[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 65 (Monday, April 6, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17312-17313]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-06571]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-615; NRC-2024-0146]
Tennessee Valley Authority; Clinch River Nuclear Site, Unit 1;
Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice; issuance.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), in cooperation
with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is issuing a final supplemental
environmental impact statement (SEIS), ``Environmental Impact Statement
for a Construction Permit Application at the Clinch River Nuclear Site:
Final Report.'' The NRC is issuing this final SEIS as part of its
review of the application submitted by Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
for a construction permit (CP) for one GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300
small modular reactor (SMR) at a site in Roane County, Tennessee,
designated as Clinch River Nuclear Site, Unit 1 (CRN-1). TVA plans to
construct and operate CRN-1 to demonstrate the feasibility of
constructing and operating the BWRX-300 SMR. The final SEIS evaluates
the environmental impacts of the proposed action of issuing a CP that
would allow the construction of CRN-1, as well as the environmental
impacts of alternatives to the proposed action.
DATES: The final SEIS is available as of April 1, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2024-0146 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-2024-0146. Address
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Bridget Curran;
telephone: 301-415-1003; 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 ADAMS Public 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 final SEIS is available in ADAMS under
Accession No. ML26035A285. The ADAMS accession number for each document
referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time
that it is mentioned in this document.
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. eastern time, Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
Project Website: The final SEIS will also be available
online at the CRN-1 project website at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/advanced/who-were-working-with/applicant-projects/clinch-river.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madelyn Nagel, Office of Nuclear
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3470; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
By letters dated April 28, 2025 (ADAMS Accession No. ML25118A209)
and May 20, 2025 (ADAMS Package Accession No. ML25140A062), TVA
submitted to the NRC, pursuant to section 103 of the Atomic Energy Act
of 1954, as amended, and part 50 of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR), ``Domestic Licensing of Production and
Utilization Facilities,'' an application for a CP that would allow the
construction of CRN-1 in Roane County, Tennessee. The proposed facility
would house one GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 SMR. This submission
initiated the proposed Federal action of determining whether to issue
the requested CP. A notice of receipt and availability of the CP
application was published in the Federal Register on June 10, 2025 (90
FR 24425). A notice of acceptance for docketing of the complete
application and opportunity to request a hearing was published in the
Federal Register on July 15, 2025 (90 FR 31709). A notice of intent to
prepare a supplement to the early site permit environmental impact
statement (EIS) was published on July 18, 2025 (90 FR 34015).
As set forth in 10 CFR 51.20(b), issuance of a CP to construct a
nuclear power reactor is an action that requires an EIS or a supplement
to an EIS. This notice is being published in accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), and the
NRC's regulations implementing NEPA at 10 CFR part 51, ``Environmental
Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory
Functions.'' In addition, pursuant to section 800.8(c) of title 36 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (36 CFR), the NRC used the process and
documentation for the preparation of the SEIS to comply with section
106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, in
lieu of the procedures set forth in 36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6.
A notice of availability and request for comment on the draft SEIS
was published in the Federal Register on November 7, 2025 (90 FR
50498). The public comment period on the draft SEIS ended on December
22, 2025, and the comments received on the draft SEIS are addressed in
the final SEIS.
II. Discussion
As discussed in the final SEIS, after weighing the environmental,
economic, technical, and other benefits against environmental and other
costs, and considering reasonable alternatives, the recommendation is,
unless safety issues mandate otherwise, that the NRC issue the
requested CP to TVA. This recommendation is based on the CP
application, information gathered during the environmental audit, and
responses to requests for clarifying information; consultation with
Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies; the independent
environmental review and assessment summarized in the final SEIS; and
consideration of public comments received on the draft SEIS. In
addition, no environmentally preferable alternatives that meet the
purpose and need for the proposed action were identified; therefore,
there is no obvious superior alternative to the proposed action from an
environmental perspective.
Dated: April 1, 2026.
[[Page 17313]]
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jacob Zimmerman,
Acting Director, Division of Rulemaking, Environmental, and Financial
Support, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2026-06571 Filed 4-3-26; 8:45 am]
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