
no later than thirty (30) days after the
publication date of this notice.
Comments may be submitted either by
email or by mail:
To submit
comments:
Send them to:
By email .......
pubcomment-ees.enrd@
usdoj.gov.
Assistant Attorney General,
U.S. DOJ—ENRD, P.O.
Box 7611, Washington, DC
20044–7611.
By mail .........
50745
discharging pollutants without a permit
into waters of the United States. The
proposed Consent Decree resolves these
allegations by requiring the Defendants
to make a payment to the New York
State Department of Environmental
Conservation Natural Resource Damages
Fund.
The Department of Justice will accept
written comments relating to this
proposed Consent Decree for thirty (30)
days from the date of publication of this
Notice. Please address comments to
Tsuki Hoshijima, Post Office Box 7611,
Washington, DC 20044–7611,
pubcomment_eds.enrd@usdoj.gov and
refer to United States v. Acquest
Transit, LLC, et al., DJ # 90–5–1–1–
18377.
The proposed Consent Decree may be
examined at the Clerk’s Office, United
States District Court for the Western
District of New York, 2 Niagara Square,
Buffalo, NY 14202. In addition, the
proposed Consent Decree may be
examined electronically at https://
www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
During the public comment period,
the Consent Decree may be examined
and downloaded at this Justice
Department website: https://
www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
We will provide a paper copy of the
Consent Decree upon written request
and payment of reproduction costs.
Please mail your request and payment
to: Consent Decree Library, U.S. DOJ—
ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC
20044–7611.
Please enclose a check or money order
for $53.50 (25 cents per page
reproduction cost) payable to the United
States Treasury. For a paper copy
without the appendices and signature
pages, the cost is $12.50.
Cherie Rogers,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental
Defense Section, Environment and Natural
Resources Division.
Jeffrey Sands,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental
Enforcement Section, Environment and
Natural Resources Division.
Systematic Assessment for How the
NRC Addresses Environmental Justice
in Its Programs, Policies, and Activities
[FR Doc. 2021–19569 Filed 9–9–21; 8:45 am]
AGENCY:
[FR Doc. 2021–19507 Filed 9–9–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–15–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[NRC–2021–0137]
BILLING CODE 4410–15–P
Nuclear Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Extension of comment period.
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
SUMMARY:
Notice of Lodging Proposed Consent
Decree
In accordance with Departmental
Policy, 28 CFR 50.7, notice is hereby
given that a proposed Consent Decree in
United States v. Acquest Transit, LLC, et
al., No. 09–cv–55, was lodged with the
United States District Court for the
Western District of New York on
September 3, 2021.
This proposed Consent Decree
concerns a complaint filed by the
United States against Defendants
Acquest Transit, LLC, Acquest
Development LLC, and William L.
Huntress, pursuant to 33 U.S.C. 1319, to
obtain injunctive relief from and impose
civil penalties against the Defendants
for violating the Clean Water Act by
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On July 9, 2021, the U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
requested comments as part of its
systematic review for how NRC
programs, policies, and activities
address environmental justice.
Specifically, the NRC requested input
on how the agency is addressing
environmental justice, considering the
agency’s mission and statutory
authority. The information will be used
to inform the agency’s assessment of
how it addresses environmental justice.
The public comment period was
originally scheduled to close on August
23, 2021 and was extended to
September 22, 2021. The NRC has
decided to extend the public comment
period to allow more time for members
of the public to develop and submit
their comments.
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50746
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 173 / Friday, September 10, 2021 / Notices
The due date for comments
requested in the notice, published on
July 9, 2021, (86 FR 36307) is extended.
Submit comments by October 29, 2021.
Comments received after this date will
be considered if it is practical to do so,
but the NRC is able to ensure
consideration only for comments
received on or before this date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
by any of the following methods:
• Telephone: 301–415–3875 or 800–
882–4672.
• Email: NRC-EJReview@nrc.gov.
• Mail comments to: Office of
Administration, Mail Stop: TWFN–7–
A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555–
0001, ATTN: Program Management,
Announcements and Editing Staff.
• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2021–0137. Address
questions about Docket IDs in
Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301–415–0624; email:
Stacy.Schumann@nrc.gov. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed
in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
For additional direction on obtaining
information and submitting comments,
see ‘‘Obtaining Information and
Submitting Comments’’ in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Allen Fetter, Office of the Executive
Director for Operations, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555–0001, telephone: 301–415–
8556, email: Allen.Fetter@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DATES:
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I. Obtaining Information and
Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC–2021–
0137 when contacting the NRC about
the availability of information for this
action. You may obtain publicly
available information related to this
action by any of the following methods:
• Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID NRC–2021–0137.
• 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 pdr.resource@
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:09 Sep 09, 2021
Jkt 253001
nrc.gov. The Staff Requirements
Memorandum (SRM)–M210218B,
‘‘Briefing on Equal Employment
Opportunity, Affirmative Employment,
and Small Business, 10:00 a.m.,
Thursday, February 18, 2021, Video
Conference Meeting,’’ dated April 23,
2021, which provides direction to the
staff or this assessment, is available in
ADAMS under Accession No.
ML21113A070.
• Attention: The PDR, where you may
examine and order copies of public
documents, is currently closed. You
may submit your request to the PDR via
email at pdr.resource@nrc.gov or call 1–
800–397–4209 or 301–415–4737,
between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (ET),
Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages comment
submission via email and phone. Please
reference Docket ID NRC–2021–0137 in
your comment submission.
The NRC cautions you not to include
identifying or contact information that
you do not want to be publicly
disclosed in your comment submission.
The NRC will post comment
submissions received via
regulations.gov at https://
www.regulations.gov as well as enter the
comment submissions into ADAMS.
The NRC does not routinely edit
comment submissions to remove
identifying or contact information.
If you are requesting or aggregating
comments from other persons for
submission to the NRC, then you should
inform those persons not to include
identifying or contact information that
they do not want to be publicly
disclosed in their comment submission.
Your request should state that the NRC
does not routinely edit comment
submissions to remove such information
before making the comment
submissions available to the public or
entering the comment into ADAMS.
II. Background
The NRC is an independent agency
established by the Energy
Reorganization Act of 1974 that began
operations in 1975 as a successor to the
licensing and regulatory activities of the
Atomic Energy Commission. The NRC’s
mission is to license and regulate the
Nation’s civilian use of radioactive
materials to provide reasonable
assurance of adequate protection of
public health and safety and to promote
the common defense and security and to
protect the environment. As part of its
licensing and regulatory activities, the
NRC conducts safety, security, and
environmental reviews.
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Specifically, with respect to
environmental reviews, the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of
1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., requires all
Federal agencies to evaluate the impacts
of proposed major actions on the human
environment. As part of its
responsibilities under NEPA, the NRC
considers environmental justice.
According to the Commission, ‘‘[t]he
term ‘environmental justice’ refers to the
federal policy established in 1994 by
Executive Order 12898, which directed
federal agencies to identify and address
‘disproportionately high and adverse
human health or environmental effects
of its programs, policies, and activities
on minority and low-income
populations.’ ’’ Entergy Nuclear
Operations, Inc. (Indian Point Nuclear
Generating Units 2 and 3), CLI–15–6, 81
NRC 340, 369 (2015).
The NRC, as an independent agency,
was requested, rather than directed, to
comply with Executive Order 12898,
and this Executive Orderdid not, in
itself, create new substantive authority
for Federal agencies. In a March 31,
1994, letter to President Clinton, NRC
Chairman Ivan Selin indicated that the
NRC would endeavor to carry out the
measures set forth in Executive Order
12898 and the accompanying
memorandum as part of the NRC’s
efforts to comply with NEPA (ADAMS
Accession No. ML033210526). As noted
in the NRC’s 1995 Environmental
Justice Strategy (ADAMS Accession No.
