[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 116 (Friday, June 15, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28014-28015]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-12841]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-1151; NRC-2015-0039]


Westinghouse Electric Company, LLC; Columbia Fuel Fabrication 
Facility

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 
the renewal of Special Nuclear Materials (SNM) License No. SNM-1107 to 
allow Westinghouse Electric Company, LLC (WEC) to continue to operate 
its Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility (CFFF) for an additional 40 
years. The NRC has prepared a final environmental assessment (EA) and 
finding of no significant impact (FONSI) for this licensing action.

DATES: The final EA referenced in this document was made available on 
June 8, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0039 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 Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0039. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; telephone: 301-287-
9127; 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: Jessie Muir Quintero, U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-
7476, email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The NRC is considering renewing License SNM-1107 to allow WEC to 
continue to operate its CFFF for an additional 40 years. The license 
renewal period of 40 years would begin once the NRC approves the 
renewal. As required by part 51 of title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR), ``Environmental Protection Regulation for 
Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions,'' the NRC prepared 
an EA (ADAMS Accession No. ML18120A318). Based on the results of the 
final EA, described as follows, the NRC has determined not to prepare 
an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the license renewal, and is 
issuing a FONSI.

II. Environmental Assessment

Description of the Proposed Action

    WEC submitted a license renewal application in 2014 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML14352A111), which was updated in March 2018 (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML18087A400) to operate CFFF for an additional 40 years. 
The 40-year timeframe would begin upon NRC's approval of the license 
renewal application.

Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would allow CFFF to continue to be a source of 
nuclear fuel for commercial nuclear power plants.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC assessed the potential environmental impacts from the 
renewal of License SNM-1107 for an additional 40 years and determined 
there would be noticeable but not significant impacts to the quality of 
the human environment. WEC is not proposing any new construction or 
land disturbance activities. Although there is existing ground-water 
contamination on site, it has not migrated offsite or into the deeper 
aquifers and there is currently no pathway for human exposure. WEC's 
environmental monitoring program will continue to provide information 
on existing ground-water contamination and help identify future 
unintended releases to the environment. If needed, WEC will implement 
corrective actions to address contamination in the surface water and 
ground water. NRC expects that WEC will continue to meet all local, 
State, and Federal requirements, including its National Pollutant 
Discharge Elimination System permit and its obligations with the South 
Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) under 
its voluntary cleanup contract related to ground-water contamination.

Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff considered 
denial of the proposed action (i.e., the ``no-action'' alternative). 
The no-action alternative would mean that the NRC would not approve the 
license renewal. The CFFF would continue to operate under its current 
license until it expires on September 30, 2027. The NRC staff 
previously evaluated the environmental impacts of WEC continuing to 
operate the CFFF until September 2027 when it approved WEC's license 
renewal in 2007. The NRC staff concluded in the 2007 EA that the 
continued operation of the CFFF site would not result in a significant 
impact to the environment (ADAMS Accession No. ML070510647).
    The impacts of the no-action alternative would be similar to those 
of the Proposed Action except the impacts of the no-action alternative 
would occur only until 2027, when the current license expires, and 
decommissioning

[[Page 28015]]

including any site remediation would occur sooner.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    On March 27, 2017, the NRC staff sent a copy of the draft EA to the 
SCDHEC for their review and comment (ADAMS Accession No. ML18088A415). 
The SCDHEC responded on April 27, 2018, with no additional comments on 
the draft EA (ADAMS Accession No. ML18117A130).
    The NRC consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) on 
listed protected species at the CFFF. The FWS concurred with the NRC's 
determination that the proposed activity may affect but is not likely 
to adversely affect the six federally listed species (ADAMS Accession 
No. ML15161A543). In August 2017, the NRC submitted a Biological 
Evaluation to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) with the 
determination that the license renewal may affect but is not likely to 
adversely affect the shortnose sturgeon (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML17227A378). On April 12, 2018, the NMFS concurred with the NRC's 
determination (ADAMS Accession No. ML18103A020).

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    Based on its review of the proposed action, and in accordance with 
the requirements in 10 CFR part 51, the NRC staff has determined that 
renewing License No. SNM-1107 for an additional 40 years would not 
significantly affect the environment. The NRC will require, by license 
condition, that WEC take corrective action if ground-water 
contamination exceeds State or Federal levels. The NRC staff has 
determined that pursuant to section 10 CFR 51.31, preparation of an EIS 
is not required for the proposed action and, pursuant to section 10 CFR 
51.32, a FONSI is appropriate.
    On the basis of the final 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 determined not to prepare an EIS 
for the proposed action.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 11th day of June 2018.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Craig G. Erlanger,
Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards and Environmental 
Review, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2018-12841 Filed 6-14-18; 8:45 am]
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