[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 151 (Tuesday, August 10, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43684-43686]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-17036]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-268, 50-270 and 50-287; NRC-2021-0146]
Notice of Intent To Conduct Scoping Process and Prepare
Environmental Impact Statement; Duke Energy Carolina, LLC; Duke Energy;
Oconee Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2, and 3
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Intent to conduct scoping process and prepare environmental
impact statement; public scoping meeting and request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will conduct a
scoping process to gather information necessary to prepare an
environmental impact statement (EIS) to evaluate the environmental
impacts for the subsequent license renewal (SLR) of the operating
licenses for Oconee Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2, and 3 (ONS). The NRC
is seeking public comment on this action and has scheduled a public
scoping meeting that will take place as an online webinar.
DATES: The NRC will hold a public scoping meeting as an online webinar
on August 25, 2021, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET).
Submit comments on the scope of the EIS by September 9, 2021. Comments
received after this date will be considered if it is practical to do
so, but the NRC is able
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to ensure consideration only for comments received on or before this
date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods;
however, the NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking website:
Federal Rulemaking website: Go to https://regulations.gov
and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0146. Address questions about Docket
IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; telephone: 301-415-0624;
email: [email protected]. For technical questions, contact the
individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
Email: Comments may be submitted to the NRC electronically
using the email address [email protected].
Mail comments to: Office of Administration, Mail Stop:
TWFN-7-A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, ATTN: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff.
For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lance Rakovan, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-2589, email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments
A. Obtaining Information
Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2021-0146 when contacting the NRC
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain
publicly available information related to this action by any of the
following methods:
Federal Rulemaking website: Go to https://regulations.gov
and search for Docket ID NRC-2021-0146.
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 it is available in ADAMS) is
provided the first time that it is referenced.
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. ET, Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
B. Submitting Comments
The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the
Federal Rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please
include Docket ID NRC-2021-0146 in the subject line of your comment
submission in order to ensure that the NRC is able to make your comment
submission available to the public in this docket.
The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at
https://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions
into ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to
remove identifying or contact information.
If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to
remove such information before making the comment submissions available
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.
II. Discussion
By letter dated June 7, 2021 (ADAMS Package Accession No.
ML21158A193), Duke Energy Carolina, LLC (Duke Energy) submitted to the
NRC an application for subsequent license renewal of Renewed Facility
Operating License Nos. DPR-38, DPR-47, and DPR-55 for ONS, Units 1, 2,
and 3, respectively, for an additional 20 years of operation. This
submission initiated the NRC's proposed action of determining whether
to grant the SLR application. The ONS units are pressurized water
reactors designed by Babcock & Wilcox and are located in Seneca, South
Carolina, approximately 30 miles west of Greenville. The current
renewed facility operating license for Unit 1 expires at midnight on
February 6, 2033, the current renewed facility operating license for
Unit 2 expires at midnight on October 6, 2033, and the current renewed
facility operating license for Unit 3 expires at midnight on July 19,
2034. The SLR application was submitted pursuant to part 54 of title 10
of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), ``Requirements for Renewal
of Operating Licenses for Nuclear Power Plants,'' and seeks to extend
the renewed facility operating license for Unit 1 to midnight on
February 6, 2053, the renewed facility operating license for Unit 2 to
midnight on October 6, 2053, and the renewed facility operating license
for Unit 3 to midnight on July 19, 2054. A notice of receipt and
availability of the application was published in the Federal Register
on June 25, 2021 (86 FR 33784). A notice of acceptance for docketing of
the application and of opportunity to request a hearing was published
in the Federal Register on July 28, 2021 (86 FR 40662) and is available
on the Federal Rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov) by
searching for Docket ID NRC-2021-0127.
III. Request for Comment
This notice informs the public of the NRC's intention to conduct
environmental scoping and prepare an EIS related to the SLR application
for ONS, and to provide the public an opportunity to participate in the
environmental scoping process, as defined in 10 CFR 51.29, ``Scoping-
environmental impact statement and supplement to environmental impact
statement.''
The regulations in 36 CFR 800.8, ``Coordination With the National
Environmental Policy Act,'' allow agencies to use their National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.) (NEPA)
process to fulfill the requirements of Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (54 U.S.C. 300101, et seq.) (NHPA).
Therefore, pursuant to 36 CFR 800.8(c), the NRC intends to use its
process and documentation required for the preparation of the EIS on
the proposed action to comply with Section 106 of the NHPA in lieu of
the procedures set forth at 36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6.
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.53(c) and 10 CFR 54.23, Duke Energy
submitted an environmental report (ER) as part of the SLR application.
