[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 227 (Tuesday, November 25, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66130-66131]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-29351]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 52-007]


Exelon Generation Company, LLC, Clinton Early Site Permit; Notice 
of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement and Conduct 
Scoping Process

    Exelon Generation Company, LLC (Exelon) has submitted an 
application for an early site permit (ESP) for property co-located with 
the existing Clinton Power Station facility near Clinton, Illinois 
identified as the Clinton ESP site. The site is located near the town 
of Clinton in DeWitt County, Illinois. The application for the ESP was 
submitted by letter dated September 25, 2003, pursuant to 10 CFR part 
52. The application also includes a site redress plan in accordance 
with 10 CFR 52.17(c) and 52.25. If a site redress plan is incorporated 
in an approved ESP, the applicant may carry out certain site 
preparation work and limited construction activities. A notice of 
receipt and availability of the application, which included the 
environmental report (ER), was published in the Federal Register on 
October 24, 2003 (68 FR 61020). A notice of acceptance for docketing of 
the application for the ESP was published in the Federal Register on 
October 30, 2003 (68 FR 61835). The purpose of this notice is to inform 
the public that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will be 
preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) in support of the 
review of the ESP application and to provide the public with an 
opportunity to participate in the environmental scoping process as 
defined in 10 CFR 51.29. In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR 800.8, 
``Coordination with the National Environmental Policy Act,'' the NRC 
plans to coordinate compliance with section 106 of the National 
Historic Preservation Act in meeting the requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
    In accordance with 10 CFR 52.17(a)(2), 51.45, and 51.50, Exelon 
submitted the ER as part of the application. The ER was prepared 
pursuant to 10 CFR parts 51 and 52 and is available for public 
inspection at the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) located at One White 
Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland, 
or from the Publicly Available Records component of NRC's Agencywide 
Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible at 
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html, which provides access through 
the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room (PERR) link. Persons who do 
not have access to ADAMS, or who encounter problems in accessing the 
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC's PDR Reference 
staff at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to [email protected]. 
The application may also be viewed on the Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-licensing/license-reviews/esp/clinton.html. In 
addition, the Vespasian Warner Public Library, located at 310 N. Quincy 
Street, Clinton, Illinois 61727-1300, has agreed to make the ER 
available for public inspection.
    The following key reference documents related to the ESP 
applications and the NRC staff's review process are available through 
the NRC's Web site http://www.nrc.gov:
    a. 10 CFR part 51, Environmental protection regulations for 
domestic licensing and related regulatory functions.
    b. 10 CFR part 52, Early site permits; standard design 
certifications; and combined licenses for nuclear power plants.
    c. 10 CFR part 100, Reactor site criteria.
    d. NUREG-1555, Standard Review Plans for Environmental Reviews for 
Nuclear Power Plants.
    e. NUREG/BR-0298, Brochure on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing 
Process.
    f. Regulatory Guide 4.7, General Site Suitability Criteria for 
Nuclear Power Stations.
    g. Fact Sheet on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing Process.
    h. Draft Review Standard RS-002, Processing Applications for Early 
Site Permits.
    i. NRR Office Instruction LIC-203, Procedural Guidance for 
Preparing Environmental Assessments and Considering Environmental 
Issues.
    The regulations, NUREG-series documents, regulatory guide, and fact 
sheet can be found under Document Collections in the Electronic Reading 
Room on the NRC web page. The draft review standard is at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-licensing/license-reviews/esp/esp-public-comments-rs-002.html. Finally, Office Instruction LIC-203 can be found 
in ADAMS in two parts under accession numbers ML011710073 (main text) 
and ML011780314 (charts and figures).
    This notice advises the public that the NRC intends to gather the 
information necessary to prepare an EIS in support of the review of the 
application for an ESP and the site redress plan at the Clinton ESP 
site. Possible alternatives to the proposed action (issuance of the ESP 
at the Clinton ESP site) include no action and consideration of 
alternative sites. The NRC is required by 10 CFR 52.18 to prepare an 
EIS in connection with the issuance of an ESP. This notice is being 
published in accordance with NEPA and the NRC's regulations found in 10 
CFR Part 51.
    The NRC will first conduct a scoping process for the EIS and, as 
soon as practicable thereafter, will prepare a draft EIS for public 
comment. Participation in this scoping process by members of the public 
and local, State, Tribal, and Federal government agencies is 
encouraged. The scoping process for the draft EIS will be used to 
accomplish the following:
    a. Define the proposed action which is to be the subject of the 
EIS.
    b. Determine the scope of the EIS and identify the significant 
issues to be analyzed in depth.
    c. Identify and eliminate from detailed study those issues that are 
peripheral or that are not significant.
    d. Identify any environmental assessments and other EISs that are 
being or will be prepared that are related to but are not part of the 
scope of the EIS being considered.
    e. Identify other environmental review and consultation 
requirements related to the proposed action.
    f. Indicate the relationship between the timing of the preparation 
of environmental analyses and the Commission's tentative planning and 
decision-making schedule.
    g. Identify any cooperating agencies and, as appropriate, allocate 
assignments for preparation and schedules for completing the EIS to the 
NRC and any cooperating agencies.
    h. Describe how the EIS will be prepared, including any contractor 
assistance to be used.
    The NRC invites the following entities to participate in the 
scoping:
    a. The applicant, Exelon Generation Company, LLC.
    b. Any Federal agency that has jurisdiction by law or special 
expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved, or that is 
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards.
    c. Affected State and local government agencies, including those 
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards.
    d. Any affected Indian tribe.
    e. Any person who requests or has requested an opportunity to 
participate in the scoping process.
    f. Any person who intends to petition for leave to intervene.
    In accordance with 10 CFR 51.26, the scoping process for an EIS may 
include

