ML031710855
| ML031710855 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Fort Calhoun  |
| Issue date: | 06/20/2003 |
| From: | Kuo P NRC/NRR/DRIP/RLEP |
| To: | Hutton U Environmental Protection Agency |
| Cushing J, NRR/DRIP/RLEP, 415-1424 | |
| References | |
| Download: ML031710855 (8) | |
Text
June 20, 2003 Mr. U. Gale Hutton Director Environmental Services Division U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region VII 901 North 5th Street Kansas City, Kansas 66101
SUBJECT:
RESPONSE TO THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCYS COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT SUPPLEMENT 12 TO THE GENERIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT FOR LICENSE RENEWAL OF NUCLEAR PLANTS, REGARDING FORT CALHOUN STATION, UNIT 1
Dear Mr. Hutton:
By a letter dated April 10, 2003, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provided its comments on the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) Draft Supplement 12 to the
Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, regarding Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 (SEIS). The NRC has attached its response to EPA's comments on the draft SEIS and will address those comments in the final SEIS.
The NRC appreciated the excellent information provided as an attachment to your April 10, 2003, letter addressing thermal plume studies performed by the EPA, the Oregon Graduate Institute and the United States Geologic Survey (USGS) and during a conference call with the following members of your staff: Mr. Cothern and Mr. Dunn. NRC staff was made aware that these studies had been performed during the review process, but were pleased to learn of the breadth of the analysis.
The NRC believes that its license renewal schedule may have led the EPA to conclude that a 10-year lead time existed between issuing the final SEIS and the action of either renewing or not renewing the license. The NRC would like to clarify its schedule for the review of Fort Calhoun Station's license renewal application. The NRC is considering an application for renewal of the operating license for the Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 for an additional 20 years beyond the original license expiration date of 2013 (i.e., to 2033). The NRC is scheduled to issue the final SEIS by August 15, 2003, and will make its decision on renewing the license by November 2003. The renewed license, if issued, will supercede the original license and will be valid from date of issuance in November of 2003 until August 9, 2033.
In your letter, questions were raised on how increases in power demand in the area around Fort Calhoun Station over the next 20 years, and the cumulative impacts on the plant on the thermal regime in the Missouri River, were considered in the relicensing process. A response to each of your comments is provided in the enclosure to this letter.
G. Hutton If you have any questions regarding this response to your comments please contact the environmental license renewal project manager, Jack Cushing, by telephone at (301) 415-1424 or by e-mail at jxc9@nrc.gov.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Pao-Tsin Kuo, Program Director License Renewal and Environmental Impacts Programs Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No.: 50-285
Enclosure:
As stated cc w/encl: See next page
G. Hutton If you have any questions regarding this response to your comments please contact the environmental license renewal project manager, Jack Cushing, by telephone at (301) 415-1424 or by e-mail at jxc9@nrc.gov.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Pao-Tsin Kuo, Program Director License Renewal and Environmental Impacts Programs Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No.: 50-285
Enclosure:
As stated cc w/encl: See next page DISTRIBUTION:
PUBLIC P. T. Kuo Environmental R/F J. Cushing J. Tappert S. Cole Accession no.: ML031710855
- See Previous concurrence DOCUMENT NAME: C:\\ORPCheckout\\FileNET\\ML031710855.WPD OFFICE PM:RLEP LA:RLEP SC:RLEP OGC PD:RLEP NAME JCushing*
YEdmonds* (EGHylton for)
JTappert*
SCole*
PTKuo*
DATE 6/5/03 6/6/03 6/5/03 6/18/036 6/20/03 OFFICIAL FILE COPY
The Nuclear Regulatory Commissions Response to the Environmental Protection Agencys Comments on the Draft Supplement 12 to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, Regarding Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 June 2003
1
- 1. General Comments: Power consumption and demand growth rate Changes in power demand are considered in the relicensing process and in the Draft Supplement 12 to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, Regarding Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 (SEIS). Fort Calhoun Station Unit 1 (FCS) is a baseload unit, which means it generally operates at full power. In the short term an increase in power demand will not result in FCS increasing its power output because it is already operating at full power.
Power demands are expected to increase with population and growth of industry over the license renewal period, and this may cause the Omaha Public Power District (OPPD), the licensee for FCS, to seek an increase in the authorized power level for the plant. Any increase in the plants authorized power level requires OPPD to request an amendment to the FCS operating license. OPPD plans to submit an amendment request to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for a less than two percent power uprate by the end of June 2003. The NRC will then perform a safety evaluation and if the amendment request is found acceptable the NRC will authorize the power increase.
As mentioned in your letter, the recent (September 2001) thermal modeling studies performed by EPA, the United States Geologic Service (USGS), and the Oregon Graduate Institute, indicate that as temperatures in the Missouri River upstream of FCS rise to 88oF, the 90oF limit of the Nebraska Surface Water Quality Standards (Title 117 Chapter 4.003.01B) at the end of the mixing zone may be exceeded. The less than two percent power increase that OPPD plans to submit in June 2003, could have a minor impact on these results, however, it is unlikely as the maximum discharge temperatures from FCS will continue to be limited by the national pollution discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit to 110F (Permit # NE0000418 or 112F with the current Consent Order, Case #2206). At this time, the NRC is unaware of any other power uprates for FCS beyond the planned June 2003 request. Any power uprates would require a separate review process.
- 2. Specific Comments:
Pg 1-1, Line 21-23: License renewal time-line As mentioned in the body of the letter, the schedule for the review of Fort Calhoun Stations license renewal application should be clarified. The NRC is considering an application for renewal of the operating license for the Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 for an additional 20 years beyond the original license expiration date of 2013 (i.e., to 2033). The NRC is scheduled to issue the Supplement 12 to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, regarding Fort Calhoun Station, Unit 1 (SEIS) by August 15, 2003, and will make its decision on renewing the license by November 2003. The renewed license, if issued, will supercede the original license and will be valid from date of issuance in November of 2003 until August 9, 2033. We believe that clarification of this schedule addresses the concern raised in the comment.
