[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 238 (Wednesday, December 10, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75088-75090]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-29240]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

National Nuclear Security Administration


Amended Record of Decision: Surplus Plutonium Disposition; Waste 
Solidification Building

AGENCY: National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S. Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Amended Record of Decision.

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SUMMARY: The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a 
separately organized agency within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), 
is amending the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Surplus Plutonium 
Disposition Environmental Impact Statement (SPD EIS) (DOE/EIS-0283, 
November 1999). In the SPD EIS ROD (65 FR 1608; January 11, 2000), DOE 
announced decisions for implementing the U.S. Surplus Plutonium 
Disposition Program, including affirming its January 1997 decision (62 
FR 3014) to pursue a hybrid approach for the safe and secure 
disposition of up to 50 metric tons of surplus weapons-usable plutonium 
using both immobilization and mixed oxide (MOX) fuel technologies as 
evaluated in the Storage and Disposition of Weapons-Usable Fissile 
Materials Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (Storage and 
Disposition PEIS) (DOE/EIS-0229, November 1996). Decisions announced in 
the SPD EIS ROD included construction and operation of three new 
facilities at the Savannah River Site (SRS) near Aiken, South Carolina, 
to disposition approximately 17 tons of surplus plutonium using the 
immobilization approach and the use of up to 33 metric tons as MOX fuel 
that would be irradiated in commercial reactors. The three new 
facilities were identified as a pit disassembly and conversion facility 
(PDCF), an immobilization facility,\1\ and a MOX fuel fabrication 
facility (MFFF). These facilities as analyzed in the SPD EIS were to be 
constructed in F-Area at SRS and included capabilities for management 
of wastes generated as part of the processing activities in each of the 
facilities. DOE/NNSA is today announcing its decision to construct and 
operate a standalone building, the waste solidification building (WSB), 
for treating and solidifying liquid transuranic waste and certain 
liquid low-level radioactive wastes from MFFF and PDCF, specifically a 
high-activity (high-alpha) waste stream from MFFF, a low-activity 
stripped-uranium waste stream from MFFF, and a low-activity laboratory 
waste stream from PDCF.\2\ This decision is based on the Supplement 
Analysis for Construction and Operation of a Waste Solidification 
Building at the Savannah River Site (WSB SA) (DOE/EIS-0283-SA-2) 
prepared pursuant to DOE procedures implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (10 CFR 1021.314). The WSB SA 
demonstrates that construction and operation of a standalone WSB 
represent neither substantial changes relevant to environmental 
concerns nor significant new circumstances or information relevant to 
environmental concerns from those evaluated in previous NEPA documents.
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    \1\ In an April 19, 2002, amended ROD (67 FR 19432), DOE 
announced cancellation of the immobilization component of the U.S. 
Surplus Plutonium Disposition Program.
    \2\ The decision announced in this amended ROD is consistent 
with the approach discussed in the Construction Authorization 
Request and the License Application submitted to the Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission (NRC) by DOE/NNSA's contractor for the Mixed 
Oxide (MOX) Fuel Fabrication Facility. The decision also is 
consistent with the approach discussed in the NRC's Environmental 
Impact Statement on the Construction and Operation of a Proposed 
Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility at the Savannah River Site, 
South Carolina (NUREG-1767).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information concerning 
construction and operation of the waste solidification building, or to 
obtain copies of this amended ROD, contact: Ms. Sachiko W. McAlhany, 
Office of Site Engineering and Construction Management, U.S. Department 
of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration, Savannah River 
Site, Aiken, South Carolina 29802, Telephone: (803) 952-6110, E-mail: 
[email protected].
    For information on the DOE's NEPA process, contact: Ms. Carol M. 
Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance, GC-20, U.S. 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20585-0103, (202) 586-4600, or leave a message at (800) 472-2756.
    This Amended ROD, the WSB SA, and other DOE NEPA documents are 
available on the DOE NEPA Web site at http://www.gc.energy.gov/NEPA.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The U.S. Surplus Plutonium Disposition Program was first evaluated 
under NEPA in the Storage and Disposition PEIS. Among the alternatives 
evaluated, the Reactor Category and Common Activities Alternative 
included a MOX fuel fabrication facility conceptual design with a 
standalone building to manage wastes. The ROD for the Storage and 
Disposition PEIS (62 FR 3014) outlined DOE's decision to pursue a 
hybrid disposition strategy that allowed for both immobilization of 
surplus weapons-usable plutonium for disposal in a geologic repository 
and fabrication of MOX fuel for use in existing domestic, commercial 
nuclear power reactors followed by disposal of the spent MOX fuel in a 
geologic repository.
    Subsequent to the Storage and Disposition PEIS, DOE prepared the 
SPD EIS, which supported selection of specific technologies and sites 
for