[[Page 66131]]

a public scoping meeting to help identify significant issues related to 
a proposed activity and to determine the scope of issues to be 
addressed in an EIS. The NRC will hold a public meeting for the EIS 
regarding the Clinton ESP application and the associated site redress 
plan. The scoping meeting will be held in the Vespasian Warner Public 
Library, located at 310 N. Quincy Street, Clinton, Illinois, on 
Thursday, December 18, 2003. The meeting will convene at 7 p.m. and 
will continue until 9:30 p.m., as necessary. The meeting will be 
transcribed and will include the following: (1) An overview by the NRC 
staff of the NEPA environmental review process, the proposed scope of 
the EIS, and the proposed review schedule; and (2) the opportunity for 
interested Government agencies, organizations, and individuals to 
submit comments or suggestions on the environmental issues or the 
proposed scope of the EIS. Additionally, the NRC staff will host 
informal discussions one hour prior to the start of the meeting at the 
Vespasian Warner Public Library. No formal comments on the proposed 
scope of the EIS will be accepted during the informal discussions. To 
be considered, comments must be provided either during the transcribed 
portion of the public meeting or in writing, as discussed below. 
Persons may pre-register to attend or present oral comments at the 
meeting on the scope of the NEPA review by contacting Ms. Jennifer 
Davis by telephone at 1 (800) 368-5642, extension 3835, or by Internet 
at [email protected] no later than December 5, 2003. Members of the 
public may also register to speak at the meeting within 15 minutes of 
the start of the session. Individual oral comments may be limited by 
the time available, depending on the number of persons who register. 
Members of the public who have not registered may also have an 
opportunity to speak, if time permits. Public comments will be 
considered in the scoping process for the EIS. If special equipment or 
accommodations are needed to attend or present information at the 
public meeting, the need should be brought to Ms. Davis' attention no 
later than December 5, 2003, so that the NRC staff can determine 
whether the request can be accommodated.
    Members of the public may send written comments on the 
environmental scope of the Clinton ESP and site redress plan review to 
the Chief, Rules and Directives Branch, Division of Administrative 
Services, Office of Administration, Mailstop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, and should cite the 
publication date and page number of this Federal Register notice. 
Comments may also be hand-delivered to the NRC at 11545 Rockville Pike, 
Rockville, Maryland, Room T-6D59, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. during 
Federal workdays. To be considered in the scoping process, written 
comments should be postmarked by January 9, 2004. Electronic comments 
may be sent by the Internet at [email protected]. Electronic 
submissions should be sent no later than January 9, 2004, to be 
considered in the scoping process. Comments will be available 
electronically and accessible through the NRC's PERR link http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html at the NRC Homepage.
    Participation in the scoping process for the EIS does not entitle 
participants to become parties to the proceeding to which the EIS 
relates. Notice of a hearing regarding the application for an ESP will 
be the subject of a future Federal Register notice.
    At the conclusion of the scoping process, the NRC will prepare a 
concise summary of the determination and conclusions reached, including 
the significant issues identified, and will send a copy of the summary 
to each participant in the scoping process. The summary will also be 
available for inspection through the NRC's PERR link. The staff will 
then prepare and issue for comment the draft EIS, which will be the 
subject of separate notices and a separate public meeting. Copies will 
be available for public inspection at the above-mentioned addresses, 
and one copy per request will be provided free of charge. After receipt 
and consideration of the comments, the NRC will prepare a final EIS, 
which will also be available for public inspection.
    Information about the proposed action, the EIS, and the scoping 
process may be obtained from Ms. Davis at the aforementioned telephone 
number or e-mail address.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day of November 2003.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
K. Steven West,
Acting Program Director, License Renewal and Environmental Impacts, 
Division of Regulatory Improvements Program, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 03-29351 Filed 11-24-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P