[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 178 (Friday, September 13, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56753-56756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-22316]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 030-09415; NRC-2013-0006]
License Amendment for Aptuit, LLC, Kansas City, Missouri
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact;
availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
the issuance of a license amendment to amend NRC Byproduct Materials
License No. 24-15595-01 issued to Aptuit, LLC (the licensee).
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2013-0006 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may access publicly-available information related to this action by the
following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2013-0006. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual(s) listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section
of this document.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may access publicly available documents online in the NRC
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the
search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-
based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737, or by email to [email protected]. The ADAMS accession number
for each document referenced in this document (if that document is
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is
referenced. In addition, for the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS
accession numbers are provided in a table in Section IV of this
document entitled, Availability of Documents.
NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael LaFranzo, Division of Nuclear
Materials Safety, Region III, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2443
Warrenville Road, Lisle, Illinois, 60532. Telephone: 630-829-9865; fax
number: 630-515-1259; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The issuance of the amendment would approve the licensee's
[[Page 56754]]
decommissioning plan (DP) (ADAMS Accession No. ML13053A398), which
describes the decommissioning activities that will be performed at the
licensee's facility located at 10245 Hickman Mills Drive, Kansas City,
Missouri to make it suitable for unrestricted use in accordance with
the NRC requirements. The NRC has prepared an Environmental Assessment
(EA) in support of this amendment in accordance with the requirements
in Part 51 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR part
51). Based on the EA, the NRC has concluded that a Finding of No
Significant Impact (FONSI) is appropriate. The amendment will be issued
following the publication of this Notice.
II. Environmental Assessment
The NRC approved the licensee's Kansas City, Missouri facility as a
location of use for radioactive byproduct materials on May 23, 1973.
The NRC issued License No. 24-15595-01 to Marion Laboratories, Inc.,
which initially authorized the use of sealed sources and later expanded
authorized activities to include research and development. Since the
original license was issued, the named license holder for the Kansas
City facility has been changed five times to the following: (1) Marion
Merrell Dow, Inc. via Amendment No. 13, (2) Hoechst Marion Roussel via
Amendment No. 19, (3) Quintiles, Inc. via Amendment No. 21, (4) Aptuit,
Inc. via Amendment No. 24, and (5) Aptuit, LLC via Amendment No. 33.
The primary radioactive materials that have been historically used in
the Kansas City facility are hydrogen-3 and carbon-14. In 2008,
Amendment No. 27 to the license was issued which substantially
increased the license limits for hydrogen-3 and carbon-14 and
authorized the synthesis of radiolabeled organic compounds in addition
to research and development. The licensee is currently operating under
Radioactive Materials License Amendment No. 34, with an expiration date
of September 30, 2014.
The Aptuit facility occupies 7 of 13 primary buildings in an
industrial complex adjacent to, and just east of, Interstate 435 in
Kansas City, Missouri, Jackson County. The site is situated in a
campus-type setting which includes offices, warehouse space,
manufacturing space, and laboratory space and is located on
approximately 45.5 acres of land. The Aptuit buildings total
approximately 417,000 square feet (ft\2\) or 38,740 square meters
(m\2\). The areas surrounding the Aptuit facility are also primarily
industrial. There is commercial development to the North, South, and
West of the facility and there is a residential area to the East. The
nearest residence is approximately 0.25 miles to the east of the Aptuit
facility. Land use is not expected to change. The licensee did
discharge licensed material out of an exhaust stack in compliance with
NRC regulations.
The Proposed Action
The NRC received, by letter dated August 30, 2012 (ADAMS Accession
No. ML12248A095), a proposed DP and license amendment request from
Aptuit, LLC requesting approval of the DP for its facility located in
Kansas City, Missouri. The DP was submitted to the NRC for approval to
authorize decommissioning activities in accordance with the
requirements of 10 CFR 30.36(g). An NRC administrative review,
documented in a letter to the licensee dated November 8, 2012 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML12314A055), found the DP acceptable to begin a
technical review. Subsequently, the NRC issued a Federal Register
notice (FRN) on January 16, 2013 (78 FR 3470), that announced Aptuit,
LLC's license amendment request, solicited public and other stakeholder
comments, and provided an opportunity to request a hearing and to
petition for leave to intervene. No comments were received and no
hearing requests or petitions for leave to intervene were submitted.
