[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 66 (Wednesday, April 6, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-8313]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: April 6, 1994]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

 

Notice of Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement, for the Defense Waste Processing Facility, at the Savannah 
River Site, Aiken, SC

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE) announces its intent to prepare 
a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and to conduct a 
public scoping process pursuant to the National Environmental Policy 
Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), to examine the 
environmental impacts of the modifications made to the Defense Waste 
Processing Facility and associated high-level waste facilities at the 
Savannah River Site. The Supplemental EIS will supplement the Final 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that DOE issued in 1982 (DOE/EIS-
0082), and will evaluate whether and how to proceed with the Defense 
Waste Processing Facility in light of the changes in processes and 
facilities that have occurred since the 1982 EIS was issued. That EIS, 
its Record of Decision, and a subsequent Environmental Assessment, 
Waste Form Selection for Savannah River Plant High-Level Waste (DOE/EA-
0179), supported the preferred alternative for the construction and 
operation of the Defense Waste Processing Facility. The specific 
process and facility modifications that have been introduced or are 
being implemented in the Defense Waste Processing Facility system since 
the Record of Decision are discussed in the Supplementary Information 
section of this Notice of Intent. Background information on the 
Savannah River Site and issues proposed to be considered in this 
Supplemental EIS are presented in the Supplementary Information below 
as well.
    DOE also is announcing today its intent to prepare an Environmental 
Impact Statement for Waste Management at the Savannah River Site. (See 
the notice in this issue of the Federal Register.)
    DOE invites individuals, organizations, and agencies to comment on 
issues to be considered, alternatives to be analyzed, and environmental 
impacts to be addressed in the Supplemental EIS. Written and oral 
comments will be given equal weight. Written comments should be 
directed to Stephen R. Wright at the address below. Oral comments may 
be presented by voice mail at the telephone number below. Interested 
parties are invited to present comments at three public scoping 
meetings to be held at the dates and places indicated below. Additional 
notice will be given in appropriate media. At the scoping meetings and 
at informal information sessions held one month earlier, DOE also will 
provide the public with an opportunity to engage in informal 
discussions with DOE representatives regarding the Defense Waste 
Processing Facility. The scoping process and procedures are described 
in the Supplementary Information below.

DATES: The public scoping period for the Supplemental EIS begins with 
the publication of this notice and continues until May 31, 1994. 
Written comments submitted by mail should be postmarked by that date to 
ensure consideration. DOE will consider comments mailed after that date 
to the extent practicable.
    DOE will host a series of informal information sessions to provide 
the public with additional information on the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility and the proposed actions and alternatives discussed in this 
Notice of Intent. These sessions are intended to promote conversation 
with DOE representatives available to answer questions. These informal 
sessions are scheduled at the following times and locations:

    April 12, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; North Augusta Community 
Center, 495 Brookside Avenue, North Augusta, South Carolina.
    April 19, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; DeSoto Hilton Hotel, 15 
Liberty Street, Savannah, Georgia.
    April 21, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; Holiday Inn Coliseum at 
University of South Carolina, 630 Assembly Street, Columbia, South 
Carolina.

    Information sessions on two related EISs--the Interim Waste 
Management of Nuclear Materials at the Savannah River Site EIS (Notice 
of Intent published March 17, 1994; 59 FR 12588), and the Savannah 
River Site Waste Management EIS--will be held at the same dates and 
locations.
    DOE will then conduct public scoping meetings to assist in defining 
the appropriate scope of the Defense Waste Processing Facility 
Supplemental EIS and identifying significant environmental issues to be 
addressed. DOE representatives will be available at the meetings to 
discuss, in informal conversations, the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility. These meetings are scheduled at the following times and 
locations:

    May 12, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; Coastal Georgia Center for 
Continuing Education, 305 Martin Luther King Boulevard (Battlefield 
Park), Savannah, Georgia.
    May 17, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; North Augusta Community Center, 
495 Brookside Avenue, North Augusta, South Carolina.
    May 19, 1994; 1-4 and 6-9 p.m.; Holiday Inn Coliseum at the 
University of South Carolina, 630 Assembly Street, Columbia, South 
Carolina.

