[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 251 (Thursday, December 31, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72337-72338]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-34576]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket 72-9]


Public Service Company of Colorado; Issuance of Environmental 
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact Regarding Proposed 
Exemption From Requirements of 10 CFR PART 72

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the Commission) is 
considering issuance of an exemption from certain requirements of its 
regulations to Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo). The requested 
exemption would allow PSCo to defer for up to 6 months the performance 
of a biennial emergency response exercise for the Fort St. Vrain (FSV) 
independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI).

Environmental Assessment (EA)

    Identification of Proposed Action: By letter dated July 31, 1998, 
PSCo requested an exemption from the requirement in 10 CFR 
72.32(b)(12)(i) which states, in part: ``Each application for an * * * 
ISFSI that is licensed under this part and that may process and/or 
repackage spent fuel, must be accompanied by an Emergency Plan that 
includes * * * provisions for conducting * * * biennial onsite 
exercises to test response to simulated emergencies.'' PSCo requested 
to postpone performance of the required biennial exercise for 6 months 
until June 1999.
    Need for the Proposed Action: As described in the July 31, 1998, 
request, the exemption is needed for the reasons discussed below. The 
Department of Energy has submitted a request to transfer Materials 
License SNM-2504, for the FSV ISFSI, from PSCo to DOE. This request, 
submitted on December 17, 1998, is currently under NRC staff review. 
The completion of this review and transfer of the license is 
anticipated in early 1999. To prepare for license transfer, DOE 
performed an emergency exercise on September 23, 1998, for the FSV 
ISFSI. This exercise, which was developed and executed by DOE and its 
agents, demonstrated the response of DOE's emergency response 
organization, as well as the response of local emergency responders, 
including local law enforcement and local ambulance services.
    As current holder of the FSV ISFSI license, PSCo is required, 
pursuant to 10 CFR 72.32(b)(12)(i), to hold an emergency response 
exercise biennially. The next scheduled emergency exercise for PSCo 
should be conducted in December 1998. PSCo, in its exemption

[[Page 72338]]

request, describes the coordination with local community responders who 
are required to perform an emergency exercise. The exemption is 
requested to relieve the burden imposed on the local community 
responders, as well as on PSCo support staff, by having to prepare for 
and perform two emergency exercises between September 1998 and December 
1998.
    Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action: The Environmental 
Assessment (EA) for the license application for the FSV ISFSI (56 FR 
5428, February 11, 1991) considered the potential environmental impacts 
of construction and operation of an ISFSI at the FSV site. In the EA, 
the NRC concluded that storage of spent fuel at the FSV ISFSI will not 
significantly affect the quality of the environment. The proposed 
actions now under consideration would not change the potential 
environmental effects assessed in the EA. Specifically, there are no 
environmental impacts associated with deferring an emergency exercise 
conducted by PSCo for the FSV ISFSI. As previously discussed, an 
emergency response exercise was run at the FSV ISFSI on September 23, 
1998. This exercise, although conducted by DOE, used existing local 
responders whose response is not affected by the pending license 
transfer. In addition, the onsite facility staff will remain 
essentially unchanged during the transition from PSCo to DOE and their 
response to emergency situations is not expected to be changed 
appreciably by the license transfer. The proposed exemption does not 
involve any changes that increase the probability or consequences of 
accidents which would require activation of the emergency response 
organization. The proposed exemption does not change the types of 
effluents that may be released offsite or significantly increase the 
allowable individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure. 
Accordingly, the Commission concludes that this proposed exemption will 
have no significant radiological or nonradiological environmental 
impacts.
    Alternative to the Proposed Action: Since there is no significant 
environmental impact associated with the proposed action, any 
alternatives with equal or greater environmental impact are not 
evaluated. The alternative to the proposed action would be to deny 
approval of the exemption and, therefore, require PSCo to conduct an 
emergency exercise before December 31, 1998. This alternative would 
have no significant environmental impacts as well. However, denial of 
the requested exemption would result in an additional exercise of local 
community emergency response resources, which, because these resources 
were exercised as recently as September 1998, would not provide any 
benefit.
    Agencies and Persons Consulted: The Director of the Laboratory and 
Radiation Services Division of the Colorado Department of Public Health 
and Environment was consulted about this EA for the proposed action and 
had no concerns.

Finding of No Significant Impact

    The environmental impacts of the proposed action have been reviewed 
in accordance with the requirements set forth in 10 CFR Part 51. Based 
upon the foregoing EA, the Commission finds that the proposed action of 
granting an exemption from 10 CFR 72.32(b)(12)(i) so that PSCo may 
defer conducting an emergency exercise for the FSV ISFSI will not 
significantly impact the quality of the human environment. Accordingly, 
the Commission has determined not to prepare an environmental impact 
statement for the proposed exemption.
    This application was docketed under 10 CFR Part 72, Docket 72-9. 
For further details with respect to this action, see the application 
for an ISFSI license dated December 17, 1996, and the request for 
exemption dated July 31, 1998, which are available for public 
inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room, 2120 L Street, NW, 
Washington, DC 20555.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of December 1998.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Susan F. Shankman,
Deputy Director, Licensing and Inspection Directorate, Spent Fuel 
Project Office, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 98-34576 Filed 12-30-98; 8:45 am]
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