[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 83 (Thursday, April 30, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24291-24293]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-10126]
[[Page 24291]]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-271; NRC-2015-0111]
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.; Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power
Station
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Draft environmental assessment and finding of no significant
impact; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of exemptions in response to a request from Entergy Nuclear
Operations, Inc. (Entergy or the licensee) that would permit the
licensee to reduce its emergency planning (EP) activities at the
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VY). The licensee is seeking
exemptions that would eliminate the requirements for the licensee to
maintain offsite radiological emergency plans and reduce some of the
onsite EP activities based on the reduced risks at VY, which is
permanently shutdown and defueled. However, requirements for certain
onsite capabilities to communicate and coordinate with offsite response
authorities would be retained. In addition, offsite EP provisions would
still exist through State and local government use of a comprehensive
emergency management plan process in accordance with the Federal
Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's) Comprehensive Preparedness Guide
(CPG) 101, ``Developing and Maintaining Emergency Operations Plans.''
The NRC staff is issuing, for public comment, this draft environmental
assessment (EA) and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) associated
with the proposed exemptions.
DATES: Submit comments by June 1, 2015. Comments received after this
date will be considered if it is practical to do so, but the Commission
is able to ensure consideration only for comments received before this
date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods
(unless this document describes a different method for submitting
comments on a specific subject):
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0111. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
Mail comments to: Cindy Bladey, Office of Administration,
Mail Stop: OWFN-12-H08, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington,
DC 20555-0001.
For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Kim, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-
0001; telephone: 301-415-4125; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0111 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information regarding this this draft EA and
FONSI. You may obtain publicly-available information related to this
this draft EA and FONSI using any of the following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0111.
NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the
ADAMS Public Documents collection 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]. For
the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS accession numbers are provided
in a table in the ``Availability of Documents'' section of this
document.
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.
B. Submitting Comments
Please include Docket ID NRC-2015-0111 in your comment submission.
The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at http://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions into
ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to remove
identifying or contact information.
If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to
remove such information before making the comment submissions available
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.
II. Introduction
VY is a permanently shutdown and defueled nuclear power plant that
is in the process of decommissioning. VY is located in Windham County,
Vermont, 5 miles south of Brattleboro, Vermont. Entergy is the holder
of the Renewed Facility Operating License No. DPR-28 for VY. VY has
been shut down since December 29, 2014, and the final removal of fuel
from the VY reactor vessel was completed on January 12, 2015. By letter
dated January 12, 2015, Entergy submitted to the NRC a certification of
the permanent cessation of power operations at VY and the permanent
removal of fuel from the VY reactor vessel. As a permanently shutdown
and defueled facility, and pursuant to section 50.82(a)(2) of Title 10
of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), VY is no longer authorized
to be operated or to have fuel placed into its reactor vessel, but the
licensee is still authorized to possess and store irradiated nuclear
fuel. Irradiated nuclear fuel is currently stored onsite at VY in a
spent fuel pool (SFP) and in an independent spent fuel storage
installation (ISFSI).
The licensee has requested exemptions for VY from certain EP
requirements in 10 CFR part 50, ``Domestic Licensing of Production and
Utilization Facilities.'' The NRC regulations concerning EP do not
recognize the reduced risks after a reactor is permanently shut down
and defueled. As such, a permanently shutdown and defueled reactor,
such as VY, must continue to maintain the same EP requirements as an
operating power reactor under the existing regulatory requirements. To
establish a level of EP commensurate with the reduced risks of a
permanently shutdown and defueled reactor, Entergy requires exemptions
from certain EP regulatory requirements before it can change its
emergency plans.
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The NRC is considering issuing to Entergy exemptions from portions
of 10 CFR 50.47, ``Emergency plans,'' and 10 CFR part 50, appendix E,
``Emergency Planning and Preparedness for Production and Utilization
Facilities,'' which would eliminate the requirements for Entergy to
maintain offsite radiological emergency plans and reduce some of the
onsite EP activities based on the reduced risks at VY, due to its
permanently shutdown and defueled status. Based on the decision of the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Brodsky v. NRC
associated with a fire protection exemption for Indian Point Nuclear
Generating Unit No. 3, and demonstrated public interest in this
exemption request, particularly the State of Vermont, the NRC is
issuing for public comment, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.33, this draft EA and
FONSI associated with the exemption request. The NRC has concluded that
the proposed action will have no significant environmental impact.