    Scoping meetings on the Interim Management of Nuclear Materials at 
the Savannah River Site EIS and the Savannah River Site Waste 
Management EIS will be held at the same dates and locations. DOE will 
publish additional notices of the information sessions and scoping 
meetings in the local media in advance of the scheduled dates.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the scope of the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility Supplemental EIS, requests to speak at the public scoping 
meetings, and requests for copies of the EIS Implementation Plan or 
draft Supplemental EIS (when available) should be directed to: Mr. 
Stephen R. Wright, U.S. Department of Energy, Savannah River Operations 
Office, P.O. Box 5031, Aiken, SC 29804-5031; (803) 725-3957 or (800) 
242-8269. Envelopes should be marked: ``Savannah River Site Defense 
Waste Processing Facility Supplemental EIS.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding the Supplemental 
EIS should be addressed to: Karen Poore, High Level Waste Division, 
U.S. Department of Energy, Savannah River Operations Office, P.O. Box 
A, Aiken, SC 29802; (803) 725-2827.
    Questions regarding the DOE NEPA process should be addressed to: 
Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Oversight (EH-25), U.S. 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20855; (202) 586-4600 or leave a message at (800) 472-2765.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Savannah River Site occupies approximately 300 square miles 
adjacent to the Savannah River, primarily in Aiken and Barnwell 
Counties in South Carolina. The Site is approximately 25 miles 
southeast of Augusta, Georgia, and 20 miles south of Aiken, South 
Carolina. Since its establishment, the mission of the Savannah River 
Site has been to produce nuclear materials that support the defense, 
research, and medical programs of the United States.
    At present, the Savannah River Site is in transition to other 
missions, which include increased emphasis on waste management, 
environmental restoration, and decontamination and decommissioning. 
With these mission changes in mind, DOE is examining its integrated 
waste management program and the suitability of existing and planned 
facilities. The Defense Waste Processing Facility is one of the vital 
components of the waste management program at Savannah River Site.
    In 1982 DOE published an EIS and a Record of Decision documenting 
its decision to construct and operate the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility, which would immobilize liquid high-level radioactive waste in 
glass (vitrification). The vitrified waste would then be encapsulated 
in stainless steel canisters and stored onsite until a geologic 
repository is available for final disposal. DOE then modified the 
Defense Waste Processing Facility to improve facility efficiency and 
safety. A Supplement Analysis was prepared to determine whether 
modifications as of 1990, primarily the introduction of the In-Tank 
Precipitation process and manufacture and disposal of saltstone, 
required the preparation of a supplement to the Defense Waste 
Processing Facility EIS. On the basis of the Supplement Analysis, DOE 
concluded in 1991 that a Supplemental EIS was not needed.
    Further modifications to the Defense Waste Processing Facility 
system have now been proposed and are in various stages of 
implementation, including process safety enhancement and a Late Wash 
Facility. In view of the accumulated changes and the near-term 
(estimated 1996) initial operation of the facility, DOE believes that a 
focused EIS-level review of the environmental impacts of the facility 
as now envisioned would be timely and appropriate.
    The specific process and facility modifications that are being 
implemented in the Defense Waste Processing Facility system since the 
Record of Decision include:
    In-Tank Precipitation--The original Defense Waste Processing 
Facility design used ion exchange to separate soluble radionuclides 
from salt solution. Research and development efforts indicated that an 
in-tank precipitation process would remove more than 99.9 percent of 
the radioactivity in salt solution. DOE has incorporated the In-Tank 
Precipitation process as a replacement for ion exchange as a Defense 
Waste Processing Facility modification.
    Saltstone Manufacturing and Disposal--The process of salt solution 
disposal originally involved dewatering decontaminated salt solution, 
mixing it with concrete to form ``saltcrete,'' and burying it in an 
engineered trench. The present design would blend decontaminated salt 
solution from the in-tank precipitation process with a waste 
concentrate stream from the F- and H-Area Effluent Treatment Facility, 
mix it with cement-flyash grout to form ``saltstone,'' and dispose of 
it in reinforced concrete vaults.
    Late-Wash Facility--This new facility would give precipitate slurry 
from the In-Tank Precipitation process a final wash to reduce the 
concentration of nitrite and radiolysis products. The result would be 
the ability to process precipitate in the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility vitrification process.
    Nitric Acid Introduction--This process would add nitric rather than 
formic acid to the sludge in the Sludge Receipt and Adjustment Tank to 
bring nitrate concentrations to the desired levels.
    Hydrogen Modifications--These modifications to the ventilation 
system would provide additional dilution air to components in the 
vitrification facility to mitigate the potential formation of hydrogen 
gas in flammable concentrations.
    Ammonia Mitigation Modification--The installation of ammonia-
reducing scrubbers at several locations in the process vessel 
ventilation system would mitigate a potential safety hazard from the 
accumulation of solid ammonium nitrate.
    Benzene Treatment--The proposed treatment option for benzene 
generated at the Defense Waste Processing Facility is the Consolidated 
Incineration Facility. Environmental Protection Agency regulations name 
incineration as the current Best Demonstrated and Available Technology 
for benzene. The Supplemental EIS will evaluate alternatives to this 
treatment option for benzene from the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility.

