[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 136 (Wednesday, July 16, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42139-42140]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-17962]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-143]


Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc.; Environmental Assessment and Finding 
of No Significant Impact

I. Introduction

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff has received a 
license amendment request from Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (NFS) dated 
January 23, 2003, to amend Special Nuclear Material License SNM-124 to 
use International Commission on Radiation Protection (ICRP) Publication 
68 for Derived Air Concentration (DAC) and the Annual Limit on Intake 
(ALI) determinations (Ref. 1, 2). An Environmental Assessment (EA) was 
performed by the NRC staff in support of its review of NFS' license 
amendment request, in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR part 
51. The conclusion of the EA is a Finding of No Significant Impact 
(FONSI) for the proposed licensing action.

II. Supplementary Information

Background

    The NFS facility in Erwin, TN is authorized under SNM-124 to 
possess nuclear materials for the fabrication and assembly of nuclear 
fuel components. The facility fabricates research and university 
reactor components and manufactures compact reactor fuel elements. The 
facility also performs recovery of scrap uranium.
    Inhalation of dust in radiologically controlled areas poses an 
internal radiation hazard, and the NRC regulations in 10 CFR part 20 
require licensees to implement certain protective measures to minimize 
that hazard. These measures include taking a variety of air samples, 
using respirators in certain work areas, posting airborne radioactivity 
warning signs outside the work areas, and putting the potentially 
exposed workers on a routine bioassay program to assess their intakes 
and verify the effectiveness of the protection program. Many of these 
protective measures are triggered when the air concentrations in the 
workplace reach specified fractions of the air concentrations tabulated 
in 10 CFR part 20 appendix B. NFS has requested to amend its license to 
permit the use of values other than those tabulated in Part 20 as the 
basis for triggering protective measures, and for assessing the 
internal dose to its workers. The basis for the amendment request is 
the recommendations in ICRP 68. In the amendment application, NFS 
maintains that the assessment of the radiological hazard based on 10 
CFR part 20 Appendix B requires it to implement monitoring and 
protection programs at levels that are out of proportion with the true 
level of hazard, and that do not significantly add to worker 
protection. NFS believes that granting the exemption would enable it to 
reduce the size of its internal exposure program while, at the same 
time, provide a level of protection proportional to the actual hazard. 
NFS references an NRC Staff Requirements Memorandum (SECY-99-077) which 
directs the staff to grant exemptions to 10 CFR part 20 on this 
modeling issue on a case-by-case basis.

Review Scope

    In accordance with 10 CFR part 51, this EA serves to (1) present 
information and analysis for determining whether to issue a Finding of 
No Significant Impact (FONSI) or to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS); (2) fulfill the NRC's compliance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act when no EIS is necessary; and (3) facilitate 
preparation of an EIS when one is necessary. Should the NRC issue a 
FONSI, no EIS would be prepared and the license amendment would be 
granted.
    This document serves to evaluate and document the impacts of the 
proposed action. Other activities on the site have previously been 
evaluated and documented in the 1999 Environmental Assessment (EA) for 
the Renewal of the NRC license for NFS (Ref. 3). The 1999 document is 
referenced when no significant changes have occurred. Besides the 
proposed licensing action, operations will continue to remain limited 
to those authorized by the license.

Proposed Action

    The proposed action is to amend NRC Materials License SNM-124 to 
authorize the use of Derived Air Concentration (DAC) and the Annual 
Limit on Intake (ALI) values specified in International Commission on 
Radiation Protection Publication 68 (ICRP 68), entitled Dose 
Coefficients for Intake of Radionuclides by Worker (Ref. 2). The DAC/
ALI values would be used to assign the effective dose to workers based 
on an aerosol particle size of 5 microns as specified in ICRP 68. The 
proposed DAC/ALI values are based on particle size studies, as 
currently described in Sections 3.2.5.1 and 12.13.5 of Materials 
License SNM-124 (Ref. 4).

Affected Environment

    The affected environment for the proposed activity is the NFS site. 
A full description of the site and its characteristics is given in the 
1999 Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Renewal of the NRC license 
for NFS (Ref. 3).

Effluent Releases and Monitoring

    A full description of the effluent monitoring program at the site 
is provided in the 1999 Environmental Assessment for the Renewal of the 
NRC license for NFS (Ref. 3). Monitoring programs at the NFS facility 
comprise effluent monitoring of air and water and environmental 
monitoring of various media (air, soil, vegetation, and groundwater). 
This program provides a basis for evaluation of public health and 
safety impacts, for establishing compliance with environmental 
regulations, and for development of mitigation measures if necessary. 
The monitoring program is not expected to change as a result of the 
proposed action. The NRC has reviewed the

[[Page 42140]]

location of the environmental monitoring program sampling points, the 
frequency of sample collection, and the trends of the sampling program 
results in conjunction with the environmental pathway and exposure 
analysis and concluded that the monitoring program provides adequate 
protection of public health and safety.

