[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 49 (Thursday, March 13, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12044-12048]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-6055]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship at the West Valley 
Demonstration Project and Western New York Nuclear Service Center

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the New York State 
Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) are announcing 
their intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship at the West Valley 
Demonstration Project (WVDP) and Western New York Nuclear Service 
Center (also known as the ``Center''). The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and 
the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) 
will participate as cooperating agencies under the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). In addition, 
NYSDEC will participate as an involved agency under the New York State 
Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) with respect to NYSERDA's 
proposed actions. DOE, under NEPA, and NYSERDA, under SEQRA, plan to 
evaluate the range of reasonable alternatives in this EIS to address 
their respective responsibilities at the Center, including those under 
the West Valley Demonstration Project Act (Pub. L. 96-368), Atomic 
Energy Act of 1954 (as amended), and all other applicable Federal and 
State statutes.
    This EIS will revise the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for 
Completion of the West Valley Demonstration Project and Closure or 
Long-Term Management of Facilities at the Western New York Nuclear 
Service Center (DOE/EIS-0226-D, January 1996, also referred to as the 
1996 Cleanup and Closure Draft EIS). Based on decommissioning criteria 
for the WVDP issued by NRC since the Cleanup and Closure EIS was 
published, DOE and NYSERDA propose to evaluate five alternatives: 
Unrestricted Site Release, Partial Site Release without Restrictions, 
Partial Site Release with Restrictions, Monitor and Maintain under 
Current Operations, and No-Action.

DATES: DOE and NYSERDA are inviting public comments on the scope and 
content of the Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS during 
a public comment period commencing with the date of publication of this 
Notice and ending on April 28, 2003. DOE and NYSERDA will hold two 
public scoping meetings on the EIS at the Ashford Office Complex, 
located at 9030 Route 219 in the Town of Ashford, NY, from 7 to 9:30 
p.m. on April 9, 2003 and April 10, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Address comments on the scope of the Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship EIS to the DOE Document Manager: Mr. Daniel W. 
Sullivan, West Valley Demonstration Project, U.S. Department of Energy, 
WV-49, 10282 Rock Springs Road, West Valley, New York 14171, Telephone: 
(800) 633-5280, Facsimile: (716) 942-4199, E-mail: 
[email protected].
    The ``Public Reading Rooms'' section under SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION lists the addresses of the reading rooms where documents 
referenced herein are available.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT: For information regarding the WVDP or 
the EIS, contact Mr. Daniel Sullivan as described above. Those seeking 
general information on DOE's NEPA process should contact: Ms. Carol M. 
Borgstrom, (EH-42), Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance, 
U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, 
DC 20585, Telephone: (202) 586-4600, Facsimile: (202) 586-7031, or 
leave a message at 1-800-472-2756, toll-free.
    Questions for NYSERDA should be directed to: Mr. Paul J. Bembia, 
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, 10282 Rock 
Springs Road, West Valley, New York 14171, Telephone: (716) 942-4900, 
Facsimile: (716) 942-2148, E-mail: [email protected].
    Those seeking general information on the SEQRA process should 
contact: Mr. Hal Brodie, Deputy Counsel, New York State Energy Research 
and Development Authority, 17 Columbia Circle, Albany, New York 12203-
6399, Telephone: (518) 862-1090, ext. 3280, Facsimile: (518) 862-1091, 
E-mail: [email protected].
    This Notice of Intent will be available on the internet at http://tis.eh.doe.gov/nepa, under ``What's New.'' Additional information about 
the WVDP is also available on the internet at http://www.wv.doe.gov/linkingpages/insidewestvalley.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOE and NYSERDA intend to prepare a revised 
draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship at the WVDP and Western New York Nuclear Service 
Center to examine the potential environmental impacts of the proposed 
action to decommission and/or maintain long-term stewardship at the 
Center. The NRC, the EPA, and NYSDEC will participate as cooperating 
agencies under NEPA. NYSDEC will also participate as an involved agency 
under SEQRA with respect to NYSERDA's proposed actions. DOE, under 
NEPA, and NYSERDA, under SEQRA, plan to evaluate the range of 
reasonable alternatives in this EIS to address their respective 
responsibilities at the Center, including those under the WVDP Act, 
Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (as amended), and all other applicable 
Federal and State statutes.

