[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 69 (Monday, April 12, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18572-18574]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-8234]


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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY


Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for Sequoyah Nuclear 
Plant Units 1 and 2 License Renewals

AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: This notice of intent is provided in accordance with the 
Council on Environmental Quality's regulations (40 CFR parts 1500-1508) 
and Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) procedures for implementing the 
National Environmental Policy Act. TVA will prepare a supplemental 
environmental impact statement (SEIS) to update information in the 1974 
Final Environmental Statement for Sequoyah Nuclear Plant Units 1 and 2 
(1974 FES) and other pertinent environmental reviews. This SEIS will 
address the potential environmental impacts associated with TVA's 
proposal to renew operating licenses for the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant 
(SQN) located in Hamilton County, Tennessee. These license renewals 
will allow the plant to continue to operate for an additional 20 years 
beyond the current operating

[[Page 18573]]

licenses, which will expire in 2020 (Unit 1) and 2021 (Unit 2). The 
regulations of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in 10 CFR Part 
54 set forth the applicable license extension requirements. Continued 
operation of SQN Units 1 and 2, which are each capable of producing 
approximately 1,200 megawatts (MW) of electricity, would help supply 
baseload power to the TVA power service area through 2041; would 
support TVA's policy to reduce the carbon emissions of its generating 
system and take advantage of lower carbon dioxide-emitting energy 
sources; and would make beneficial use of existing assets at the SQN 
site.
    TVA proposes to pursue renewal of the operating licenses for SQN 
Units 1 and 2 in accordance with NRC regulations. The No Action 
Alternative considered is a decision by TVA not to seek renewal of the 
operating licenses for the SQN units. Under the No Action Alternative, 
SQN Units 1 and 2 would cease operation in 2020 and 2021, respectively. 
The SEIS will include examination of a range of supply-side and demand-
side management options for supplying power as an alternative to 
renewing SQN operating licenses. Public comment is invited concerning 
both the scope of alternatives and environmental issues that should be 
addressed as part of the SEIS.

DATES: Comments on the scope of the SEIS must be postmarked or e-mailed 
no later than May 10, 2010, to ensure consideration.

ADDRESSES: Written comments or e-mails on the scope of issues to be 
addressed in the SEIS should be sent to Amy Henry, NEPA Specialist, 
Tennessee Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, Mail Stop WT 
11D, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902 or e-mailed to [email protected]. 
Comments may also be submitted through the TVA Web site at http://www.tva.gov/environment/reports/sqn-renewal/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Information about the SEIS may be 
obtained by contacting Amy Henry, NEPA Specialist, Tennessee Valley 
Authority, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, Mail Stop WT 11D, Knoxville, 
Tennessee 37902 (e-mail: [email protected]), or by visiting the project 
Web site at http://www.tva.gov/environment/reports/sqn-renewal. For 
information about operation of and license renewals for SQN, contact 
Gary Adkins, Nuclear Generation Development and Construction, Tennessee 
Valley Authority, 1101 Market Street, Mail Stop LP 5A, Chattanooga, 
Tennessee 37402 (e-mail: [email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

TVA Power System

    TVA is an agency and instrumentality of the United States, 
established by an act of Congress in 1933, to foster the social and 
economic welfare of the people of the Tennessee Valley region and to 
promote the proper use and conservation of the region's natural 
resources. One component of this mission is the generation, 
transmission, and sale of reliable and affordable electric energy. TVA 
operates the nation's largest public power system, producing 4 percent 
of all electricity in the nation. TVA provides electricity to most of 
Tennessee and parts of Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, 
Mississippi, and Kentucky. It serves about 9 million people in this 
seven-State region through 155 power distributors and 56 directly 
served large industries and Federal facilities. The TVA Act requires 
the TVA power system to be self-supporting and operated on a nonprofit 
basis, and the TVA Act directs TVA to sell power at rates as low as 
feasible.
    Dependable capacity on the TVA power system is about 37,000 MW of 
electricity. TVA generates most of this power with three nuclear 
plants, 11 coal-fired plants, nine combustion-turbine plants, two 
combined-cycle plants, 29 hydroelectric dams, a pumped-storage 
facility, and several small renewable generating facilities. A portion 
of delivered power is obtained through long-term power purchase 
agreements. Over the past five years, about 60 percent of TVA's annual 
generation was from fossil fuels, predominantly coal; 30 percent was 
from nuclear; and the remainder was from hydro and other renewable 
energy resources. TVA transmits electricity from these facilities over 
about 16,000 miles of transmission lines. Like other utility systems, 
TVA has power interchange agreements with utilities surrounding the 
Tennessee Valley region and purchases and sells power on an economic 
basis almost daily.

Sequoyah Nuclear Plant

    Operation of Sequoyah Nuclear Plant (SQN) provides approximately 
2,400 MW of electricity, which is typically used to supply baseload 
power to the TVA power service area. Baseload power, the minimum amount 
of power continuously needed in a power system, is usually supplied by 
generators with low operating costs and dependable availability, such 
as nuclear plants. SQN is a major component of TVA's generating assets. 
In fiscal year 2009, SQN met about 11 percent of TVA's total energy 
need. SQN supplies about one-third of the power generated by TVA's 
nuclear power plants.
    SQN is located in Hamilton County in southeast Tennessee on about 
630 acres adjacent to the Tennessee River at Mile 484.5, near the 
cities of Soddy Daisy, Cleveland, and Chattanooga. The site includes 
two Westinghouse Electric Corporation pressurized water reactors known 
as SQN Units 1 and 2, with a power output capacity of approximately 
1,200 MW of electricity each. The former Atomic Energy Commission (now 
called the Nuclear Regulatory Commission or NRC) granted TVA a 
provisional construction permit in May 1970. Construction at the SQN 
site was completed in 1980, and operating licenses were approved for 
Unit 1 in 1980 and Unit 2 in 1981. Unit 1 received its full power 
license on September 17, 1980, and began commercial operation on July 
1, 1981. Unit 2 received its full power license on September 15, 1981 
and began commercial operation on June 1, 1982. Both units have 
performed well with consistently high levels of availability and 
generating capacity throughout the nearly 30 years of operation.

