[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 219 (Monday, November 14, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79526-79528]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-27354]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-335 and 50-389; NRC-2011-0302]
Florida Power and Light Company; St. Lucie Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and
2
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact;
issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of amendments to Renewed Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-
67 and NPF-16, issued on October 2, 2003, and held by Florida Power and
Light Company (FPL or the licensee) for the operation of St. Lucie
Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2 (St. Lucie), located on Hutchinson Island in
St. Lucie County, Florida. The proposed amendments would revise the
Environmental Protection Plans (Non-Radiological) (EPPs), contained in
Appendix B to the St. Lucie renewed facility operating licenses. The
NRC is issuing a final environmental assessment (EA) and finding of no
significant impact (FONSI) associated with the proposed license
amendments.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document is available on
November 14, 2016.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2011-0302 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-2011-0302. 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 NRC
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 in this notice (if
that document is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a
document is referenced. For the convenience of the reader, the ADAMS
accession numbers are also 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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Perry Buckberg, Office of Nuclear
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-1383; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is considering issuance of amendments to Renewed Facility
Operating License Nos. DPR-67 and NPF-16 issued to FPL for operation of
St. Lucie, located on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County, Florida.
The licensee submitted its license amendment request by letter dated
April 29, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML16125A253), as amended by letter
dated August 11, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML16238A190). If approved,
the license amendments would revise language in Section 4.2,
``Terrestrial/Aquatic Issues,'' of the St. Lucie EPPs to require FPL to
adhere to the specific requirements within the Incidental Take
Statement (ITS) of the ``currently applicable'' biological opinion. The
NRC prepared an EA to document its findings related to the proposed
license amendments in accordance with Sec. 51.21 of title 10 of the
Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR). Based on the results of the EA
documented herein, the NRC did not identify any significant
environmental impacts associated with the proposed amendments and is,
therefore, issuing a FONSI in accordance with 10 CFR 51.32.
II. Environmental Assessment
Plant Site and Environs
St. Lucie is a two-unit plant with pressurized water reactors and a
once-through cooling system that withdraws water from and discharges
heated water to the Atlantic Ocean. St. Lucie lies on Hutchinson Island
in an unincorporated portion of St. Lucie County, Florida approximately
7 miles (11 kilometers) southeast of Fort Pierce, 4.5 miles (7
kilometers) east of Port St. Lucie, and 8 miles (13 kilometers) north
of Stuart. The facility occupies approximately 1,130 acres (457
hectares) on the widest portion of the island. The Atlantic Ocean
borders the site to the east, and the Indian River Lagoon, a tidally
influenced estuary, lies to the west.
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, the NRC's predecessor agency,
and the NRC have previously conducted environmental reviews of St.
Lucie operations in several documents, which contain more detailed
descriptions of the plant site and environs. Those documents include
several Final Environmental Statements related to construction and
initial operation of St. Lucie; the NRC's May 2003 Generic
Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants:
Regarding St. Lucie Units 1 and 2--Final Report (NUREG-1437, Supplement
11) (ADAMS Accession No. ML031360709); and the NRC's June 2012 EA for
the St. Lucie Extended Power Uprate (ADAMS Accession No. ML12165A511).
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action would revise language in Section 4.2,
``Terrestrial/Aquatic Issues,'' of the St. Lucie EPPs to require FPL to
adhere to the specific requirements within the ITS of the ``currently
applicable'' biological opinion. The proposed amendments would remove
language specifically referencing the National Marine Fisheries
Service's (NMFS) previous biological opinion, which was issued in 2001.
The proposed action would be in accordance with the licensee's
application dated April 29, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML16125A253), as
amended by letter dated August 11, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML16238A190).