Environmental Impacts of Proposed Action

Radiological Impacts
    The basic limits on radiation exposures, as well as the minimum 
radiation protection practices required of any NRC licensee, are 
specified in 10 CFR part 20, ``Standards for Protection Against 
Radiation'' (Ref. 5). The models used in part 20 to regulate internal 
doses are those described in ICRP Publications 26 and 30, adopted by 
ICRP in 1977 and 1978, respectively (Ref. 6, 7). Much of the basic 
structure of these models was developed in 1966, although some of its 
components and parameters were altered somewhat between 1966 and their 
formal adoption by ICRP in 1978. In the same year that the Commission 
approved the final Part 20 rule (1991), ICRP published a major revision 
of its radiation protection recommendations, ICRP 60 (Ref. 8). In the 
several years following this revision, ICRP published a series of 
reports in which it described the components of an extensively updated 
and revised internal dosimetry model. Due to the restrictions in part 
20, NRC licensees are not permitted to use the revised and updated 
internal dosimetry models, without requesting an exemption to the 
regulations.
    Although the dose per unit intake calculated using the new models 
does not differ by more than a factor of about two from the values in 
Part 20 for most radionuclides, the differences are substantial for 
some, particularly for the isotopes of thorium, uranium, and some of 
the transuranic radionuclides. For example, for inhalation of insoluble 
thorium-232 (\232\Th), the dose per unit intake calculated using the 
revised ICRP lung model is a factor of about 15 times lower than that 
in part 20. Because protective measures are based on the hazard, and 
since the hazard is proportional to dose, part 20 requires 
significantly more protective measures when using \232\Th than would be 
warranted based on the revised models. This is NFS's primary concern, 
and has requested that it be allowed to use DAC and ALI values based on 
the dose coefficients listed in ICRP 68. The staff concluded during the 
license renewal on July 2, 1999, that NFS, due to adequate training and 
expertise, is qualified to utilize the ICRP Model's such as ICRP-68 in 
a manner equivalent to those values listed in 10 CFR 20.1201(d), i.e., 
doses to less than NRC's regulatory limit of 5 rem, in its Radiation 
Safety Program. Therefore, NFS' request for an exemption under 10 CFR 
20.2301 and 10 CFR 70.14(a) is acceptable, because it gives its workers 
equivalent radiological protection as required by 10 CFR part 20. Thus, 
the exemption is authorized by law and will not result in an undue 
hazard to life or property.
Nonradiological Impacts
    The NRC determined that there are no nonradiological impacts 
associated with the proposed action.
Cumulative Impacts
    The NRC determined that there are no cumulative impacts associated 
with the proposed action.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    NRC considered one alternative to the proposed action which was to 
deny the amendment request. This alternative was rejected because the 
impacts of the proposed action on the health and safety of the workers, 
the public, and the environment were determined to be insignificant. In 
addition, the licensee will be able to save time and resources on 
implementing protective measures, upon approval of the proposed action.

Agencies and Persons Contacted

    The NRC contacted the Director of Radiological Heath at the 
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) concerning 
this request. There were no comments, concerns or objections from the 
state.
    Because the proposed action is entirely within existing facilities, 
and does not involve new or increased effluents or accident scenarios, 
the NRC has concluded that there is no potential to affect endangered 
species or historic resources, and therefore consultation with the 
State Historic Preservation Society and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service was not performed.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    Based upon the environmental assessment, the staff concludes that 
the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the quality 
of the human environment. Accordingly, the staff has determined that 
preparation of an environmental impact statement is not warranted.

IV. Further Information

    The following documents are related to the proposed action:
    1. B.M. Moore, Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc., Letter to U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, ``License Amendment Request to Use ICRP 68 for 
ALI and DAC Determinations,'' January 23, 2003. (ADAMS Accession Number 
ML030290097).
    2. International Commission on Radiological Protection, ``Dose 
Coefficients for Intake of Radionuclides by Worker,'' Publication 68, 
Elsevier Science, 1995.
    3. T. Cox, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Letter to T.S. Baer, 
Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc., ``Finding of No Significant Impact and 
Environmental Assessment,'' January 29, 1999.
    4. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Special Nuclear Material 
License SNM-124.
    5. U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, ``Standards for Protection 
Against Radiation,'' Part 20, Chapter 1, Title 10, Energy.
    6. International Commission on Radiological Protection, 
``Recommendations of the International Commission on Radiological 
Protection,'' Publication 26, Elsevier Science, 1977.
    7. International Commission on Radiological Protection, ``Limits 
for the Intake of Radionuclides by Workers,'' Publication 30, Elsevier 
Science, 1978.
    These references 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, Rockville, MD 20852. The references with ADAMS 
accession numbers may also be viewed in the NRC's Electronic Public 
Document Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Any 
questions with respect to this action should be referred to Ms. Mary 
Adams, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and 
Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop T-8 A33, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001. Telephone 301-415-7249.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 7th day of July, 2003.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Susan M. Frant,
Chief, Fuel Cycle Facilities Branch, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and 
Safeguards, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 03-17962 Filed 7-15-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P