Background

    The Western New York Nuclear Service Center consists of a 3,345-
acre reservation in rural western New York that is the location of the 
only NRC-licensed commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing facility 
to have ever operated in the United States. Reprocessing operations 
resulted in the generation of approximately 600,000 gallons of liquid 
high-level waste (HLW), which was stored in large underground tanks 
adjacent to the reprocessing facility. NYSERDA holds title to the 
Center on behalf of the people of the State of New York. (See H. Rep. 
No. 96-1000 at 4 (1980) reprinted in 1980 U.S.S.C.A.N 3102, 3103.)
    The WVDP Act of 1980 required DOE to solidify the HLW, transport it 
to a Federal geologic repository, dispose of the low-level waste (LLW) 
and transuranic (TRU) waste generated from Project activities, and 
decontaminate and decommission the facilities used for the Project. The 
Act also authorized NRC to prescribe decommissioning criteria for the 
WVDP. The NRC has placed NYSERDA's NRC site license in abeyance during 
DOE's fulfillment of its WVDP Act requirements.
    Pursuant to the WVDP Act, on October 1, 1980, DOE and NYSERDA 
entered into a Cooperative Agreement (amended September 19, 1981) that 
established a framework for the implementation of the Project. Under 
the agreement, NYSERDA has made available to DOE, without transfer of 
title, an approximately 200-acre portion of the Center, known as the 
``Project Premises,'' which includes a formerly operated spent nuclear 
fuel reprocessing plant, spent nuclear fuel receiving and

[[Page 12045]]

storage area, underground liquid HLW storage tanks, and a liquid LLW 
treatment facility with associated lagoons, as well as other 
facilities. Most of the facilities on the Project premises were 
radioactively contaminated from reprocessing operations and are located 
on a geographic area of the Center known as the North Plateau. Among 
the other facilities located within the Project Premises is a 
radioactive waste disposal area known as the NRC-licensed disposal area 
(NDA). Adjacent to the Project Premises is a radioactive waste disposal 
area known as the State Licensed Disposal Area (SDA) for which NYSERDA 
has operational responsibility. Both the NDA and SDA are located on the 
South Plateau geographic area of the Center.
    In 1987, DOE agreed, in a Stipulation of Compromise settling a 
lawsuit filed by local citizens, to evaluate the feasibility of onsite 
disposal of LLW generated as a result of Project activities in a 
Cleanup and Closure EIS, and to initiate the EIS process by the end of 
calendar year 1988. DOE and NYSERDA jointly issued the resulting Draft 
EIS for Completion of the West Valley Demonstration Project and Closure 
or Long-Term Management of Facilities at the Western New York Nuclear 
Service Center (DOE/EIS-0226-D, also known as the ``Cleanup and Closure 
EIS'') in 1996. The Cleanup and Closure draft EIS evaluated a range of 
alternatives that included a broad scope of waste management and 
decontamination/decommissioning activities. However, the draft EIS did 
not identify a preferred alternative.
    In 2001, DOE revised its NEPA strategy to continue its EIS process 
in order to complete its obligations under the WVDP Act. DOE announced 
that it would prepare a separate EIS to address decontamination and 
near-term waste management activities for which it is solely 
responsible under the Act (66 FR 16647, March 26, 2001). In addition, 
DOE and NYSERDA would jointly prepare a second EIS for decommissioning 
and/or long-term stewardship to address activities for which each party 
is responsible. After considering public comments on the March 26, 
2001, NOI and new information identified under ``New Information to be 
Evaluated'' below, DOE believes the scopes of both EISs should be 
further modified as follows. The first EIS, the West Valley Waste 
Management EIS, would address actions pertaining to waste accumulated 
in storage on site as a result of past Project activities as well as 
waste to be generated in the near term. The second EIS, this 
decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship EIS, would analyze various 
decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship alternatives and would 
include decontamination as well. It would also include the management 
of wastes generated by decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship 
actions. Because this second EIS addresses strategies that may be used 
to complete the WVDP and disposition the Center, DOE now intends that 
this EIS would replace the 1996 Cleanup and Closure EIS. (DOE issued an 
Advance Notice of Intent inviting preliminary public input to the scope 
of this EIS on November 6, 2001 [66 FR 56090].)
    On February 1, 2002, the NRC published in the Federal Register (67 
FR 5003) its Decommissioning Criteria for the West Valley Demonstration 
Project (M-32) at the West Valley Site; Final Policy Statement. The NRC 
decided that it would apply its License Termination Rule (10 CFR 20, 
Subpart E) as the decommissioning criteria for the WVDP and the 
decommissioning goal for the entire NRC-licensed site. The NRC intends 
to use this West Valley EIS to evaluate the environmental impacts of 
the various alternatives before deciding whether to accept the 
preferred alternative as meeting the criteria permitted by the License 
Termination Rule.