By amending Section 4.2 of the EPPs to clarify that FPL must adhere
to the ITS of the ``currently applicable'' biological opinion, the
proposed action
[[Page 79527]]
would require FPL's compliance with the NMFS' March 24, 2016,
biological opinion (ADAMS Accession No. ML16084A616). This biological
opinion applies to smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) and five
species of sea turtles (Caretta carreta, Chelonia mydas, Lepidochelys
kempii, Eretmochelys imbricata, and Dermochelys coriacea), and
concludes that the continued operation of St. Lucie is not likely to
jeopardize the continued existence of these species or destroy or
adversely modify the designated critical habitat of the loggerhead
Northwest Atlantic distinct population segment. The ITS exempts the
incidental take of these species from the prohibitions of Section 9 of
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, provided that the
specified Reasonable and Prudent Measures (RPMs) are implemented. The
RPMs are:
(1) Avoid and minimize entrainment into the St. Lucie intake canal.
(2) Avoid and minimize injurious or lethal take from entrainment
into, entrapment in, capture in, and release from the St. Lucie intake
canal or from impingement at intake wells.
In order to implement the RPMs, the biological opinion prescribes a
number of Terms and Conditions (T&Cs). The T&Cs require FPL to design,
test, construct, and implement excluder devices for the St. Lucie
intake pipe velocity caps that will minimize the number of nesting or
egg-bearing female sea turtles that enter the intake pipes. Following
testing, in-water construction of the excluder devices must begin no
later than the first half of 2018. The licensee must also develop
monitoring and maintenance plans to inspect routinely and remove debris
and biofouling organisms from the excluder devices and the intake pipes
and to inspect, repair, and replace, as necessary, the 8-inch mesh
barrier net in the intake canal.
The T&Cs specify how FPL personnel should capture and relocate
smalltooth sawfish and sea turtles that enter the intake canal.
Additionally, the T&Cs specify various monitoring and reporting
requirements, including how FPL should record the number and condition
of turtles captured in the intake canal; the periodicity at which FPL
personnel should inspect the banks of the intake canal for turtle
tracks or signs of nesting; how FPL personnel should monitor the
release site for possible delayed lethal impacts to captured smalltooth
sawfish; how FPL must notify NMFS of lethal smalltooth sawfish or sea
turtle takes; and the information that FPL should include in monthly
and annual reports. The T&Cs also require FPL to continue to
participate in the Florida Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network; to
continue to conduct the ongoing sea turtle nesting program and public
service turtle walks; and to consult with the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission (FWC) in accordance with FPL's FWC Marine
Turtle Permit. Finally, the T&Cs require FPL contracted biologists to
receive training on smalltooth sawfish and sea turtle handling.
Notably, because the proposed amendments would require FPL's
compliance with the ``currently applicable'' biological opinion, if
NMFS were to issue a new biological opinion in the future, the proposed
amendments would require FPL to adhere to the specific requirements in
the ITS of that new biological opinion, and FPL would no longer be
required to adhere to the March 24, 2016, biological opinion upon
issuance of a new biological opinion.
Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed action is needed to reflect the new biological opinion
issued by NMFS on March 24, 2016, and to require FPL's compliance with
the ITS and related RPMs and T&Cs contained therein. The proposed
action is administrative in nature.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and
concludes that the proposed changes are administrative in nature, would
have no direct effects on plant equipment or plant operation, and would
not involve any changes to the design bases for St. Lucie.
With regard to potential radiological impacts, the proposed action
would not increase the probability or consequences of accidents, would
not change the types or increase the amount of effluent that may be
released offsite, and would result in no increase in 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, because the
proposed action is administrative in nature, it would not have any
direct impacts on land, air, or water resources, including impacts to
biota. In addition, the NRC staff identified no socioeconomic or
environmental justice impacts associated with the proposed action.
Therefore, there are no significant non-radiological environmental
impacts associated with the proposed action.
