[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 28 (Thursday, February 10, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-3061]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: February 10, 1994]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-309]

 

Maine Yankee Atomic Power Co.; Issuance of Environmental 
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering issuance of an amendment to facility Operating License No. 
DPR-36, issued to Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company for operation of 
the Maine Yankee Atomic Power Station, located in Lincoln County, 
Maine.

Identification of Proposed Action

    The proposed amendment is in response to the licensee's application 
dated January 25, 1993, as supplemented in letters dated November 3, 
November 23, December 9, 1993, and January 5, 1994.
    The proposed amendment would increase the maximum number of spent 
fuel assemblies stored in the Maine Yankee spent fuel pool (SFP) to 
2019 from 1476. The proposed increase is required to provide spent fuel 
storage space through the duration of the current operating license, 
including the final full core offload. The NRC staff has prepared an 
Environmental Assessment of the proposed action.

Summary of Environmental Assessment

    The ``Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (FGEIS) on 
Handling and Storage of Spent Light Water Reactor Power Reactor Fuel'' 
(NUREG-0575), Volumes 1, 2 and 3, concluded that the environmental 
impact of interim storage of spent fuel is negligible, and the cost of 
the various alternatives reflects the advantage of continued generation 
of nuclear power with the attendant requirement of spent fuel storage. 
Because of the differences in design, the FGEIS recommends evaluating 
SFP expansions on a case-by-case basis.
    For Maine Yankee, the expansion of the storage capacity of the SFP 
will not create any significant additional radiological effects or 
nonradiological environmental impacts.
    The additional whole body dose that might be received by an 
individual at the site boundary and the estimated dose to the 
population within an kilometer radius is believed to be too small to 
have any significance when compared to the fluctuations in the annual 
dose this population receives from exposure to background radiation. 
The occupational radiation dose from the proposed operation of the 
expanded SFP is estimated to be extremely small compared to the total 
annual occupational radiation exposure for this facility.
    No effect on the waste heat rejected by the plant is expected as a 
result of the reracking effort. Administrative controls currently in 
place at Maine Yankee ensure that the design limits of the SFP cooling 
and purification system will not be exceeded under normal or full core 
discharge conditions.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The NRC staff has reviewed the proposed SFP reracking relative to 
the requirements set forth in 10 CFR part 51, Environmental Protection 
Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions. 
Based on this assessment, the NRC staff concludes that there are no 
significant radiological or nonradiological impacts associated with the 
proposed action and that the issuance of the proposed amendment to the 
license will have no significant impact on the quality of the human 
environment. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.31, no environmental 
impact statement need be prepared for this action.
    For further details with respect to this action, see (1) the 
application for amendment as described above, (2) the FGEIS on Handling 
and Storage of Spent Light Water Power Reactor Fuel (NUREG 0575), (3) 
the Final Environmental Statement for the Maine Yankee Atomic Power 
Station, dated July 1972, and (4) the Environmental Assessment of this 
matter dated February 2, 1994.
    These documents are available for public inspection at the 
Commission's Public Document Room, 2120 L Street, NW., Washington, DC 
20555, and at the local public document room located at Wiscasset 
Public Library, High Street, P.O. Box 367, Wiscasset, Maine 04578.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2nd day of February, 1994.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Gordon E. Edison,
Acting Director, Project Directorate I-3, Division of Reactor 
Projects--I/II, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 94-3061 Filed 2-9-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M