[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 107 (Tuesday, June 6, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26144-26145]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-11687]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 72-1014, 72-59, and 50-271; NRC-2017-0134]
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.; Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power
Station, Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation
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 an
exemption request from Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (Entergy) to
allow the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VYNPS) to load higher
enriched fuel assemblies with certain lower enriched fuel assemblies in
the same HI-STORM 100 multi-purpose canister (MPC) using Certificate of
Compliance (CoC) No. 1014, Amendment No. 10. The NRC prepared an
environmental assessment (EA) documenting its finding. The NRC
concluded that the proposed action would have no significant
environmental impact. Accordingly, the NRC staff is issuing a finding
of no significant impact (FONSI) associated with the proposed
exemption.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on
June 6, 2017.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0134 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-2017-0134. 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 in this document
(if that document is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time
that a document is referenced.
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: Yen-Ju Chen, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555; telephone: 301-415-1018; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is reviewing an exemption request from Entergy, dated
November 9, 2016 (ADAMS Accession No. ML16319A102), and supplemented by
letter dated January 9, 2017 (ADAMS
[[Page 26145]]
Accession No. ML17010A300). Entergy is requesting an exemption from the
requirements of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
sections 72.212(a)(2), 72.212(b)(3), 72.212(b)(5)(i), 72.214, and the
portion of section 72.212(b)(11) that requires compliance with the
terms, conditions, and specifications of the CoC No. 1014, for spent
fuel storage at the VYNPS independent spent fuel storage installation
(ISFSI).
Specifically, Entergy requested an exemption from Appendix B, Table
2.1-3, Note 19 of Amendment No. 10 to CoC No. 1014, therefore allowing
certain lower enriched channeled fuel assemblies classified as
``undamaged'' per the CoC to be loaded with higher enriched fuel
assemblies in the same MPC.
II. Environmental Assessment Summary
Under the requirements of 10 CFR 51.21 and 51.30(a), the NRC staff
developed a draft EA (ADAMS Accession No. ML16343A859) to evaluate the
proposed Federal action, which is for the NRC to grant an exemption to
Entergy to allow storing certain lower enriched fuel assemblies with
higher enriched fuel assemblies in a HI-STORM 100 MPC at the VYNPS
site.
The EA defines the NRC's proposed action (i.e., to grant Entergy's
exemption request per 10 CFR 72.7) and the purpose of and need for the
proposed action. Evaluations of the potential environmental impacts of
the proposed action and alternatives to the proposed action are
presented, followed by the NRC's conclusion.
This EA evaluates the potential environmental impacts of granting
the exemption to allow loading of higher enriched fuel assemblies with
certain lower enriched fuel assemblies in a HI-STORM 100 MPC at the
VYNPS ISFSI. The potential environmental impact of using NRC-approved
storage casks was initially analyzed in the EA for the rulemaking to
provide for the storage of spent fuel under a general license on July
18, 1990 (55 FR 29181). The EA for using the HI-STORM 100, Amendment
No. 10, cask system (81 FR 13265) tiers off of the EA for the 1990
final rule.
There is no change to the types or quantities of effluents that may
be released offsite, and there is no increase in occupational or public
radiation exposure. Therefore, there are no significant radiological
environmental impacts associated with the proposed action. There is no
change to the non-radiological effluents. The proposed action will take
place within the site boundary, and does not have other environmental
impacts. Therefore, the proposed action will not have a significant
effect on the quality of the human environment. Therefore, the
environmental impacts of the proposed action are no greater than those
described in the EA for the rulemaking to add the HI-STORM 100,
Amendment No. 10, cask system to 10 CFR 72.214.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC staff has prepared an EA and associated FONSI in support of
the proposed action. The NRC staff has concluded that the proposed
action, for the NRC to grant an exemption, allowing the loading of
certain lower enriched fuel assemblies with higher enriched fuel
assemblies in the same HI-STORM 100 MPC, will not significantly impact
the quality of the human environment, and that the proposed action is
the preferred alternative. The environmental impacts are bounded by the
previous NRC EA for the rulemaking to add the HI-STORM 100, Amendment
No. 10, cask system to 10 CFR 72.214.
The NRC provided the Vermont Department of Health (VDOH) with a
draft copy of the EA for a 30-day review on February 7, 2017 (ADAMS
Accession No. ML17038A468). On March 16, 2017, the VDOH provided its
comments (ADAMS Accession No. ML17080A475). The NRC staff responded to
VDOH's comments on May 23, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17144A045). The
NRC did not make changes to this EA as a result of VDOH's comments;
however, the NRC will consider the VDOH's comments during the
preparation of the safety evaluation report.
The NRC staff informed the Vermont State Historic Preservation
Office (SHPO) of the NRC's ``no effects'' determination by letter dated
February 9, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17040A337). The Vermont SHPO
concurred on the NRC's determination by email on February 24, 2017
(ADAMS Accession Package No. ML17055A594, including ADAMS Accession
Nos. ML17055A626 and ML17055A636). The staff reviewed the updated
listings of endangered species and critical habitats, and no changes
were identified since the staff's review in 2007 (ADAMS Accession Nos.
ML072050012 and ML072050013).
The NRC staff has determined that this exemption would have no
impact on historic and cultural resources or ecological resources, and
therefore no consultations are necessary under Section 106 of the
National Historic Preservation Act and Section 7 of the Endangered
Species Act.
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.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 25th day of May, 2017.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John McKirgan,
Chief, Spent Fuel Licensing Branch, Division of Spent Fuel Management,
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2017-11687 Filed 6-5-17; 8:45 am]
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