[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 123 (Tuesday, June 27, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33243-33245]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-15675]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket 70-1257]


Finding of No Significant Impact and Notice of Opportunity for a 
Hearing Renewal of Special Nuclear Material License SNM-1227 Siemens 
Power Corporation Richland Engineering and Manufacturing Facility 
Richland, Washington

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering the renewal 
of Special Nuclear Material License SNM-1227 for the continued 
operation of the Siemens Power Corporation's (SPC) Engineering and 
Manufacturing Facility located in Richland, Washington. The facility 
manufactures low-enriched uranium fuel for commercial nuclear power 
reactors.

Summary of the Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action is the renewal of SPC's special nuclear 
material license for 10 years. With this renewal, SPC will continue to 
operate the Richland Engineering and Manufacturing Facility to 
fabricate fuel assemblies for commercial nuclear power reactors. SPC is 
authorized to possess and use up to 25,000 kilograms of uranium-235 in 
compounds enriched up to 5 weight percent in the U-235.
    The facility converts low-enriched uranium hexafluoride (UF6) 
to uranium dioxide (UO2) powder, presses the UO2 into 
pellets, loads the pellets into rods, and assembles the rods into final 
fuel assemblies. Most of the UF6-to-UO2 conversion is 
performed using the ammonium diuranate (ADU) process; however, with 
this license renewal, SPC will significantly expand its existing dry 
conversion capacity and shut down most of the ADU process capacity. The 
environmental assessment considers both the impacts of continued 
operation of the ADU process and the impacts of the expanded dry 
conversion capacity, which are expected to be significantly reduced.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    SPC performs a necessary service for the commercial nuclear power 
industry by fabricating fuel assemblies. Currently, the SPC facility is 
one of four such producers of low-enriched uranium fuel that operates 
within the United States. Denial of the license renewal application is 
an alternative available to the NRC but would result in either the 
expansion of production capacity or transfer of fuel production 
activities at another facility.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The continued operation of the SPC facility will result in the 
continued release of low levels of hazardous and radioactive 
constituents. Under accident conditions, the facility could release 
higher concentrations over a short period of time. The facility uses a 
number of controls to reduce the release of hazardous and radioactive 
materials to the environment and performs monitoring of effluents and 
the environment. These controls and the monitoring program are 
described below.
    The radiological environmental impacts of normal operations and 
postulated accidents were evaluated for the SPC facility. These impacts 
are summarized following the description of controls and monitoring.

Effluent Controls and Monitoring

    The SPC facility produces gaseous, liquid, and solid effluent 
streams. Gaseous effluents are controlled by minimizing the amount of 
airborne radioactive materials within the plant and by the use of stack 
scrubbers and High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters. Liquid 
effluents are controlled by the use of waste water retention lagoons 
and treatment systems that reduce the concentration of radioactive 
materials prior to discharge to the Richland city sewer system. Solid 
effluents are controlled by segregation of radioactive wastes from 
trash and hazardous wastes; containment of wastes in drums or boxes on 
site; treatment by decontamination, compaction, or incineration, as 
appropriate; and final disposal off site.
    SPC monitors these effluents at or just prior to the points of 
release. Gaseous stack effluents are sampled continuously at isokinetic 
flow conditions, and the samples are analyzed for radioactivity. Liquid 
effluents are sampled at the lift station at the point of discharge to 
the sewer, and the samples are analyzed for uranium and other 
constituents. Solid wastes are surveyed prior to treatment or off-site 
disposal.
    Action levels have been selected for each of these effluents, in 
accordance [[Page 33244]] with applicable NRC, Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA), and State regulations, and are incorporated into the 
renewed license. These action levels specify radionuclide 
concentrations at which investigations would be initiated and 
operations would be shut down.
    The effluent monitoring program will cover the expanded dry 
conversion process, including monitoring of new process off-gas and 
building ventilation systems.

Environmental Monitoring

    SPC also performs monitoring to detect accumulation of radioactive 
materials in the environment. Off-site soils are sampled from two 
stations quarterly and are analyzed for uranium. Off-site vegetation is 
sampled from two stations monthly during the growing season and is 
analyzed for fluoride as an indicator of plant emissions. Ambient air 
is sampled continuously at two stations and analyzed for fluoride.
    The lagoon liner systems are inspected monthly for the presence of 
liquids. If liquids are present, a sample is taken and analyzed for 
constituents present in the lagoon. If the liquids are identified as 
lagoon contents, the lagoon would be emptied and the liner repaired.
    Ground water near the lagoons is sampled on a quarterly basis, and 
the samples analyzed for gross alpha and beta and for chlorides, 
nitrate nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, and pH. If the ground water data 
indicate a lagoon leak, then the lagoon would be emptied and the liner 
repaired.
    Richland city sewage plant sludge is sampled monthly and analyzed 
for uranium. If a running average of the analyses over a 6-month period 
exceeds 25 pico-curies per gram, or any single confirmed result equals 
or exceeds 30 pico-curies per gram discharges to the sewer will be 
stopped and an investigation will be performed.
    The environmental monitoring program will not change as a result of 
the dry conversion process expansion.