III. Draft Environmental Assessment
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would exempt Entergy from meeting certain
requirements set forth in 10 CFR 50.47 and appendix E to 10 CFR part
50. More specifically, Entergy requested exemptions from: (1) Certain
requirements in 10 CFR 50.47(b) regarding onsite and offsite emergency
response plans for nuclear power reactors; (2) certain requirements in
10 CFR 50.47(c)(2) to establish plume exposure and ingestion pathway EP
zones for nuclear power reactors; and (3) certain requirements in 10
CFR part 50, appendix E, section IV, which establishes the elements
that make up the content of emergency plans. The proposed action of
granting these exemptions would eliminate the requirements for Entergy
to maintain offsite radiological emergency plans and reduce some of the
onsite EP activities at VY, based on the reduced risks at the
permanently shutdown and defueled reactor. However, requirements for
certain onsite capabilities to communicate and coordinate with offsite
response authorities would be retained. Additionally, if necessary,
offsite protective actions could still be implemented using a
comprehensive emergency management plan (CEMP) process. A CEMP in this
context, also referred to as an emergency operations plan (EOP), is
addressed in Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's)
Comprehensive Preparedness Guide (CPG) 101. The CPG 101 is the
foundation for State, territorial, tribal, and local EP in the United
States. It promotes a common understanding of the fundamentals of risk-
informed planning and decision making, and helps planners at all levels
of government in their efforts to develop and maintain viable, all-
hazards, all-threats emergency plans. An EOP is flexible enough for use
in all emergencies. It describes how people and property will be
protected; details who is responsible for carrying out specific
actions; identifies the personnel, equipment, facilities, supplies, and
other resources available; and outlines how all actions will be
coordinated. A CEMP is often referred to as a synonym for ``all-
hazards'' planning.
The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's
application dated March 14, 2014, as supplemented by letters dated
August 29, 2014, and October 21, 2014. In its letters dated August 29,
2014, and October 21, 2014, Entergy provided responses to the NRC
staff's requests for additional information concerning the proposed
exemptions.
Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed action is needed for Entergy to revise the VY
emergency plan to reflect the permanently shutdown and defueled status
of the facility. The EP requirements currently applicable to VY are for
an operating power reactor. There are no explicit regulatory provisions
distinguishing EP requirements for a power reactor that has been
permanently shut down from those for an operating power reactor.
Therefore, since the 10 CFR part 50 license for VY no longer authorizes
operation of the reactor or emplacement or retention of fuel into the
reactor vessel, as specified in 10 CFR 50.82(a)(2), the occurrence of
postulated accidents associated with reactor operation is no longer
credible.
In its exemption request, the licensee identified four possible
radiological accidents at VY in its permanently shutdown and defueled
condition. These are: (1) A fuel-handling accident; (2) a radioactive
waste-handling accident; (3) a loss of SFP normal cooling (i.e., boil
off); and (4) an adiabatic heat up of the hottest fuel assembly. The
NRC staff evaluated these possible radiological accidents in the
Commission Paper (SECY) 14-0125, ``Request by Entergy Nuclear
Operations, Inc., for Exemptions from Certain Emergency Planning
Requirements,'' dated November 14, 2014. In SECY-14-0125, the NRC staff
verified that Entergy's analyses and calculations provided reasonable
assurance that if the requested exemptions were granted, then: (1) For
a design-basis accident (DBA), an offsite radiological release will not
exceed the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Protective Action
Guides (PAGs) at the site boundary, as detailed in the EPA ``PAG
Manual, Protective Action Guides and Planning Guidance for Radiological
Incidents,'' dated March 2013, which was issued as Draft for Interim
Use and Public Comment; and (2) in the unlikely event of a beyond DBA
resulting in a loss of all SFP cooling, there is sufficient time to
initiate appropriate mitigating actions, and if a release is projected
to occur, there is sufficient time for offsite agencies to take
protective actions using a CEMP to protect the health and safety of the
public. The Commission approved the NRC staff's recommendation to grant
the exemptions based on this evaluation in its Staff Requirements
Memorandum to SECY-14-0125, dated March 2, 2015.
