[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59731-59732]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-23608]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 40-3392; NRC-2011-0143]
License Amendment Request for Closure of Calcium Fluoride Ponds
at Honeywell Metropolis Works, Honeywell International, Inc.
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of availability of environmental assessment and finding
of no significant impact.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
the issuance of a license amendment to Source Materials License SUA-526
issued to Honeywell International, Inc. (Honeywell) for its Metropolis
Works Facility (MWF) in Metropolis, Illinois. The license amendment
would approve Honeywell's proposed Decommissioning Plan for Surface
Impoundments B, C, D, and E at the MWF. The NRC has prepared an
Environmental Assessment (EA) for this proposed action in accordance
with its regulations. 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 following the
publication of this document.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2011-0143 when contacting the
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You
may access publicly-available information related to this document
using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2011-0143. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-287-
3422; email: [email protected].
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 numbers
for the documents related to this notice are: (1) License Amendment
Request Report NRC License Number SUB-526, Closure of Retention Ponds
B, C, D, and E (ML103420434, ML103400458, ML103400459, and
ML103400517); (2) Additional Information provided by Honeywell,
February 13, 2012 (ML12060A115); and (3) Environmental Assessment and
Finding of No Significant Impact (ML12338A057).
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: Mary T. Adams, Senior Environmental
Engineer; Conversion, De-conversion, and MOX Branch; Division of Fuel
Cycle Safety and Safeguards; Office of Nuclear Material Safety and
Safeguards; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555,
telephone: 301-287-9146; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
By letter dated November 22, 2010, the NRC received a license
amendment application from Honeywell Metropolis Works (Honeywell, MTW,
or the licensee), pertaining to its proposed closure plan for four
ponds located on the MTW plant site. Honeywell holds NRC License No.
SUB-526, which authorizes the licensee to possess and use source
material at its uranium conversion facility located in Metropolis,
Illinois. Honeywell seeks an amendment to license SUB-526, pursuant to
Section 40.44 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
to approve the closure of the calcium fluoride ponds in-place, by
stabilization of the contents and construction of a cover system over
the stabilized ponds. After the closure plan is successfully
implemented, Honeywell will seek release of the ponds area from SUB-526
for unrestricted use in accordance with 10 CFR 20.1402, ``Radiological
criteria for unrestricted use.''
On July 7, 2011, the NRC issued a notice of amendment request and
opportunity to request a hearing (76 FR 39918) on the license amendment
request. No requests for hearing were received. An Environmental Report
was included in the license amendment request. The NRC relied upon the
information provided in the license amendment request; additional
information provided by Honeywell on February 13, 2012; and other
sources identified in the environmental assessment (EA) in preparing
the EA. A draft of the EA was sent to the Illinois Emergency Management
Agency, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency for review.
II. Environmental Assessment Summary
As required by 10 CFR 51.30, the EA describes the proposed action
and four alternatives to the proposed action, including a no-action
alternative; describes the need for the proposed action; and assesses
the environmental impacts of the proposed action and alternatives. The
EA evaluates environmental impacts in the following resource areas:
Land use; transportation; geology, soils and seismology; hydrology;
ecological resources; air quality, meteorology, climatology; noise;
historic and cultural resources; visual and scenic resources;
demography and socioeconomics; public health; and waste management. The
EA concluded that the impacts on all of these resource areas are small,
based on significance criteria set forth in NUREG-1748, ``Environmental
Review Guidance for Licensing Actions Associated with NMSS Programs''
(Adams Accession No. ML032450279). The EA also includes a list of
agencies and persons consulted, and identification of sources used in
preparing the EA.
[[Page 59732]]
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.31(a), upon completion of the EA, and
consideration of the small environmental impacts on the environmental
resource areas, the NRC Deputy Director of the Division of Fuel Cycle
Safety and Safeguards has determined that a finding of no significant
impact is appropriate.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
On the basis of the EA, the NRC has concluded that there are no
significant environmental impacts from the proposed action, and that
the issuance of a license amendment to approve the ponds
decommissioning plan does not warrant the preparation of an
Environmental Impact Statement. Accordingly, the NRC has determined
that a Finding of No Significant Impact is appropriate.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 20th day of September 2013.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James W. Andersen,
Deputy Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards, Office
of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2013-23608 Filed 9-26-13; 8:45 am]
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