Environmental Impacts From Normal Operations

    The release of radioactive material to air and water represents a 
potential negative impact on the health and safety of the surrounding 
population. This impact results in a very small increase in the risk of 
cancer due to low levels of radiation exposure. The risk has been 
calculated and presented in terms of committed effective dose 
equivalent and organ doses resulting from a single year of operation. 
For doses resulting from inhalation or ingestion of uranium, this 
quantity is the total effective dose equivalent or organ dose that will 
accrue to an individual over a 50-year period beginning with the year 
the intake occurs. Doses to a hypothetical maximally exposed individual 
and collective dose to the population living within an 80 kilometer (50 
mile) radius of the SPC facility were calculated and are summarized 
below.
    Based on effluent data for the past 5 years, the SPC facility is 
expected to release approximately 15 microcuries per year (Ci/
yr) of alpha activity and 1.4 Ci/yr of beta activity via 
gaseous emissions and less than 0.06 curies per year of uranium via 
sewer discharges. The amount of gaseous alpha emissions is expected to 
be reduced significantly when the change from ADU conversion to dry 
conversion is completed.
    Doses to the maximally exposed individual via the atmospheric and 
aqueous release pathways were calculated using the Hanford 
Environmental Dosimetry Software system (GENII code) and realistic and 
conservative assumptions.
    The total effective dose to a hypothetical resident at the site 
boundary would be 0.024 millirems per year from atmospheric emissions. 
The total effective dose to the nearest existing downwind residence, 
3.4 kilometers (2.1 miles) southeast of the plant, is calculated at 
0.0002 millirem per year from atmospheric emissions. These doses are 
far below the 25 millirem per year standard in 40 CFR Part 190 for 
organ doses from fuel cycle operations and the 10 millirem per year 
standard in 40 CFR Part 61, Subpart I, for doses from atmospheric 
releases.
    The collective dose to the population from routine atmospheric 
releases is estimated at 0.0035 person-rem per year, less than 0.00005 
percent of the 85,000 person-rem per year that the same population is 
exposed to from natural background sources.
    Radioactive material released from the SPC facility to the Richland 
sewer system, and ultimately to the Columbia River, may result in 
radiation exposure to humans through a variety of pathways. The primary 
pathways considered in the analysis were ingestion of drinking water 
from the Columbia River, consumption of fish from the river and 
terrestrial foodstuffs irrigated with river water, and exposure during 
recreational activities such as swimming and boating. Doses to a 
maximally exposed individual living near the site and to the population 
within 80 kilometers (50 miles) downstream were calculated. The 
radionuclide release rates used in the analysis are from measurements 
of the effluent discharged to the sewer system. Because most of the 
reported concentrations were at or below the lower limit of detection 
for the analytical procedure, the aqueous release used in the dose 
calculation conservatively overestimates the actual release. The total 
effective dose from aqueous effluents to the Columbia River from the 
ADU conversion process was calculated at 0.00056 millirem, which is 
well below applicable regulatory standards in 40 CFR Part 190 and 10 
CFR Part 20, Subpart D. Most of the dose is from U-234, and the bone 
surface receives the highest dose. Liquid releases from the dry 
conversion process, after the lagoon contents are processed, are 
expected to average about 30 percent of the current levels.
    The dose to the surrounding population from aqueous releases is 
estimated at 0.074 person-rem per year. This dose is less than 0.004 
percent of the 21,000 person-rem per year from natural background 
radiation sources to the downstream population.
    The treatment in the city sewage treatment plant of liquid releases 
results in some reconcentration of uranium in sewage sludge. Sludge 
from the sewage plant is shipped daily to the Richland city landfarm 
where it is mixed with approximately equal amounts of petroleum-
contaminated soils and native soils. After 6 months, the mixture is 
used as intermediate cover at the city landfill. SPC samples the sludge 
on a monthly basis and analyzes it for uranium content. The 
concentration of uranium in the sludge has been on the order of 10 
picocuries per gram (pCi/g) of sludge (wet weight basis), and SPC has 
committed to action levels of 25 pCi/g for any 6-month running average 
or 30 pCi/g for a single sample. If these action levels are exceeded, 
discharges to the sewer will be halted and an investigation performed.