Purpose and Need for Action

    DOE is required by the WVDP Act to decontaminate and decommission 
the tanks and facilities used in the solidification of the HLW, and any 
material and hardware used in connection with the WVDP, in accordance 
with such requirements as the NRC may prescribe. The NRC has prescribed 
its License Termination Rule as the decommissioning criteria for the 
WVDP. Therefore, DOE needs to determine the manner that facilities, 
materials, and hardware for which the Department is responsible are 
managed or decommissioned, in accordance with applicable Federal and 
State requirements. To this end, DOE needs to determine what, if any, 
material or structures for which it is responsible will remain on site, 
and what, if any, institutional controls, engineered barriers, or 
stewardship provisions would be needed.
    NYSERDA needs to determine the manner that facilities and property 
for which NYSERDA is responsible, including the State-Licensed Disposal 
Area, will be managed or decommissioned, in accordance with applicable 
Federal and State requirements. To this end, NYSERDA needs to determine 
what, if any, material or structures for which it is responsible will 
remain on site, and what, if any, institutional controls, engineered 
barriers, or stewardship provisions would be needed. It is NYSERDA's 
intent to pursue termination of the existing 10 CFR Part 50 license for 
the Western New York Nuclear Service Center (currently held in 
abeyance) upon DOE's completion of decontamination and decommissioning 
under the WVDP Act in accordance with criteria prescribed by the NRC. 
NYSERDA plans to use the analysis of alternatives in the 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS to support any 
necessary NRC or NYSDEC license or permit applications.

Areas of Disagreement With Respect to Responsibilities

    DOE and NYSERDA currently do not agree on their respective 
responsibilities, including whether DOE is required under the WVDP Act 
to remediate the North Plateau groundwater plume and decommission the 
NDA, and which party is responsible for any long-term stewardship 
following the decommissioning actions required under the WVDP Act.
    In accordance with their respective applicable legal requirements, 
DOE and NYSERDA each have unilateral decision-making authority for 
those actions for which they are responsible. DOE will determine the 
manner in which it will decommission Project facilities as required 
under the WVDP Act. NYSERDA will determine the manner in which non-
Project facilities, not required to be decommissioned under the WVDP 
Act, will be managed.

Potential Range of Alternatives

    DOE and NYSERDA intend to use the NRC's License Termination Rule 
and associated guidance provided in the NRC's Final Policy Statement as 
the framework to evaluate possible alternatives for decommissioning 
and/or long-term stewardship actions involving WVDP facilities, as well 
as decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship actions involving 
NYSERDA-controlled facilities and areas on the Center. In the Final 
Policy Statement, the NRC recognized that it does not have the 
regulatory authority to apply the License Termination Rule to the SDA, 
and said that a cooperative approach with the State will be utilized to 
the extent practical to apply the License Termination Rule in a 
coordinated manner.
    As required by NEPA, the EIS will present the environmental impacts 
associated with the range of reasonable

[[Page 12046]]

alternatives to meet DOE's and NYSERDA's purposes and needs for action, 
and a no-action alternative. This range encompasses release of the 
Center for re-use under unrestricted and restricted conditions as 
allowed under the License Termination Rule. The EIS will present the 
health and environmental consequences of the alternatives in comparable 
form to provide a clear basis for informed decision making. DOE's and 
NYSERDA's preferred alternative will be identified in the Draft EIS. 
This Draft EIS will also include an evaluation of whether the 
alternatives would meet the NRC decommissioning criteria and other 
applicable requirements.

