[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 122 (Monday, June 24, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32466-32468]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-15989]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket 40-7580]


Finding of No Significant Impact and Notice of Opportunity for a 
Hearing; Amendment of Source Materials License SMB-911 Fansteel, Inc., 
Muskogee, Oklahoma

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering the amendment 
of Source Materials License SMB-911 for the recovery of Work in 
Progress (WIP) pond residues at the Fansteel, Inc., plant located in 
Muskogee, Oklahoma. The amendment will allow the facility to process 
on-site pond residues to recover rare earth metals and to reduce the 
volume of on-site radioactive materials. The Commission has determined 
not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed 
action, because the amendment will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment for reasons described in the 
Environmental Assessment.

Summary of the Environmental Assessment

Background

    Fansteel, Inc. (Fansteel) has been licensed by the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) to possess and use source materials at the 
Muskogee plant since January 1967. The current license expired in July 
1994; however, Fansteel submitted a renewal application on June 20, 
1994. In accordance with the timely renewal provision of 10 CFR 
40.43(b), the existing license continues to be effective until the 
application for renewal has been finally determined by the Commission. 
The NRC plans to complete the renewal action on Fansteel's license, 
including an Environmental Assessment, after action on this amendment 
application is completed.
    Fansteel, Inc. had previously processed ore concentrates and tin 
slags in the production of refined tantalum products at their Muskogee 
site. A residue containing natural uranium and thorium was generated as 
a result of the initial hydrofluoric acid digestion of the ore 
concentrates. This residue is considered source material, and is 
regulated under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and defined in 10 CFR 
Part 40, because it contains more than 0.05% by weight of uranium and 
thorium. Since significant quantities of tantalum remained in the 
residue after initial extraction, as well as other rare earth elements 
and fluoride, the residues were designated by Fansteel as WIP material 
suitable for secondary processing. Approximately 9,000 dry tons of WIP 
material have accumulated in ponds numbered 2, 3, and 5.

Identification of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to amend the Source Materials License SMB-
911 to allow Fansteel to retrieve and process WIP material from the on-
site ponds. The WIP process will isolate the radioactivity such that 
the bulk of the WIP material can be used commercially while minimizing 
the volume of material sent for radioactive waste disposal.
    Processing of the WIP material will recover tantalum, columbium 
(niobium), and scandium from the pond residues. This WIP material 
recovery will be achieved by a series of proprietary chemical processes 
to separate the remaining tantalum, columbium, and scandium from the 
residues. Uranium and thorium will be separated from the other products 
as uranium and thorium hydroxides. Waste materials from this process 
contaminated with natural uranium and thorium will be packaged and 
stored for offsite disposal.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    The current license allows Fansteel to possess, use, store, and 
transfer natural uranium and thorium and their progenies in metal 
processing residues. The license allows the possession of a maximum of 
30,000 kilograms of uranium and 67,000 kilograms of thorium in solid 
forms as oxides in tin slag and ore processing residues. The license 
amendment is needed to allow Fansteel to process the pond residues.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    Treatment of pond residues will result in effluents of radioactive 
materials to air and water from the Fansteel plant, which may produce a 
small increase in radiation doses to the public.
    The WIP process will generate gases and particulates that will be 
captured in a centrifugal particulate separator followed by water and 
caustic scrubbing before discharge to the atmosphere. The treated stack 
effluent will be continuously monitored for gross alpha radioactivity.
    Liquid effluents will be collected and treated with lime, then 
pumped to Ponds 8 and 9 for settling prior to discharge through Outfall 
001.
    The estimated total effective dose equivalent from inhalation of 
radionuclides emitted during WIP processing is less than 1 millirem per 
year to a hypothetical resident located at the site boundary in the 
most frequent downwind direction. The proposed amendment will not have 
an adverse impact on the air quality for the region beyond the 
contribution from currently licensed activities.
    Treated wastewater will be discharged through Outfall 001 to the 
Arkansas River. Ingestion of water discharged to the Arkansas River 
would result in doses much less than 5 millirem per year, due to the 
low concentration of radionuclides in the discharge. Actual dose would 
be much less, because the effluent, approximately 100,000 gallons per 
day, is further diluted by the Arkansas River flow of 20,600 cubic feet 
per second (13 billion gallons per day).
    By comparison, the total body dose rate to an individual in the 
vicinity of the Muskogee plant from background sources has been 
estimated at 107 millirems per year, not considering fallout radiation 
sources or radon, including 43.4 mrem/yr from cosmic rays, 45.6 mrem/yr 
from terrestrial sources, and 18 mrem/yr from internal emitters.
    Background uranium concentrations in soil are typically 1.0 to 1.5 
micrograms per gram, which is equivalent to 0.33 to 0.50 picocuries per 
gram. The WIP processing is not expected to result in an increase in 
soil radioactivity, because no radioactive materials will be released 
to soils during processing.
    The proposed license amendment will not have an adverse impact on 
surface or ground water quality. In fact, there is expected to be a 
potential benefit, since the removal of source material in the ponds 
will reduce the potential for ground water and surface water

