[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 19, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5280-5282]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01050]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-438 and 50-439; NRC-2020-0273]


Tennessee Valley Authority Bellefonte, Units 1 and 2 
Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

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 
extending the completion dates for Construction Permit Nos. CPPR-122 
and CPPR-123, issued to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for 
Bellefonte Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2 (BLN), located on the west 
shore of the Guntersville Reservoir at Tennessee River Mile (RM) 392 in 
Jackson County, Alabama. The NRC prepared this environmental assessment 
(EA) documenting the environmental review and finding of no significant 
impact (FONSI) for this proposed action.

DATES: The EA and FONSI are available January 13, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2020-0273 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-2020-0273. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Jennifer Borges; 
telephone: 301-287-9127; email: [email protected]. For technical 
questions, contact the individuals 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 or 301-415-4737, 
or by email to [email protected]. For the convenience of the reader, 
the ADAMS accession numbers are provided in a table in the 
``Availability of Documents'' section of this document.
     Attention: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies 
of public documents, is currently closed. You may submit your request 
to the PDR via email at [email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 
301-415-4737, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (EST), Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Omid Tabatabai, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, telephone: 301-415-6616; email: 
[email protected], and Jeffrey Rikhoff, Office of Nuclear 
Materials Safety and Safeguards, telephone: 301-415-1090, email: 
[email protected]. Both are staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The NRC is considering extending the completion dates specified in 
Construction Permit Nos. CPPR-122 and CPPR-123, issued to TVA for BLN, 
Units 1 and 2. The Bellefonte site is located on the west shore of the 
Guntersville Reservoir at Tennessee RM 392, near Hollywood, Alabama, in 
Jackson County, about 6 miles east-northeast of Scottsboro, Alabama.
    As required by section 51.21 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 
CFR), ``Criteria for and identification of licensing and regulatory 
actions requiring environmental assessments,'' the NRC has conducted an 
environmental review and prepared an EA that evaluates the 
environmental effects of extending the construction permit completion 
dates (proposed action). Based on the results of the environmental 
review conducted for this EA, and in accordance with 10 CFR 51.31(a), 
the NRC has determined not to prepare an environmental impact statement 
and is issuing a FONSI.

Facility Site and Environs

    The unfinished two-unit pressurized-water reactor nuclear power 
plant is situated on a peninsula between Town Creek and the Tennessee 
River at RM 392 on the west shore of Guntersville Reservoir in Jackson 
County near Hollywood, Alabama. Most of the 1,600-acre Bellefonte site 
has been impacted by the construction of BLN Unit 1 and 2.
    The affected environment at the Bellefonte site is described in the 
June 1974 final environmental statement (FES) for the construction of 
BLN Units 1 and 2 (FES-CP) prepared by the U.S.

[[Page 5281]]

Atomic Energy Commission's (AEC; now the NRC); the NRC's January 2003 
BLN Units 1 and 2 construction permit extension EA; and the NRC's 
September 2011 BLN Unit 1 construction permit extension EA. Also, TVA 
has issued several EAs that describe the environment at the Bellefonte 
site, including a January 2006 final EA and a May 2010 final 
supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Environmental conditions 
at the Bellefonte site have not changed appreciably from the 
descriptions portrayed in these documents.

II. Environmental Assessment

Description of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would extend the construction completion date 
of the BLN Unit 1 construction permit (CPPR-122) from October 1, 2020, 
to October 1, 2021, and the BLN Unit 2 construction permit (CPPR-123) 
from October 1, 2014, to October 1, 2021. TVA submitted the extension 
request for Unit 1 CPPR-122 on August 28, 2020, and the extension 
request for Unit 2 CPPR-123 on June 10, 2014, as supplemented on March 
31, 2017. With respect to both construction permits, TVA submitted its 
requests at least 30 days before the expiration of the existing 
permits. Therefore, in accordance with 10 CFR 2.109(a), ``Effect of 
timely renewal application,'' the existing construction permits remain 
in effect until the NRC completes its review of the requests. The 
proposed extensions would not allow any work to be performed that is 
not already authorized under the existing construction permits; the 
extensions would merely grant the permittee additional time to complete 
the construction of both units.

Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed action is needed to provide time for the continued 
construction of BLN Units 1 and 2. The construction permits, both 
issued December 24, 1974, were originally set to expire on December 1, 
1979 (Unit 1) and September 1, 1980 (Unit 2). At the request of TVA, 
the NRC has subsequently extended the completion dates of both BLN 
Units 1 and 2 several times. The BLN Unit 2 construction permit 
completion date was last extended to October 1, 2014. Most recently, 
the NRC extended the BLN Unit 1 construction completion date to October 
1, 2020. In its March 31, 2017 and August 28, 2020 letters, TVA noted 
that it sold the Bellefonte property at auction, the sale of BLN Units 
1 and 2 did not close, and the purchaser filed a lawsuit against TVA. 
TVA stated that an extension is needed to allow the parties additional 
time to obtain a decision in the lawsuit.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The AEC evaluated the environmental impacts from constructing BLN 
Units 1 and 2 in the 1974 FES-CP. Subsequently, the NRC reevaluated the 
environmental impacts of completing the construction of BLN Units 1 and 
2 in several EAs. These include the January 2003 and September 2011 
construction permit extension EAs, both of which addressed 
environmental impact issues identified after the publication of the 
FES-CP. New issues included groundwater quality, public services, 
noise, socioeconomics, severe accident mitigation alternatives, 
cultural and historical resources, environmental justice, greenhouse 
gas emissions, and cumulative impacts. Additionally, these EAs 
evaluated changes to regional demography, natural resource use, 
meteorology, ecology, impacts to humans and the environment, severe 
accident mitigation design alternatives, and socioeconomic impacts, 
including environmental justice. Based on these reviews, NRC staff 
concluded that there were no significant differences in the 
environmental impacts previously addressed in the FES-CP. Further, the 
staff also did not identify any significant environmental impacts that 
have not already been addressed in the construction permit extension 
EAs. The NRC staff determined that the environmental impacts associated 
with completing the construction of BLN would be generally consistent 
with the impacts disclosed in the FES-CP and subsequent construction 
permit extension EAs. Specifically, in the 2011 EA, the NRC staff 
concluded that the environmental impacts of extending the BLN Unit 1 
construction permit would not be significant, and the completion of BLN 
Unit 1 would not result in any disproportionately high and adverse 
human health and environmental effects on minority and low-income 
populations and communities residing near the Bellefonte site. The 
staff also determined that the environmental impacts from completing 
BLN Unit 1 would not be significant since the most environmentally 
disruptive construction activities have already been completed and any 
remaining construction activities would take place within completed 
structures at the Bellefonte site. Because of the conclusions reached 
in the January 2003 and September 2011 EAs, the NRC staff issued FONSIs 
extending the construction permit completion dates for both units.
    In addition, extending the BLN Units 1 and 2 construction permit 
completion dates would have no effect on federally listed species or 
critical habitats protected under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 
as amended, because all ground and river disturbances associated with 
construction have long since been completed. Federal agencies are not 
required to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or National 
Marine Fisheries Service if they determine that an action will not 
affect listed species or critical habitats. Thus, the Endangered 
Species Act does not require consultation for the proposed action, and 
the staff considers NRC's Section 7 obligations to be fulfilled.
    Since the proposed action would only extend the period of 
construction activities described in the FES-CP and subsequent 
construction permit extension EAs, it would not create any new or 
different impacts or significantly change the impacts from those 
previously evaluated in these environmental documents. The NRC 
concludes that, based on this information, extending the construction 
completion date of the BLN Unit 1 construction permit (CPPR-122) from 
October 1, 2020, to October 1, 2021, and the BLN Unit 2 construction 
permit (CPPR-123) from October 1, 2014, to October 1, 2021, would have 
no significant environmental impacts.

Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action

    As an alternative, the NRC considered denying the proposed action 
(i.e., the ``no-action'' alternative). This alternative would result in 
expiration of the BLN Units 1 and 2 construction permits and, thus, 
would require the submittal of a new construction permit application in 
order to complete the nuclear facility with no significant 
environmental benefit. Therefore, the environmental impacts of the 
proposed action and the no-action alternative are similar.
    Several alternatives to constructing and operating BLN Units 1 and 
2 were considered in the FES-CP, including various sources of base load 
generation and alternative plant locations. Alternatives considered 
include not requiring new generating capacity and combinations of power 
generation.
    Alternatives that could potentially replace new generating capacity 
include power purchases, repowering electrical generating plants, and 
energy conservation. Non-nuclear power generating alternatives include 
fossil fuel, wind, solar, biomass, and hydropower. Combining energy-
generating alternatives could achieve an

[[Page 5282]]

energy profile similar to base load operation from BLN Units 1 and 2. 
Storage technology with wind or solar technology could augment the 
variability of wind and solar power with the dispatchability of fossil 
generation (coal and gas) or biomass generation.

