[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 2 (Tuesday, January 4, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 396-398]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-24]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 72-30]


Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company, Maine Yankee Independent Spent 
Fuel Storage Installation, Issuance of Environmental Assessment and 
Finding of No Significant Impact

I. Introduction

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering 
issuance of exemptions to Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company (the 
licensee), pursuant to title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 
CFR) 72.7, from specific provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 
72.212(b)(2)(i), 72.212(b)(7), and 72.214. The licensee is storing 
spent nuclear fuel under the general licensing provisions of 10 CFR 
part 72 in the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System at an 
independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) located at the 
Maine Yankee Atomic Power Station in Wiscasset, Maine. The requested 
exemptions would allow the licensee to deviate from requirements of the 
NAC-UMS[supreg] Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1015, Amendment 2, 
Appendix A, Technical Specifications for the NAC-UMS[supreg] System, 
Section A 5.1, Training Program, and Section A 5.5, Radioactive 
Effluent Control Program. Specifically, the exemptions would relieve 
the licensee from the requirements to: (1) Develop training modules 
under its systematic approach to training (SAT) that include 
comprehensive instructions for the operation and maintenance of the 
ISFSI, except for the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System; and (2) 
submit an annual report pursuant to 10 CFR 72.44(d)(3).

II. Environmental Assessment (EA)

    Identification of Proposed Action: The proposed action is to exempt 
the licensee from regulatory requirements to develop certain training 
and submit an annual report. By letter dated February 25, 2004, as 
supplemented June 8, 2004, the licensee requested exemptions from 
certain regulatory requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 
72.212(b)(2)(i), 72.212(b)(7), and 72.214 which require a general 
licensee to store spent fuel in an NRC-certified spent fuel storage 
cask under the terms and conditions set forth in the CoC. The proposed 
exemptions would allow the licensee to deviate from the requirements in 
CoC No. 1015, Amendment 2, Appendix A, Technical Specifications for the 
NAC-UMS[supreg] System, Section A 5.1, Training Program, and Section A 
5.5, Radioactive Effluent Control Program.
    CoC No. 1015, Amendment 2, Appendix A, Technical Specifications for 
the NAC-UMS System, Section A 5.1, Training Program, requires that a 
training program for the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System be 
developed under the general licensee's SAT. Further, the training 
modules must include comprehensive instructions for the operation and 
maintenance of both the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System and 
the ISFSI. In addition, CoC No. 1015, Amendment 2, Appendix A, 
Technical Specifications for the NAC-UMS System, Section A 5.5, 
Radioactive Effluent Control Program, Item c. requires an annual report 
to be submitted pursuant to 10 CFR 72.44(d)(3). By exempting the 
licensee

[[Page 397]]

from the requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a), 72.212(b)(2)(i), 
72.212(b)(7), and 72.214 for this request, the licensee will not be 
required to either develop training modules that include comprehensive 
instructions for the operation and maintenance of the ISFSI or submit 
an annual report pursuant to 10 CFR 72.44(d)(3).
    The proposed action before the NRC is whether to grant these 
exemptions under the provisions of 10 CFR 72.7.
    Need for the Proposed Action: The NRC has determined that the 
requirements of CoC No. 1015, Amendment 2, Appendix A, Technical 
Specifications for the NAC-UMS[supreg] System, Section A 5.1, Training 
Program, and Section A 5.5, Radioactive Effluent Control Program impose 
regulatory obligations, with associated costs, that do not provide a 
commensurate increase in safety. Granting the requested exemptions will 
allow the licensee not to have to: (1) Develop training modules under 
the SAT that include comprehensive instructions for the operation and 
maintenance of the ISFSI, except for the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal 
Storage System; or (2) submit an annual report pursuant to 10 CFR 
72.44(d)(3). Thus, the licensee will not incur the costs associated 
with these activities.
    Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action: The NRC has reviewed 
the exemption requests submitted by the licensee and determined that 
not requiring the licensee to: (1) Develop training modules under its 
SAT that include comprehensive instructions for the operation and 
maintenance of the ISFSI, except for the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal 
Storage System; and (2) submit an annual report pursuant to 10 CFR 
72.44(d)(3) are administrative changes, and would have no significant 
impacts to the environment.
    Further, NRC has evaluated the impact to public safety that would 
result from granting the requested exemptions. NRC determined that 
requiring the licensee to develop training modules under its SAT for 
the operation and maintenance of ISFSI structures, systems, and 
components considered not-important-to-safety would not provide a 
commensurate increase in public safety associated with the costs. 
Therefore, allowing the licensee to develop these modules separately 
from its SAT does not impact public safety. Also, NRC has determined 
that not requiring the licensee to submit an annual report specifying 
principal radionuclides released to the environment in liquid and in 
gaseous effluents does not impact public safety because the NAC-
UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System is a sealed and leak-tight spent 
fuel storage system. Thus, there should be no releases to the 
environment of either liquid or gaseous effluents from normal operation 
of the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System.
    The proposed action would not increase the probability or 
consequences of accidents, no changes would be made to the types of 
effluents that may be released offsite, and there would be no increase 
in occupational or public radiation exposure. Therefore, there are no 
significant radiological environmental impacts associated with the 
proposed action. Additionally the proposed action would have no 
significant non-radiological impacts.
    Alternative to the Proposed Action: The alternative to the proposed 
action would be to deny approval of these exemptions. Denial of these 
exemption requests would have the same environmental impact as the 
proposed action.
    Agencies and Persons Consulted: The NRC prepared this EA. No other 
sources were used. NRC, by letter dated August 10, 2004, provided a 
draft of this EA to the Honorable Charles Pray, State Nuclear Safety 
Advisor for the State of Maine for review. The State of Maine by letter 
dated November 15, 2004, did not indicate it had any environmental 
concerns related to granting the proposed exemptions. However, the 
State of Maine did provide the following comment:

