[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 55 (Monday, March 23, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13883-13884]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-7425]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-317 and 50-318]


Baltimore Gas and Electric Company; Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power 
Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No 
Significant Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering issuance of an amendment to Facility Operating License Nos. 
DPR-53 and DPR-69, issued to Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE or 
the licensee), for operation of the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, 
Unit Nos. 1 and 2 located in Calvert County, Maryland.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

    This Environmental Assessment has been prepared to address 
potential environmental issues related to the licensee's application 
dated December 4, 1996, as supplemented by letters dated March 27, June 
9, June 18, July 21, August 14, August 19, September 10, October 6, 
October 20, October 23, November 5, 1997, and January 12 and January 
28, 1998. The proposed amendment will replace the Current Technical 
Specifications (CTS) in their entirety with Improved Technical 
Specifications (ITS) based on Revision 1 to NUREG-1432, ``Standard 
Technical Specifications for Combustion Engineering Plants'' dated 
October 9, 1996, and the CTS for Calvert Cliffs.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    It has been recognized that nuclear safety in all plants would 
benefit from improvement and standardization of technical 
specifications (TSs). The Commission's ``NRC Interim Policy Statement 
on Technical Specification Improvements for Nuclear Power Reactors,'' 
52 FR 3788 (February 6, 1987), and later the Commission's ``Final 
Policy Statement on Technical Specification Improvements for Nuclear 
Power Reactors,'' 58 FR 39132 (July 22, 1993), recognized this benefit. 
This formed the basis for a recent revision to 10 CFR 50.36 (60 FR 
36953), which codified the criteria for determining the content of TSs. 
To facilitate the development of individual improved TS, each reactor 
vendor owners group (OG) and the NRC staff developed standard TS (STS). 
The NRC Committee to Review Generic Requirements (CRGR) reviewed the 
STS and made note of the safety merits of the STS and indicated its 
support of conversion to the STS by operating plants. For plants 
designed by Combustion Engineering, Inc., the STS are published as 
NUREG-1432, and this document was the basis for the new Calvert Cliffs 
ITS.

Description of the Proposed Change

    The proposed revision to the TS is based on NUREG-1432 and on 
guidance provided in the Final Policy Statement. Its objective is to 
completely rewrite, reformat, and streamline the existing TS. Emphasis 
is placed on human factors principles to improve clarity and 
understanding. The Bases section has been significantly expanded to 
clarify and better explain the purpose and foundation of each 
specification. In addition to NUREG-1432, portions of the existing TS 
were also used as the basis for the ITS. Plant-specific issues (unique 
design features, requirements, and operating practices) were discussed 
at length with the licensee, and generic matters were discussed with 
the OG.
    The proposed changes from the existing TS can be grouped into four 
general categories, as follows:
    1. Non-technical (administrative) changes, which were intended to 
make the ITS easier to use for plant operations personnel. They are 
purely editorial in nature or involve the movement or reformatting of 
requirements without affecting technical content. Every section of the 
Calvert Cliffs TS has undergone these types of changes. In order to 
ensure consistency, the NRC staff and the licensee have used NUREG-1432 
as guidance to reformat and make other administrative changes.
    2. Relocation of requirements, which includes items that were in 
the existing Calvert Cliffs TS. The TS that are being relocated to 
licensee-controlled documents are not required to be in the TS under 10 
CFR 50.36 and do not meet any of the four criteria in the Commission's 
Final Policy Statement for inclusion in the TS. They are not needed to 
obviate the possibility that an abnormal situation or event will give 
rise to an immediate threat to the public health and safety. The NRC 
staff has concluded that appropriate controls have been established for 
all of the current specifications, information, and requirements that 
are being moved to licensee-controlled documents. In general, the 
proposed relocation of items in the current Calvert Cliffs TS to the 
Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), appropriate plant-specific 
programs, procedures and ITS Bases follows the guidance of the 
Combustion STS (NUREG-1432). Once the items have been relocated by 
removing them from the CTS to licensee-controlled documents, the 
licensee may revise them under the provisions of 10 CFR 50.59 or other 
NRC staff-approved control mechanisms, which provide appropriate 
procedural means to control changes.
    3. More restrictive requirements, which consist of proposed Calvert 
Cliffs ITS items that are either more conservative than corresponding 
requirements in the existing Calvert Cliffs TS, or are additional 
restrictions that are not in the existing Calvert Cliffs TS but are 
contained in NUREG-1432. Examples of more restrictive requirements 
include: placing a Limiting Condition for Operation (LCO) on plant 
equipment that is not required by the present TS to be operable; more 
restrictive requirements to restore inoperable equipment; and more 
restrictive surveillance requirements.