Alternative Use of Resources

    The proposed action does not involve any different environmental 
resources beyond those previously considered in the construction permit 
final environmental statement.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    The NRC staff did not consult with any other Federal agencies or 
with the State of Alabama regarding the environmental impacts of the 
proposed action. However, on December 1, 2020, the NRC notified the 
Alabama State official, Mr. David A. Turberville, Director, Office of 
Radiation Control of Alabama Department of Public Health, of the 
proposed action. Mr. Turberville had no comments.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    The TVA has requested the NRC to extend the dates for completing 
the construction of BLN Units 1 and 2. The NRC is therefore considering 
extending the completion dates of Construction Permit Nos. CPPR-122 and 
CPPR-123, issued to TVA for BLN from October 1, 2020, to October 1, 
2021 (Unit 1), and CPPR-123 from October 1, 2014, to October 1, 2021 
(Unit 2). Based on the review of available information, the NRC 
determined that the proposed action would not affect safety, would not 
have a significant adverse effect on the probability of an accident, 
and would not have any significant radiological and non-radiological 
environmental impacts beyond what has been described in the FES-CP and 
subsequent construction permit extension EAs. The NRC also considered 
information provided in the licensee's application and related TVA 
environmental documents.
    Consistent with 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC conducted an environmental 
review of the proposed action, and this FONSI incorporates Section II 
of the EA by reference in this notice. Therefore, 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 
there is no need to prepare an environmental impact statement for the 
proposed action.
    This FONSI and other related environmental documents are accessible 
online in the ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who 
encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS should 
contact the NRC's PDR reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 
301-415-4737, or by email to [email protected].

IV. Availability of Documents

    The documents identified in the following table are available to 
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as 
indicated.

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                    Document                       ADAMS accession No.
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AEC Final Environmental Statement Related to                 ML100570049
 Construction of Bellefonte Nuclear Plant Units
 1 and 2, June 1974............................
Letter from NRC to TVA, Regarding Issuance of                ML111110111
 Construction Permit Nos. CPPR-122 and
 CPPR[dash]123, December 24, 1974..............
NRC Generic Letter 87-15, Commission Policy                  ML20236L426
 Statement on Deferred Plants, October 7, 1987.
NRC Environmental Assessment for Extension of                ML030170463
 Construction Permits, January 16, 2003........
Letter from NRC to TVA, BLN Units 1 and 2--                  ML012290092
 Extension of Construction Permit Expiration
 Dates, March 4, 2003..........................
TVA Final Environmental Assessment for                       ML061810465
 Bellefonte Nuclear Plant Redress, January 2006
Letter from NRC to TVA, BLN Units 1 and 2--                  ML090610237
 Order Granting Reinstatement of Construction
 Permits Nos. CPPR-122 and CPPR-123, March 9,
 2009..........................................
TVA Final Supplemental Environmental Impact                  ML102870235
 Statement for Single Nuclear Unit at the
 Bellefonte Plant Site, May 2010...............
Letter from NRC to TVA, BLN Units 1 and 2--                  ML101880337
 Regarding Key Assumptions for Reactivation,
 August 4, 2010................................
Letter from TVA to NRC, BLN Unit 1 Request for               ML102870233
 Extension of Construction Permit CPPR-122,
 October 8, 2010...............................
NRC Environmental Assessment and Finding of No               ML103630202
 Significant Impact Related to the Request to
 Extend Construction Permit No. CPPR-122,
 September 9, 2011.............................
Letter from NRC to TVA, BLN Unit 1--Extension                ML11245A128
 of Construction Permit Expiration Date,
 September 30, 2011............................
Letter from TVA to NRC, BLN Unit 2--Request for              ML14168A489
 Extension of Construction Permit CPPR-123,
 June 10, 2014.................................
Letter from TVA to NRC, BLN Unit 2--Status                   ML17090A388
 Update Regarding Construction Permit CPPR-123,
 March 31, 2017................................
Letter from ND to NRC, Application for Order                 ML18318A428
 Approving Construction Permit Transfers and
 Conforming Administrative Construction Permit
 Amendments, November 13, 2018.................
Letter from NRC to TVA, BLN Units 1 and 2--                  ML20244A305
 Status Update and Request for Extension of
 Unit 1 Construction Permit CPPR-122, August
 28, 2020......................................
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    Dated: January 13, 2021.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Michael I. Dudek,
Chief, New Reactor Licensing Branch, Division of New and Renewed 
Licenses, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2021-01050 Filed 1-15-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P