[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 189 (Friday, September 28, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49713-49714]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-24336]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-237 and 50-249]


Exelon Generation Company, LLC Dresden Nuclear Power Station, 
Units 2 and 3; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant 
Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering 
issuance of an exemption from certain requirements of 10 CFR 
50.55a(g)(6)(ii)(A)(2) for Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-19 and 
DPR-25, issued to Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon, or the 
licensee) for operation of the Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 
and 3, located in Grundy County, Illinois. 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 grant a schedular exemption for Dresden 
Nuclear Power Station (DNPS), Units 2 and 3, from implementation of 
inservice examinations of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) vertical 
welds and the top shell course to vessel flange weld, per American 
Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code 
Section XI, Table IWB-2500, items B1.12 and B1.30, by the end of the 
current ten year intervals, as required by 10 CFR 50.55a, ``Codes and 
standards,'' paragraph (g)(6)(ii)(A)(2). The current intervals end on 
January 19, 2003, for DNPS Unit 2 and October 31, 2002, for DNPS Unit 
3. This schedular exemption requests an extension for the performance 
of the third interval inspections of these welds until the completion 
of the D2R18 outage for Unit 2 in October 2003, and until the 
completion of the D3R18 outage in October 2004 for Unit 3.
    The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's 
application dated June 12, 2001, as supplemented by letter dated July 
23, 2001.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed schedular exemption is needed to prevent an extension 
of the upcoming refueling outages. 10 CFR 50.55a(g)(6)(ii)(A)(2) 
requires DNPS to perform an examination of its RPV welds during the 
current ten-year inspection interval which concludes for each unit 
during the upcoming refueling outages, D2R17 and D3R17, scheduled for 
October 2001 and September 2002, respectively. Using conventional 
equipment, the licensee could fulfill this commitment during the 
upcoming refueling outages and perform examinations of approximately 60 
percent of the RPV welds which is typical for similar BWR plants. 
However, the licensee has proposed to implement the improved AIRIS 21 
system technology which will provide increased RPV weld coverage. The 
AIRIS 21 system, which requires additional refueling bridge support in 
order to perform inspections, would add approximately 64 hours of 
critical time to each refueling outage. In lieu of extending the 
refueling outages, the licensee has proposed to spread the RPV weld 
examinations over the next two refueling outages for both DNPS Units 2 
and 3. A one-cycle extension would allow optimum coverage without 
imposing production penalties associated with a refueling outage 
extension.
    10 CFR 50.12 permits the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to grant 
exemptions which are authorized by law, will not present undue risk to 
the health and safety of the public, and are consistent with the common 
defense and security, provided that special circumstances are present. 
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.12 (a)(2), the Commission believes that special 
circumstances exist in that the requested schedular extension is 
required to prevent extended shutdown of DNPS, Units 2 and 3. 
Preparations for a refueling outage are proceeding based on a scheduled 
shutdown in October 2001. An extended outage would present undue 
hardship and costs due to lost generation. The requested exemption will 
only provide temporary relief from the applicable regulation and does 
not jeopardize the health and safety of the public.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and 
concludes that there are no significant adverse environmental impacts 
associated with the proposed action.
    The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability 
or consequences of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of 
any effluents that may be released offsite, 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 environmental impacts, 
the proposed action does not have a potential to affect any historic 
sites. It

[[Page 49714]]

does not affect non-radiological plant effluents and has no other 
environmental impact. Therefore, there are no significant non-
radiological impacts associated with the proposed action.
    Accordingly, the Commission 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

    The action does not involve the use of any different resource than 
those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement for 
the Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 3, dated November 1973.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    On July 24, 2001, the staff consulted with the Illinois State 
official, 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 NRC 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 June 12, 2001, as supplemented by letter dated 
July 23, 2001. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at 
the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 
11555 Rockville Pike (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 PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, 
or by e-mail at [email protected].


    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 10th day of September 2001.

    For The Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Anthony J. Mendiola,
Chief, Section 2, Project Directorate III, Division of Licensing 
Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 01-24336 Filed 9-27-01; 8:45 am]
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