[[Page 13884]]

    4. Less restrictive requirements, which are relaxations of 
corresponding requirements in the existing Calvert Cliffs TS that 
provide little or no safety benefit and place unnecessary burdens on 
the licensee. These relaxations were the result of generic NRC actions 
or other analyses. They have been justified on a case-by-case basis for 
Calvert Cliffs as will be described in the staff's Safety Evaluation to 
be issued with the license amendment which will be noticed in the 
Federal Register.
    In addition to the changes described above, the licensee proposed 
certain changes to the existing TS that deviated from the STS in NUREG-
1432. These additional proposed changes are described in the licensee's 
application and in the staff's Notice of Consideration of Issuance of 
Amendment to Facility Operating License and Opportunity for a Hearing 
(62 FR 4816). Where these changes represent a change to the current 
licensing basis for Calvert Cliffs, they have been justified on a case-
by-case basis and will be described in the staff's Safety Evaluation to 
be issued with the license amendment.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The Commission has completed its evaluation of the proposed action 
and concludes that the proposed TS conversion would not increase the 
probability or consequences of accidents previously analyzed and would 
not affect facility radiation levels or facility radiological 
effluents.
    Changes that are administrative in nature have been found to have 
no effect on the technical content of the TS, and are acceptable. The 
increased clarity and understanding these changes bring to the TS are 
expected to improve the operator's control of the plant in normal and 
accident conditions.
    Relocation of requirements to licensee-controlled documents does 
not change the requirements themselves. Future changes to these 
requirements may be made by the licensee under 10 CFR 50.59 or other 
NRC-approved control mechanisms, which ensures continued maintenance of 
adequate requirements. All such relocations have been found to be in 
conformance with the guidelines of NUREG-1432 and the Final Policy 
Statement, and, therefore, are acceptable.
    Changes involving more restrictive requirements have been found to 
be acceptable and are likely to enhance the safety of plant operations.
    Changes involving less restrictive requirements have been reviewed 
individually. When requirements have been shown to provide little or no 
safety benefit or place unnecessary burdens on the licensee, their 
removal from the TS was justified. In most cases, relaxations 
previously granted to individual plants on a plant-specific basis were 
the result of a generic NRC action, or of agreements reached during 
discussions with the OG and found to be acceptable for Calvert Cliffs. 
Generic relaxations contained in NUREG-1432 as well as proposed 
deviations from NUREG-1432 have also been reviewed by the NRC staff and 
have been found to be acceptable.
    In summary, the proposed revision to the TS was found to provide 
control of plant operations such that reasonable assurance will be 
provided so that the health and safety of the public will be adequately 
protected.
    These TS changes will not increase the probability or consequences 
of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of any effluent 
that may be released offsite, and there is no significant increase in 
the allowable individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure. 
Therefore, the Commission concludes that there are no significant 
radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
    With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed 
action involves features located entirely within the restricted area as 
defined in 10 CFR Part 20. It does not affect nonradiological plant 
effluents and has no other environmental impact. Accordingly, the 
Commission concludes that there are no significant nonradiological 
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    Since the Commission has concluded there is no measurable 
environmental impact associated with the proposed amendments, any 
alternatives with equal or greater environmental impact need not be 
evaluated. The principal alternative to the proposed action would be to 
deny the request for the amendment. Denial of the application would 
result in no change in current environmental impacts. Such action would 
not reduce the environmental impacts of plant operations. The 
environmental impacts of the proposed action and the alternative action 
are similar.

Alternative Use of Resources

    This action does not involve the use of any resources not 
previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement dated April 
1973, for the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    In accordance with its stated policy, on March 16, 1998, the staff 
consulted with the Maryland State official, Richard J. McLean, of the 
Maryland Department of Natural Resources, regarding the environmental 
impact of the proposed action. The State official had no comments.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    Based upon the environmental assessment, the Commission concludes 
that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the Commission has 
determined not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the 
proposed action.
    For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the 
licensee's letters dated December 4, 1996, as supplemented by letters 
dated March 27, June 9, June 18, July 21, August 14, August 19, 
September 10, October 6, October 20, October 23, November 5, 1997, and 
January 12 and 28, 1998, which are available for public inspection at 
the Commission's Public Document Room, The Gelman Building, 2120 L 
Street, NW., Washington, DC, and at the local public document room 
located at the Calvert County Library, Prince Frederick, Maryland 
20678.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 17th day of March 1998.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
S. Singh Bajwa,
Director, Project Directorate I-1, Division of Reactor Projects--I/II, 
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 98-7425 Filed 3-20-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P