    In that, the State of Maine has no objection to the NRC granting 
the exemption for the current existing licensure period as long as 
the current outstanding statutory obligations of the United States 
government are met in all of its responsibility in reference to 
[the] MYAPC facility, and that no extensions of the current twenty-
year licensure of the ISFSI is approved. Any extension granted by 
the NRC beyond that date will [alter] the State's approval on this 
and other related matters and will require a need for ongoing 
assessment by the State of Maine of safety benefits to the citizens 
of Maine beyond its original and current licensed mission. The State 
would be required to fully [assess] as to how best [to] protect the 
citizens of the State from further federal lapses of obligations.

    The staff has reviewed the State of Maine's comment and determined 
that neither exemption is coupled with extending the period of the 
Maine Yankee's general license for its ISFSI beyond the twenty-year 
period of its use of the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System. 
Certificate of Compliance No. 1015 will be eligible for renewal at the 
expiration of this period and, if application for reapproval is made, 
the State of Maine will have an opportunity to comment on such 
application at that time.
    Further, The NRC has determined that a consultation under Section 7 
of the Endangered Species Act is not required because the proposed 
action will not affect listed species or critical habitats. The NRC has 
also determined that the proposed action is not a type of activity 
having the potential to cause effects on historic properties. 
Therefore, no consultation is required under Section 106 of the 
National Historic Preservation Act.
    Conclusions: The NRC has concluded that the proposed action of 
granting these exemptions and not requiring the licensee to develop 
certain training or submit an annual report will not significantly 
impact the quality of the human environment and does not warrant the 
preparation of an environmental impact statement. Accordingly, it has 
been determined that a Finding of No Significant Impact is appropriate.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    The environmental impacts of the proposed action have been reviewed 
in accordance with the requirements set forth in 10 CFR part 51. Based 
upon the foregoing EA, the NRC finds that the proposed action of 
granting exemptions from the specific provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a), 
72.212(b)(2)(i), 72.212(b)(7), and 72.214 and not requiring the 
licensee to: (1) Develop training modules under its SAT that include 
comprehensive instructions for the operation and maintenance of the 
ISFSI, except for the NAC-UMS[supreg] Universal Storage System; and (2) 
submit an annual report pursuant to 10 CFR 72.44(d)(3), will not 
significantly impact the quality of the human environment. Accordingly, 
the NRC has determined that an environmental impact statement for these 
proposed exemptions is not warranted.
    The request for exemption was docketed under 10 CFR part 72, Docket 
72-30. Please note that on October 25, 2004, the NRC suspended public 
access to the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS), and initiated an additional security review of publicly 
available documents to ensure that potentially sensitive information is 
removed from the ADAMS database accessible through the NRC's Web site. 
Interested members of the public should check the NRC's Web pages for 
updates on the availability of documents through ADAMS.
    When public access to ADAMS is restored the documents related to 
this action, including the application for the exemptions and 
supporting

[[Page 398]]

documentation, will be available electronically at the NRC's Electronic 
Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this 
site you can access the NRC's ADAMS, which provides text and image 
files of NRC's public documents. The ADAMS accession numbers for the 
documents related to this notice are: For the request for exemptions 
dated February 25, 2004, the ADAMS accession number is ML040620577, and 
for the supplement dated June 8, 2004, the ADAMS accession number is 
ML041690143.
    When public access to ADAMS is resumed and you do not have access 
to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in 
ADAMS, contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) Reference staff at 
1-800-397-4209, (301) 415-4737, or by e-mail to [email protected]. Also, 
after resumption of public access to ADAMS, these documents may also be 
viewed electronically on the public computers located at the NRC's PDR, 
O1F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 
20852. The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee.

    Dated in Rockville, Maryland, this 13th of December, 2004.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Stewart W. Brown,
Sr. Project Manager, Spent Fuel Project Office, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 05-24 Filed 1-3-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P