[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 3, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26589-26590]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10321]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No.: 50-133; NRC-2016-0091]


Humboldt Bay Power Plant Unit 3 License Termination Plan, Pacific 
Gas & Electric Company

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact; 
issuance.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an 
environmental assessment (EA) and a finding of no significant impact 
(FONSI) for a license amendment request submitted by Pacific Gas and 
Electric Company (PG&E or licensee) related to its shutdown Humboldt 
Bay Power Plant (HBPP) Unit 3 License Termination Plan (LTP).

DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on 
May 3, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2016-0091 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain 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-2016-0091. 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.
     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]. The 
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced (if it is available 
in ADAMS) is provided the first time that it is mentioned in 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alan Bjornsen, Office of Nuclear 
Materials Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-6925; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    In accordance with section 50.90 of title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), and 10 CFR 50.82(a)(9), PG&E submitted a request 
to the NRC dated May 3, 2013 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML13130A008 and 
ML13130A009, respectively) to amend its nuclear power plant operating 
license (DPR-7) for HBPP Unit 3 which is located near Eureka, 
California. The license amendment request proposed to add license 
conditions that incorporate the LTP and establish the criteria for 
determining when changes to the LTP require NRC approval. The NRC 
performed a safety and environmental review for this license amendment 
request. This EA documents the staff's environmental review and its 
compliance with Section 102(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
of 1969, as amended (NEPA).

II. Environmental Assessment Summary

    Under the requirements of Sec. Sec.  51.21 and 51.30(a), the NRC 
staff developed an EA (ADAMS Accession No. ML16106A054) to evaluate the 
proposed action to amend PG&E's operating license for HBPP Unit 3 to 
include the LTP. The LTP provides the basis for the NRC to ensure that 
the licensee has adequate funds available to complete decommissioning. 
In addition, the LTP enables the NRC to ensure that the licensee is 
using the proper radiation release criteria and to determine the 
adequacy of the licensee's final site survey. Upon PG&E demonstrating 
that it has reduced the residual radioactivity at HBPP Unit 3 to levels 
permitting its release for unrestricted use (in accordance with the 
NRC's regulation, 10 CFR 20.1402), as demonstrated by the final site 
survey, the NRC will terminate PG&E's license. The NRC, in the EA, 
considered a no-action alternative in which the NRC would not approve 
the LTP, therefore preventing the termination of the HBPP Unit 3 
operating license. The no-action alternative would keep the PG&E 
operating license in effect, and the site would not be available for 
another use. As a result, the no-action alternative was not evaluated 
further in the EA. The NRC evaluated the potential impacts to 
threatened and endangered species, environmental justice, and offsite 
land use for waste disposal. The NRC determined that approval of the 
LTP for HBPP Unit 3 would not result in a significant impact to the 
human environment.
    The NRC staff consulted with a number of Federal, State and local 
agencies, and other parties regarding the potential environmental 
impacts of the proposed action. These consultations were intended to 
afford these agencies and parties the opportunity to comment on the 
proposed action, and to ensure that the requirements of Section 102(2) 
of NEPA, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Section 
7 of the Endangered Species Act, and Section 305 of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act were met. Regarding 
these laws, the NRC staff requested input from the Army Corps of 
Engineers and consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the 
National Marine Fisheries Service, the California Office of Historic 
Preservation, the California Native American Heritage Commission, the 
California Office of Native American Affairs, three Federally-
recognized Native American Tribes (the Wiyot Tribe, the Bear River Band 
of Rohnerville Rancheria, and the Blue

[[Page 26590]]

Lake Rancheria), and the City of Eureka. The NRC staff used the 
information provided during the consultations to inform the EA.
    The NRC provided a draft copy of the EA to the California State 
Department of Health for review on March 9, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML14169A392) and did not receive any comments.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    The NRC staff prepared an EA in support of the proposed action. The 
EA is available at ADAMS Accession No. ML16106A054. The NRC staff 
concluded that the proposed action to amend PG&E's license for HBPP 
Unit 3 to include the LTP will not significantly impact the quality of 
the human environment, and that the proposed action is the preferred 
alternative. Therefore, 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 FONSI is appropriate. The FONSI incorporates 
the EA by reference.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 26th day of April 2016.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Craig G. Erlanger,
Acting Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards, and 
Environmental Review Office of Nuclear Materials Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2016-10321 Filed 5-2-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P