[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 163 (Tuesday, August 25, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42940-42942]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-20406]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2009-0371; Docket No. 030-14680]


Notice of Availability of Environmental Assessment and Finding of 
No Significant Impact for License Amendment to Byproduct Materials 
License No. 29-00117-06, for Unrestricted Release of the Merck and 
Company's Facility in Rahway, NJ

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Issuance of Environmental Assessment and Finding of No 
Significant Impact for License Amendment.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Betsy Ullrich, Senior Health 
Physicist, Commercial & R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials 
Safety, Region I, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406; 
telephone (610) 337-5040; fax number (610) 337-5269; or by e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering the 
issuance of a license amendment to Byproduct Materials License No. 29-
00117-06. This license is held by Merck and Company, Inc (the 
Licensee), for its Merck and Company, Merck Research Laboratories (the 
Facility), located at 126 East Lincoln Avenue in Rahway, New Jersey. 
Issuance of the amendment would authorize release of the Facility's 
Waste Incinerator for unrestricted use. The Licensee requested this 
action in a letter dated May 21, 2009. The NRC has prepared an 
Environmental Assessment (EA) in support of this proposed action in 
accordance with the requirements of Title 10, Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR), part 51 (10 CFR part 51). Based on the EA, the NRC 
has concluded that a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) is 
appropriate with respect to the proposed action. The amendment will be 
issued to the Licensee following the publication of this FONSI and EA 
in the Federal Register.

II. Environmental Assessment

Identification of Proposed Action

    The proposed action would approve the Licensee's May 21, 2009 
license amendment request, resulting in release of the Waste 
Incinerator for unrestricted use. License No. 29-00117-06 was issued on 
August 11, 1978, pursuant to 10 CFR part 30, and has been amended 
periodically since that time. This license authorizes the Licensee to 
use unsealed byproduct material for purposes of conducting research and 
development activities on laboratory bench tops and in hoods, and 
incineration of radioactive waste.
    The Waste Incinerator is situated within Building 77 at 126 East 
Lincoln Avenue, and consists of the incinerator room and associated 
effluent component parts and mechanical component parts. The Waste 
Incinerator is located in an industrial area. Within the Waste 
Incinerator, use of licensed materials was confined to the Conveyor 
System Area, the Cold Room Area, the Burn Chamber and Kiln Area, the 
Loading Ram Area, the Loading Dock Area, the Fly Ash System and Bag 
House Area, the Restroom, the Mechanical Room, and the Control Room and 
its Stairwell.
    In 2009, the Licensee ceased using the Waste Incinerator for 
licensed waste disposal and initiated a survey and decontamination of 
the Waste Incinerator. Based on the Licensee's historical knowledge of 
the site and the conditions of the Waste Incinerator, the Licensee 
determined that only routine decontamination activities, in accordance 
with their NRC-approved, operating radiation safety procedures, were 
required. The Licensee was not required to submit a decommissioning 
plan to the NRC because worker cleanup activities and procedures are 
consistent with those approved for routine operations. The Licensee 
conducted surveys of the Waste Incinerator and provided information to 
the NRC to demonstrate that it meets the criteria in subpart E of 10 
CFR part 20 for unrestricted release.

Need for the Proposed Action

    The Licensee has ceased using the Waste Incinerator for disposal of 
licensed materials at the Facility and

[[Page 42941]]