Alternative 1--Unrestricted Site Release

    DOE and NYSERDA intend to evaluate an alternative that could 
satisfy the License Termination Rule criteria and permit termination of 
NYSERDA's NRC license without restrictions. DOE and NYSERDA are 
proposing that this alternative involve removal of WVDP and non-WVDP 
wastes, structures, and contaminated soils to the extent required so 
that the radiological criteria specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 can be met 
for Project and non-Project facilities and the balance of the 3,345-
acre Center. This alternative includes exhumation and offsite disposal 
of waste and contaminated soils from the NDA and SDA on the South 
Plateau.
    DOE and NYSERDA intend to evaluate the need for new onsite interim 
waste storage capacity under Alternative 1 for some waste types, such 
as Greater-Than-Class C waste, that may not be able to be disposed of 
in a time frame that would support timely implementation of this EIS 
alternative. Such an interim storage facility would remain under 
institutional control until the waste it contains is removed from the 
site. Following implementation of this alternative, including removal 
of any wastes in interim storage, the Center could be released without 
restrictions.

Alternative 2--Partial Site Release without Restrictions

    DOE and NYSERDA intend to evaluate an alternative that could 
satisfy the radiological criteria specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 for 
facilities and areas on the North Plateau geographic area of the 
Center, including the North Plateau groundwater plume, as well as the 
balance of the 3,345-acre Center, with the exception of the NDA and 
SDA. This would include removal of WVDP and non-WVDP wastes, 
structures, and contaminated soils to the extent required so that the 
radiological criteria specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 can be met for the 
North Plateau. Appropriate infiltration controls would be evaluated for 
the NDA and the SDA. The NDA and SDA on the South Plateau would not be 
released but would be managed, monitored, and maintained under permit, 
license, or other appropriate regulatory oversight. With the exception 
of the NDA and SDA, the WVDP Project Premises and Center could be 
released without restrictions. DOE and NYSERDA also intend to evaluate 
the need for new onsite interim waste storage that may be required to 
support timely completion of this alternative.

Alternative 3--Partial Site Release with Restrictions

    DOE and NYSERDA intend to evaluate an alternative that may permit 
release with restrictions of portions of the North Plateau geographic 
area and the balance of the 3,345-acre Center, with the exception of 
the NDA and SDA. DOE and NYSERDA are proposing that this alternative 
involve removal of wastes and structures to the extent technically and 
economically practical so that the radiological criteria specified in 
10 CFR 20.1403 can be met for the North Plateau. This would involve in-
place closure of the Process Building, Vitrification Facility, HLW Tank 
Farm, wastewater treatment facility lagoons, and the North Plateau 
contaminated groundwater plume in a manner that is protective of public 
health, safety, and the environment. Other ancillary North Plateau 
facilities would be removed. Appropriate infiltration controls would be 
evaluated for the NDA and the SDA. The application of institutional 
controls and engineered barriers would be required and evaluated. The 
NDA and SDA on the South Plateau would not be released but would be 
managed, monitored, and maintained under permit, license, or other 
appropriate regulatory oversight. With the exception of the NDA and 
SDA, the end state would be the release of the WVDP Project Premises 
and Center under restricted conditions. However, unimpacted and/or 
remediated areas of the Center could be considered for release without 
restrictions. DOE also intends to evaluate the need for new onsite 
interim HLW storage that may be required to support timely completion 
of this alternative.

