[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 3 (Tuesday, January 6, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 470-472]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-31420]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 52-039]
PPL Bell Bend, LLC; Bell Bend Nuclear Power Plant Combined
License Application; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental
Impact Statement and Conduct Scoping Process
PPL Bell Bend, LLC has submitted an application for a combined
license (COL) to build a new unit at its Bell Bend Nuclear Power Plant
(BBNPP) Site, located west of the existing Susquehanna Steam Electric
Station Site on approximately 882 acres in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania
on the Susquehanna River, approximately five miles northeast of
Berwick, Pennsylvania. PPL Bell Bend, LLC submitted the application for
the COL to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) by letter dated
October 10, 2008, pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 52. A notice of receipt and availability of
the application, including the environmental report (ER), was published
in the Federal Register on November 13, 2008 (73 FR 67214). A notice of
acceptance for docketing of the application for the COL was published
in the Federal Register on December 29, 2008 (73 FR 79519). A notice of
hearing and opportunity to petition for leave to intervene in the
proceeding on the application will be published in a future Federal
Register notice. The purpose of this notice is (1) to inform the public
that the NRC staff will be preparing an environmental impact statement
(EIS) as part of the review of the application for the COL and (2) to
provide the public with an opportunity to participate in the
environmental scoping process as defined in 10 CFR 51.29. The U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers (Corps), Baltimore District has requested to
participate in the preparation of the EIS as a cooperating agency; the
NRC has accepted its request. The agencies will cooperate according to
the process set forth in the MOU signed by the NRC and the Corps and
was published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2008 (73 FR
55546).
In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR 800.8(c), ``Coordination with
the National Environmental Policy Act'' (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, the
NRC staff plans to coordinate compliance with Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) with steps taken to meet the
requirements of NEPA. Pursuant to 36 CFR 800.8(c), the NRC staff
intends to use the process and documentation for the preparation of the
EIS on the proposed action to comply with Section 106 of the NHPA in
lieu of the procedures set forth on 36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6.
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.45 and 51.50, PPL Bell Bend, LLC
submitted the environmental report (ER) as part of the application. The
ER was prepared pursuant to 10 CFR Parts 51 and 52 and is available for
public inspection at the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) located at One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville,
Maryland 20852 or from the Publicly Available Records component of
NRC's Agency-wide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). ADAMS
is accessible at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html which
provides access through the NRC's Electronic Reading Room link. The
accession number in ADAMS for the ER included in the application is
ML082890680. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who encounter
problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS should contact the
NRC's PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209/301-415-4737 or by e-mail
to [email protected]. The application may also be viewed on the
Internet at http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/col/bell-bend.html. In addition, the Mill Memorial Public Library, 495 E Main
Street, Nanticoke, PA 18634 and the McBride Memorial Library, 500 N
Market Street, Berwick, PA 18603 have agreed to make the ER available
for public inspection.
The following key reference documents related to the application
and the NRC staff's review processes are available through the NRC's
Web site at http://www.nrc.gov:
a. 10 CFR Part 51, Environmental Protection Regulations for
Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Function;
b. 10 CFR Part 52, Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for
Nuclear Power Plants;
c. 10 CFR Part 100, Reactor Site Criteria;
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d. NUREG-1555, Standard Review Plans for Environmental Reviews for
Nuclear Power Plants;
e. NUREG/BR-0298, Brochure on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing
Process;
f. Regulatory Guide 4.2, Preparation of Environmental Reports for
Nuclear Power Stations;
g. Regulatory Guide 4.7, General Site Suitability Criteria for
Nuclear Power Stations;
h. Fact Sheet on Nuclear Power Plant Licensing Process;
i. Regulatory 1.206, Combined License Applications for Nuclear
Power Plants; and
j. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Policy Statement on the Treatment
of Environmental Justice Matters in NRC Regulatory and Licensing
Actions.
The regulations, NUREG-series documents, regulatory guides, and the
fact sheet can be found under Document Collections in the Electronic
Reading Room on the NRC Webpage. The environmental justice policy
statement can be found in the Federal Register, 69 FR 52040, dated
August 24, 2004.
This notice advises the public that the NRC intends to gather the
information necessary to prepare an EIS as part of the review of the
application for COL at the BBNPP Site. Possible alternatives to the
proposed action (issuance of the COL for the BBNPP) include no action,
reasonable alternative energy sources, and alternate sites. As set
forth in 10 CFR 51.20(b)(2), issuance of a COL under 10 CFR Part 52 is
an action that requires an EIS. This notice is being published in
accordance with NEPA and the NRC's regulations in 10 CFR Part 51.