2 Pg 2-38, Lines 22-33: License renewal and growth controls As mentioned above, license renewal reviews consider projections in power demand in relation to population growth. However, a majority of the scenarios considered during the review assume that the plant is operating at full capacity. Therefore, there is a limit to the necessity to consider population growth and its effect on total production capacity of the plant. Increased power demands beyond full power would require additional changes to the plant or construction of a new one, both of which would require a separate environmental review.
Pg 2-49, Lines 18-21: Cumulative impacts Many sources of information were considered during this license renewal process. On the issue of cumulative impacts on the Missouri River, the major issue relating to plant operation is the thermal impact of cooling system discharges. In reviewing the scientific literature on thermal regimes in the Missouri River, a recent study performed by scientists from the University of Iowa was identified (Wright, et al., 1999). The study utilized available temperature data and a dynamic river flow and mixing model (CHARIMA) to examine the thermal regime in the Missouri from Gavins Point Dam down to Rulo, Nebraska (near the Kansas border). There are at least five power plants along this reach which discharge into the River, two of which (Omaha Units and Council Bluffs) lie between FCS and the confluence of the Platte and Missouri Rivers. This investigation established that, relative to other discharges to the Missouri, the total impact of FCS discharge on the thermal regime of the Missouri is minor (Wright, et al.,
1999). This study examined a number of different scenarios beyond those that could result from proposals in the Missouri River Main Stem Reservoir System Master Manual, projecting the thermal regime 40 years into the future. The most extreme simulation assumed all the power plants on the reach were operating at maximum capacity, a summer low-flow regime, and an increase in ambient temperature due to global warming. Even under these most extreme conditions, while a cumulative warming effect was demonstrated, water temperatures did not exceed the 90F (32C) maximum limit of Title 117 of the Nebraska Surface Water Quality Standards (Title 117 Chapter 4.003.01B). Also under those extreme conditions, average river temperature for the month of August (an indicative summer month) were less than 79F (26C). It is the conclusion of NRC staff that these conservative analyses provide evidence that the cumulative impacts of the operation of FCS Unit 1 through 2033 on the thermal regime of the Missouri River will be small.
REFERENCES Wright, S.A., F.M. Holly Jr., A.A. Bradley, W. Krajewski. 1999. Long-term simulation of the thermal regime of Missouri River. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering. 125(3): 242-252.
Ft. Calhoun Station, Unit 1 cc:
Winston & Strawn ATTN: James R. Curtiss, Esq.
1400 L Street, NW.
Washington, DC 20005-3502 Chairman Washington County Board of Supervisors P.O. Box 466 Blair, NE 68008 Mr. John Kramer, Resident Inspector U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Post Office Box 310 Fort Calhoun, NE 68023 Regional Administrator, Region IV U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400 Arlington, TX 76011 Ms. Sue Semerera, Section Administrator Nebraska Health and Human Services Systems Division of Public Health Assurance Consumer Services Section 301 Centennial Mall, South P.O. Box 95007 Lincoln, NE 68509-5007 Mr. David J. Bannister Manager - Fort Calhoun Station Omaha Public Power District Fort Calhoun Station FC-1-1 Plant P.O. Box 550 Fort Calhoun, NE 68023-0550 Mr. John B. Herman Manager - Nuclear Licensing Omaha Public Power District Fort Calhoun Station FC-2-4 Adm.
P.O. Box 550 Fort Calhoun, NE 68023-0550 Mr. Richard P. Clemens Division Manager - Nuclear Assessments Omaha Public Power District Fort Calhoun Station P.O. Box 550 Fort Calhoun, NE 68023-0550 Mr. Daniel K. McGhee Bureau of Radiological Health Iowa Department of Public Health 401 SW. 7th Street Suite D Des Moines, IA 50309 Mr. John Fassell, LLRW Program Manager Health and Human Services Regulation and Licensure Consumer Health Services 301 Centennial Mall, South P.O. Box 95007 Lincoln, NE 68509-5007 W. Dale Clark Library Attn: Margaret Blackstone 215 South 15th Street Omaha, NE 68102 Blair Public Library Attn: Ruth Peterson 210 South 17th Street Blair, NE 68008-2055 Mr. Alan P. Nelson Nuclear Energy Institute 1776 I Street, NW., Suite 400 Washington, DC 20006-3708 Mr. Leon Campbell, Chairman Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska Executive Committee Route 1, Box 58A White Cloud, KS 66094 Mr. Arthur "Butch" Denney, Chairman Santee Sioux Tribal Council Route 2 Niobrara, NE 68760
Mr. Corbin Shuckahosee, Chairperson Sac & Fox Tribe of Missouri in Kansas and Nebraska Tribal Council Route 1, Box 60 Reserve, KS 66434-9723 Mr. Fred LeRoy, Chairperson Ponca Tribe of Nebraska P.O. Box 288 Niobrara, NE 68760 Mr. Gary Lasley, Chairman Omaha Tribal Council P.O. Box 368 Macy, NE 68039 Mr. John Blackhawk, Chairman Winnebago Tribal Council P.O. Box 686 Winnebago, NE 68071 Ms. Judy Gaiashkibos, Executive Director Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs 6th Floor, State Capitol Box 94981 Lincoln, NE 68509 Mr. R. T. Ridenoure Division Manager - Nuclear Operations Omaha Public Power District Fort Calhoun Station FC-2-4 Adm.
P.O. Box 550 Fort Calhoun, NE 68023-0550