[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 244 (Monday, December 21, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70440-70441]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-33720]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. STN 50-454, STN 50-455, STN 50-456, STN 50-457]


Commonwealth Edison Company; Byron and Braidwood Stations, Units 
1 and 2; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is 
considering issuance of amendments to Facility Operating License Nos. 
NPF-37 and NPF-66, issued to Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd, the 
licensee) for operation of Byron Station, Units 1 and 2, located in 
Ogle County, Illinois and to Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-72 and 
NPF-77, issued to ComEd for operation of Braidwood Station, Units 1 and 
2, located in Will County, Illinois.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would amend the Byron Station, Units 1 and 2, 
and Braidwood Station, Units 1 and 2, Facility Operating Licenses 
(FOLs) and revise the Technical Specifications (TSs) to be consistent 
with the Improved Standard Technical Specifications (ITS) conveyed by 
NUREG-1431, ``Standard Technical Specifications for Westinghouse 
Plants,'' Revision 1 (April 1995).
    The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's 
application for amendments dated December 13, 1996, as supplemented by 
letters dated February 24, September 2, October 10, October 28 and 
December 8, 1997, and January 27, January 29, February 6, February 13, 
February 24, February 26, April 13, April 16, June 1, June 2, July 2, 
July 8, July 30, July 31, August 11, August 12, September 21, September 
25, October 1, October 2, October 5, October 15, October 23, November 
6, November 19, November 23, November 30, and December 14, 1998.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    It has been recognized that nuclear safety in all plants would 
benefit from improvement and standardization of the 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) documented this need. To facilitate the development of 
individual improved TSs, each reactor vendor owners' group (OG) and the 
NRC staff developed standard TS (STS). For Westinghouse plants, the STS 
are contained in NUREG-1431, and this document was the basis for the 
new Byron and Braidwood, Units 1 and 2, TSs. The NRC Committee to 
Review Generic Requirements 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.

Description of the Proposed Change

    The proposed revision to the TSs is based on NUREG-1431 and on 
guidance provided in the 1993 Final Policy Statement. ComEd's objective 
was to completely rewrite, reformat, and streamline the existing TSs at 
the Byron and Braidwood Stations. Emphasis was 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-1431, 
portions of the existing TSs were also used as the basis for the ITS. 
Plant-specific issues (unique design features, requirements and 
operating practices) were discussed at length with ComEd, and generic 
matters with the OG.
    The proposed changes from the existing TSs can be grouped into four 
general categories, as follows:
    1. Nontechnical (administrative) changes that were intended to make 
the

[[Page 70441]]

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 
Byron and Braidwood TSs has undergone these types of changes. In order 
to ensure consistency, the NRC staff and ComEd have used NUREG-1431 as 
guidance to reformat and make other administrative changes.
    2. Relocated requirements, including items that were in the 
existing Byron and Braidwood TSs. Pursuant to the criteria of 10 CFR 
50.36, the TSs that are being relocated to licensee-controlled 
documents are not required to be in the TSs. The bases of the four 
criteria of 10 CFR 50.36 are discussed in the Commission's Final Policy 
Statement. The relocated requirements are not needed to obviate the 
possibility that an abnormal situation or event will give rise to an 
immediate threat to 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 Byron and Braidwood TSs to the Updated Final 
Safety Analysis Report, appropriate plant-specific programs, procedures 
and ITS Bases follows the guidance of NUREG-1431. Once these items have 
been relocated by removing them from the TSs to licensee-controlled 
documents, the licensee may revise them under the provisions of 10 CFR 
50.59 or other NRC staff-approved control mechanisms that provide 
appropriate procedural means to control changes.
    3. More restrictive requirements that consist of proposed Byron and 
Braidwood ITS items that are either more conservative than 
corresponding requirements in the current Byron and Braidwood TSs, or 
are additional restrictions that are not in the existing Byron and 
Braidwood TSs, but are contained in NUREG-1431. Examples of more 
restrictive requirements include: placing a limiting condition for 
operation 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.
    4. Less restrictive requirements that are relaxations of 
corresponding requirements in the existing Byron and Braidwood TSs, 
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, and have been justified on a case-by-case 
basis for Byron and Braidwood. These relaxations will be described in 
the staff's Safety Evaluation, to be issued when the review of the 
proposed license amendments is completed.
    In addition to the changes previously described, the licensee 
proposed certain changes to the existing TSs that deviated from the STS 
in NUREG-1431. These additional proposed changes are described in the 
licensee's application and in the staff's Notices of Consideration of 
Issuance of Amendments to Facility Operating Licenses and Opportunity 
for a Hearing (October 28, 1998 (63 FR 57710) and November 2, 1998 (63 
FR 58794)). Where these changes represent a change to the current 
licensing basis for Byron and Braidwood, they have been justified by 
ComEd on a case-by-case basis, and will be described in the staff's 
Safety Evaluation.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed

    The Commission has completed its environmental 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.
    The proposed action will not increase the probability or 
consequences of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of 
any effluents that may be released off site, and there is no 
significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure. 
Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental impacts 
associated with the proposed action.
    With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed 
action does not involve any historic sites. It does not affect non-
radiological plant effluents and has no other environmental impact. 
Therefore, there are no significant non-radiological environmental 
impacts associated with the proposed action.
    Accordingly, the Commission concludes that there are no significant 
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    As an alternative to the proposed action, the staff considered 
denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action'' alternative). 
Denial of the application would result in no change in current 
environmental impacts. 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 for Byron 
Station, Units 1 and 2, and Braidwood Station, Units 1 and 2.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    In accordance with its stated policy, on December 15, 1998, the 
staff consulted with the Illinois State official, Mr. Frank Niziolek, 
of the Illinois Department of Nuclear Safety, regarding the 
environmental impact of the proposed action. The State official had no 
comments.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    On the basis of 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 letter dated December 13, 1996, as supplemented by letters 
dated February 24, September 2, October 10, October 28 and December 8, 
1997, and January 27, January 29, February 6, February 13, February 24, 
February 26, April 13, April 16, June 1, June 2, July 2, July 8, July 
30, July 31, August 11, August 12, September 21, September 25, October 
1, October 2, October 5, October 15, October 23, November 6, November 
19, November 23, November 30, and December 14, 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 rooms located at: for Byron, the Byron Public 
Library District, 109 N. Franklin, P.O. Box 434, Byron, Illinois 61010; 
for Braidwood, the Wilmington Public Library, 201 S. Kankakee Street, 
Wilmington, Illinois 60481.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of December, 1998.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Stuart A. Richards,
Director, Project Directorate III-2, Division of Reactor Projects--III/
IV, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 98-33720 Filed 12-18-98; 8:45 am]
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