ML20081K602 (March 24, 1995)),
because ‘‘the NRC is not a ‘land
management’ agency, i.e., it neither
sites, owns, or manages facilities or
properties,’’ the NRC determined that
Executive Order 12898 would
‘‘primarily apply to [NRC] efforts to
fulfill’’ NEPA requirements as part of
NRC’s licensing process.
On August 24, 2004, following public
comment on a draft Policy Statement
(68 FR 62642), the Commission issued
its ‘‘Policy Statement on the Treatment
of Environmental Justice Matters in NRC
Regulatory and Licensing Actions’’ (69
FR 52040). The purpose of this Policy
Statement was to set forth a
‘‘comprehensive statement of the
Commission’s policy on the treatment of
environmental justice matters in NRC
regulatory and licensing actions.’’ Id. at
52,041. The Policy Statement explains
that the focus of an environmental
justice review ‘‘should be on identifying
and weighing disproportionately
significant and adverse environmental
impacts on minority and low-income
populations that may be different from
the impacts on the general population.
It is not a broad-ranging or even limited
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 173 / Friday, September 10, 2021 / Notices
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review of racial or economic
discrimination.’’ Id. at 52,047.
The Policy Statement also reiterates
guidance on defining the geographic
area for environmental justice
assessments and identifying low-income
and minority communities. Id. In
addition, it explains that a scoping
process is used to ‘‘assist the NRC in
ensuring that minority and low-income
communities, including transient
populations, affected by the proposed
action are not overlooked in assessing
the potential for significant impacts
unique to those communities.’’ Id. at
52,048. In performing a NEPA analysis,
‘‘published demographic data,
community interviews and public input
through well-noticed public scoping
meetings should be used in identifying
minority and low-income communities
that may be subject to adverse
environmental impacts.’’ Id.
On April 23, 2021, in a Staff
Requirements Memorandum (ADAMS
Accession No. ML21113A070), the
Commission directed the staff to
‘‘systematically review how the agency’s
programs, polices, and activities address
environmental justice.’’ As part of this
review, the Commission directed the
staff to evaluate recent Executive Orders
and assess whether environmental
justice is appropriately considered and
addressed in the agency’s programs,
policies, and activities, given the
agency’s mission. As directed, the staff
will consider the practices of other
Federal, State, and Tribal agencies and
evaluate whether the NRC should
incorporate environmental justice
beyond implementation through NEPA.
The staff will also review the adequacy
of the 2004 Policy Statement. The
Commission further directed the staff to
consider whether establishing formal
mechanisms to gather external
stakeholder input would benefit any
future environmental justice efforts. To
carry out the Commission’s direction,
the staff is seeking to engage
stakeholders and interested persons
representing a broad range of
perspectives. This Federal Register
notice is part of this engagement effort.
III. Requested Information and
Comments
On July 9, 2021, the NRC published
a notice in the Federal Register (86 FR
36307) requesting comments. The
comment period was originally
scheduled to close on August 23, 2021
and was extended to September 22,
2021 (86 FR 43696). The NRC staff has
decided to extend the comment period
until October 29, 2021, to allow more
time for members of the public to
submit their comments.
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18:09 Sep 09, 2021
Jkt 253001
The NRC is interested in obtaining a
broad range of perspectives from
stakeholders and interested persons.
The focus of this request is to gather
information to inform a systematic
assessment for how the NRC addresses
environmental justice in its programs,
policies, and activities, considering the
agency’s mission and statutory
authority. The NRC is particularly
interested in receiving input on the
following questions:
(1) What is your understanding of
what is meant by environmental justice
at the NRC?
(2) As described in the Commission’s
2004 Policy Statement on the Treatment
of Environmental Justice Matters in NRC
Regulatory and Licensing Actions (69
FR 52040), the NRC currently addresses
environmental justice in its NEPA
reviews to determine if a proposed
agency action will have
disproportionately high and adverse
impacts on minority and low-income
communities, defined as environmental
justice communities.
(a) When the NRC is conducting
licensing and other regulatory reviews,
the agency uses a variety of ways to
gather information from stakeholders
and interested persons on
environmental impacts of the proposed
agency action, such as in-person and
virtual meetings, Federal Register
notices requesting input, and dialog
with community organizations.