Alternative 4--Monitor and Maintain under Current Operations

    This alternative involves the continued management and oversight of 
the Center and all facilities located upon the Center property, 
including the WVDP, after DOE's implementation of its Record of 
Decision for the WVDP Waste Management EIS. No decommissioning 
decisions would be made nor actions taken to make progress toward 
decommissioning, including decontamination beyond the scope that DOE is 
currently performing. No facilities would be closed in place, but would 
be left in their current configuration and actively monitored and 
maintained as required by existing regulations to protect public, 
worker, and environmental health and safety. When required, remedial 
actions would be taken in response to any releases of contamination 
into the environment that may present a health and safety risk, such as 
would be experienced from the eventual failure of the underground HLW 
storage tanks. Under this alternative, no portion of the Project 
Premises or the Center would be released for any present or future use.

Alternative 5--No Action (Walk Away)

    This alternative involves the cessation of all management and 
oversight of the Center and all facilities located upon the Center 
property, including the WVDP, immediately after implementation of DOE's 
Record of Decision for the WVDP Waste Management EIS. The Process 
Building, Waste Tank Farm, Vitrification Facility, North Plateau 
groundwater plume, NDA, SDA, and other smaller facilities would remain 
and would not be monitored or maintained. Unmitigated natural 
processes, including erosion, groundwater transport of contamination, 
and concrete degradation, would be assumed to occur. The purpose of 
evaluating this alternative is to establish the basis against which the 
environmental impacts from all other decommissioning and/or long-term 
stewardship alternatives are compared.

Alternatives Considered But Eliminated From Further Evaluation

    DOE does not consider the use of existing structures or 
construction of new aboveground facilities at the WVDP for indefinite 
storage of Project and non-Project LLW and mixed low-level waste (MLLW) 
to be a reasonable alternative for further consideration. Under the 
Waste Management Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (WMPEIS, 
DOE/EIS-0200-F) Record of Decision, DOE decided that sites such as the 
WVDP would ship their LLW and MLLW to other DOE sites that have 
disposal capabilities for these wastes. (This decision did not preclude 
the use of commercial disposal facilities as well.) The construction, 
subsequent maintenance, and periodic replacement over time of new 
facilities for indefinite onsite waste storage at West Valley

[[Page 12047]]

would be impractical from a cost, programmatic, health, and 
environmental standpoint. Thus, given the capacity to safely and 
permanently disposition LLW and MLLW in available off site facilities, 
DOE would not consider indefinite onsite waste storage in new or 
existing facilities to be a viable waste management alternative for its 
decommissioning actions at the WVDP. For similar reasons, NYSERDA would 
use available commercial facilities for disposal of any non-Project LLW 
and MLLW that it may generate, in lieu of incurring the costs of new 
construction.

New Information To Be Evaluated

    As discussed above, the NRC published its Final Policy Statement 
prescribing decommissioning criteria for the WVDP on February 1, 2002, 
stating that NRC intends to apply its License Termination Rule (10 CFR 
20.1401 et seq.) as decommissioning criteria in assessing the health 
and environmental impacts of decommissioning the WVDP facilities. DOE 
and NYSERDA will utilize the NRC's Final Policy Statement and the 
License Termination Rule as the benchmark to develop and analyze their 
decommissioning alternatives in the Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS.
    For the 1996 Draft Cleanup and Closure EIS, DOE and NYSERDA 
developed or modified a variety of analytical tools specifically for 
that document. DOE has continued to refine many of these analytical 
tools as a result of public comments received on the 1996 Draft Cleanup 
and Closure EIS and ongoing interactions with stakeholders and 
regulatory agencies such as the NRC. DOE and NYSERDA intend to apply 
these improved analytical tools to the preparation of the 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS. To address 
significant issues such as erosion, for example, DOE and NYSERDA have 
developed a site-specific erosion model, with ongoing advice from NRC, 
and integrated that model into a revised performance assessment 
methodology, incorporating the use of sensitivity and uncertainty 
analyses.
    There are also some additional areas where new information has or 
will be obtained specifically for the Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS. This work includes updated site characterization and 
census data and the performance of a seismic reflection survey in the 
vicinity of the Center. This seismic reflection survey, performed in 
consultation with academic, government, and industry participants, will 
contribute to knowledge about the regional structural geology as it may 
relate to the WVDP and the Center.
    Additional information that has become available since publication 
of the 1996 Draft Cleanup and Closure EIS includes DOE's WM PEIS and 
its associated Records of Decision. The WM PEIS analyzed on a national 
scale the centralization, regionalization, or decentralization of 
managing HLW, transuranic waste, low-level radioactive waste, mixed 
radioactive low-level waste (containing hazardous constituents), and 
non-wastewater hazardous waste.

