[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 174 (Friday, September 9, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-22215]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: September 9, 1994]


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

DEFENSE NUCLEAR FACILITIES SAFETY BOARD

 

Hearings

action: Notice of public hearings.

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

summary: This notice sets forth the schedule and agenda of public 
hearings to be held by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. The 
Board will conduct public hearings pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 2286b and 
invites any interested persons or groups to present any comments, 
technical information, or data concerning the fifth annual report to be 
submitted to Congress by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board 
under 42 U.S.C. 2286e (note).

addresses:

    1. For: Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site--Time and 
Date: 7:00 p.m., October 4, 1994. Place: Ramada Inn, 8773 Yates 
Drive, Ball Rooms A-C, Westminster, Colorado 80030.
    2. For: Idaho National Engineering Laboratory--Time and Date: 
7:00 p.m., October 6, 1994. Place: University of Idaho Auditorium, 
University Place, 1776 Science Center Drive, Idaho Falls, Idaho 
83402.
    3. For: Fernald Environmental Management Project and Mound 
Plant--Time and Date: 7:00 p.m., October 12, 1994. Place: 
Meadowbrook Inn, 2398 Venice Boulevard, Ball Room, Ross, Ohio 45061.
    4. For: Hanford Site--Time and Date: 7:00 p.m., October 25, 
1994. Place: Federal Building Auditorium, 825 Jadwin Avenue, 
Richland, Washington 99352.
    5. For: Sandia National Laboratory, Los Alamos National 
Laboratory and Waste Isolation Pilot Project--Time and Date: 7:00 
p.m., October 27, 1994. Place: Albuquerque Convention Center, 401 
Second Street, NW., Ball Room, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102.
    6. For: Oak Ridge Reservation--Time and Date: 7:00 p.m., 
November 1, 1994. Place: American Museum of Science and Energy, 300 
S. Tulane Avenue, Auditorium, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830.
    7. For: Savannah River Site--Time and Date: 7:00 p.m., November 
3, 1994. Place: Aiken Technical College, U.S. Highway 1 and 78, 
Amphitheater, Conference Center Building, Aiken, South Carolina 
29802.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth M. Pusateri, General Manager, 
Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 625 Indiana Avenue, NW, Suite 
700, Washington, DC 20004, (202) 208-6400. This is not a toll free 
number.

supplementary information: An independent agency within the executive 
branch, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Board) provides 
advice and recommendations to the President and the Secretary of Energy 
regarding public health and safety issues at Department of Energy (DOE) 
defense nuclear facilities.
    Broadly, the Board reviews operations, practices, and occurrences 
at DOE's defense nuclear facilities and makes recommendations to the 
Secretary of Energy that are necessary to protect public health and 
safety. If, as a result of its reviews, the Board determines that an 
imminent or severe threat to public health or safety exists, the Board 
is required to transmit its recommendations directly to the President, 
as well as to the Secretaries of Energy and Defense.
    The Board's enabling statute, 42 U.S.C. 2286, requires the Board to 
review and evaluate the content and implementation of health and safety 
standards, including DOE's Orders, rules, and other safety 
requirements, relating to the design, construction, operation, and 
decommissioning of DOE's defense nuclear facilities. The Board must 
then recommend to the Secretary of Energy any specific measures, such 
as changes in the content and implementation of those standards, that 
the Board believes should be adopted to ensure that the public health 
and safety are adequately protected. The Board is also required to 
review the design of new defense nuclear facilities before construction 
begins, as well as modifications to older facilities, and to recommend 
changes necessary to protect health and safety.
    The Board may conduct investigations, issue subpoenas, hold public 
hearings, gather information, conduct studies, establish reporting 
requirements for DOE, and take other actions in furtherance of its 
review of health and safety issues at defense nuclear facilities. These 
ancillary functions of the Board and its staff all relate to the 
accomplishment of the Board's primary function, which is to assist DOE 
in identifying and correcting health and safety problems at defense 
nuclear facilities.
    These public hearings are being held to provide the Board with 
general public comments and views on topics related to the fifth annual 
report to be submitted by the Board to Congress under 42 U.S.C. 2286e 
(note) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. The Board's report 
must include the following:

    ``(1) An assessment of the degree to which the overall 
administration of the Board's activities are believed to meet the 
objectives of Congress in establishing the Board;
    ``(2) Recommendations for continuation, termination, or 
modification of the Board's functions and programs, including 
recommendations for transition to some other independent oversight 
arrangement if it is advisable; and
    ``(3) Recommendations for appropriate transition requirements in 
the event that modifications are recommended.''

The Board seeks the public's view on these issues.
    A short introductory presentation may be made by a representative 
of the Board at each hearing, focusing on those Board activities of 
greatest relevance to the local communities. Requests to speak at the 
hearing may be submitted in writing or by telephone. We ask that 
commentators describe the nature and scope of the oral presentation. 
Those who contact the Board prior to close of business on the day 
before the hearing will be scheduled for time slots, beginning at 
approximately 7:10 p.m. The Board will post a schedule for those 
speakers who have contacted the Board before the hearings. The posting 
will be made at the entrance to each hearing room at the start of the 
hearing.
    Anyone who wishes to comment, provide technical information or data 
may do so in writing, either in lieu of, or in addition to making an 
oral presentation. The Board members may question presenters to the 
extent deemed appropriate. The Board will hold the record for each 
hearing open for fourteen days after the hearing for the receipt of 
materials. A transcript of the hearings will be made available by the 
Board for inspection by the public at the Defense Nuclear Facilities 
Safety Board's Washington office and at the DOE's public reading rooms 
as follows:

1. For: Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site, Front Range 
Community College, 3645 West 112 Avenue, Westminster, CO 80030.
2. For: Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho National 
Engineering Laboratory, 1776 Science Center Drive, Idaho Falls, ID 
83415.
3. For: Fernald Environmental Management Project, Public 
Environmental Information Center, 10845 Hamilton-Cleves Highway, 
Harrison, OH 45030.
     For: Mound Plant, DOE Public Reading room, 305 Central Avenue, 
Miamisburg, OH 45342.
4. For: Hanford Site, Richland Operations Office, 100 Sprout Road, 
Room 130 West, Richland, WA 99352.
5. For: Sandia National Laboratory, Public Reading Room, c/o 
National Atomic Museum, 20358 Wyoming Boulevard, SE., Albuquerque, 
NM 87117.
     For: Los Alamos National Laboratory, LANL Community Reading 
Room, 1350 Central Avenue, Suite 101, Los Alamos, NM 87544.
     For: Waste Isolation Pilot Project, WIPP Public Reading Room, 
Carlsbad Public Library, 101 South Halagueno Street, Carlsbad, NM 
88220.
6. For: Oak Ridge Reservation, DOE Public Reading Room, 55 Jefferson 
Circle, Room B-112, Oak Ridge, TN 37831.
7. For: Savannah River Site, Gregg-Graniteville Library, 171 
University Parkway, University of South Carolina, Aiken, SC 29801.

    The Board specifically reserves its right to further schedule and 
otherwise regulate the course of these hearings, to recess, reconvene, 
postpone or adjourn these hearings, conduct further reviews, and 
otherwise exercise its power under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended.
Robert M. Andersen,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 94-22215 Filed 9-8-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-KD-M