(i) How could the NRC expand how
it engages and gathers input?
(ii) What formal tools might there be
to enhance information gathering from
stakeholders and interested persons in
NRC’s programs, policies, and
activities?
(iii) Can you describe any challenges
that may affect your ability to engage
with the NRC on environmental justice
issues?
(b) How could the NRC enhance
opportunities for members of
environmental justice communities to
participate in licensing and regulatory
activities, including the identification of
impacts and other environmental justice
concerns?
(c) What ways could the NRC enhance
identification of environmental justice
communities?
(d) What has the NRC historically
done well, or currently does well that
we could do more of or expand with
respect to environmental justice in our
programs, policies, and activities,
including engagement efforts? In your
view, what portions of the 2004 Policy
Statement are effective?
(3) What actions could the NRC take
to enhance consideration of
environmental justice in the NRC’s
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50747
programs, policies and activities and
agency decision-making, considering
the agency’s mission and statutory
authority?
(a) Would you recommend that NRC
consider any particular organization’s
environmental justice program(s) in its
assessment?
(b) Looking to other Federal, State,
and Tribal agencies’ environmental
justice programs, what actions could the
NRC take to enhance consideration of
environmental justice in the NRC’s
programs, policies, and activities?
(c) Considering recent Executive
Orders on environmental justice, what
actions could the NRC take to enhance
consideration of environmental justice
in the NRC’s programs, policies, and
activities?
(d) Are there opportunities to expand
consideration of environmental justice
in NRC programs, policies, and
activities, considering the agency’s
mission? If so, what are they?
Dated: September 7, 2021.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory F. Suber,
Director, Environmental Justice Review Team,
Office of the Executive Director for
Operations.
[FR Doc. 2021–19549 Filed 9–9–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590–01–P
NUCLEAR REGULATORY
COMMISSION
[NRC–2021–0001]
Sunshine Act Meetings
Weeks of September 13,
20, 27, October 4, 11, 18, 2021.
PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference
Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,
Maryland.
STATUS: Public and closed.
MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:
TIME AND DATE:
Week of September 13, 2021
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
10:00 a.m. Briefing on NRC
International Activities (Closed—
Ex. 1 & 9)
Week of September 20, 2021—Tentative
There are no meetings scheduled for
the week of September 20, 2021.
Week of September 27, 2021—Tentative
Thursday, September 30, 2021
9:00 a.m. Strategic Programmatic
Overview of the Operating Reactors
and New Reactors Business Lines
(Public Meeting); (Contact: Candace
De Messieres: 301–415–8395).
E:\FR\FM\10SEN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 173 (Friday, September 10, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50745-50747]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19549]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2021-0137]
Systematic Assessment for How the NRC Addresses Environmental
Justice in Its Programs, Policies, and Activities
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Extension of comment period.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: On July 9, 2021, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
requested comments as part of its systematic review for how NRC
programs, policies, and activities address environmental justice.
Specifically, the NRC requested input on how the agency is addressing
environmental justice, considering the agency's mission and statutory
authority. The information will be used to inform the agency's
assessment of how it addresses environmental justice. The public
comment period was originally scheduled to close on August 23, 2021 and
was extended to September 22, 2021. The NRC has decided to extend the
public comment period to allow more time for members of the public to
develop and submit their comments.
[[Page 50746]]
DATES: The due date for comments requested in the notice, published on
July 9, 2021, (86 FR 36307) is extended. Submit comments by October 29,
2021. Comments received after this date will be considered if it is
practical to do so, but the NRC is able to ensure consideration only
for comments received on or before this date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
Telephone: 301-415-3875 or 800-882-4672.
Email: [email protected].
Mail comments to: Office of Administration, Mail Stop:
TWFN-7-A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, ATTN: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff.
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0137. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann;
telephone: 301-415-0624; email: [email protected]. For technical
questions, contact the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section of this document.
