[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 141 (Monday, July 23, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38328-38329]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-18327]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-400]


Carolina Power & Light Company; Shearon Harris Nuclear Power 
Plant; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering 
issuance of an exemption from 10 CFR 55.59(a) for Facility Operating 
License No. NPF-63, issued to Carolina Power & Light Company (the 
licensee), for operation of the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Station, 
Unit 1 (HNP), located in Wake and Chatham Counties, North Carolina. 
Therefore, as required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing this 
environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would allow the licensed operator 
requalification examinations for HNP to be rescheduled. The requested 
exemption would extend the completion date for the examinations from 
December 31, 2001, to March 31, 2002.
    The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's 
application dated January 19, 2001, as supplemented by letter dated May 
7, 2001.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would extend the current HNP requalification 
program from December 31, 2001, to March 31, 2002. HNP is scheduled to 
be in extended shutdown for refueling, steam generator replacement, and 
power uprate modifications during the end period of the current 
requalification cycle and when the full annual examination 
(comprehensive written examination and annual operating test) would 
need to be given. The licensee has stated that based on the training 
required for the new site procedures, modifications of the simulator to 
support outage modifications, training prior to the outage, and the 
implementation of the extended outage, the ability to complete the full 
annual examination within the 24-month requalification cycle is not 
possible.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and 
concludes that there are no environmental impacts associated with the 
extension of the operator requalification examinations from December 
31, 2001, to March 31, 2002. The proposed action will not significantly 
increase the probability or consequences of accidents, no changes are 
being made in the types or amounts of 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 have a potential to affect 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 NRC concludes that there are no significant 
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

Environmental Impacts of the 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 different resource than 
those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement for 
HNP.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    On June 29, 2001, the staff consulted with the North Carolina State 
official, Mr. Johnny James, of the Division of Radiation Protection, 
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 NRC concludes 
that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the NRC 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 January 19, 2001, as supplemented by letter 
dated May 7, 2001. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, 
at the NRC's Public Document Room, located at One White Flint North, 
11555 Rockville Pike

[[Page 38329]]

(first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be 
accessible electronically from the ADAMS Public Library component on 
the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov (the Public Electronic Reading 
Room). If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in 
accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public 
Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, 
or by e-mail at [email protected].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day of July 2001.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
N. Kalyanam,
Project Manager, Section 2, Project Directorate II, Division of 
Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 01-18327 Filed 7-20-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P