[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 45 (Friday, March 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13191-13192]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-04639]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 72-11; NRC-2019-0148]
Rancho Seco 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
the renewal of Special Nuclear Materials (SNM) License SNM-2510 for the
Rancho Seco Nuclear Plant Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation
(ISFSI) (Rancho Seco ISFSI) located in Sacramento County, California.
The NRC has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) for this proposed
license renewal in accordance with its regulations. Based on the EA,
the NRC has concluded that a finding of no significant impact (FONSI)
is appropriate. The NRC also is conducting a safety evaluation of the
proposed license renewal.
DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on
March 6, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2019-0148 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 https://www.regulations.gov/ and search for Docket ID NRC-2019-0148. Address
questions about NRC docket IDs 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 https://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 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: Jean Trefethen, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-0867, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
The NRC is considering a license renewal request for SNM-2510 for
the Rancho Seco specifically-licensed ISFSI located in Sacramento
County, California (ADAMS Accession No. ML18221A281). The licensee,
Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), is requesting to renew
license SNM-2510 for the Rancho Seco ISFSI for an additional 40-year
period. The current license will expire on June 30, 2020. If approved,
SMUD would be able to continue to possess and store spent nuclear fuel
at the Rancho Seco ISFSI in accordance with the requirements in part 72
of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), ``Licensing
Requirements for the Independent Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel, High-
Level Radioactive Waste, and Reactor-Related Greater than Class C
Waste.''
The NRC staff has prepared a final EA as part of its review of this
license
[[Page 13192]]
renewal request in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR part 51,
``Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and
Related Regulatory Functions.'' Based on the final EA, the NRC has
determined that an environmental impact statement (EIS) is not required
for this proposed action and a FONSI is appropriate. The NRC is also
conducting a safety evaluation of the proposed license amendment
pursuant to 10 CFR part 72, and the results will be documented in a
separate Safety Evaluation Report (SER). If SMUD's request is approved,
the NRC will issue the license renewal following notification in the
Federal Register of the availability of this final EA and FONSI and the
SER .
II. Final Environmental Assessment Summary
SMUD is requesting to renew license SNM-2510 for the Rancho Seco
specifically-licensed ISFSI for a 40-year period. The NRC has assessed
the potential environmental impacts of the proposed action and
alternatives to the proposed action, including license renewal for an
additional 20-year term, shipment of spent fuel to an offsite facility,
and the no-action alternative. The results of the NRC's environmental
review can be found in the final EA (ADAMS Accession No. ML19241A378).
The NRC staff performed its environmental review in accordance with the
requirements in 10 CFR part 51. In conducting the environmental review,
the NRC considered information in the license renewal application
(ADAMS Accession No. ML18221A281); communications and consultation with
the California State Historic Preservation Office; the State of
California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) and eight Native
American Tribes; the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW);
and the California State Department of Health Services.
Approval of SMUD's proposed license renewal request would allow the
22 Standardized NUHOMS-24P sealed surface storage casks to continue to
remain on the Rancho Seco ISFSI for an additional 40 years. The
estimated annual dose to the nearest permanent resident from ISFSI
activities is 0.0016 mSv/yr (0.16 mrem/yr) (ADAMS Accession No.
ML18221A281), which is below the 0.25 mSv/yr (25 mrem/yr) limit
specified in 10 CFR 72.104(a) and the 1 mSv/yr (100 mrem/yr) limit in
10 CFR 20.1301(a)(1). Furthermore, SMUD maintains a radiation
protection program for the ISFSI in accordance with 10 CFR part 20 to
ensure that radiation doses are as low as is reasonably achievable
(ALARA). Accordingly, no significant radiological or non-radiological
impacts are expected to result from approval of the license renewal
request, and the proposed action would not significantly contribute to
cumulative impacts at the Rancho Seco site. Additionally, there would
be no disproportionately high and adverse impacts on minority and low-
income populations.
In its license renewal request, SMUD is proposing no changes in how
it handles or stores spent fuel at the Rancho Seco ISFSI. Approval of
the proposed action would not result in any new construction or
expansion of the existing ISFSI footprint beyond that previously
approved. The ISFSI is a largely passive facility that produces no
liquid or gaseous effluents. No significant radiological or
nonradiological impacts are expected from continued normal operations.
Occupational dose estimates associated with the proposed action and
continued normal operation and maintenance of the ISFSI are expected to
be at ALARA levels and within the limits of 10 CFR 20.1201. Therefore,
the NRC staff has determined that pursuant to 10 CFR 51.31, preparation
of an EIS is not required for the proposed action, and pursuant to 10
CFR 51.32, a FONSI is appropriate.
Furthermore, the NRC staff determined that this license renewal
request does not have the potential to cause effects on historic
properties, assuming those were present; therefore, in accordance with
36 CFR 800.3(a)(1), no consultation is required under Section 106 of
the National Historic Preservation Act. The NRC staff, however, reached
out to and informed the California State Historic Preservation Officer
(SHPO) via letter dated December 14, 2018 (ADAMS Package Accession No.
ML18348A551) and eight Native American Tribes of its determination via
letters dated January 9, 2019 (ADAMS Package Accession No.
ML18341A258). The California SHPO responded via letter dated January 9,
2019, indicating they had no comments or concurrence on the finding of
no effect (ADAMS Accession No. ML19010A118). The NRC staff, with the
assistance of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Information for
Planning and Consultation (IPaC) project planning tool, determined that
the listed species and/or critical habitat will not be adversely
affected by the proposed action.
III. Finding of No Significant Impact
Based on its review of the proposed action in the EA, in accordance
with the requirements in 10 CFR part 51, the NRC has concluded that the
proposed action, renewal of NRC Special Nuclear Materials License No.
SNM-2510 for the Rancho Seco ISFSI located in Sacramento County,
California, will not significantly affect the quality of the human
environment. Therefore, the NRC has determined, pursuant to 10 CFR
51.31, that preparation of an EIS is not required for the proposed
action and a finding of no significant impact is appropriate.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of March, 2020.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Cinthya I. Roman-Cuevas,
Chief, Environmental Review Materials Branch, Division of Rulemaking,
Environmental, and Financial Support, Office of Nuclear Material Safety
and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2020-04639 Filed 3-5-20; 8:45 am]
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