For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Allen Fetter, Office of the Executive
Director for Operations, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-8556, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2021-0137 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain
publicly available information related to this action by any of the
following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0137.
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]. The Staff Requirements Memorandum
(SRM)-M210218B, ``Briefing on Equal Employment Opportunity, Affirmative
Employment, and Small Business, 10:00 a.m., Thursday, February 18,
2021, Video Conference Meeting,'' dated April 23, 2021, which provides
direction to the staff or this assessment, is available in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML21113A070.
Attention: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies
of public documents, is currently closed. You may submit your request
to the PDR via email at [email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or
301-415-4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (ET), Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages comment submission via email and phone. Please
reference Docket ID NRC-2021-0137 in your comment submission.
The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your
comment submission. The NRC will post comment submissions received via
regulations.gov at https://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the
comment submissions into ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment
submissions to remove identifying or contact information.
If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to
remove such information before making the comment submissions available
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.
II. Background
The NRC is an independent agency established by the Energy
Reorganization Act of 1974 that began operations in 1975 as a successor
to the licensing and regulatory activities of the Atomic Energy
Commission. The NRC's mission is to license and regulate the Nation's
civilian use of radioactive materials to provide reasonable assurance
of adequate protection of public health and safety and to promote the
common defense and security and to protect the environment. As part of
its licensing and regulatory activities, the NRC conducts safety,
security, and environmental reviews.
Specifically, with respect to environmental reviews, the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.,
requires all Federal agencies to evaluate the impacts of proposed major
actions on the human environment. As part of its responsibilities under
NEPA, the NRC considers environmental justice. According to the
Commission, ``[t]he term `environmental justice' refers to the federal
policy established in 1994 by Executive Order 12898, which directed
federal agencies to identify and address `disproportionately high and
adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs,
policies, and activities on minority and low-income populations.' ''
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (Indian Point Nuclear Generating Units
2 and 3), CLI-15-6, 81 NRC 340, 369 (2015).
The NRC, as an independent agency, was requested, rather than
directed, to comply with Executive Order 12898, and this Executive
Orderdid not, in itself, create new substantive authority for Federal
agencies. In a March 31, 1994, letter to President Clinton, NRC
Chairman Ivan Selin indicated that the NRC would endeavor to carry out
the measures set forth in Executive Order 12898 and the accompanying
memorandum as part of the NRC's efforts to comply with NEPA (ADAMS
Accession No. ML033210526). As noted in the NRC's 1995 Environmental
Justice Strategy (ADAMS Accession No. ML20081K602 (March 24, 1995)),
because ``the NRC is not a `land management' agency, i.e., it neither
sites, owns, or manages facilities or properties,'' the NRC determined
that Executive Order 12898 would ``primarily apply to [NRC] efforts to
fulfill'' NEPA requirements as part of NRC's licensing process.
On August 24, 2004, following public comment on a draft Policy
Statement (68 FR 62642), the Commission issued its ``Policy Statement
on the Treatment of Environmental Justice Matters in NRC Regulatory and
Licensing Actions'' (69 FR 52040). The purpose of this Policy Statement
was to set forth a ``comprehensive statement of the Commission's policy
on the treatment of environmental justice matters in NRC regulatory and
licensing actions.'' Id. at 52,041. The Policy Statement explains that
the focus of an environmental justice review ``should be on identifying
and weighing disproportionately significant and adverse environmental
impacts on minority and low-income populations that may be different
from the impacts on the general population. It is not a broad-ranging
or even limited
[[Page 50747]]
review of racial or economic discrimination.'' Id. at 52,047.
The Policy Statement also reiterates guidance on defining the
geographic area for environmental justice assessments and identifying
low-income and minority communities. Id. In addition, it explains that
a scoping process is used to ``assist the NRC in ensuring that minority
and low-income communities, including transient populations, affected
by the proposed action are not overlooked in assessing the potential
for significant impacts unique to those communities.'' Id. at 52,048.
In performing a NEPA analysis, ``published demographic data, community
interviews and public input through well-noticed public scoping
meetings should be used in identifying minority and low-income
communities that may be subject to adverse environmental impacts.'' Id.