[[Page 75089]]

surplus plutonium disposition. In the ROD for the SPD EIS (65 FR 1608; 
January 11, 2000), DOE announced its decision to fabricate 
approximately 33 metric tons (36 tons) of surplus weapons-usable 
plutonium in pits and clean metal into MOX fuel for use in existing 
domestic, commercial nuclear power reactors and to immobilize 
approximately 17 metric tons (19 tons) of surplus weapons-usable non-
pit plutonium in a ceramic matrix surrounded by Defense Waste 
Processing Facility \3\ high-level radioactive waste glass. In the 2000 
ROD, DOE also announced that the three facilities required to effect 
this disposition (MFFF, PDCF, and an Immobilization Facility) would be 
constructed and operated at SRS.
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    \3\ Nuclear materials production operations at SRS resulted in 
generation of large quantities of high-level radioactive waste. The 
Defense Waste Processing Facility was constructed at SRS to convert 
this high-level radioactive waste to a stable glass form suitable 
for disposal in a geologic repository.
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    On April 19, 2002, DOE/NNSA announced in an Amended ROD for the 
Storage and Disposition PEIS and the SPD EIS (67 FR 19432) that it was 
cancelling the immobilization component of the U.S. Surplus Plutonium 
Disposition Program, thereby reducing the number of facilities to be 
constructed at SRS from three to two. In the amended ROD, DOE/NNSA 
explained that the revised disposition strategy involved a MOX-only 
approach, under which up to 34 metric tons (37 tons) of surplus 
plutonium would be dispositioned by converting it to MOX fuel and 
irradiating the fuel in existing domestic, commercial nuclear power 
reactors. The DOE/NNSA also indicated that no final decisions would be 
made with respect to the MOX portion of the revised disposition program 
until DOE/NNSA had completed additional analysis pursuant to NEPA. That 
additional NEPA analysis was completed upon issuance of the Supplement 
Analysis for Changes Needed to the Surplus Plutonium Disposition 
Program (MOX SA) (DOE/EIS-0283-SA1) in April 2003, and an Amended ROD 
was issued (68 FR 20134; April 24, 2003) announcing DOE/NNSA's decision 
to fabricate 34 metric tons (37 tons) of surplus plutonium into MOX 
fuel, including up to 6.5 metric tons (7.2 tons) originally intended 
for immobilization.
    In the MOX SA, DOE/NNSA evaluated proposed changes to the Surplus 
Plutonium Disposition Program to accommodate fabrication of this 
additional plutonium into MOX fuel at MFFF and also those refinements 
identified through the design process for MFFF. Consistent with the 
design at the time, a stand-alone WSB in which both liquid low-level 
radioactive waste and transuranic waste would be treated and solidified 
was evaluated in the MOX SA. This was a refinement from the facility 
designs assumed in the SPD EIS, in which MFFF and PDCF each included 
waste processing equipment to treat and solidify low-level radioactive 
waste and transuranic waste. A stand-alone WSB takes advantage of an 
economy of scale in that similar waste streams from both MFFF and PDCF 
can be treated together in the same location, rather than having 
duplicate equipment installed in both facilities. A stand-alone WSB was 
also evaluated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in the 
2005 Environmental Impact Statement on the Construction and Operation 
of a Proposed Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility at the Savannah 
River Site, South Carolina (MFFF EIS).\4\ A standalone WSB is also 
discussed in the Construction Authorization Request and the License 
Application submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by DOE/
NNSA's contractor to design, construct and operate MFFF.
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    \4\ Pursuant to Section 202(5) of the Energy Reorganization Act 
as added by Section 3134 of the Strom Thurmond National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999, MFFF must be licensed by the 
NRC. NRC prepared the MFFF EIS in accordance with NEPA to support 
NRC licensing decisions concerning MFFF. Neither WSB nor PDCF will 
be licensed by NRC, but both were evaluated in the MFFF EIS as 
connected actions.
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Waste Solidification Building