Based on these analyses, the licensee states that complete
application of the EP rule to VY, in its particular circumstances as a
permanently shutdown and defueled reactor would not serve the
underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the
underlying purpose of the rule. Entergy also states that it would incur
undue costs in the application of operating plant EP requirements for
the maintenance of an emergency response organization in excess of that
actually needed to respond to the diminished scope of credible
accidents for a permanently shutdown and defueled reactor.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC staff concluded that the exemptions, if granted, would not
significantly increase the probability or consequences of accidents at
VY in its permanently shutdown and defueled condition. There would be
no significant change in the types of any effluents that may be
released offsite. There would be no significant increase in the amounts
of any effluents that may be released offsite. There would be no
significant increase in individual or cumulative occupational or public
radiation exposure. Therefore, there are no significant radiological
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed
action does not have any foreseeable impacts to land, air, or water
resources, including impacts to biota. In addition,
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there are also no known socioeconomic or environmental justice impacts
associated with the proposed action. Therefore, there are no
significant non-radiological environmental impacts associated with the
proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there are no significant
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff considered
the denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action''
alternative). The denial of the application would result in no change
in current environmental impacts. Therefore, the environmental impacts
of the proposed action and the alternative action are similar.
Alternative Use of Resources
The proposed action does not involve the use of any different
resources than those previously considered in the Final Environmental
Statement for VY, dated July 1972, as supplemented by NUREG-1437,
Supplement 30, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License
Renewal of Nuclear Plants: Regarding Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power
Station,'' Volumes 1 and 2, published in August 2007.
Agencies or Persons Consulted
The NRC staff did not enter into consultation with any other
Federal agency or with the State of Vermont regarding the environmental
impact of the proposed action. On April 24, 2015, the Vermont State
representative was notified of this draft EA and FONSI.
IV. Finding of No Significant Impact
The licensee has proposed exemptions from: (1) Certain requirements
in 10 CFR 50.47(b) regarding onsite and offsite emergency response
plans for nuclear power reactors; (2) certain requirements in 10 CFR
50.47(c)(2) to establish plume exposure and ingestion pathway EP zones
for nuclear power reactors; and (3) certain requirements in 10 CFR part
50, appendix E, section IV, which establishes the elements that make up
the content of emergency plans. The proposed action of granting these
exemptions would eliminate the requirements for the licensee to
maintain offsite radiological emergency plans and reduce some of the
onsite EP activities at VY, based on the reduced risks at the
permanently shutdown and defueled reactor. However, requirements for
certain onsite capabilities to communicate and coordinate with offsite
response authorities will be retained and offsite EP provisions will
still exist through State and local government use of a CEMP.
Consistent with 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC conducted the EA for the
proposed action included in Section III of this document, and
incorporated by reference in this finding. On the basis of this EA, the
NRC concludes that the proposed action will not have a significant
effect on the quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the NRC
has decided not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the
proposed action.
V. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as
indicated.
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Document ADAMS Accession No./Web link/
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Developing and Maintaining Emergency Operations Plans, Comprehensive http://www.fema.gov.
Preparedness Guide (CPG) 101, Version 2.0, November 2010.
Docket No. 50-271, Request for Exemptions from Portions of 10 CFR 50.47 and 10 ADAMS Accession No.
CFR 50, Appendix E, Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, March 14, 2014. ML14080A141.
Docket No. 50-271, Request for Exemptions from Portions of 10 CFR 50.47 and 10 ADAMS Accession No.
CFR 50, Appendix E--Supplement 1, Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, August ML14246A176.
29, 2014.
Docket No. 50-271, Request for Exemptions from Portions of 10 CFR 50.47 and 10 ADAMS Accession No.
CFR 50, Appendix E--Supplement 2, Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, October ML14297A159.
21, 2014.
Protective Action Guides and Planning Guidance for Radiological Incidents, U.S. http://www.epa.gov.
Environmental Protection Agency Draft for Interim Use and Public Comment, March
2013.
SECY-14-0125, ``Request by Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. for Exemptions from ADAMS Accession No.
Certain Emergency Planning Requirements,'' November 14, 2014. ML14227A711.
Staff Requirements Memorandum to SECY-14-0125, ``Request by Entergy Nuclear ADAMS Accession No.
Operations, Inc., for Exemptions from Certain Emergency Planning ML15061A516.
Requirements,'' March 2, 2015.
NUREG-1437, Supplement 30, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License ADAMS Accession No.
Renewal of Nuclear Plants Regarding Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station,'' ML071840398.
August 2007.
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Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 24th day of April, 2015.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Meena K. Khanna,
Chief, Plant Licensing IV-2 and Decommissioning Transition Branch,
Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2015-10126 Filed 4-29-15; 8:45 am]
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