The NRC will first conduct a scoping process for the EIS and as
soon as practicable thereafter will prepare a draft EIS for public
comment. Participation in this scoping process by members of the public
and local, State, Tribal, and Federal government agencies is
encouraged. The scoping process for the draft EIS will be used to
accomplish the following:
a. Define the proposed action that is to be the subject of the EIS;
b. Determine the scope of the EIS and identify the significant
issues to be analyzed in depth;
c. Identify and eliminate from detailed study those issues that are
peripheral or that are not significant;
d. Identify any environmental assessments and other EISs that are
being or will be prepared that are related to but are not part of the
scope of the EIS being considered;
e. Identify other environmental review and consultation
requirements related to the proposed action;
f. Identify parties consulting with the NRC under the NHPA, as set
forth in 36 CFR 800.8(c)(1)(i);
g. Indicate the relationship between the timing of the preparation
of the environmental analyses and the Commission's tentative planning
and decision-making schedule;
h. Identify any cooperating agencies and, as appropriate, allocate
assignments for preparation and schedules for completing the EIS to the
NRC and any cooperating agencies; and
i. Describe how the EIS will be prepared, including any contractor
assistance to be used.
The NRC invites the following entities to participate in the
scoping process:
a. The applicant, PPL Bell Bend, LLC;
b. Any Federal agency that has jurisdiction by law or special
expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved or that is
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
c. Affected State and local government agencies including those
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
d. Any affected Indian tribe;
e. Any person who requests or has requested an opportunity to
participate in the scoping process; and
f. Any person who intends to petition for leave to intervene in the
proceeding, or who has submitted such a petition, who is admitted as a
party.
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.26, the scoping process for an EIS may
include a public scoping meeting to help identify significant issues
related to a proposed activity and to determine the scope of issues to
be addressed in an EIS. The NRC will hold a public scoping meeting for
the EIS regarding the PPL Bell Bend, LLC COL application. The scoping
meeting will be held at the Berwick Area Senior High School, 1100
Fowler Avenue, Berwick, Pennsylvania 18603-3799 on Thursday, January
29, 2009. The meeting will convene at 7 p.m. and will continue until
approximately 10 p.m. The meeting will be transcribed and will include
the following: (1) An overview by the NRC staff of the NEPA
environmental review process, the proposed scope of the EIS, and the
proposed review schedule; and (2) the opportunity for interested
government agencies, organizations, and individuals to submit comments
or suggestions on the environmental issues or the proposed scope of the
EIS. Additionally, the NRC staff will host informal discussions for one
hour prior to the start of each public meeting. No formal comments on
the proposed scope of the EIS will be accepted during the informal
discussions. To be considered, comments must be provided either at the
transcribed public meeting or in writing, as discussed below.
Persons may register to attend or present oral comments at the
meeting on the scope of the NEPA review by contacting either Mrs.
Stacey Imboden or Ms. Tomeka Terry by telephone at 1-800-368-5642,
extensions 2462 or 1488, or by e-mail to the NRC at [email protected]
no later than January 22, 2009. Members of the public may also register
to speak at the meeting prior to the start of the session. Individual
oral comments may be limited by the time available, depending on the
number of persons who register. Members of the public who have not
registered may also have an opportunity to speak, if time permits.
Public comments will be considered in the scoping process for the EIS.
If special equipment or accommodations are needed to attend or present
information at the public meeting, the need should be brought to Mrs.
Imboden's attention no later than January 15, 2009, so that the NRC
staff can determine whether the request can be accommodated.
Members of the public may send written comments on the scope of the
BBNPP COL environmental review to the Chief, Rulemaking, Editing and
Directives Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of
Administration, Mailstop TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001 and should cite the publication
date and page number of this Federal Register notice. To ensure that
comments will be considered in the scoping process, written comments
must be postmarked or delivered by March 9, 2009. Electronic comments
may be sent by e-mail to the NRC at [email protected]. Electronic
submissions must be sent no later than March 9, 2009, to ensure that
they will be considered in the scoping process. Comments will be made
available electronically and will be accessible through the NRC's
Electronic Reading Room link http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
The NRC staff may, at its discretion, consider comments after the end
of the comment period.
Participation in the scoping process for the EIS does not entitle
participants to become parties to the proceeding to which the EIS
relates. A notice of a hearing and opportunity to petition for leave to
intervene in the proceeding on the application for COL will be
published in a future Federal Register notice.
At the conclusion of the scoping process, the NRC staff will
prepare a concise summary of the determination
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and conclusions reached on the scope of the environmental review
including the significant issues identified, and will send this summary
to each participant in the scoping process for whom the staff has an
address. The staff will then prepare and issue for comment the draft
EIS, which will be the subject of a separate Federal Register notice
and a separate public meeting. Copies of the draft EIS will be
available for public inspection at the PDR through the above-mentioned
address and one copy per request will be provided free of charge. After
receipt and consideration of comments on the draft EIS, the NRC will
prepare a final EIS, which will also be available to the public.
Information about the proposed action, the EIS, and the scoping
process may be obtained from either Mrs. Stacey Imboden at the U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail Stop T-6D38M, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, by phone at 301-415-2462, or by e-mail at [email protected]
and/or Ms. Tomeka Terry at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mail
Stop T-6D38M, Washington, DC 20555-0001, by phone at 301-415-1488, or
by e-mail at [email protected].
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of December 2008.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Nilesh Chokshi,
Deputy Director, Division of Site and Environmental Reviews, Office of
New Reactors.
[FR Doc. E8-31420 Filed 1-5-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P