The ER was prepared pursuant to 10 CFR part 51, ``Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions,'' and is publicly available in ADAMS under
[[Page 43686]]
Package Accession No. ML21158A193. The ER will also be available for
viewing at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/subsequent-license-renewal.html. In addition, the SLR application,
including the ER, is available for public review at the Seneca Branch
of the Oconee County Public Library, 300 E. South 2nd Street, Seneca,
SC 29678.
The NRC intends to gather the information necessary to prepare a
plant-specific supplement to NUREG-1437, ``Generic Environmental Impact
Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants'' (ADAMS Package
Accession No. ML13107A023) (GEIS), related to the SLR application for
Oconee. The NRC is required by 10 CFR 51.95 to prepare a plant-specific
supplement to the GEIS in connection with the renewal of an operating
license. This notice is being published in accordance with NEPA and the
NRC's regulations at 10 CFR part 51.
The supplement to the GEIS will evaluate the environmental impacts
of subsequent license renewal for ONS, and reasonable alternatives
thereto. Possible alternatives to the proposed action include the no
action alternative and reasonable alternative energy sources.
As part of its environmental review, the NRC will first conduct a
scoping process for the plant-specific supplement to the GEIS and, as
soon as practicable thereafter, will prepare a draft supplement to the
GEIS for public comment. Participation in this scoping process by
members of the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal government
agencies is encouraged. The scoping process for the supplement to the
GEIS will be used to accomplish the following:
a. Define the proposed action that is to be the subject of the
supplement to the GEIS;
b. Determine the scope of the supplement to the GEIS and identify
the significant issues to be analyzed in depth;
c. Identify and eliminate from detailed study those issues that are
peripheral or are not significant or that have been covered by prior
environmental review;
d. Identify any environmental assessments and other ElSs that are
being or will be prepared that are related to, but are not part of, the
scope of the supplement to the GEIS under consideration;
e. Identify other environmental review and consultation
requirements related to the proposed action;
f. Indicate the relationship between the timing of the preparation
of the environmental analyses and the NRC's tentative planning and
decision-making schedule;
g. Identify any cooperating agencies and, as appropriate, allocate
assignments for preparation and schedules for completing the supplement
to the GEIS to the NRC and any cooperating agencies; and
h. Describe how the supplement to the GEIS will be prepared,
including any contractor assistance to be used.
The NRC invites the following entities to participate in scoping:
a. The applicant, Duke Energy;
b. Any Federal agency that has jurisdiction by law or special
expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved or that is
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
c. Affected State and local government agencies, including those
authorized to develop and enforce relevant environmental standards;
d. Any affected Indian Tribe;
e. Any person who requests or has requested an opportunity to
participate in the scoping process; and
f. Any person who has petitioned or intends to petition for leave
to intervene under 10 CFR 2.309.
IV. Public Scoping Meeting
In accordance with 10 CFR 51.26(b), the scoping process for an EIS
may include a public scoping meeting to help identify significant
issues related to the proposed action and to determine the scope of
issues to be addressed in the EIS.
The NRC is announcing that it will hold a public scoping meeting as
an online webinar for the ONS SLR supplement to the GEIS. The webinar
will include a telephone line for members of the public to provide
comments. A court reporter will transcribe all comments received during
the webinar. To be considered, comments must be provided either at the
transcribed public meeting or in writing, as discussed in the ADDRESSES
section of this notice. The public scoping webinar will be held on
August 25, 2021, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Persons interested in
attending this online webinar should monitor the NRC's Public Meeting
Schedule website at https://www.nrc.gov/pmns/mtg for additional
information, agenda for the meeting, and access information for the
webinar. Please contact Mr. Lance Rakovan no later than August 18,
2021, if accommodations or special equipment is needed to attend or to
provide comments, so that the NRC staff can determine whether the
request can be accommodated.
The public scoping meeting will include: (1) An overview by the NRC
staff of the environmental and safety review processes, the proposed
scope of the supplement to the GEIS, and the proposed review schedule;
and (2) the opportunity for interested government agencies,
organizations, and individuals to submit comments or suggestions on
environmental issues or the proposed scope of the ONS SLR supplement to
the GEIS.
Participation in the scoping process for the ONS SLR supplement to
the GEIS does not entitle participants to become parties to the
proceeding to which the supplement to the GEIS relates. Matters related
to participation in any hearing are outside the scope of matters to be
discussed at this public meeting.
Dated: August 5, 2021.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Robert B. Elliott,
Chief, Environmental Review License Renewal Branch, Division of
Rulemaking, Environment, and Financial Support, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2021-17036 Filed 8-9-21; 8:45 am]
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