[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 175 (Monday, September 12, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53813-53814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-17970]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 72-39]
Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Company Haddam Neck Plant
Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation Environmental Assessment
and Finding of No Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) is
considering issuance of an exemption to Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power
Company (CYAPCO or licensee), pursuant to 10 CFR 72.7, from the
specific provisions of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(I),
72.212(b)(7), and 72.214. The licensee is using the NAC Multi-Purpose
Canister System (NAC-MPC), Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1025, to
store spent fuel under a general license in an independent spent fuel
storage installation (ISFSI) associated with the operation of the
Haddam Neck Plant, located in Middlesex County, Connecticut. The
requested exemption would allow CYAPCO to deviate from requirements of
the NAC-MPC CoC No. 1025, Amendment No. 4, Appendix A, Technical
Specifications for the NAC-MPC System, Section A 5.1, Training Program.
Specifically, the exemption would relieve the licensee from the
requirement to develop training modules under its Systems Approach to
Training (SAT) that includes comprehensive instructions for the
operation and maintenance of the ISFSI, except for the NAC-MPC System.
Environmental Assessment
Identification of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would exempt CYAPCO from regulatory
requirements to develop certain training. By letter dated June 1, 2005,
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 license to store spent fuel in a NRC-certified spent
fuel storage cask under the terms and conditions set forth in the CoC.
The proposed exemption would allow the licensee to deviate from the
requirements in CoC No. 1025, Amendment No. 4, Appendix A, Technical
Specifications for the NAC-MPC System, Section A 5.1, Training Program.
CoC No. 1025, Amendment 4, Appendix A, Technical Specifications for
the NAC-MPC System, Section A 5.1, Training Program, requires that a
training program for the NAC-MPC System be developed under the general
licensee's SAT Program. Further, the training modules must include
comprehensive instructions for the operation and maintenance of both
the NAC-MPC System and the ISFSI. By exempting the licensee from the
requirements of 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(2)(I), 72.212(b)(7), and
72.214 for this request, the licensee will not be required to develop
training modules that include comprehensive instructions for the
operation and maintenance of the ISFSI.
[[Page 53814]]
The Need for the Proposed Action
Granting the requested exemptions will relieve the licensee of the
requirement to develop training modules under the SAT that include
comprehensive instructions for the operation and maintenance of the
ISFSI, except for the NAC-MPC System. Thus, the licensee will not incur
the costs associated with this activity.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC has reviewed the exemption requests submitted by the
licensee. The staff determined that not requiring the licensee to
develop training modules including comprehensive instructions for the
operation and maintenance of the ISFSI, except for the NAC-MPC System,
is an administrative change, 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. CYAPCO has stated that
for activities associated with operation and maintenance of ISFSI
structures, systems, and components (SSCs) that are not important to
safety, CYAPCO will provide training/instructions in accordance with
manufacturer's instructions and CYAPCO approved procedures. NRC
determined that requiring the licensee to develop training modules
under its SAT for the operation and maintenance of ISFSI SSCs
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.
The proposed action would not increase the probability or
consequences of accidents, no changes would be made to the types of
effluents 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.
The potential environmental impact of using the NAC-MPC System was
initially presented in the Environmental Assessment for the Final Rule
to add the NAC-MPC System to the list of approved spent fuel storage
casks in 10 CFR 72.214 (65 FR 12444, dated March 9, 2000), as revised
in Amendment No. 1 (66 FR 45749, dated August 30, 2001), in Amendment
No. 2 (67 FR 11566, dated March 15, 2002), in Amendment No. 3 (68 FR
42570, dated July 18, 2003), and in Amendment No. 4 (69 FR 50053, dated
August 13, 2004).
With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites. It does
not affect non-radiological plant effluents and has no other
environmental impact. Therefore, there are no significant non-
radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there are no significant
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Since there is no significant environmental impact associated with
the proposed action, alternatives with equal or greater environmental
impacts were not evaluated. As an alternative to the proposed action,
the staff considered denial of the proposed action. Denial of the
exemption request would have the same environmental impact as the
proposed action.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
On July 6, 2005, the staff consulted with Mr. Michael Firsick of
the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, Division of
Radiation, regarding the environmental impact of the proposed action.
He had no comments. The NRC staff 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 habitat.
The NRC staff has also determined that the proposed action is not a
type of activity having the potential to cause effects on historic
properties. Therefore, no further consultation is required under
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
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 Environmental Assessment, the NRC finds that the
proposed action of granting an exemption from 10 CFR 72.212(a)(2),
72.212(b)(2)(I), 72.212(b)(7), and 72.214 and not requiring the
licensee to develop training modules under its SAT that includes
comprehensive instructions for the operation and maintenance of the
ISFSI, except for the NAC-MPC will not significantly impact 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 this exemption request, see
CYAPCO's letter dated June 1, 2005. The exemption request was docketed
under 10 CFR 72, Docket No. 72-39. The NRC maintains an Agencywide
Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which provides text and
image files of NRC's public documents. These documents may be accessed
through the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html. If you do not have
access to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing the documents
located in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) Reference
staff at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at [email protected].
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 31st day of August, 2005.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
L. Raynard Wharton,
Project Manager, Spent Fuel Project Office, Office of Nuclear Material
Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 05-17970 Filed 9-9-05; 8:45 am]
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