ML040070342
| ML040070342 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Diablo Canyon  |
| Issue date: | 01/07/2004 |
| From: | Shukla G NRC/NRR/DLPM/LPD4 |
| To: | Rueger G Pacific Gas & Electric Co |
| Shukla G, LPD4:DLPM:NRR, 415-8439 | |
| References | |
| TAC MC0992, TAC MC0993 | |
| Download: ML040070342 (7) | |
Text
January 7, 2004 Mr. Gregory M. Rueger Senior Vice President, Generation and Chief Nuclear Officer Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant P.O. Box 3 Avila Beach, CA 93424
SUBJECT:
DIABLO CANYON NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2 -
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT (TAC NOS. MC0992 AND MC0993)
Dear Mr. Rueger:
Enclosed is a copy of the Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact related to your application dated October 8, 2003, as supplemented on November 25, 2003, requesting an exemption from the requirements in 10 CFR 50.68, "Criticality Accident Requirements." The proposed exemption is required for handling the 10 CFR Part 72 licensed contents of the Holtec HI-STORM 100 Cask System.
The assessment is being forwarded to the Office of the Federal Register for publication.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Girija S. Shukla, Project Manager, Section 2 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-275 and 50-323
Enclosure:
Environmental Assessment cc w/encl: See next page
ML040070342 NRR-042 OFFICE PDIV-2/PM PDIV-2/LA RLEP/SC OGC Nlo PDIV-2/SC NAME GShukla EPeyton RZE for JTappert APHoefling SDembek DATE 12/16/03 12/16/03 12/18/03 12/22/03 1/2/04 w/comment DOCUMENT NAME: C:\\ORPCheckout\\FileNET\\ML040070342.wpd Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2 cc:
NRC Resident Inspector Diablo Canyon Power Plant c/o U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission P.O. Box 369 Avila Beach, CA 93424 Mr. Pete Wagner Sierra Club California 2650 Maple Avenue Morro Bay, California 93442 Ms. Nancy Culver San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace P.O. Box 164 Pismo Beach, CA 93448 Chairman San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors Room 370 County Government Center San Luis Obispo, CA 93408 Mr. Truman Burns Mr. Robert Kinosian California Public Utilities Commission 505 Van Ness, Room 4102 San Francisco, CA 94102 Diablo Canyon Independent Safety Committee ATTN: Robert R. Wellington, Esq.
Legal Counsel 857 Cass Street, Suite D Monterey, CA 93940 Regional Administrator, Region IV U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Harris Tower & Pavillion 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400 Arlington, TX 76011-8064 Richard F. Locke, Esq.
Pacific Gas & Electric Company P.O. Box 7442 San Francisco, CA 94120 Mr. David H. Oatley, Vice President and General Manager Diablo Canyon Power Plant P.O. Box 56 Avila Beach, CA 93424 City Editor The Tribune 3825 South Higuera Street P.O. Box 112 San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0112 Mr. Ed Bailey, Radiation Program Director Radiologic Health Branch State Department of Health Services P.O. Box 942732 (MS 178)
Sacramento, CA 94234-7320 Mr. James D. Boyd, Commissioner California Energy Commission 1516 Ninth Street (MS 31)
Sacramento, CA 95814 Mr. James R. Becker, Vice President Diablo Canyon Operations and Station Director Diablo Canyon Power Plant P.O. Box 3 Avila Beach, CA 93424
7590-01-P UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY DIABLO CANYON POWER PLANT, UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2 DOCKET NOS. 50-275 AND 50-323 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering issuance of an exemption from Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50, Section 50.68 for Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-80 and DPR-82, issued to Pacific Gas and Electric Company (the licensee), for operation of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant (DCPP), Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, located in San Luis Obispo County, California. Therefore, as required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing this environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Identification of the Proposed Action:
The proposed action would exempt the licensee from the requirements of 10 CFR 50.68, "Criticality Accident Requirements," for handling the 10 CFR Part 72 licensed contents of the Holtec HI-STORM 100 Cask System.
The proposed action is in accordance with the licensees application dated October 8, 2003, as supplemented on November 25, 2003.
The Need for the Proposed Action:
10 CFR 50.68(b)(1) sets forth the following requirement that must be met, in lieu of a monitoring system capable of detecting criticality events.
Plant procedures shall prohibit the handling and storage at any one time of more fuel assemblies than have been determined to be safely subcritical under the most adverse moderation conditions feasible by unborated water.
The licensee is unable to satisfy the above requirement for handling of the 10 CFR Part 72 licensed contents of the Holtec HI-STORM 100 Cask System. Section 50.12(a) allows licensees to apply for an exemption from the requirements of Part 50 if the regulation is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule and other conditions are met. The licensee has stated that compliance with 10 CFR 50.68(b)(1) is not necessary for handling the 10 CFR Part 72 licensed contents of the cask system to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action:
The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and concludes that the exemption described above would continue to satisfy the underlying purpose of 10 CFR 50.68(b)(1). The details of the staffs safety evaluation will be provided with the letter to the licensee approving the exemption to the regulation.
The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability or consequences of accidents, no changes are being made in the types or amounts of effluents that may be released off site, and there is no significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure. Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites. It does not affect nonradiological plant effluents and has no other environmental impact. Therefore, there are no significant nonradiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there are no significant environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.
Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action:
As an alternative to the proposed action, the staff considered denial of the proposed action (i.e., the "no-action" alternative). Denial of the application would result in no change in current environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action and the alternative action are similar.
Alternative Use of Resources:
The action does not involve the use of any different resource than those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos.
1 and 2, dated May 1973.
Agencies and Persons Consulted:
On December 15, 2003, the staff consulted with the California State official, Mr. Steve Hsu of the Radiologic Health Branch of the California Department of Health Services, regarding the environmental impact of the proposed action. The State official had no comments.
FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT On the basis of the environmental assessment, 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 not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed action.
For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the licensees letter dated October 8, 2003, as supplemented on November 25, 2003. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRCs Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, Public File Area O1 F21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the NRC Web site, http://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 PDR Reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 7th day of January 2004.
FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
/RA/
Stephen Dembek, Chief, Section 2 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation