[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 83 (Monday, April 29, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33400-33402]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09063]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-461; NRC-2024-0046]


Notice of Intent To Conduct Scoping Process and Prepare 
Environmental Impact Statement; Constellation Energy Generation, LLC; 
Clinton Power Station, Unit 1

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

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ACTION: Notice; 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 license renewal of the Facility Operating License No. 
NPF-62 for Clinton Power Station, Unit 1 (CPS). The NRC is seeking 
public comment on this action and has scheduled two public scoping 
meetings that will take place as online webinars.

DATES: The NRC will hold two public scoping meetings as online webinars 
on May 7, 2024, at 6 p.m. eastern time (ET) and May 9, 2024, at 1 p.m. 
(ET). Details on both meetings can be found on the NRC's Public Meeting 
Schedule at https://www.nrc.gov/pmns/mtg. Submit comments on the scope 
of the EIS by May 29, 2024. Comments received after this date will be 
considered if it is practical to do so, but the NRC is able 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://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2024-0046. 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 to: [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: Ashley Waldron, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-7317; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2024-0046 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://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2024-0046.
     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, at 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.
     NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies 
of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. To make an 
appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to 
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Public Library: A copy of the license renewal application 
for CPS, including the environmental report, is available for public 
review at the following public library location: Vespasian Warner 
Public Library, 310 N Quincy St., Clinton, IL 61727.

B. Submitting Comments

    The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please 
include Docket ID NRC-2024-0046 in your comment submission.
    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 February 14, 2024 (ADAMS Package Accession No. 
ML24045A023), Constellation Energy Generation, LLC (CEG) submitted to 
the NRC an application for license renewal of Facility Operating 
License No. NPF-62 for Clinton Power Station, Unit 1 (CPS), for an 
additional 20 years of operation. This submission initiated the NRC's 
proposed action of determining whether to grant the license renewal 
application. CPS is located in DeWitt County, approximately 7 miles 
east of the city of Clinton in east-central Illinois. The current 
facility operating license for Unit 1 will expire at midnight on April 
17, 2027. The license renewal 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 facility operating license for Unit 1 
to midnight on April 17, 2047. A notice of receipt and availability of 
the application was published in the Federal Register on March 7, 2024 
(89 FR 16591). A notice of acceptance for docketing of the application 
and of opportunity to request a hearing was published in the Federal 
Register on April 18, 2024 (89 FR 27805) and is available on the 
Federal rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov) by searching 
for Docket ID NRC-2024-0046

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 license renewal 
application for CPS, 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,'' and 10 CFR 51.116, ``Notice of 
intent.''
    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, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.) 
(NEPA), process to fulfill the

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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, CEG submitted 
an environmental report (ER) as part of the license renewal 
application. The ER was prepared pursuant to 10 CFR part 51 and is 
publicly available at ADAMS Accession No. ML24045A279. The ER will also 
be available for viewing at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/clinton.html.
    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'' (GEIS) (ADAMS Package 
Accession No. ML13107A023), related to the license renewal application 
for CPS. 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 supplemental to the GEIS will evaluate the environmental 
impacts of the license renewal for CPS, 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 EIS and, as soon as practicable thereafter, 
will prepare a draft EIS 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 
EIS will be used to accomplish the following:
    a. Define the proposed action that is to be the subject of the EIS;
    b. Determine the scope of the EIS 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 EIS 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 EIS to the 
NRC and any cooperating agencies; and
    h. Describe how the EIS will be prepared, including any contractor 
assistance to be used.
    The NRC invites the following entities to participate in scoping:
    a. The applicant, Constellation Energy Generation, LLC;
    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 two public scoping meetings 
as online webinars for the CPS license renewal application. 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 webinars. To be considered, comments must be provided either at the 
transcribed public meeting or in writing, as discussed in the ADDRESSES 
section of this document. The public scoping webinars will be held on 
May 7, 2024, at 6 p.m. ET and May 9, 2024, at 1 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, agendas for the meeting, and access information 
for the webinar. Please contact Ashley Waldron no later than May 2, 
2024, 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 EIS, 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 CPS license renewal EIS.
    Participation in the scoping process for the CPS license renewal 
EIS does not entitle participants to become parties to the proceeding 
to which the EIS relates. Matters related to participation in any 
hearing are outside the scope of matters to be discussed at this public 
meeting.

    Dated: April 23, 2024.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Stephen S. Koenick,
Chief, Environmental Project Management Branch 1, Division of 
Rulemaking, Environment, and Financial Support, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety, and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2024-09063 Filed 4-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P