Proposed Action and Alternatives

    TVA proposes to submit applications to the NRC requesting renewal 
of its SQN operating licenses. Renewal of the current operating 
licenses would permit operation for an additional 20 years past the 
current 40-year operating license terms, which expire in 2020 and 2021 
for Units 1 and 2, respectively. The proposed action includes provision 
of an additional on-site storage facility by approximately 2026 to 
accommodate spent fuel throughout the license renewal term. These 
proposed license renewals are not anticipated to require other new 
major construction or modifications beyond normal maintenance and 
operations.
    The SEIS will also consider a ``No Action'' Alternative under which 
TVA would not pursue renewal of the SQN operating licenses. Under the 
No Action Alternative, Units 1 and 2 would cease to produce power in 
2020 and 2021, respectively. The SEIS will include an evaluation of a 
range of supply-side and demand-side management options for supplying 
power as an alternative to renewing SQN operating licenses. No changes 
to the existing power transmission system are proposed under any of the 
alternatives.
    No decision to seek license renewals for SQN Units 1 and 2 has been 
made at this time. TVA is preparing this SEIS to supplement the 
original 1974 FES to inform decision makers, agencies, tribal

[[Page 18574]]

representatives, and the public about the potential for environmental 
impacts associated with a decision to continue operation of SQN Units 1 
and 2. The draft SEIS will be made available for public comment. In 
making its final decision, TVA will consider the assessment in this 
SEIS, including input provided by reviewing agencies, tribes, and the 
public.

Preliminary Identification of Environmental Issues

    This SEIS will discuss the need to continue to operate SQN and will 
update the analyses of potential environmental, cultural, recreational, 
and socioeconomic impacts resulting from plant operation and 
maintenance of existing facilities. The impact analyses will include, 
but not necessarily be limited to, the potential impacts on water 
quality and use; vegetation; wildlife; aquatic ecology; endangered and 
threatened species; floodplains; wetlands; land use; recreational and 
managed areas; visual, archaeological, and historic resources; noise; 
socioeconomics; environmental justice; solid and hazardous waste; 
geology and seismology; meteorology, air quality, and climate change; 
uranium fuels cycle effects and radiological impacts; nuclear plant 
safety and security including design-basis accidents; and severe 
accidents and intentional destructive acts. These and other important 
issues identified during the scoping process will be addressed as 
appropriate in the SEIS.
    Additionally, TVA will review and tier from the Generic 
Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants 
(GEIS), NUREG-1437, in which the NRC considered the environmental 
effects of 20-year renewals of nuclear power plant operating licenses 
(results are codified in 10 CFR Part 51). The GEIS identifies 92 
environmental issues and reaches generic conclusions on environmental 
impacts for 69 of those issues that apply to all nuclear plants or to 
plants with specific design or site characteristics. It is expected 
that the generic assessment in NRC's GEIS would be relevant to the 
assessment of impacts of the proposed action at SQN.
    Information from NRC's GEIS that is related to the current 
assessment would be incorporated by reference following the procedures 
described in 40 CFR Sec.  1502.21. Additional plant-specific review 
will be necessary for most remaining issues, which are encompassed by 
the above identified range of resources.

Public Participation

    This SEIS is being prepared to provide the public an opportunity to 
comment on TVA's assessment of the potential environmental impacts of 
pursuing extended licenses to operate SQN Units 1 and 2. The SEIS will 
also serve to inform the public and the decision makers of the 
reasonable alternatives that would minimize adverse impacts.
    The scoping process will include interagency, tribal, and public 
scoping. Other federal, state, and local agencies and governmental 
entities will be asked to comment.
    The public is invited to submit comments on the scope of this SEIS 
no later than the date given under the Dates section of this notice. 
Any comments received, including names and addresses, will become part 
of the administrative record and will be available for public 
inspection. Comments from the scoping process will be used by TVA to 
identify key Action Alternatives, and the significant environmental 
issues relating to these alternatives that should be addressed in the 
draft SEIS. After consideration of the comments received during this 
scoping period, TVA will identify the issues and alternatives to be 
addressed in the SEIS.
    TVA will prepare a draft SEIS and will invite the review agencies 
and the public to submit written, verbal, e-mail, or online comments on 
the draft SEIS. TVA anticipates issuing the draft SEIS for public 
review later this year. Notice of availability of the draft SEIS will 
be published in the Federal Register, as well as announced in local 
news media. TVA expects to release the final SEIS in spring 2011.

     Dated: April 2, 2010.
Anda A. Ray,
Environmental Executive and Senior Vice President, Environment and 
Technology, Tennessee Valley Authority.
[FR Doc. 2010-8234 Filed 4-9-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8120-08-P