[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 111 (Monday, June 9, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Page 32607]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-12893]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-293]


Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc; Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station; 
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering 
issuance of an exemption from Title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Section 50.75(f)(3), for Facility 
Operating License No. DPR-35, issued to Entergy Nuclear Operations, 
Inc. (Entergy or the licensee), for operation of Pilgrim Nuclear Power 
Station (Pilgrim), located in Plymouth County, MA. 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 allow Entergy to submit the Pilgrim site-
specific preliminary decommissioning cost estimate by August 1, 2008, 
which is less than 4 years from the date of the expiration of the 
operating license. This is an exemption to the schedule requirement of 
10 CFR 50.75(f)(3) which requires that a preliminary decommissioning 
cost estimate be submitted to the NRC at or about 5 years prior to the 
projected end of operations. The current expiration date of Pilgrim 
operating license is June 8, 2012.
    The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's 
application dated February 28, 2008.

The Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed exemption to the schedule requirement of 10 CFR 
50.75(f)(3) is needed to allow Entergy to submit the Pilgrim site-
specific preliminary cost estimate, including an up-to-date assessment 
of major factors that have the potential to impact the cost of 
decommissioning by August 1, 2008, which is less than 4 years from the 
date of the expiration of the operating license. The exemption request 
applies to the timing of the submission of the preliminary cost 
estimate and did not request an exemption from any of the information 
requirements of the regulation.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC has completed its safety evaluation (SE) of the proposed 
action and concludes that the preliminary decommissioning cost estimate 
for Pilgrim is not likely to be higher than the current minimum formula 
amount to such a degree that a problematic underfunding situation will 
exist that would require a full 5-year period to rectify. The details 
of the staff's SE will be provided in the exemption that will be issued 
as part of the letter to the licensee approving the exemption.
    The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability 
or consequences of accidents. No changes are being made in the types of 
effluents that may be released off site. There is no significant 
increase in the amount of any effluent released off site. There is no 
significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure. 
Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental impacts 
associated with the proposed action.
    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.

Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff considered 
denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action'' alternative). 
Denial of the application would result in no change in current 
environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action 
and the alternative action are similar.

Alternative Use of Resources

    The action does not involve the use of any different resources than 
those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement for 
Pilgrim, dated January 1972.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    In accordance with its stated policy, on May 16, 2008, the NRC 
staff consulted with the Massachusetts State official of the 
Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency regarding the environmental 
impact of the proposed action. The State official had no comments.

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 February 28, 2008, Agencywide Documents Access 
and Management System (ADAMS) accession number ML081000176. Documents 
may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document 
Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, Public File Area O1 F21, 
11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly 
available records will be accessible electronically from the 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 send an e-mail to 
[email protected].

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of May 2008.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James Kim,
Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch I-1, Division of Operating 
Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
 [FR Doc. E8-12893 Filed 6-6-08; 8:45 am]
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