[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 156 (Monday, August 15, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-19902]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 15, 1994]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 72-11 (50-312)]

 

Sacramento Municipal Utility District Notice of Issuance of 
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for the 
Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation at the Rancho Seco Nuclear 
Generaling Station

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering issuance of a materials license under the requirements of 
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 72 (10 CFR Part 72), 
to Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD or the Applicant), 
authorizing receipt and storage of spent fuel in an independent spent 
fuel storage installation (ISFSI) located onsite at its Rancho Seco 
Nuclear Generating Station (RSNGS) near Sacramento California. The 
Commission's Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, Division 
of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety, has completed its 
environmental review in support of the issuance of a materials license. 
The ``Environmental Assessment (EA) Related to the Construction and 
Operation of the Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station Independent 
Spent Fuel Storage Installation'' have been issued in accordance with 
10 CFR Part 51.

Description of the Proposed Action

    The proposed licensing action would authorize the applicant to 
construct and operate a dry storage ISFSI. The function of the ISFSI is 
to provide interim storage of 493 spent fuel assemblies which were 
irradiated a Rancho Seco during its operation and are currently stored 
in the spent fuel pool. Twenty-four fuel assemblies are stored in an 
inert atmosphere inside each stainless steel canister which provides 
confinement, shielding, criticality control, and heat removal. Spent 
fuel loading and canister preparation take place within the RSNGS fuel 
handling building. The canister is then moved to the onsite ISFSI 
inside a 10 CFR Part 71 certified shipping cask where the canister is 
then placed inside a module (HSM), which provides additional shielding. 
The license for an ISFSI under 10 CFR Part 72 is issued for 20 years, 
but the licensee may apply to the commission to renew the license, if 
necessary, prior to its expiration.

Need for the Proposed Action

    Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station has ceased operation as the 
result of a public referendum of SMUD voters on June 6, 1989. The 
reactor has been permanently defueled. The spent nuclear fuel will be 
stored at an ISFSI, in a transportable storage system. SMUD plans to 
discontinue use of the Ranch Seco spent fuel pool as it proceeds to 
place Rancho Seco in the Hardened-SAFSTOR phase of decommissioning. The 
applicant intends to operate the Rancho Seco ISFSI until acceptance of 
the spent nuclear fuel by Department of Energy (DOE), which is 
responsible for its permanent disposal.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    Construction of the ISFSI will affect approximately .8 ha (2 acres) 
of the 1003 ha (2480 acre) Rancho Seco Nuclear Generating Station site 
area. The potential for fugitive dust, erosion and noise impacts, 
typical of the planned construction activities, can be controlled to 
insignificant levels with good construction practices. The only 
resources committed irretrievably are the concrete and other 
construction materials used in the 21 ISFSI HSM's and the foundation 
pad. The radiological impacts from liquid and gaseous effluents arising 
from cask loading and preparation fall within the scope of impacts 
evaluated for licensed reactor operations and have been found to be 
acceptable. There impacts controlled by the existing RSNGS Reactor 
Technical Specifications. The primary exposure pathway associated with 
the ISFSI operation is direct irradiation of nearby residents and site 
workers. The dose commitment to the nearest resident is less than 1 
mrem/yr and when added to that from RSNGS operations is well within the 
250 Sv/yr (25 mrem/yr) requirement of 10 CFR 72.104. The 
collective dose commitment to residents within two miles of the ISFSI 
is .00078 person-Sv (.0078 person-mrem/yr). Table 9.4 of NCRP Report 
No. 94 [Ref. 11] shows the means exposure to an individual living in 
the United States from the natural background radiation to be about 
3mSv/yr (300 mrem/yr). Compared to the natural background dose, the 
potential contribution of the ISFSI is only a small fraction of the 
total exposure a member of the general public will receive. As shown in 
[REF.1 Table 7.3] the occupational dose to site workers due to 
construction and operations is conservatively estimated at 14 person-
mSv (1400 Person-mrem). This figure is a small fraction of the total 
occupational dose commitment at the RSNGS. As shown in the 
Environmental Assessment the radiological impacts due to accidents at 
the RSNGS ISFSI were conservatively estimated at 1.29 mSv (0.129 rem) 
which is only a small fraction of the 5 rem criteria specified in 10 
CFR 72.106(b) and by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 
protective action guides. Therefore, no significant non-radiological 
impacts are expected from ISFSI operations.

