[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 124 (Thursday, June 27, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30780-30782]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-13691]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 40-8838; NRC-2019-0027]
U.S. Department of the Army; Jefferson Proving Ground
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 finding of no significant impact
(FONSI) for a proposed amendment of NRC source materials license SUB-
1435 held by the U.S. Department of the Army (Army) for the Jefferson
Proving Ground from ``possession only for decommissioning'' to
``possession only.'' The proposed amendment of the Army's license would
also include an exemption from the NRC's decommissioning timeliness
requirements in the regulations. The EA, ``Final Environmental
Assessment for the Proposed Amendment of Materials License SUB-1435,
Jefferson Proving Ground, Southeastern Indiana (Jefferson, Ripley, and
Jennings Counties),'' documents the NRC staff's environmental review of
the license amendment application.
DATES: The final EA is available on June 27, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0027 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-2019-0027. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges-Roman;
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 ``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 final EA is available in ADAMS
under Accession No. ML19169A022.
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: Christine Pineda, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards; telephone: 301-415-6789; email:
[email protected]; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
Jefferson Proving Ground (JPG) was established in 1940 on 224
square kilometers (km\2\) [55,265 acres (ac)] in parts of Jefferson,
Ripley, and Jennings counties in southeastern Indiana for the
production and specification testing of conventional ammunition
components. The site was used by the Army between 1941 and 1994 for
munitions testing and, during that time, the Army also test-fired
depleted uranium (DU) projectiles into the 8.4-square km\2\ [2,080-ac]
DU Impact Area, which is located within the JPG installation. The DU
test firings began on March 18, 1984 and concluded on May 2, 1994. The
Army estimates that a high density of high-explosive unexploded
ordnance is present in the DU Impact Area.
The NRC is considering a request for an amendment to the Army's
source materials license SUB-1435. The license authorizes possession
only by the Army of up to 80,000 kilograms (kg) [176,370 pounds (lb)]
of DU metal, alloy, and/or other forms, kept onsite, for the purpose of
decommissioning, in the restricted area known as the ``Depleted Uranium
Impact Area'' (DU Impact Area) at the JPG site in southeastern Indiana.
The NRC is considering a license amendment that would modify the
license from ``possession only for decommissioning'' to ``possession
only'' and an exemption from the NRC's decommissioning timeliness
requirements in title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR)
40.42(d). The need for this NRC licensing action is to ensure the safe
possession of radioactive materials (in the form of DU). The Army needs
to delay remediation of the DU Impact Area because remediation is
prohibitively expensive and poses a risk of potential explosions due to
the presence of a large amount of unexploded ordnance.
In accordance with NRC's regulations in 10 CFR part 51,
``Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and
Related Regulatory Functions,'' that implement the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.), the NRC staff prepared a draft EA documenting its environmental
review of the license amendment application (ADAMS Accession No.
ML19008A310). On February 4, 2019, the NRC published a Notice of
Availability of the EA for public review and comment (84 FR 1522), and
the public comment period closed on March 6, 2019. Public comments are
addressed in Appendix D in the final EA. The final EA is available for
public inspection as indicated in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.
This notice is being published in accordance with the NEPA and the
NRC's regulations in 10 CFR part 51.
II. Summary of Environmental Assessment
Description of the Proposed Action
The proposed action is for the NRC to (1) amend Condition 9 of
materials license SUB-1435 to change the authorized use of licensed
material from ``possession only for decommissioning'' to ``possession
only'' for a 20-year term and (2) grant an exemption from the
[[Page 30781]]
NRC's decommissioning timeliness requirements in 10 CFR 40.42(d) for
the term of the license. Under the proposed action and in accordance
with current license conditions, the licensed DU material would remain
onsite in the restricted area known as the DU Impact Area at JPG. In
accordance with a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) established in 2000
with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Air Force, the
Army would continue to maintain institutional control and implement
land use restrictions over an area of approximately 206-km\2\ [50,950-
ac], which includes the DU Impact Area. Under the terms of the MOA, the
Army would remain responsible for remediation of all contamination
resulting from Army activities, including the ultimate remediation and
control of all DU in the NRC-licensed DU Impact Area.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
In the EA, the NRC staff assessed the potential environmental
impacts from the proposed license amendment and exemption to the
following resource areas: Land use; geology and soils; water resources;
ecological resources; climatology, meteorology, and air quality;
environmental justice; and public and occupational health. The NRC
staff also considered the cumulative impacts from past, present, and
reasonably foreseeable future actions when combined with the proposed
action.