Related EISs

    The Savannah River Waste Management EIS, also announced in this 
issue of the Federal Register, will address treatment, storage, and 
disposal alternatives for a variety of wastes, whereas the Defense 
Waste Processing Facility Supplemental EIS will evaluate the cumulative 
impacts of specific modifications to the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility system. The Waste Management EIS will include waste facilities 
associated with Defense Waste Processing Facility, such as the 
treatment of waste water discharges in the F- and H-Area Effluent 
Treatment Facility, F- and H-Area Tank Farm, and the construction and 
operation of a high-level radioactive waste evaporator in the H-Area 
Tank Farm. The Waste Management EIS also will evaluate alternatives to 
the Consolidated Incineration Facility technology for mixed waste 
(includes radioactive constituents in addition to hazardous 
constituents such as benzene). The documents will be prepared in close 
coordination.
    DOE proposes to perform the Defense Waste Processing Facility 
review in a supplement to the 1982 EIS for the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility. Although the analysis could be included in the Savannah River 
Site Waste Management EIS, DOE believes public review and DOE's 
decision making process would be facilitated by preparing a separate 
document, because the Defense Waste Processing Facility is a very 
specialized operation with limited connections to the activities to be 
covered in the Waste Management EIS. Where there are interconnections, 
duplicate discussions within both documents may be required or the 
documents will cross reference one another.
    Activities at the Defense Waste Processing Facility have proceeded 
on the basis of the 1982 EIS and Record of Decision. Construction of 
the Defense Waste Processing Facility is almost complete, testing of 
the system with chemicals has begun, and processing runs of simulated 
(non-radioactive) material will begin in the next few months. DOE 
committed in an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and 
the State of South Carolina to adhere to a schedule that provides for 
testing with radionuclides to begin in December, 1995. In order to 
support that schedule and to manage efficiently the high level 
radioactive waste contained in the tank farms, in-tank precipitation 
must begin in late 1994 or early 1995. A supplemental EIS focussing on 
the changes to the Defense Waste Processing Facility can be completed 
in time to meet this schedule, while the Waste Management EIS is 
expected to take several more months to prepare. Delay of start-up for 
the Defense Waste Processing Facility would cost approximately 
$21,000,000 per month.
    The Supplemental EIS will examine all reasonably foreseeable 
impacts of operating the Defense Waste Processing Facility, including 
alternative methods of managing the waste streams from the facility. 
DOE believes that this will provide sufficient information to decide 
whether to proceed with operation of the facility in advance of 
completion of the Waste Management EIS.

Preliminary Description of Defense Waste Processing Facility 
Supplemental EIS Alternatives

(1) The Proposed Action Alternative

    Since completion of the 1982 EIS and as a result of the Defense 
Waste Processing Facility modifications, new information about the 
Defense Waste Processing Facility process has become available to which 
the public has not yet had full access. The proposed action of this 
Supplemental EIS is to continue construction and begin operation of 
Defense Waste Processing Facility as currently designed. DOE would 
continue the Defense Waste Processing Facility process and facility 
modifications that are currently underway, would complete startup 
testing activities, and would operate the facility upon completion of 
startup testing. Analysis of the proposed action will allow DOE to 
determine whether the decisions reached as a result of the 1982 EIS 
remain valid in light of process and facility modifications over the 
last 12 years.

(2) The Alternative Actions

    DOE will examine whether there are other reasonable system 
alternatives for the Defense Waste Processing Facility (in the context 
of its current state of construction) such as mitigation measures, 
pollution prevention efforts, and facility design or process 
modifications that could reduce the risk of operation. Conclusions 
reached in the 1982 EIS concerning alternatives to constructing and 
operating the Defense Waste Processing Facility will also be reviewed 
to assess whether technology developments have occurred that might 
influence those decisions.

(3) The ``No Action'' Alternative

    DOE will analyze a no-action alternative under which current waste 
generation and waste management practices would continue. That is, 
high-level liquid radioactive waste would remain in the tanks. Although 
the no-action alternative may not be a reasonable alternative in all 
respects, its analysis will establish a baseline for comparison of the 
environmental impacts of the proposed action and its alternatives.

Identification of Environmental Issues

    The Supplemental EIS will analyze the following environmental 
issues applicable to the operation of the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility, consistent with discussion above in the Background section. 
Modifications to this list might occur as a result of the scoping 
process.
    1. Public and worker safety and health risk assessment: 
radiological and nonradiological impacts of the proposed action and 
alternatives, including projected effects on workers and the public 
from construction, normal operation, and potential accidents.
    2. Impacts from releases to air, water, and soil.
    3. Impacts to plants, animals, and habitat, including impacts to 
wetlands, and threatened or endangered species and their habitat.
    4. The consumption of natural resources and energy including water, 
natural gas, and electricity.
    5. Impacts of the transportation of construction and operation 
supplies, materials, equipment, products, and wastes to, from, and 
within the site.
    6. Socioeconomic impacts to affected communities from construction 
and operational labor forces and expenditures.
    7. Environmental Justice: Disproportionately high or adverse human 
health and environmental effects on minority and low-income 
populations.
    8. Impacts to cultural resources such as historic, archaeological, 
scientific, or culturally important sites.
    9. Accuracy of projected waste volumes.
    10. Status of compliance with applicable Federal, state, and local 
statutes and regulations.
    11. Cumulative impacts from the proposed action and other past, 
present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions at Savannah River 
Site.
    12. Potential irreversible and irretrievable commitments of 
resources.
    13. Pollution prevention, waste minimization, and potential 
mitigative measures.