Generic Determination

    The Commission has made the certain generic determinations set 
forth in 10 CFR 51.23(a) that spent fuel can be safely stored, without 
significant environmental impacts, for at least 30 years beyond the 
licensed life for operation of the reactor, at an onsite ISFSI, and 
that at least one permanent disposal facility will be available within 
the first quarter of the 21st century. Accordingly as set forth in 10 
CFR Part 51(b), no discussion is required on any environmental impact 
of spent fuel storage in an onsite ISFSI for the period following the 
term of the initial ISFSI license.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    The ``Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (FGEIS) on 
Handling and Storage of Spent Light Water Power Reactor Fuel,'' NUREG-
0575, found that ISFSIs represent a major means of interim storage at a 
reactor site. While the environmental impacts of the dry storage ISFSI 
option were not specifically addressed in the FGEIS (storage of light-
water-cooled power reactor spent fuel in a water pool was specifically 
addressed), the use of alternative dry passive storage techniques for 
aged fuel appeared to be equally feasible and environmentally 
acceptable, although environmental impacts need to be considered on a 
site-specific basis. Because of uncertainties in the timing of fuel 
acceptance for Federal storage and disposal under the Nuclear Waste 
Policy Act, most utilities are expected to face spent fuel storage 
shortfalls and are expected to be unwilling to reduce their own storage 
capacity in order to provide spent fuel storage for SMUD.
    Several alternatives were discussed in the EA, but none were more 
protective of the environment or sufficiently met the spent fuel 
storage requirements for the RSNGS. Because the Commission has 
concluded there are no significant environmental impacts associated 
with the proposed action, any alternative of equal or greater 
environmental impact need not be evaluated.

Alternative Use of Resources

    The only resources committed irretrievably and not previously 
considered in environmental documents relating to the RSNGS are the 
steel, concrete, and other construction materials used in the 
foundation, canisters, and modules.

Agenceis and Persons Contacted

    No outside agencies were contacted in developing this assessment.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    In summary, the ISFSI is located in a small area within the 
confines of the RSNGS owner-controlled area and will require only a 
minor commitment of land resources. The proposed action will cause no 
release of effluents, and there will be no significant increases in 
individual and collective radiation doses to either the public or 
onsite workers. Potential offsite impacts from a postulated worst-case 
credible accident are a small fraction of the regulatory limits of 10 
CFR 72.106, and are well below the U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency's Protective Action Guides. Therefore, the proposed action will 
not significantly affect the quality of the human environment. 
Accordingly, pursuant to the requirements of 10 CFR 51.31 and 10 CFR 
51.32, the Commission has determined that a finding of no significant 
impact is appropriate and that an environmental impact statement (EIS) 
need not be prepared for the issuance of a materials license for the 
RSNGS ISFSI.
    The EA for the proposed action, on which this Finding of No 
Significant Impact is based, relied upon several other environmental 
documents, with independent assessment of data, analyses, and results. 
The following documents were utilized:

1. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Rancho Seco Independent 
Spent Fuel Storage Installation License Application and Safety 
Analysis Report,'' Docket No. 72-11, October 1991.
2. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Rancho Seco Independent 
Spent Fuel Storage Installation Environmental Report, Revision 1,'' 
Docket No. 72-11, June 1993.
3. Pacific Nuclear Fuel Services (now VECTRA), ``Safety Analysis 
Report for the Standardized NUHOMS Horizontal Modular Storage System 
for Irradiated Nuclear Fuel,'' Revision 2, May 1992.
4. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ``Final Generic Environmental 
Impact Statement on Handling and Storage of Spent Light Water Power 
Reactor Fuel,'' NUREG-0575, August 1979.
5. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Response to Request for 
Additional Information Regarding the Rancho Seco Independent Spent 
Fuel Storage Installation Environmental Report,'' June 1992.
6. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Response to Request for 
Additional Information Regarding Revision 1 to the Rancho Seco 
Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation Environmental Report,'' 
December 1993.
7. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Final Environmental 
Statement Related to the Operation of Ranch Seco Nuclear Generating 
Station Unit 1,'' Docket No. 50-312, March 1973.
8. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Rancho Seco Facility 
Defueled Safety Analysis Report,'' Docket Number 50-312, September 
1992.
9. Sacramento Municipal Utility District, ``Rancho Seco Nuclear 
Generating Station-Updated Safety Analysis Report,'' Docket Number 
50-312.
10. American National Standards Institute/American Nuclear Society, 
``Design Criteria for an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation 
(Dry Storage Type), '' ANSI/ANS-57.9, 1984.
11. National Council on Radiation Protection (NCRP) Report Number 
94, Exposure of the Population of the United States and Canada from 
Natural Background Radiation, issued December 30, 1987.

    The EA and other documents related to this proposed action are 
available for public inspection, and for copying for a fee, at the NRC 
Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW., 
Washington, DC, and at the Local Public Document Room located at the 
Central Library, Government Documents, 828 I Street, Sacramento, 
California 95814.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 5th day of August, 1994.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Charles J. Haughney,
Chief, Storage and Transport Systems Branch, Division of Industrial and 
Medical Nuclear Safety, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and 
Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 94-19902 Filed 8-12-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M