[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 106 (Friday, June 3, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32662-32663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-2849]
[[Page 32662]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Geological Survey
[Docket No. 50-274]
United States Geological Survey Triga Reactor Environmental
Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of an amendment to Facility License No. R-113, issued to the
Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey (the
licensee), which authorizes operation of the United States Geological
Survey TRIGA Reactor (GSTR), in Lakewood, Colorado. 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 revise Facility License No. R-113 to
change the license expiration date from October 10, 2007, to February
24, 2009, to recapture the construction time between the issuance date
of Construction Permit No. CPRR-102 (October 10, 1967) and issuance
date of Facility Operating License No. R-113 (February 24, 1969) to
allow a 40-year operating license term.
The GSTR is located in a building on the grounds of the Denver
Federal Center, a complex of U.S. Government offices and laboratories
owned by the U.S. Government about 7 miles (11.3 km) southwest of the
central Denver, Colorado, business area. The reactor is a General
Atomics TRIGA-Mark I design with a maximum steady state power level of
1 megawatt thermal power (MW(t)). The reactor can be operated in a
pulse mode with reactivity insertions not to exceed 2.1% delta k/k. The
reactor core is at the bottom of an open pool with about 20 ft (6 m) of
water above the core for radiation shielding. The fuel moderator
elements consist of a homogeneous mixture of uranium-zirconium hydride.
The elements are rods about 28 inches (71 cm) long with a diameter of
about 1.5 inch (4 cm). The fuel elements are clad in stainless steel.
The reactor pool is surrounded by a biological shield. The reactor is
inside a confinement building.
The construction permit for the facility (CPRR-102) was issued to
the licensee on October 10, 1967. On February 24, 1969, Facility
Operating License No. R-113 was issued to the licensee. The facility
normally operates during the day shift from Monday to Friday.
The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's
application for amendment dated April 30, 2002, as supplemented by
letters dated March 11 and 24, 2005.
The Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed action is needed to recapture the time spent
constructing the plant. The amendment will allow operation of the GSTR
reactor for a term of 40 years from the date of issuance of the
facility license.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC has completed its safety evaluation of the proposed
amendment to change the expiration date of the facility license to
recapture time between construction and operation to allow a 40-year
operating license term and concludes there is reasonable assurance that
the GSTR will continue to operate safely for the additional period of
time authorized by the amendment.
The licensee has not requested any changes to the facility design
or operating conditions as part of this amendment request. Data from
the last 5 years of operation was assessed to determine the
radiological impact of the facility on the environment.
The licensee does environmental surveys by measuring the exposure
at five outdoor environmental stations near the GSTR facility with
thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs). The results from the TLD with the
maximum exposure (with background subtracted) were as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maximum
(rad/yr)
(except
Year 2000, which
is in rem/
yr)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004....................................................... 0.0226
2003....................................................... 0.0157
2002....................................................... 0.0233
2001....................................................... 0.0427
2000....................................................... 0.0974
------------------------------------------------------------------------
These doses are within the regulatory limits of 0.1 rem per year total
effective dose equivalent for doses to members of the public given in
10 CFR 20.1301.
In addition, the licensee has calculated the dose to the individual
member of the public likely to receive the highest dose from air
emission of radioactive material to the environment to demonstrate
compliance with 10 CFR 20.1101(d). This regulation provides for an as
low as is reasonably achievable criteria for air emissions as a result
of which an individual member of the public receives a total effective
dose equivalent (TEDE) of less than 10 mrem per year.
The results of calculations for the years 2000-2004, are as
follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dose (mrem/
Year yr)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004....................................................... 0.1
2003....................................................... 0.1
2002....................................................... 0.2
2001....................................................... 0.3
2000....................................................... 0.2
------------------------------------------------------------------------
These doses are within the 10 mrem per year TEDE constraint on air
emissions given in 10 CFR 20.1101(d).
The airborne effluent releases are as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Curies Curies
Year released released
(argon-41) (total)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004.......................................... 1.718 1.719
2003.......................................... 2.289 2.290
2002.......................................... 2.442 2.443
2001.......................................... 4.868 4.869
2000.......................................... 2.910 2.912
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Airborne effluent releases from the facility consist primarily of
argon-41. This is characteristic for research reactors. The releases
from the facility were below the average concentration requirements of
the facility technical specifications.
The licensee has not released liquid effluent to the sanitary sewer
or the environment since 1990. The small amounts of liquid waste
generated by reactor operations are evaporated or are solidified for
disposal.