[[Page 32467]]

contamination in the future. Remediation of past ground water 
contamination from a pond leak in 1989 will continue under the 
provisions of the renewed license.
    The proposed license amendment will not result in any adverse 
environmental impacts which could affect terrestrial and aquatic biota.
Accidents
    The Environmental Report considered the potential for accidents at 
the Muskogee plant. Material which could leak from tanks, pumps, or 
pipes would be confined within the dissolution building. Pipe leaks 
could lead to slurry's being leaked onto the ground surface. Such 
accidents would be readily identified and cleaned up and would 
represent no significant radiological impacts. Process chemicals, 
including hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, sulfuric acid, and 
potassium hydroxide, are stored in tanks within diked areas to contain 
any leaks.
    Transportation accidents represent a low radiological risk because 
outgoing shipments of radioactive waste will be packaged in drums or 
bags and transported in accordance with the U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT) regulations. Transportation accidents could result 
in spilled radioactive material that is readily cleaned up. 
Furthermore, the low-activity materials that will be produced by the 
WIP process do not represent a significant hazard during transport.
    For soil or liquid transport, the accidental release of stored WIP 
was considered worst case because of its associated radioactivity. 
Rather than attempt to quantify this potential exposure, it was assumed 
that its transport off-site via the river posed an unacceptable risk to 
the public. The existing drainage and sump systems for the Chem A and 
Chem C process buildings have thus been incorporated into the existing 
WIP process design. The sump system includes a sump capable of holding 
more than the total quantity of WIP that will be present in the 
building at any given time. This system has sufficient capacity to 
preclude any transport of liquids or slurries away from the immediate 
process areas.
    Transportation of nonradioactive industrial chemicals represents an 
accident risk; however, these shipments do not pose any unique 
transportation hazards beyond those associated with nonnuclear 
facilities using similar chemicals. All shipments of industrial 
chemicals to the Muskogee plant will be transported in accordance with 
U.S. DOT and state and local laws.
    Natural phenomena, such as tornadoes, earthquakes, flooding, and 
fire, have also been considered. The probability of a tornado striking 
the plant is 1.8 x 10-3 per year; this could result in dispersion 
of material from the drum storage area, the milling room, the waste 
holding ponds, and the digestion building. The Fansteel plant is 
located in a quiet seismic region considered to be of minor seismic 
risk. The site is located above the Arkansas River floodplain. Fansteel 
will describe how it intends to address NRC guidance with respect to 
fire prevention, detection, and suppression prior to startup of the WIP 
processing facility.
Monitoring Programs
    Monitoring programs have been developed to assure that there will 
not be any undetected release of radioactivity from the Fansteel site 
during the recovery and processing of WIP material.
    Gases from the calciner in building Chem A will be exhausted 
through a common duct into a wet scrubber that exhausts through a 
vertical stack to the atmosphere. The stack is equipped with a 
continuous radiation monitor. The process ventilation systems and 
gaseous effluent control equipment are designed and will be operated in 
accordance with the standard engineering practice. Operational checks 
on these systems will be performed as part of the standard operating 
procedures. Stack emissions will be controlled and sampled on a 24-hour 
basis when operating.
    Atmospheric effluents will be controlled through the use of wet 
scrubbers. Scrubber liquids will be treated through the wastewater 
treatment system, with the ground water collection system, laboratory, 
deionized water, and chemical processing wastewaters, and discharged to 
the Arkansas River through Outfall 001. Gross  and gross 
 analyses are performed on a continuous water sample at the 
effluent monitoring station when the station is in operation. This 
outfall is also monitored for nonradiological parameters in accordance 
with the NPDES permit.
    Fansteel also monitors 25 ground water wells; depth, pH, fluoride, 
ammonia, total dissolved solids, specific conductivity, and gross 
 and gross  are measured monthly. This data is 
recorded and maintained as permanent records.
    Fansteel has committed to take certain actions if specified 
radioactivity concentrations (action levels) for the Outfall 001 
effluent and ground water analyses are exceeded. These action levels 
are related to EPA drinking water standards for radionuclides in 40 CFR 
Part 141 and to NRC effluent limits in 10 CFR Part 20.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    If the license amendment application is denied, Fansteel will be 
prohibited from processing the pond residues, and will be required to 
decommission the plant site without recovering the metals and rare 
earth elements. This would require treatment and/or disposal of large 
quantities of process residues. Such a denial would likely result in 
either removal of the pond residues and disposal in a low-level 
radioactive waste disposal facility or onsite disposal of the residues.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, Hazards 
Management and Waste Services, Radiation Control Program, Water Quality 
Division.

Conclusion

    The NRC has determined that issuance of the amendment to allow 
Fansteel to process the pond residues will not result in a significant 
impact to human health and the environment.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The NRC has prepared an Environmental Assessment related to the 
amendment of Source Materials License SMB-911. 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.
    The Environmental Assessment, the license amendment application, 
and other documents related to this proposed action are available for 
public inspection and copying at the Commission's public document room 
in NRC's Region IV office, Harris Tower, 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 
400, Arlington, Texas 76011-8064, and in NRC's headquarters public 
document room, Gelman Building, 2120 L St., NW., Washington, DC 20037.

Opportunity for a Hearing

    Any person whose interest may be affected by the amendment of this 
license 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

[[Page 32468]]

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 (Fansteel, Inc., Number Ten Tantalum Place, Muskogee, OK 
74401); and must comply with the requirements for requesting a hearing 
set forth in the Commission's regulation 10 CFR Part 2, Subpart L, 
``Informal Hearings 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 area 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 (e.g., 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 17th day of June 1996.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert C. Pierson,
Chief, Licensing Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, 
NMSS.
[FR Doc. 96-15989 Filed 6-21-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P