An indirect effect of the proposed action is that FPL will design,
test, construct, and implement excluder devices for the St. Lucie
intake pipe velocity caps to minimize the number of nesting or egg-
bearing female sea turtles that enter the intake pipes in accordance
with the March 24, 2016, biological opinion. The biological opinion
stipulates that in-water construction of the excluder devices must
begin no later than the first half of 2018. The excluder devices will
be prefabricated offsite and will only require limited construction
equipment for the cleaning and attachment of the excluder devices to
the velocity caps. The excluder devices will be installed within the
boundaries of the existing concrete velocity cap structures located
approximately 1,500 feet (460 meters) offshore. The velocity caps and
associated functions are not safety related and would, therefore, not
require any physical changes to systems, structures, or components
intended for the prevention of accidents. The licensee may need to
perform some localized cleaning of marine growth on the concrete
surfaces of the velocity caps prior to attaching the excluder devices
to the velocity caps. During such cleaning, there is potential for
minor water turbidity, which FPL would monitor in accordance with the
biological opinion, FWC Marine Turtle Permit, Army Corps of Engineers
National Wide Permit, and Florida Department of Environmental
Protection Environmental Source Permit, as applicable. Installation
would not require dredging, sediment disturbance, or construction on
the ocean floor, and would also not result in any land disturbances.
The NRC staff concludes that the indirect effects of installation of
the turtle excluder devices will not result in significant
environmental impacts to the radiological or non-radiological
environment.
Based on the foregoing analysis, 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
denial of the proposed license amendments (i.e., the ``no-action''
alternative). Denial of the application would result in no change in
current environmental conditions or impacts. Accordingly, the
environmental impacts of the proposed action and the no-action
alternative are similar.
[[Page 79528]]
Alternative Use of Resources
The proposed action does not involve the use of any different
resources than those previously considered in NUREG-1437, Supplement
11, prepared for the license renewal of St. Lucie.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
The NRC did not enter into consultation with any other Federal
Agency or with the State of Florida regarding the environmental impact
of the proposed action. However, on August 29, 2016, the NRC notified
the Florida state official, Cynthia Becker, Bureau of Radiation
Control, of the proposed amendments. The state official had no
comments.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC is considering issuing amendments for Renewed Facility
Operating License Nos. DPR-67 and NPF-16 issued to FPL for operation of
St. Lucie. The proposed amendments would revise the St. Lucie EPPs to
require FPL to adhere to the specific requirements within the ITS of
the ``currently applicable'' biological opinion. On the basis of the EA
included in Section II of this document and incorporated by reference
into this finding, the NRC concludes that the proposed action would not
have significant effects on the quality of the human environment. The
NRC's evaluation considered information provided in the licensee's
application, as supplemented, as well as the NRC's independent review
of other relevant environmental documents. Section IV of this document
lists the environmental documents related to the proposed action and
includes information on the availability of these documents. Based on
its findings, the NRC has determined not to prepare an environmental
impact statement for the proposed action.
IV. Availability of Documents
The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through ADAMS.
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ADAMS
Document Accession No.
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Florida Power and Light Company, License Amendment ML16125A253
Request to Update Appendix B to the Renewed Facility
Operating Licenses to Incorporate the 2016 Biological
Opinion, Dated April 29, 2016..........................
Florida Power and Light Company, Response to Request for ML16238A190
Additional Information Regarding License Amendment
Request for Biological Opinion License Changes, Dated
August 11, 2016........................................
National Marine Fisheries Service, Biological Opinion ML16084A616
for Continued Operation of St. Lucie Nuclear Power
Plant, Units 1 and 2 in St. Lucie County, Florida,
Dated March 24, 2016...................................
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Generic ML031360709
Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of
Nuclear Plants: Regarding St. Lucie Units 1 and 2--
Final Report (NUREG-1437, Supplement 11), Dated May
2003...................................................
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, St. Lucie Plant, ML12165A511
Units 1 and 2--Environmental Assessment and Finding of
No Significant Impact Related to the Proposed Extended
Power Uprate, Dated June 25, 2012......................
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Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of November 2016.
For The Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Perry H. Buckberg,
Senior Project Manager, Plant Licensing Branch II-2, Division of
Operating Reactor Licensing, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2016-27354 Filed 11-10-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P