Shipments of solid radioactive waste off site for disposal at
approved sites were as follows (note that these numbers also include
some solid waste from other U.S. Geological Survey activities and
therefore are bounding for the reactor facility):
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volume
Year (cubic Activity
feet) (mCi)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004.......................................... 0 0
2003.......................................... 7.5 10
2002.......................................... 7.5 5
2001.......................................... 7.5 194
2000.......................................... 7.5 106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The NRC inspection program confirmed that the waste shipments met
the requirements of the regulations in 10 CFR Part 20 for waste
disposal. The principal radioactive waste generated at the GSTR is
demineralizer resin. The licensee did not ship radioactive waste off
site in 2004.
[[Page 32663]]
The licensee collects groundwater samples from a monitoring well
down gradient from the GSTR. These samples were analyzed for tritium,
which is the only significant reactor-produced radionuclide in the
primary coolant. Tritium is also soluble in water, which makes it a
sensitive indicator of the reactor's impact, if any, on groundwater.
Between 2000 and 2004, except for one sample, the results have been
below the licensee's lower limit of measuring detection. The sample
that showed a positive result was slightly above the licensee's lower
limit of measuring detection and significantly below regulatory limits.
The radiological releases from the facility and the associated
doses to the public are within regulatory limits or facility technical
specifications and do not have a significant impact on human health or
the environment. The licensee's environmental radiation monitoring
includes soil and water sampling and direct radiation readings. The
results of the monitoring program indicate that the facility does not
have a significant impact on human health or the environment. Releases
of radioactive material from the facility to the environment for the
proposed construction permit recapture period are estimated to continue
at levels similar to previous levels, which were within regulatory
limits.
Occupational doses to GSTR staff and users meet the regulatory
requirements in 10 CFR part 20, subpart C, and are as low as is
reasonably achievable. No changes in reactor operation that would lead
to an increase in occupational dose are expected as a result of the
proposed action.
The proposed action will not increase the probability or
consequences of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of
any effluents that may be released off site, and there is no
significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure.
Therefore, no significant radiological environmental impacts are
associated with the proposed action.
With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have a potential to impact historic properties.
No chemicals which are discharged to the environment are used for
activities under the reactor license.
The facility uses approximately 600,000 gallons of water annually.
The water is supplied by a utility, Denver Water, which is able to
supply 745 million gallons of potable water a day. Most of the water is
used in the cooling tower and the water is lost to the atmosphere as
water vapor or discharged to the sanitary sewer as bleedoff water.
Wastewater from the facility discharges to the Denver Wastewater
Management Division system.
The site for the reactor facility is several rooms in a building at
the Denver Federal Center. No Federal- or State-listed plants or
animals are known to be found on the GSTR site.
The GSTR uses a minimal amount of water for reactor operation, has
no major refurbishment or construction activities planned, and will
have no significant change in the types or amounts of effluents leaving
the facility as a result of construction permit recapture. Therefore,
the proposed action is not expected to affect aquatic and terrestrial
biota. The staff concludes there are no significant nonradiological
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that no significant environmental
impacts are 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 proposed action will result in expiration of the current license
in October 2007, and the commencement of decommissioning if an
application for license renewal is not made. If the application is
denied, the licensee is expected to apply for renewal of the license.
Whether the reactor is operating under the proposed action or a renewed
license or during the evaluation of a timely renewal application, the
environmental impacts of the proposed action and the alternative are
similar.
If the Commission denied the application for license renewal,
facility operations would end and decommissioning would be required
with no significant impact on the environment. The environmental
impacts of the proposed action and this alternative action are similar.
In addition, the benefits of research conducted by the facility would
be lost.
Alternative Use of Resources
This action does not involve the use of any resources not
previously considered in the Hazards Summary Report dated December 1966
prepared for initial licensing of the facility.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
In accordance with the agency's stated policy, on March 18 and 21,
and April 7, 2005, the staff consulted with the Colorado State
official, Mr. Steve Tarlton, Unit Leader, Radiation Protection Program,
Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division, Colorado Department
of Public Health and Environment, regarding the environmental impact of
the proposed action. The State official discussed the fact that
groundwater-monitoring wells existed at the Denver Federal Center. The
State official was not aware if any groundwater samples were analyzed
for radionuclides. However, if data existed, it would contribute to the
discussion of the environmental impact of the GSTR. This issue was
discussed with the licensee, who confirmed that samples from a
groundwater-monitoring well down gradient from the GSTR were routinely
collected and analyzed. This data has been added to the environmental
assessment.
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 NRC 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 April 30, 2002, as supplemented by letters
dated March 11 and 24, 2005. Documents may be examined, and/or copied
for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) at One White Flint
North, Public File Area O-1-F-21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor),
Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible
electronically from the Agencywide Documents Access and Management
System (ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the
NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do
not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS should contact the NRC PDR reference staff
by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to
[email protected].
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of May 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Patrick M. Madden,
Section Chief, Research and Test Reactors Section, New, Research and
Test Reactors Program, Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs,
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. E5-2849 Filed 6-2-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P