Related Documentation

    Completed and ongoing environmental reviews may affect the scope of 
the Defense Waste Processing Facility Supplemental EIS. DOE has 
published or is preparing several NEPA documents on waste management 
activities at Savannah River Site, including the following:

    Waste Management Operations, ERDA-1537, 1977.
    Long-Term Management of Defense High-Level Radioactive Wastes 
(Research and Development Program for Immobilization), DOE/EIS-0023, 
1979.
    Defense Waste Processing Facility, DOE/EIS-0082, 1982.
    Waste Form Selection for Savannah River Plant High-Level Waste, 
DOE/EA-0179, 1982.
    Waste Management Activities for Groundwater Protection, DOE/EIS-
0120, 1987.
    Consolidated Incineration Facility, DOE/EA-0400, 1992.
    Interim Management of Nuclear Materials at the Savannah River 
Site, EIS being developed.
    Waste Management at the Savannah River Site, EIS being 
developed.

Public Meetings

    DOE will host a series of informal information sessions to provide 
the public with additional information on the Defense Waste Processing 
Facility and the proposed actions and alternatives discussed in this 
Notice of Intent. These sessions are intended to promote conversation 
with DOE representatives available to answer questions.
    Oral and written comments will be received at public scoping 
meetings to be held at the locations and times indicated above. The 
meetings will be chaired by a presiding officer and attended by DOE 
officials. The public scoping meetings will not be conducted as 
evidentiary hearings; speakers will not be cross-examined, although the 
presiding officer and DOE representatives present may ask clarifying 
questions. The DOE panel members will respond to comments and questions 
from the public. In addition, DOE representatives will be available to 
discuss the Defense Waste Processing Facility in informal 
conversations.
    To facilitate scheduling of speakers, requests to speak at these 
meetings may be made in advance by calling (800) 242-8269 between 8:30 
a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, or by calling 
Mr. Stephen R. Wright at (803) 725-3957 at least two days before the 
designated meeting. To ensure that everyone has an adequate opportunity 
to speak, five minutes will be allotted each speaker. Depending on the 
number of persons who request an opportunity to speak, the presiding 
officer may allow more time for speakers representing multiple parties 
or organizations. Persons wishing to speak on behalf of organizations 
should identify the organization in their request. Persons who have not 
submitted an advance request to speak may register at the meetings and 
will be called on to speak in the order of registration as time 
permits. Written comments also will be accepted at the meetings, and 
speakers are encouraged to provide written versions of their oral 
comments for the record. DOE will prepare transcripts of the scoping 
meetings. Individuals may review the transcripts, other NEPA documents, 
and background information on Defense Waste Processing Facility at the 
following DOE public reading rooms during normal business hours.

     U.S. Department of Energy Reading Room, University of South 
Carolina, Aiken Campus, University Library--2nd Floor, University 
Parkway, Aiken, SC 29801; (803) 648-6851.
    U.S. Department of Energy, Freedom of Information Reading Room, 
Room 1E-190, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, 
Washington, DC 20585; (202) 586-6020.

Development of the Defense Waste Processing Facility Supplemental EIS

    DOE will consider comments and suggestions received during the 
scoping period in its preparation of the draft Supplemental EIS. 
Results of the scoping process (including a summary of comments 
received, DOE's response to public comments, and an outline of the 
intended scope and environmental issues to be discussed in the 
Supplemental EIS) will be presented in a publicly available 
Implementation Plan. Upon completing the draft Supplemental EIS, DOE 
will announce its availability in the Federal Register and local media, 
and will again solicit public comments. DOE will consider comments on 
the draft Supplemental EIS in its preparation of the final Supplemental 
EIS.
    Schedule. The preliminary schedule for preparation of this 
Supplemental EIS is as follows:

    Availability of Implementation Plan: June 1994.
    Availability of draft Defense Waste Processing Facility 
Supplemental EIS: July 1994.
    Draft Supplemental EIS Public Comment Period: August-September 
1994.
    Availability of final Defense Waste Processing Facility 
Supplemental EIS: October 1994.
    Record of Decision: November 1994.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on April 1, 1994.
Tara O'Toole,
Assistant Secretary, Environment, Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 94-8313 Filed 4-5-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P