Press Release-I-04-055, NRC to Hold Public Meeting Regarding Draft Environment Report for Millstone Nuclear Plant License Renewal Application
| ML043440093 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Millstone  |
| Issue date: | 12/09/2004 |
| From: | Office of Public Affairs Region I |
| To: | |
| Category:Press Release | |
| References | |
| Press Release-I-04-055 | |
| Download: ML043440093 (2) | |
Text
NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa.
Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA No. I-04-055 December 9, 2004
Contact:
Diane Screnci, 610/337-5330 Email: opa1@nrc.gov Neil Sheehan, 610/337-5331 NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETINGS REGARDING DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT FOR MILLSTONE NUCLEAR PLANT LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION Members of the public will have an opportunity on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2005, to comment on a draft report that assesses the environmental impact of extending the operating license for the Millstone Power Station, Units 2 and 3 in Waterford, Conn. In January 2004, Dominion Nuclear Connecticut, Inc., submitted an application to renew the licenses for an additional 20 years.
The NRC will hold two meetings on Jan. 11 to accept comments, with one session scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. and another at 7 p.m. Both meetings, which are scheduled to last up to three hours each, will take place at the Waterford Town Hall, at 15 Rope Ferry Road in Waterford. NRC staff will be available for an hour prior to the start of each meeting for informal discussions of the report.
Interested parties may pre-register to attend or present oral comments at the meetings by contacting Richard L. Emch, Jr., of the NRC at 800/368-5642, ext. 1590, or by sending an e-mail to MillstoneEIS@nrc.gov no later than Jan. 6, 2005. Members of the public may also register 15 minutes before each session to provide oral comments. The duration of individual comments may be limited by the time available, depending on the number of persons who register. Written comments on the draft report will also be considered by the NRC staff. Comments can be submitted by mail to the Chief, Rules and Directives Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Mail Stop T-6 D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001. They can also be submitted electronically to MillstoneEIS@nrc.gov. The public comment period ends on March 2.
Under NRC regulations, the original operating license for a nuclear power plant has a term of 40 years. The license may be renewed for up to an additional 20 years if NRC requirements are met.
The current operating license for Millstone 2 is due to expire on July 31, 2015, while the current operating license for Millstone 3 is scheduled to terminate on Nov. 25, 2025. (The Millstone Unit 1 reactor has been permanently shut down since July 1998.)
Dominion Nuclear submitted its license renewal application for the plant in January. As part of its application, the company submitted an environmental report. The NRC staff reviewed the report and performed an on-site audit. The staff also considered comments made during the environmental scoping process, including comments offered at public meetings held May 18, 2004 in Waterford.
Based on its review, the NRC staff has preliminarily recommended that the Commission determine the adverse environmental impacts of license renewal for the Millstone plant are not so great that preserving the option of license renewal for energy planning decision-makers would be unreasonable.
When issued in its final form, the statement will be a Millstone-specific supplement to the Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, (NUREG-1437).
The draft report can be viewed electronically via the NRCs web site at:
www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1437/supplement22/index.html Copies of the report can also be reviewed at the Public Document Room, located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md., 1-800-397-4209, and at the following locations:
Waterford Public Library, 49 Rope Ferry Road, Waterford; or Three Rivers Community College, Thames River Campus Library, 574 New London Turnpike, Norwich, Conn.