Environmental Impacts From Accidental Releases

    Release of radioactive or hazardous materials under off-normal or 
accident conditions poses a potential risk to public health and safety 
and the environment. The potential consequences of these accidents 
include personal injury, health effects from acute exposures to toxic 
materials, non-stochastic effects from acute radiation exposure, and 
risk of latent cancer fatality from exposure to radioactive material.
    A set of four accidents spanning the range of potential 
consequences was selected and evaluated. Three of the four scenarios 
evaluated the accidental release of radioactive materials. The intakes 
and predicted doses for the three [[Page 33245]] radiological accident 
scenarios were small, with negligible associated health effects, or 
below the level normally assumed for the onset of clinically observed 
effects. The fourth accident analyzed, the release of gaseous ammonia, 
would be expected to produce noticeable, but not life-threatening 
effects both on site and off site. Given the low likelihood of these 
accidents, it is concluded that the license renewal will not have a 
significant impact on the general population.

Socioeconomic Impacts

    SPC employs 1,000 people at the Richland plant, which is 
approximately 1.5 percent of the 68,000 people employed in the Tri-
Cities area. Renewal of the license will allow the continued operation 
of the facility and continued employment of these 1,000 people.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    If the license is not renewed, the facility would cease operation 
and begin decontamination and decommissioning. SPC would perform a 
survey of the site grounds and buildings and develop a detailed 
decontamination and decommissioning plan. This plan would include the 
decontamination of buildings, lagoons, and other outdoor areas; 
generation and off-site disposal of significant quantities of low-level 
radioactive waste; and excavation of contaminated soils. 
Decontamination and decommissioning operations would result in the 
release of small amounts of radioactivity to the atmosphere and to the 
Columbia River. Specific estimates of the quantities that would be 
released and associated doses are too speculative to predict, but the 
expected range could be about the same as for continued operation to 
one order of magnitude less. Consequently, the doses to the maximally 
exposed individual and to the general population would be about the 
same to an order of magnitude less.
    The decontamination and decommissioning operations would require 
fewer employees than plant operations, resulting in an immediate 
negative socioeconomic impact. This negative socioeconomic impact would 
increase when decontamination and decommissioning operations were 
completed and the facility closed.
    The cessation of operations would also result in there being one 
less operating fuel fabrication facility in the U.S., with a potential 
impact on the commercial nuclear power industry.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    To prepare the Environmental Assessment, the staff used the license 
renewal application dated August 1992; Revision 4 to the Supplement to 
Applicant's Environmental Report dated July 1994; additional 
information dated September 12 and October 21, 1994, and March 31, 
1995; and independent data and analyses. In addition, discussions were 
held with the Washington Department of Health, Radiation Protection 
Division; the Washington Department of Ecology Nuclear Waste Program 
and Water Quality Section; the Benton County Clean Air Authority; the 
United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region X; the City of 
Richland Department of Water and Waste Utilities; the Washington State 
Archeologist; the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Yakama Agency; and the 
Yakama Indian Nation.

Conclusion

    The NRC staff concludes that the environmental impacts associated 
with the proposed license renewal for continued operation of SPC's 
Richland facility are expected to be insignificant.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The Commission has prepared an Environmental Assessment related to 
the renewal of Special Nuclear Material License SNM-1227. On the basis 
of this assessment, NRC has concluded that environmental impacts that 
would be created by the proposed licensing action would not be 
significant and do not warrant the preparation of an Environmental 
Impact Statement. Accordingly, it has been determined that a finding of 
no significant impact is appropriate.
Opportunity for a Hearing

    Any person whose interest may be affected by the issuance of this 
license renewal may file a request for a hearing. Any request for 
hearing must be filed with the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, within 30 days of the 
publication of this notice in the Federal Register; must be served on 
the NRC staff (Executive Director for Operations, One White Flint 
North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852), and on the licensee 
(Siemens Power Corporation, 2101 Horn Rapids Road, Richland, WA 99352-
0130); and must comply with the requirements for requesting a hearing 
set forth in the Commission's regulation 10 CFR Part 2, Subpart L, 
``Informal Hearing Procedures for Adjudications in Materials Licensing 
Proceedings.''
    These requirements, which the requestor must address in detail, 
are:
    1. The interest of the requestor in the proceeding;
    2. How that interest may be affected by the results of the 
proceeding, including the reasons why the requestor should be permitted 
a hearing;
    3. The requestor's areas of concern about the licensing activity 
that is the subject matter of the proceeding; and
    4. The circumstances establishing that the request for hearing is 
timely, that is, filed within 30 days of the date of this notice.
    In addressing how the requestor's interest may be affected by the 
proceeding, the request should describe the nature of the requestor's 
right under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, to be made a 
party to the proceeding; the nature and extent of the requestor's 
property, financial, or other (i.e., health, safety) interest in the 
proceeding; and the possible effect of any order that may be entered in 
the proceeding upon the requestor's interest.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of June 1995.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert C. Pierson,
Chief, Licensing Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, 
NMSS.
[FR Doc. 95-15675 Filed 6-26-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P