[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 18, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64902-64904]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-27323]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 70-7005; NRC-2018-0281]
Waste Control Specialists LLC
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 issuing an
Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact
(FONSI) in support of the NRC's consideration of a request from Waste
Control Specialists LLC (WCS) to continue to store transuranic waste
that originated from the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) without
an NRC license under the terms of a 2014 order. The 2014 order exempted
WCS from the NRC's regulations concerning special nuclear material
(SNM). The current action is in response to a request by WCS dated
August 30, 2018, to extend the possession time to temporarily store
certain waste at specific locations at the WCS Site until December 23,
2020.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on
December 18, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2018-0281 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-2018-0281. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Krupskaya Castello;
telephone: 301-287-9221; 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 ``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: Harry Felsher, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-6559; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 64903]]
I. Introduction
Waste Control Specialists LLC operates a facility in Andrews
County, Texas (i.e., the WCS Site), that is licensed to process and
store certain types of radioactive material contained in low-level
waste (LLW) and mixed waste (MW). The WCS Site is also licensed to
dispose of radioactive, hazardous, and toxic waste. Under an Agreement
authorized by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (AEA), a State
can assume regulatory authority over radioactive material. In 1963,
Texas entered into such an Agreement and assumed regulatory authority
over source material, byproduct material, and SNM under critical mass.
On June 5, 1997, the State of Texas Department of Health (TDH)
issued WCS a radioactive materials license (RML) to possess, treat, and
store LLW (RML L04971). In 1997, WCS began accepting Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and Toxic Substance Control Act
(TSCA) wastes for treatment, storage, and disposal. Later that year,
WCS received a license from the TDH for treatment and storage of MW and
LLW. The MW and LLW streams may contain quantities of SNM. In 2007, the
TDH transferred its licensing authority over the WCS RML to the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). In September 2009, the TCEQ
issued RML R04100 to WCS for disposal of LLW. In 2013, the TCEQ
consolidated the separate licenses for possession, treatment, and
storage of LLW (RML L04971) and for disposal of LLW (RML R04100) into
RML R04100.
Section 70.3 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10
CFR) requires persons who own, acquire, deliver, receive, possess, use,
or transfer SNM to obtain a license pursuant to the requirements of 10
CFR part 70. The licensing requirements in 10 CFR part 70 apply to
persons in Agreement States possessing greater than critical mass
quantities, as defined in 10 CFR 150.11. However, pursuant to 10 CFR
70.17(a), ``the Commission may grant such exemptions from the
requirements of the regulations in this part as it determines are
authorized by law and will not endanger life or property or the common
defense and security and are otherwise in the public interest.''
On September 25, 2000, WCS first requested an exemption from the
licensing requirements in 10 CFR part 70 (ADAMS Accession No.
ML003759584). On November 21, 2001, the NRC issued an order to WCS
(2001 Order) granting an exemption to WCS from certain NRC regulations
and permitted WCS, under specified conditions, to possess waste
containing SNM in greater quantities than specified in 10 CFR part 150,
at the WCS storage and treatment facility on the WCS Site in Andrews
County, Texas, without obtaining an NRC license pursuant to 10 CFR part
70. The 2001 Order was published in the Federal Register on November
15, 2001 (66 FR 57489).
By letters dated August 6, 2003, and March 14, 2004, WCS requested
a modification to the 2001 Order that would allow it to use additional
reagents for chemical stabilization of mixed waste containing SNM. The
NRC issued a new order on November 4, 2004 (2004 Order) that superseded
the 2001 Order. The 2004 Order was published in the Federal Register on
November 12, 2004 (69 FR 65468).
By letter dated December 10, 2007, WCS requested additional
modifications to the 2004 Order that would allow it to discontinue
confirmatory sampling of waste streams with certain SNM characteristics
and to perform confirmatory sampling of sealed sources by using surface
smear surveys. The NRC issued a new order to WCS on October 20, 2009
(2009 Order), which superseded the 2004 Order. The 2009 Order was
published in the Federal Register on October 26, 2009 (74 FR 55071).
On February 14, 2014, a radiation release event occurred at the
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP)
Facility (WIPP incident). In response, the DOE suspended operations at
the WIPP Facility. In April 2014, WCS began receiving some specific
waste from the DOE that both WCS and DOE understood to meet both the
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) shipping requirements and the
conditions in the 2009 Order. WCS began storing that waste at the
Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facility (TSDF). The waste was DOE
transuranic waste that originated at the Los Alamos National Laboratory
(LANL) that was destined to be disposed of at the DOE WIPP Facility
(i.e., ``LANL Waste''). In June 2014, WCS received information from the
DOE that some of the LANL Waste being temporarily stored at the TSDF
may be similar to the waste that might be the cause of the WIPP
Incident. In response, WCS moved some of the LANL Waste from the TSDF
to the Federal Waste Facility (FWF) disposal cell for temporary
storage.
By letter dated July 18, 2014, WCS requested an exemption from the
NRC's regulations to possess SNM in excess of the critical mass limits
specified in 10 CFR 150.11 while temporarily storing some LANL Waste in
the FWF disposal cell. The NRC issued a new order to WCS on December 3,
2014 (2014 Order) that superseded the 2009 Order. The 2014 Order was
published in the Federal Register on December 11, 2014 (79 FR 73647).
The 2014 Order changed the 2009 Order conditions by adding new
conditions, primarily related to the temporary storage of the LANL
Waste both at the TSDF and in the FWF disposal cell. The State of Texas
incorporated the 2014 Order Conditions into WCS' (TCEQ-issued license)
RML R04100.