On February 7, 2013, and April 28, 2013, the NRC staff requested
additional information (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML13038A630 and
ML13109A304, respectively) to complete the technical review of the DP.
On February 20, 2013, the licensee provided responses to the February
7, 2013, request (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML13052A443 and ML13053A402) and
a revised DP (ADAMS Accession No. ML13053A398). On May 16, 2013, the
licensee provided responses to the April 28, 2013, request (ADAMS
Accession No. ML13137A522). The licensee also submitted a written
response, dated July 19, 2013 (ADAMS Accession No. ML13204A418
providing additional information), in response to a telephonic
conversation with the NRC held on July 18, 2013. The NRC developed a
Safety Evaluation Report dated August 27, 2013 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML13247A779). The licensee proposes to decommission the Kansas City,
Missouri facility to permit the release of the site for unrestricted
use, as governed by the License Termination Rule, subpart E, 10 CFR
part 20, ``Radiological Criteria for License Termination.''
The licensee's DP proposes the clean-up of the Aptuit facility by
implementing decontamination techniques to remove contamination and/or
by removing impacted structures, systems, and equipment. The removed
structures, systems, and equipment would then be disposed of in
accordance with regulatory requirements. The DP characterized
environmental media at the Aptuit facility (soil, surface water, and
groundwater) as not impacted by site operations, and therefore, not a
part of the clean-up activities proposed by the DP. The DP proposes the
decommissioning work to be performed by a decontamination and
decommissioning (D&D) contractor under the oversight and responsibility
of the licensee. The licensee expects the decommissioning work to take
approximately 8 months, after the proposed approval of the DP by the
NRC.
The licensee's objective for the decommissioning project, as
described in the DP, is to clean the site sufficiently to meet the NRC
unrestricted use criteria in support of license termination. The NRC
unrestricted use criteria requires, as described in 10 CFR 20.1402,
``Radiological Criteria for Unrestricted Use,'' that residual
radioactivity that is distinguishable from background radiation result
in a Total Effective Dose Equivalent to an average member of the
critical group not to exceed 25 millirem per year (mrem/yr). In
addition, the residual radioactivity is required to be reduced to
levels that are as low as is reasonably achievable (ALARA). The
licensee identified carbon-14 and hydrogen-3 as the only contaminants
of concern at the Aptuit facility where decommissioning activities will
be performed under the proposed DP. Upon completion of the
decommissioning activities, areas being released under the scope of the
DP will be surveyed in accordance with the guidance contained in NUREG-
1575, ``Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual
(MARSSIM),'' (ADAMS Accession No. ML082470583).
To meet the NRC unrestricted use criteria, the DP established
Derived Concentration Guideline Levels (DCGLs) that are based on the
screening values developed by the NRC (65 FR 37186; June 13, 2000)
which can be found in NUREG-1757, Volume 2, appendix H, ``Consolidated
Decommissioning Guidance: Characterization, Survey, and Determination
of Radiological Criteria--Criteria for Conducting Screening Dose
Modeling Evaluations'' (ADAMS Accession No. ML053260027). The NRC
screening values for carbon-14 and hydrogen-3 are 3.7E+6 and 1.2E+8
disintegrations per minute per 100 centimeters squared (dpm/100 cm\2\),
[[Page 56755]]
respectively. The NRC screening values are for single radionuclides,
and a ``sum of fractions'' rule should be used for radionuclides in
mixtures. The DP therefore proposes to use the most conservative
screening value for the contaminants of concern, 3.7E+6 dpm/100 cm\2\
(screening value for carbon-14), as the basis for DCGL determination
due to the difficulty in detecting hydrogen-3 when performing surveys.
To meet the ALARA requirement of the NRC unrestricted use criteria, the
DP proposes to use ten percent of the selected screening value as the
DCGL for total activity, which is 3.7E+5 dpm/100 cm\2\.