All potential impacts from the proposed action were determined to
be SMALL and not significant, as described in the EA. The NRC staff
concluded that approval of the proposed action would not result in a
significant increase in short-term or long-term radiological risk to
public health or the environment. Furthermore, the NRC staff found that
there would be no significant negative cumulative impact to any
resource area from the proposed action when added to other past,
present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions, and that a positive
cumulative ecological impact would likely result from the continued
management of the Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge over the proposed
action's 20-year duration.
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).
Under the no-action alternative, the NRC would not grant the license
amendment or exemption, and the Army would need to comply with the
terms of its current license, which authorizes possession only for
decommissioning. Under this alternative, the Army would need to submit
a decommissioning plan. Because remediation of the site would be
complex, dangerous, and prohibitively expensive, the staff has assumed
that decommissioning for restricted use would be necessary, similar to
the Army's previously submitted and withdrawn proposal for
decommissioning and restricted release. The NRC staff concluded,
therefore, that decommissioning activities for a 20-year duration would
be restricted due to the presence of unexploded ordnance and,
therefore, the potential impacts of the no-action alternative over a
period of 20 years would be SMALL and similar or identical to the
impacts of the proposed action.
Discussion of Comments
The NRC received seven comment submittals from individuals or
organizations. Several commenters stated their wish to continue
receiving notifications or updates but did not have substantive
comments on the draft EA. Two commenters provided comments on the draft
EA, as summarized below.
One commenter recommended that the Army commit to indefinite
environmental monitoring, and that this commitment be included in the
final EA and FONSI. The NRC responded that the Army stated its
intention to operate its monitoring program indefinitely and that the
material currently in the DU Impact Area would remain in place and be
subject to legally enforceable access controls and land use
restrictions that the Army established in its MOA with the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service and U.S. Air Force.
Another commenter expressed concerns about potential future
migration of DU from the JPG site and requested assurance that there
will continue to be public access to the semi-annual monitoring
results, as well as an option for periodic public input regarding the
site status. This commenter also asked that the NRC's review of the
license occur more frequently than every 20 years and requested that an
action plan be developed to address any indication of increased DU
migration. The NRC responded that, as is currently the practice, the
results of semi-annual radiation monitoring will continue to be
publicly available through the NRC's ADAMS system or provided by the
Army upon request. Regarding an option for periodic public input
regarding the status of the site and license review frequency, the NRC
would re-evaluate the terms of the license at the time of any future
licensing action, as appropriate. A future evaluation for license
renewal or amendment, extension of the exemption, or a decommissioning
action would be subject to the NEPA review process, which includes
public participation and input. Regarding the development and notice of
an action plan to address any indication of increased migration of DU,
the Army's environmental monitoring plan specifies action levels (DU
concentrations in surface water, sediment, and groundwater) and
procedures to be followed if action levels are exceeded in samples. The
action levels are well below the NRC effluent limits in appendix B of
10 CFR part 20.
III. Final Finding of No Significant Impact
In accordance with the NEPA and 10 CFR part 51, the NRC staff has
conducted an environmental review of a request for an amendment to NRC
source materials license SUB-1435 that would change the authorized use
of licensed material from ``possession only for decommissioning'' to
``possession only'' and for an exemption from the NRC's decommissioning
timeliness requirements in 10 CFR 40.42(d). Based on its environmental
review of the proposed action, as documented in the final EA, the NRC
staff has determined that granting the requested license amendment and
exemption would not significantly affect the quality of the human
environment. The staff has concluded that the proposed action complies
with the NRC's regulations in 10 CFR part 20, that all potential
impacts from the proposed action would be SMALL, and that approval of
the proposed action would not result in a significant increase in
short-term or long-term radiological risk to public health or the
environment. The staff also found that there would be no significant
negative cumulative impacts and that a positive cumulative ecological
impact would likely result from the continued management of the Big
Oaks National Wildlife Refuge over the proposed action's 20-year
duration. Therefore, the NRC staff has determined, pursuant to 10 CFR
51.31, that preparation of an environmental impact statement is not
required for the proposed action and a FONSI is appropriate.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 24th day of June 2019.
[[Page 30782]]
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Michael F. King,
Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards, and Environmental
Review, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2019-13691 Filed 6-26-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P