By letter dated March 28, 2016, WCS requested the relaxation of
Condition 8.B.4 of the 2014 Order to extend the timeframe for
temporarily allowing storage of the LANL Waste at the WCS Site from
``two years'' to ``until December 23, 2018'' to be consistent with date
in the TCEQ-issued license to WCS. By letter dated September 23, 2016
(ADAMS Accession No. ML16097A265), the NRC approved a modification of
the 2014 Order Condition 8.B,4, extending WCS' authorization to store
the LANL Waste at the WCS Site without a license under 10 CFR part 70
to ``until December 23, 2018,'' by citing the closed status of
operations at the WIPP Facility and the safe temporary storage status
of the LANL Waste at the TSDF and in the FWF disposal cell.
By letter dated August 30, 2018, WCS requested, for the second
time, that the effectiveness of its exemption from NRC requirements in
10 CFR part 70 be extended with the relaxation of Condition 8.B.4 of
the 2014 Order to extend the timeframe for temporarily allowing storage
of the LANL Waste at the WCS Site for another two years, to ``until
December 23, 2020.'' That proposal is the subject of this Environmental
Assessment.
II. Environmental Assessment
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action is the WCS request to modify the 2014 Order
Condition 8.B.4. for the second time to allow WCS to continue to store
the LANL Waste at specific locations at the WCS Site for an additional
two years, until December 23, 2020, without an NRC license.
Need for the Proposed Action
WCS is making this request to continue to store the LANL Waste
while the DOE-led Interagency Project Team (including WCS, DOE, EPA,
NRC, the State of Texas, and the State of New Mexico) works to
recommend a path
[[Page 64904]]
forward for disposition of the LANL Waste. While the WIPP Facility has
resumed operations, some of the LANL Waste at the WCS Site cannot be
shipped off the WCS Site at this time because it does not meet DOT
shipping requirements. WCS has indicated that it will not be able to
ship the LANL Waste to another appropriate location by the timeframe
specified in the 2014 Order Condition 8.B.4, as modified by NRC letter
dated September 23, 2016.
The purpose of this EA is to assess the potential environmental
impacts of the WCS request to modify the 2014 Order Condition 8.B.4.
for the second time to allow WCS to store the LANL Waste at specific
locations at the WCS Site for additional two years, until December 23,
2020. This EA does not approve or deny the requested action.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC does not expect changes in radiation hazards to workers or
to the environment. WCS will continue to ensure that the LANL Waste in
both the FWF disposal cell and the TSDF remain stored safely and
securely, and will notify the NRC of any events as appropriate, as set
out in the 2014 Order. No changes to its handling or associated hazards
would occur as a result of granting the requested change. Other
environmental impacts would be the same as evaluated in the EA that
supported the 2014 Order, as well as the 2001, 2004, and 2009 Orders,
as applicable to the activities associated with the continued safe
storage of the LANL Waste.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action
As an alternative to the proposed action, the NRC staff could deny
the WCS request and therefore, not issue a second modification to the
Order Condition 8.B.4. that would authorize continued storage of the
LANL Waste at the WCS Site (i.e., the ``no action'' alternative). Upon
expiration of the timeframe in the 2014 Order Condition 8.B.4., as
modified by the September 23, 2016 NRC letter to WCS, WCS would still
be required to maintain the material safely. In addition, the NRC
authorization of any change to the current storage of the LANL Waste at
the WCS Site would still be required and WCS has submitted no such
proposal to the NRC. As a result, under this alternative, there would
be no environmental impacts different from the proposed action,
although WCS would be required to secure a license or other regulatory
authorization for the storage of the material or potentially be in
violation of 10 CFR part 70 upon the expiration of the term in the 2014
Order Condition 8.B.4.
Thus, the ``no action'' alternative would not result in changes to
the environmental impacts evaluated in the NRC's prior EAs that
supported the 2014 Order or the previous NRC orders. Those prior EAs
concluded that there would be no significant radiological or non-
radiological environmental impacts associated with the storage of SNM
at the WCS Site, consistent with the conditions in those NRC Orders.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
On December 3, 2018, the staff consulted with TCEQ by providing a
draft of the EA for review and comment. By letter dated December 7,
2018 (ADAMS Accession No. ML18344A091), TCEQ provided comments on and
recommended corrections to the draft EA. The NRC staff modified the EA
to appropriately address the TCEQ comments and recommended corrections.
The proposed action does not involve the development or disturbance
of additional land. Hence, the NRC has determined that the proposed
action will not affect listed endangered or threatened species or their
critical habitat. Therefore, no further consultation is required under
Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. Likewise, the NRC staff has
determined that the proposed action does not have the potential to
adversely affect cultural resources because no ground disturbing
activities are associated with the proposed action. Therefore, no
consultation is required under Section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
The NRC has reviewed the WCS August 30, 2018, request to supplement
the 2014 Order again to extend the possession time of the LANL Waste at
specific locations at the WCS Site. The NRC has found that effluent
releases and potential radiological doses to the public are not
anticipated to change as a result of this action and that occupational
exposures are expected to remain within regulatory limits and as low as
reasonably achievable. On the basis of this environmental assessment,
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 environmental impact statement for the
proposed action.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 12th day of December 2018.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John R. Tappert,
Director, Division of Decommissioning, Uranium Recovery, and Waste
Programs, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2018-27323 Filed 12-17-18; 8:45 am]
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