The Need for the Proposed Action
The purpose of the proposed action is to reduce residual
radioactivity at the Aptuit Kansas City, Missouri facility to a level
that permits release of the property for unrestricted use and
termination of the license. The NRC is fulfilling its responsibility
under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, to make a decision on
a proposed action for decommissioning that ensures protection of the
public health and safety and the environment. The application for
license amendment and NRC approval is necessary for the licensee to
proceed with the decommissioning activities as required by the
timeliness requirements of 10 CFR 30.36(g). A change to the current
license is necessary since decommissioning procedures required for the
planned decommissioning activities are not authorized in the current
license. The final step in the decommissioning process is license
termination.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC staff has reviewed the DP for the Aptuit, LLC Kansas City,
Missouri facility and examined the impacts of decommissioning. Based on
its review, the staff has determined that the affected environment and
the environmental impacts associated with this decommissioning action
are bounded by the impacts evaluated by NUREG-1496, ``Generic
Environmental Impact Statement in Support of Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License Termination of NRC-Licensed Nuclear Facilities''
(ADAMS Accession Nos. ML042310492, ML042320379, and ML042330385). The
staff also finds the proposed decommissioning of the Aptuit, LLC Kansas
City, Missouri site is in compliance with 10 CFR 20.1402, the
radiological criteria for unrestricted use.
Since ceasing operations, the Aptuit, LLC site has been stabilized
to prevent contamination from spreading beyond its current locations.
Access to the contaminated areas is controlled to assure the health and
safety of workers and the public. No ongoing licensed activities, other
than limited decommissioning activities, are occurring in the
facilities.
Contamination controls will be implemented during decommissioning
to prevent airborne and surface contamination from escaping the
remediation work areas, and therefore no release of airborne
contamination is anticipated. However, the potential will exist for
generating airborne radioactive material during decontamination,
removal and handling of contaminated materials. If produced, any
effluent from the proposed decommissioning activities will be limited
in accordance with NRC requirements in 10 CFR part 20 or contained
onsite or treated to reduce contamination to acceptable levels before
release, and shall be maintained ALARA. Radioactive waste (e.g., HEPA
filters, metals, bench tops, etc.) will be containerized onsite pending
shipment to a licensed radioactive waste treatment or disposal
facility. No liquid effluents are expected to be generated during
decommissioning.
Aptuit, LLC and subcontractors will perform the remediation under
the Aptuit, LLC license. Therefore, Aptuit, LLC will oversee the
activities and will maintain primary responsibility for the
decommissioning activities at the site. The Aptuit, LLC facility has
adequate radiation protection procedures and capabilities, and will
implement an acceptable program to keep exposure to radioactive
materials ALARA. As noted above, Aptuit, LLC, has prepared a DP
describing the work to be performed, and work activities are not
anticipated to result in a dose to workers or the public in excess of
the 10 CFR part 20 limits. Past experiences with decommissioning
activities at sites similar to the Aptuit, LLC facility indicate that
public worker exposure will be far below the limits found in 10 CFR
part 20, ``Standards for Protection Against Radiation.''
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
The only alternative to the proposed action of allowing
decommissioning of the site is no action. The no-action alternative
would leave the site in its existing condition, which would keep
licensed, radioactive material above the NRC's unrestricted release
criteria of 25 mrem onsite. This alternative would increase the
radiological risk to the local community and the environment. The no-
action alternative is not acceptable because it will result in
violation of NRC's Timeliness Rule (10 CFR 30.36), which requires
licensees to remove licensed materials onsite during decommissioning of
their facilities when licensed activities cease, and to request
termination of their radioactive materials license.
Agencies and Person Consulted
The NRC staff has determined that the proposed action will not
affect listed species or critical habitats. Therefore, no further
consultation is required under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.
Likewise, the NRC staff has determined that the proposed action is not
the type of activity that has potential to cause effects on historic
properties. Therefore, consultation under Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act is not required.
The NRC staff consulted with the Missouri Department of Health and
Senior Services on March 8, 2013, regarding this Environmental
Assessment (EA) for the license amendment to authorize decommissioning
activities. The State Department of Health and Senior Services is the
State's Radiation Protection Agency, and has been informed of NRC's
intention to approve the completion of decommissioning at the Aptuit,
LLC site. The State informed the NRC on March 19, 2013, that they had
no comments on the EA.