    During the detailed design process for the MFFF, and after DOE/NNSA 
considered using existing SRS facilities for processing all or some of 
the MFFF and PDCF waste streams, the MFFF design was changed from the 
conceptual design evaluated in the SPD EIS to include the standalone 
WSB, because, among other reasons, closure schedules for these SRS 
facilities were not at that time compatible with the Surplus Plutonium 
Disposition schedule.
    In 2004, planning for WSB was suspended because of uncertainties 
with the Surplus Plutonium Disposition Program. Specifically, delays in 
negotiations with the Russian Federation (for Russian disposition of 
excess Russian weapons-grade plutonium) coupled with significant 
funding constraints for the domestic program had caused the project 
schedules for MFFF and PDCF to be extended. At that time, detailed 
design for WSB was about to begin, with the assumption that treatment 
for five liquid waste streams from MFFF and PDCF would occur in WSB. 
Because of the programmatic uncertainties, DOE/NNSA determined instead 
to suspend WSB Project activities.
    Design activities for WSB resumed in 2006. During the project 
suspension, changes in closure schedules for certain SRS waste 
management facilities allowed DOE/NNSA to reconsider the use of 
existing SRS site treatment capabilities that were originally scheduled 
to be shut down before completion of the plutonium disposition mission. 
As a result, DOE/NNSA requested the SRS management and operating 
contractor to undertake an analysis to identify potential reasonable 
alternatives that would lead to the optimum WSB configuration. The goal 
of this study was to identify which waste processing and management 
operations could be conducted in existing SRS facilities and which, if 
any, would need to be provided independently.
    The study comparing a range of potential alternatives comprising 
combinations of new and existing facilities was submitted in June 2005. 
The DOE/NNSA evaluation of these alternatives showed that the most 
reasonable alternative with the least project risk would be to (1) use 
existing SRS facilities (the Effluent Treatment Project) for waste 
treatment for two waste streams projected to have minimal (or no) 
radioactive contamination; (2) use existing SRS facilities for 
certification, packaging and shipping wastes solidified in WSB or 
generated during WSB operations; and (3) provide independent treatment 
and management capabilities (i.e., construct and operate a WSB) for 
three waste streams that are not compatible with existing SRS 
operations without major, costly modifications to SRS facilities and 
planned closure schedules.
    The WSB will be constructed near MFFF and PDCF in F-Area and will 
process liquid waste streams from both MFFF and PDCF. The WSB will 
receive three waste streams transferred from MFFF and PDCF through 
underground, double-walled stainless steel lines: A high-activity 
(high-alpha) waste stream from MFFF, a low-activity stripped-uranium 
waste stream from MFFF, and a low-activity waste stream from the PDCF 
laboratory. Waste streams will be stored at WSB in tanks pending 
subsequent treatment by neutralization, volume reduction by 
evaporation, and cementation. Condensed overheads from the evaporators 
will be either transferred through a lift station and piping to the 
existing SRS Effluent Treatment Project if the overheads meet

[[Page 75090]]

the acceptance criteria for that facility or routed back through WSB 
processes for further treatment.
    The WSB SA discusses existing NEPA evaluations for surplus 
plutonium disposition activities relative to WSB, and provides a 
comparison of the potential environmental impacts of constructing and 
operating the WSB in F-Area at SRS to impacts identified in the SPD EIS 
for constructing and operating MFFF and PDCF. The WSB SA also 
qualitatively compares the impacts of a stand-alone WSB to the impacts 
of the relevant waste processing, treatment and solidification 
operations discussed as part of both the MFFF and the PDCF in the SPD 
EIS. Construction and operation of the stand-alone WSB to treat and 
solidify transuranic and low-level radioactive wastes from MFFF and 
PDCF does not involve environmental impacts that are significantly 
different from those identified in previous NEPA analyses, in 
particular, the SPD EIS. Activities proposed for this stand-alone 
building, the WSB, would be similar to those identified in the SPD EIS 
to occur separately in both MFFF and PDCF.
    The WSB SA demonstrates that construction and operation of a stand-
alone WSB represent neither substantial changes relevant to 
environmental concerns nor significant new circumstances or information 
relevant to environmental concerns. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 
1021.314(c), no additional NEPA analyses are required to construct and 
operate a stand-alone WSB.

Decision

    DOE/NNSA has decided to construct and operate a stand-alone waste 
solidification building for treating and solidifying liquid transuranic 
waste and certain liquid low-level radioactive wastes generated by MFFF 
and PDCF, specifically a high-activity (high-alpha) waste stream from 
MFFF, a low-activity stripped-uranium waste stream from MFFF, and a 
low-activity laboratory waste stream from PDCF. As described in the WSB 
SA (DOE/EIS-0283-SA-2), the potential environmental impacts of 
constructing and operating a stand-alone WSB are not significantly 
different from the impacts of treating and solidifying these wastes in 
MFFF and PDCF as analyzed in the SPD EIS.

    Issued in Washington, DC this 26th day of November, 2008.
Thomas P. D'Agostino,
Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration.
[FR Doc. E8-29240 Filed 12-9-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P