Potential Environmental Issues for Analysis

    DOE has tentatively identified the following issues for analysis in 
the Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS. The list is 
presented to facilitate early comment on the scope of the EIS. It is 
not intended to be all-inclusive nor to predetermine the alternatives 
to be analyzed or their potential impacts.
    [sbull] Potential impacts to the general population and on-site 
workers from radiological and non-radiological releases from 
decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship activities.
    [sbull] Potential environmental impacts, including air and water 
quality impacts, caused by decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship 
activities.
    [sbull] Potential transportation impacts from shipments of 
radioactive, hazardous, mixed, and clean waste generated during 
decommissioning activities.
    [sbull] Potential impacts from postulated accidents.
    [sbull] Potential costs for implementation and long-term 
stewardship of alternatives considered.
    [sbull] Potential disproportionately high and adverse effects on 
low-income and minority populations (environmental justice).
    [sbull] Potential Native American concerns.
    [sbull] Irretrievable and irreversible commitment of resources.
    [sbull] Short-term and long-term land use impacts.
    [sbull] Ability of alternatives to meet the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act risk range.
    [sbull] Ability of alternatives to satisfy WVDP decommissioning 
criteria.
    [sbull] Compliance with applicable Federal, State, and local 
requirements.
    [sbull] Identification of Derived Concentration Guideline Limits, 
where appropriate.
    [sbull] The influence of, and potential interactions of, any wastes 
remaining at the Center after decommissioning.
    [sbull] Unavoidable adverse impacts.
    [sbull] Issues associated with long-term site stewardship, 
including regulatory and engineering considerations, institutional 
controls, and land use restrictions, including the need for buffer 
areas.
    [sbull] Long-term health and environmental impacts, including 
potential impacts on groundwater quality.
    [sbull] Long-term site stability, including erosion and seismicity.
    [sbull] Waste Incidental to Reprocessing.
    [sbull] Disposition of wastes generated as a result of 
decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship activities.

Other Agency Involvement

    Nuclear Regulatory Commission: NRC has the regulatory 
responsibility under the Atomic Energy Act for the Center, which is the 
subject of the NRC license issued to NYSERDA pursuant to 10 CFR part 
50, with the exception of the SDA. The NRC license is currently in 
abeyance pending completion of the WVDP.
    The WVDP Act specifies certain responsibilities for NRC, including: 
(1) Prescribing requirements for decontamination and decommissioning; 
(2) providing review and consultation to DOE on the Project; and (3) 
monitoring the activities under the Project for the purpose of assuring 
the public health and safety. NRC will participate as a cooperating 
agency under NEPA on the West Valley Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS. NRC may adopt this EIS for determining that the 
preferred alternative meets NRC's decommissioning criteria, assuming 
that NRC will find the preferred alternative acceptable.
    Notwithstanding the WVDP, NRC retains the regulatory responsibility 
for the non-DOE activity in the non-Project area and non-SDA area to 
the extent that contamination exists both on and offsite resulting from 
activities performed when the facility was operating under its NRC 10 
CFR part 50 license. Following completion of the WVDP and reinstatement 
of the license, NRC will have the regulatory responsibility for 
authorizing termination of the license, should NYSERDA seek license 
termination.
    United States Environmental Protection Agency: The United States 
Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) will participate as a 
cooperating agency under NEPA on the West Valley Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship EIS. As a

