[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 71 (Thursday, April 11, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16127-16129]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-9024]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 70-0925]


Environmental Assessment, Finding of No Significant Impact, and 
Notice of Opportunity for a Hearing; Release of Parts of Cimarron Site 
for Unrestricted Use; Cimarron Corporation

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering the release 
for unrestricted use of approximately 695 acres of the 840 acre 
Cimarron site currently under NRC License SNM-928. There is no history 
of licensed activities within this 695 acre area. The licensee has 
performed systematic measurements in the area to confirm that the 
concentration of licensed material in the soil is below NRC's 
guidelines for unrestricted use.

Introduction

    The Cimarron Corporation, a subsidiary of Kerr-McGee Corporation, 
operated two plants, near Crescent, Oklahoma, for the manufacture of 
enriched uranium and mixed oxide reactor fuels. Fuel manufacturing 
operations ceased in 1975, at which time decommissioning activities 
were initiated. The ultimate goal of the decommissioning effort is to 
release the entire 840 acre site for unrestricted use. To facilitate 
remediating and releasing the site, the licensee has divided the 840 
acre Cimarron site into three areas, designated as Phase I, Phase II, 
and Phase III areas.
    After any necessary remediation is complete in each of these three 
areas, the licensee will perform final status surveys in the area. 
Assuming that the surveys demonstrate that any residual contamination 
meets NRC guidelines, the licensee intends to request NRC to release 
the area for unrestricted use, and remove the area from the license. 
The release of the 695 acre Phase I area for unrestricted use is the 
proposed licensing action addressed in this environmental assessment.

Proposed Action

    The proposed action is the release for unrestricted use, and the 
removal from

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License SNM-928, of approximately 695 acres of land. This area has been 
designated by the license as the ``Phase I'' area. The boundaries of 
the Phase I area are defined in Drawing No. 95MOST--RF3 in the 
licensee's November 13, 1995, letter to NRC.

The Need for Proposed Action

    The licensee seeks to release property that is currently under 
license for unrestricted use. This action is requested in order to 
remove the current limitations on the future use of the property.

Alternatives to Proposed Action

    The only alternative to the proposed action is to not release the 
Phase I area for unrestricted use and keep the area under license. 
Maintaining an NRC license for the Phase I area would provide 
negligible, if any, environmental benefit, but would significantly 
reduce options for future use of the property.

Environmental Justice

    There are no environmental justice issues associated with this 
proposed action.

Environmental Impacts of Proposed Action

    Based upon a review of the Cimarron site history, the licensee 
concluded that the Phase I area was not used for licensed activities. 
To support the historical site assessment conclusions, the licensee 
references the results of its 1979 scoping survey of the Cimarron site. 
This scoping survey included exposure rate measurements systematically 
made over the site. The exposure rates measured within the Phase I area 
were within the range of natural background. In addition, in 1990, the 
licensee conducted a soil sampling program in the areas surrounding the 
uranium building to further define the extent of contamination on the 
site. No areas identified as contaminated during the 1990 survey are 
included in the Phase I area. The results of both the 1979 and 1990 
characterization surveys are included in the licensee's ``Radiological 
Characterization Report for Cimarron Corporation's Former Nuclear Fuel 
Fabrication Facility, Crescent, Oklahoma,'' October 1994 (Cimarron 
Characterization Report).
    Based on the historical site assessment and characterization 
results, the licensee classified the Phase I area as unaffected. An 
unaffected area, as defined in NUREG/CR-5849, ``Manual for Conducting 
Radiological Surveys in Support of License Termination,'' is an area 
not expected to contain residual radioactivity from licensed 
operations. The license submitted the ``Final Survey Plan for 
Unaffected Areas,'' in October 1994 (Final Survey Plan). Following the 
guidance in NUREG/CR-5849, the Final Survey Plan provided the methods 
to be used to conduct the final survey and provide documentation that 
the Phase I area meets NRC unrestricted use criteria. After the 
licensee responded satisfactorily to NRC comments on the Final Survey 
Plan, the plan was approved on May 1, 1995.
    The licensee completed the final survey of the Phase I area, in 
accordance with the approved plan, and submitted the results to NRC in 
the ``Final Status Survey Report, Phase I Areas at the Cimarron 
Facility,'' July 1995 (Final Survey Report). After the licensee 
acceptably responded to NRC's September 5, 1995, comments, the Final 
Survey Report was deemed acceptable by NRC to demonstrate that the 
Phase I areas meet NRC's guidelines for unrestricted use. A 
confirmatory survey was performed by an NRC contractor, the Oak Ridge 
Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), during the period October 
17 through 19, 1995. ORISE conducted independent, random, measurements 
in the Phase I area. The ORISE results were consistent with the 
licensee's results and support the conclusion that the Phase I area 
meets NRC guidelines.
    The unrestricted use guidelines for enriched uranium and thorium 
for the Cimarron Phase I area were the Option 1 guidelines in the 1981 
Branch Technical Position on ``Disposal or Onsite Storage of Thorium or 
Uranium Wastes From Past Operations'' (46 FR 52061) (1981 BTP). The 
Option 1 guidelines are 30 pCi/g for enriched uranium and 10 pCi/g for 
thorium. In the April 1992 ``SDMP Action Plan'' (57 FR 13389), the 
Commission instructed the staff to use the 1981 BTP guidelines, and 
ALARA, as the unrestricted release criteria for decommissioning pending 
the final rule on radiological criteria for decommissioning. Although 
thorium was never processed at the Cimarron site, thorium 
concentrations in soil were also evaluated during final survey.
    The average enriched uranium activity measured in soil samples 
collected during the final survey of the Cimarron Phase 1 area, as 
reported in the Final Survey Report, was 4.9 pCi/g. After subtracting 
the Cimarron enriched uranium background value of 4.0 pCi/g, the net 
average total uranium activity measured was 0.9 pCi/g. Note that the 
4.0 pCi/g background value includes a correction factor to estimate 
total uranium assuming 2.7 percent enrichment, by weight, of U-235. The 
licensee uses the corrected background since all of the sample results 
also contain the correction factor. The licensee estimates that the 
natural uranium background at the Cimarron site, not including the 
correction factor, is 1.8 pCi/g. Less than 1.3 percent of the 
individual sample results were statistically greater than background. 
The maximum individual net concentration of enriched uranium identified 
in the final survey samples was 8.4 pCi/g. The area containing this 
sample was separated from the Phase I area and will be further 
evaluated during the Phase II final status survey. Although it is 
unlikely that the 0.9 pCi/g net concentration represents a 
statistically significant concentration above background, the staff 
conservatively assumed that the 0.9 pCi/g did represent a concentration 
above background and estimated the dose to a member of the public from 
this concentration. Using the RESRAD pathway analysis/dose assessment 
code, (Manual for Implementing residual Radioactive Material Guidelines 
Using RESRAD, Version 5.0, ANL/EAD/LD-2, September 1993), version 5.05, 
the staff estimated that the dose to a member of the public would be 
less than 1 mrem. All of the individual thorium soil sample results 
were within the range of natural background.