Conclusion
The NRC staff has concluded that the proposed action complies with
10 CFR part 20, ``Standards for Protection Against Radiation.''
Decommissioning of the Aptuit, LLC site to the DCGLs proposed for this
action will result in reduced residual contamination levels at the
site, enabling release of the site for unrestricted use and will allow
the termination of the radioactive materials license. No radiologically
contaminated effluents are expected during the decommissioning.
Occupational doses to decommissioning workers are expected to be low
and well within the limits of 10 CFR part 20. No radiation exposure to
any member of the public is expected, and public exposure will
therefore also be less than the applicable public exposure limits of 10
CFR part 20.
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.
[[Page 56756]]
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC has prepared this EA in support of the proposed license
amendment to incorporate appropriate and acceptable DCGLs and to use
the proposed DCGLs for the planned decommissioning by the licensee at
the Aptuit, LLC facility. The NRC staff has found that the radiological
and non-radiological environmental impacts from the proposed amendment
are bounded by the impacts evaluated in NUREG-1496. On the basis of the
EA, the NRC has concluded that the environmental impacts from the
proposed action are expected to be insignificant and has determined not
to prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed action.
IV. Availability of Documents
Documents related to this action, including the application for
amendment and supporting documentation, are available electronically at
the NRC Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. From this
site, you can access ADAMS, which provides text and image files of
NRC's public documents. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public
Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' The ADAMS
accession numbers for the documents related to this notice are:
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Reference Title of document ML No.
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1........................ NUREG-1496, Vol. 1, ``Generic ML042310492
Environmental Impact
Statement in Support of
Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License
Termination of NRC-Licensed
Nuclear Facilities, Main
Report''.
2........................ NUREG-1496, Vol. 2, ``Generic ML042320379
Environmental Impact
Statement in Support of
Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License
Termination of NRC-Licensed
Nuclear Facilities,
Appendices A and B, Final
Report''.
3........................ NUREG-1496, Vol. 3, ``Generic ML042330385
Environmental Impact
Statement in Support of
Rulemaking on Radiological
Criteria for License
Termination of NRC-Licensed
Nuclear Facilities,
Appendices C-H''.
4........................ NUREG-1757, Vol. 1, Rev. 2, ML063000243
``Consolidated
Decommissioning Guidance:
Decommissioning Process for
Material Licensees''.
5........................ NUREG-1757, Vol. 2, ML053260027
``Consolidated
Decommissioning Guidance:
Characterization, Survey,
and Determination of
Radiological Criteria''.
6........................ NUREG-1757, Vol. 3, ML032471471
``Consolidated
Decommissioning Guidance:
Financial Assurance,
Recordkeeping, and
Timeliness''.
7........................ NUREG-1575, Rev. 1, ``Multi- ML082470583
Agency Radiation Survey and
Site Investigation Manual
(MARSSIM)''.
8........................ Aptuit Scientific Operations, ML12248A095
LLC, Decommissioning Plan
(MC 579062).
9........................ LTR-Aptuit, LLC Acceptance of ML12314A055
Decommissioning Plan for
Technical Review (Mail
Control No. (MC) 579062).
10....................... Letter to Aptuit re: Request ML13038A630
for Additional Information
to Support Decommissioning
Plan Approval (MC 579062).
11....................... Letter from Aptuit, LLC RAI ML13052A443
Response Package dated
February 20, 2013 (MC
579062).
12....................... Letter from Aptuit, LLC in ML13053A402
response to NRC RAI Package
dated February 20, 2013 (MC
579062).
13....................... Decommissioning Plan Aptuit ML13053A398
Scientific Operations,
Revision 1 dated February
2013 (MC 579062).
14....................... Letter to Aptuit, LLC RAI ML13109A304
Package dated April 28, 2013
(MC 579062).
15....................... Letter from Aptuit, LLC in ML13137A522
response to NRC RAI Package
dated May 16, 2013 (MC
579062).
16....................... Letter from Aptuit, LLC RAI ML13204A418
Response Package dated July
19, 2013 (MC 579062).
17....................... Safety Evaluation Report..... ML13247A779
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Dated at Lisle, Illinois this 5th day of September, 2013.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert J. Orlikowski,
Chief, Materials Control, ISFSI and Decommissioning Branch, Division of
Nuclear Materials and Safety, Region III.
[FR Doc. 2013-22316 Filed 9-12-13; 8:45 am]
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