seeks the unrestricted use of its Waste Incinerator.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The historical review of licensed activities conducted at the 
Facility shows that such activities involved use of the following 
radionuclides with half-lives greater than 120 days: Hydrogen-3 and 
carbon-14. Prior to performing the final status survey, the Licensee 
conducted decontamination activities, as necessary, in the areas of the 
Waste Incinerator affected by these radionuclides.
    The Licensee conducted a final status survey on April 6 through 
April 9, 2009. This survey covered all areas associated with the Waste 
Incinerator. The final status survey report was attached to the 
Licensee's amendment request dated May 21, 2009. The Licensee elected 
to demonstrate compliance with the radiological criteria for 
unrestricted release as specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 by using the 
screening approach described in NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS 
Decommissioning Guidance,'' Volume 2. The Licensee used the 
radionuclide-specific derived concentration guideline levels (DCGLs), 
developed there by the NRC, which comply with the dose criterion in 10 
CFR 20.1402. These DCGLs define the maximum amount of residual 
radioactivity on building surfaces, equipment, and materials, and in 
soils, that will satisfy the NRC requirements in subpart E of 10 CFR 
part 20 for unrestricted release. The Licensee's final status survey 
results were below these DCGLs and are in compliance with the As Low As 
Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) requirement of 10 CFR 20.1402. The NRC 
thus finds that the Licensee's final status survey results are 
acceptable.
    Based on its review, the staff has determined that the affected 
environment and any environmental impacts associated with the proposed 
action are bounded by the impacts evaluated by the ``Generic 
Environmental Impact Statement in Support of Rulemaking on Radiological 
Criteria for License Termination of NRC-Licensed Nuclear Facilities'' 
(NUREG-1496) Volumes 1-3 (ML042310492, ML042320379, and ML042330385). 
The staff finds there were no significant environmental impacts from 
the use of radioactive material at the Waste Incinerator. The NRC staff 
reviewed the docket file records and the final status survey report to 
identify any non-radiological hazards that may have impacted the 
environment surrounding the Waste Incinerator. No such hazards or 
impacts to the environment were identified. The NRC has identified no 
other radiological or non-radiological activities in the area that 
could result in cumulative environmental impacts.
    The NRC staff finds that the proposed release of the portion of the 
Facility described above for unrestricted use is in compliance with 10 
CFR 20.1402. Although the Licensee will continue to perform licensed 
activities at other parts of the Facility, the Licensee must ensure 
that this decommissioned area does not become recontaminated. Before 
the license can be terminated, the Licensee will be required to show 
that the entire Facility, including previously-released areas, complies 
with the radiological criteria in 10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its review, 
the staff considered the impact of the residual radioactivity at the 
Waste Incinerator and concluded that the proposed action will not have 
a significant effect on the quality of the human environment.

Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    Due to the largely administrative nature of the proposed action, 
its environmental impacts are small. Therefore, the only alternative 
the staff considered is the no-action alternative, under which the 
staff would leave things as they are by simply denying the amendment 
request. This no-action alternative is not feasible because it 
conflicts with 10 CFR 30.36(d), requiring that decommissioning of 
byproduct material facilities or portions thereof be completed and 
approved by the NRC after licensed activities cease. The NRC's analysis 
of the Licensee's final status survey data confirmed that the Waste 
Incinerator meets the requirements of 10 CFR 20.1402 for unrestricted 
release. Additionally, denying the amendment request would result in no 
change in current environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of 
the proposed action and the no-action alternative are therefore 
similar, and the no-action alternative is accordingly not further 
considered.

Conclusion

    The NRC staff has concluded that the proposed action is consistent 
with the NRC's unrestricted release criteria specified in 10 CFR 
20.1402. Because the proposed action will not significantly impact the 
quality of the human environment, the NRC staff concludes that the 
proposed action is the preferred alternative.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    NRC provided a draft of this Environmental Assessment to the State 
of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) for review 
on July 7, 2009. On July 31, 2009, NJDEP responded by letter. The State 
agreed with the conclusions of the EA, and otherwise had no comments.
    The NRC staff has determined that the proposed action is of a 
procedural nature, and will not affect listed species or critical 
habitat. Therefore, no further consultation is required under section 7 
of the Endangered Species Act. The NRC staff has also determined that 
the proposed action is not the type of activity that has the potential 
to cause effects on historic properties. Therefore, no further 
consultation is required under section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    The NRC staff has prepared this EA in support of the proposed 
action. On the basis of this EA, the NRC finds that there are no 
significant environmental impacts from the proposed action, and that 
preparation of an environmental impact statement is not warranted. 
Accordingly, the NRC has determined that a Finding of No Significant 
Impact is appropriate.

IV. Further Information

    Documents related to this action, including the application for 
license amendment and supporting documentation, are available 
electronically at the NRC's Electronic Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, you can access the 
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which 
provides text and image files of NRC's public documents. The documents 
related to this action are listed below, along with their ADAMS 
accession numbers.
    [1] Letter dated May 21, 2009, with the ``Final Status Survey 
Report, Merck Waste Incinerator,'' report dated May 18, 2009 
[ML091480219];
    [2] Letter dated June 19, 2009 [ML091770200];
    [3] NUREG-1757, ``Consolidated NMSS Decommissioning Guidance;''
    [4] Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, part 20, subpart E, 
``Radiological Criteria for License Termination;''
    [5] Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, part 51, ``Environmental 
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory 
Functions;'' and
    [6] NUREG-1496, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement in

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Support of Rulemaking on Radiological Criteria for License Termination 
of NRC-Licensed Nuclear Facilities.''
    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, 301-415-4737, or 
by e-mail to [email protected]. These documents may also be viewed 
electronically on the public computers located at the NRC's PDR, O 1 
F21, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. 
The PDR reproduction contractor will copy documents for a fee.

    Dated at Region I, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA this 
17th day of August 2009.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James Dwyer,
Chief, Commercial & R&D Branch, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, 
Region I.
[FR Doc. E9-20406 Filed 8-24-09; 8:45 am]
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