Other Agencies or Persons Consulted

    No agencies or persons outside of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission 
were consulted during the preparation of this EA.

Conclusions

    The NRC finds that because the NRC's unrestricted release criteria 
have been met, there is no significant impact on the environment, and 
the property can be released for unrestricted use.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The Commission has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) 
related to the proposed unrestricted release, and removal from license 
SNM-928, of 695 acres of property on the Cimarron site in Crescent, 
Oklahoma. On the basis of the EA, the Commission has concluded that 
this licensing action would not significantly effect the quality of the 
human environment and has determined not to prepare an environmental 
impact statement for the proposed action.
    The above documents related to this proposed action are available 
for public inspection and copying, at the Commission's Public Document 
Room

[[Page 16129]]
in the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street NW., Washington, DC.

Opportunity for a Hearing

    The NRC hereby provides notice that this is a proceeding on an 
application for a license amendment falling within the scope of Subpart 
L, Informal Hearing Procedures for Adjudications in Materials Licensing 
Proceedings, of NRC's rules and practice for domestic licensing 
proceedings in 10 CFR Part 2. Pursuant to Sec. 2.1205(a), any person 
whose interest may be affected by this proceeding may file a request 
for a hearing in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(c). A request for a 
hearing must be filed within thirty (30) days of the date of 
publication of this Federal Register notice.
    The request for a hearing must be filed with the Office of the 
Secretary either:
    1. By delivery to the Docketing and Service Branch of the Office of 
the Secretary at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, 
Rockville, MD 20852-2738; or
    2. By mail or telegram addressed to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Attention: Docketing and 
Service Branch.
    In addition to meeting other applicable requirements of 10 CFR Part 
2 of the NRC's regulations, a request for a hearing filed by a person 
other than an applicant must describe in detail:
    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, with particular reference to the factors set out in 
Sec. 2.1205(g);
    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 a hearing is 
timely in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(c).
    In accordance with 10 CFR Sec. 2.1205(e), each request for a 
hearing must also be served, by delivering it personally or by mail, 
to:
    1. The applicant, Cimarron Corporation, 123 Robert S. Kerr, MT-
2006, Oklahoma City, OK, 73102, Attention: Mr. Jess Larsen, and
    2. The NRC staff, by delivery to the Executive Director for 
Operations, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 
20852, or by mail, addressed to the Executive Director for Operations, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555.
    For further details with respect to this action, the application 
for amendment request is available for inspection at the Commission's 
Public Document Room, 2120 L Street NW., Washington, DC 20555.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day of April, 1996.

    For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert A. Nelson,
Acting Chief; Low-Level Waste and Decommissioning Projects Branch, 
Division of Waste Management, NMSS.
[FR Doc. 96-9024 Filed 4-10-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P