[[Page 12048]]

cooperating agency, EPA will review the EIS and other documents 
developed by DOE in conjunction with NYSERDA to provide early input on 
the analyses of environmental impacts associated with the 
decommissioning alternatives to be analyzed.
    New York State Department of Environmental Conservation: With 
respect to DOE proposed actions, NYSDEC will participate as a 
cooperating agency under NEPA on the West Valley Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship EIS. As a cooperating agency, NYSDEC will review 
the EIS and other documents developed by DOE in conjunction with 
NYSERDA to provide early input on the analyses of environmental impacts 
associated with the decommissioning alternatives to be analyzed, and as 
part of their regulatory responsibilities. NYSDEC will participate as 
an involved agency under SEQRA with respect to NYSERDA's proposed 
actions.
    NYSDEC regulates the SDA through issuance of permits under 6 New 
York Codes, Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Part 380 Rules and 
Regulations for Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by 
Radioactive Materials. NYSDEC also regulates hazardous and mixed waste 
at the Center pursuant to 6 NYCRR Part 370 Series. This includes 
permitting activities under Interim Status for RCRA regulated units and 
Corrective Action Requirements for investigation and if necessary, 
remediation of hazardous constituents from Solid Waste Management 
Units.
    NYSDEC is also responsible for ensuring compliance with the 1992 
joint NYSDEC/USEPA 3008 (h) [New York State Environmental Conservation 
Law, Article 27, Titles 9 and 13] Order issued to the DOE and NYSERDA. 
The Order required investigation of solid waste management units, 
performance of interim corrective measures, and completion of 
Corrective Measures Studies, if necessary. NYSDEC and EPA intend to 
accommodate the DOE's and NYSERDA's efforts to coordinate and integrate 
the EIS process pursuant to the Order.

Public Scoping Meetings

    DOE and NYSERDA will hold two public scoping meetings on the 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS at the Ashford Office 
Complex, located at 9030 Route 219 in the Town of Ashford, NY, from 7 
to 9:30 p.m. on April 9 and April 10, 2003. The purpose of scoping is 
to encourage public involvement and solicit public comments on the 
proposed scope and content of the EIS. Requests to speak at the public 
meeting should be made by calling or writing the DOE Document Manager 
(see ADDRESSES, above). Speakers will be scheduled on a first-come, 
first-served basis. Individuals may sign up at the door to speak and 
will be accommodated as time permits. Written comments will also be 
accepted at the meeting. Speakers are encouraged to provide written 
versions of their oral comments for the record.
    The meetings will be facilitated by a moderator. Time will be 
provided for meeting attendees to ask clarifying questions. Individuals 
requesting to speak on behalf of an organization must identify the 
organization. Each speaker will be allowed five minutes to present 
comments unless more time is requested and available. Comments will be 
recorded by a court reporter and will become part of the scoping 
meeting record.
    These two public scoping meetings will be held during a public 
scoping comment period. The comment period begins with publication of 
this NOI and will formally close on April 28, 2003. Comments received 
after this date will be considered to the extent practical. Comments 
provided during scoping will be addressed in the revised draft 
Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS. Written comments will 
be received during the scoping period either in writing, by facsimile, 
or by email to Mr. Daniel Sullivan, DOE Document Manager (see 
ADDRESSES, above, for contact information).

Schedule

    The DOE intends to issue the draft Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS as early as December 2003. A public comment period of 
up to 180 days will start upon publication of the EPA's Federal 
Register Notice of Availability. DOE will consider and respond to 
comments received on the draft Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS in preparing the final EIS.
    Comments received during the 1989 scoping process and from the 
public comment period on the 1996 Cleanup and Closure EIS (DOE/EIS-
0226-D) will be considered in the Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS.

Public Reading Rooms

    Documents referenced in this Notice of Intent and related 
information are available at the following locations: Central Buffalo 
Public Library Science and Technology Department, Lafayette Square, 
Buffalo, New York 14203, (716) 858-7098; The Olean Public Library, 134 
North 2nd Street, Olean, New York 14760, (716) 372-0200; The Hulbert 
Library of the Town of Concord, 18 Chapel Street, Springville, New York 
14141, (716) 592-7742; West Valley Central School Library, 5359 School 
Street, West Valley, New York 14141, (716) 942-3261; Ashford Office 
Complex, 9030 Route 219, West Valley, New York 14171, (716) 942-4555.

    Issued in Washington, DC on March 7, 2003.
Beverly A. Cook,
Assistant Secretary, Environment, Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 03-6055 Filed 3-12-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P