On April 23, 2021, in a Staff Requirements Memorandum (ADAMS
Accession No. ML21113A070), the Commission directed the staff to
``systematically review how the agency's programs, polices, and
activities address environmental justice.'' As part of this review, the
Commission directed the staff to evaluate recent Executive Orders and
assess whether environmental justice is appropriately considered and
addressed in the agency's programs, policies, and activities, given the
agency's mission. As directed, the staff will consider the practices of
other Federal, State, and Tribal agencies and evaluate whether the NRC
should incorporate environmental justice beyond implementation through
NEPA. The staff will also review the adequacy of the 2004 Policy
Statement. The Commission further directed the staff to consider
whether establishing formal mechanisms to gather external stakeholder
input would benefit any future environmental justice efforts. To carry
out the Commission's direction, the staff is seeking to engage
stakeholders and interested persons representing a broad range of
perspectives. This Federal Register notice is part of this engagement
effort.
III. Requested Information and Comments
On July 9, 2021, the NRC published a notice in the Federal Register
(86 FR 36307) requesting comments. The comment period was originally
scheduled to close on August 23, 2021 and was extended to September 22,
2021 (86 FR 43696). The NRC staff has decided to extend the comment
period until October 29, 2021, to allow more time for members of the
public to submit their comments.
The NRC is interested in obtaining a broad range of perspectives
from stakeholders and interested persons. The focus of this request is
to gather information to inform a systematic assessment for how the NRC
addresses environmental justice in its programs, policies, and
activities, considering the agency's mission and statutory authority.
The NRC is particularly interested in receiving input on the following
questions:
(1) What is your understanding of what is meant by environmental
justice at the NRC?
(2) As described in the Commission's 2004 Policy Statement on the
Treatment of Environmental Justice Matters in NRC Regulatory and
Licensing Actions (69 FR 52040), the NRC currently addresses
environmental justice in its NEPA reviews to determine if a proposed
agency action will have disproportionately high and adverse impacts on
minority and low-income communities, defined as environmental justice
communities.
(a) When the NRC is conducting licensing and other regulatory
reviews, the agency uses a variety of ways to gather information from
stakeholders and interested persons on environmental impacts of the
proposed agency action, such as in-person and virtual meetings, Federal
Register notices requesting input, and dialog with community
organizations.
(i) How could the NRC expand how it engages and gathers input?
(ii) What formal tools might there be to enhance information
gathering from stakeholders and interested persons in NRC's programs,
policies, and activities?
(iii) Can you describe any challenges that may affect your ability
to engage with the NRC on environmental justice issues?
(b) How could the NRC enhance opportunities for members of
environmental justice communities to participate in licensing and
regulatory activities, including the identification of impacts and
other environmental justice concerns?
(c) What ways could the NRC enhance identification of environmental
justice communities?
(d) What has the NRC historically done well, or currently does well
that we could do more of or expand with respect to environmental
justice in our programs, policies, and activities, including engagement
efforts? In your view, what portions of the 2004 Policy Statement are
effective?
(3) What actions could the NRC take to enhance consideration of
environmental justice in the NRC's programs, policies and activities
and agency decision-making, considering the agency's mission and
statutory authority?
(a) Would you recommend that NRC consider any particular
organization's environmental justice program(s) in its assessment?
(b) Looking to other Federal, State, and Tribal agencies'
environmental justice programs, what actions could the NRC take to
enhance consideration of environmental justice in the NRC's programs,
policies, and activities?
(c) Considering recent Executive Orders on environmental justice,
what actions could the NRC take to enhance consideration of
environmental justice in the NRC's programs, policies, and activities?
(d) Are there opportunities to expand consideration of
environmental justice in NRC programs, policies, and activities,
considering the agency's mission? If so, what are they?
Dated: September 7, 2021.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gregory F. Suber,
Director, Environmental Justice Review Team, Office of the Executive
Director for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2021-19549 Filed 9-9-21; 8:45 am]
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