ML081970679

Notice of Intent

ML081970679
Person / Time
Site:	Prairie Island
Issue date:	07/15/2008
From:	Rani Franovich NRC/NRR/ADRO/DLR/REBB
To:	Wadley M Nuclear Management Co
Leous, JP, DLR/REBB 301-415-2864
References
TAC MD8528, TAC MD8529
Download: ML081970679 (8)

Text

July 15, 2008 Mr. Michael D. Wadley Site Vice President Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 & 2 Nuclear Management Company, LLC 1717 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089

SUBJECT:

NOTICE OF INTENT TO PREPARE AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT AND CONDUCT SCOPING PROCESS FOR LICENSE RENEWAL FOR THE PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 & 2 (TAC NOS. MD8528 AND MD8529)

Dear Mr. Wadley:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or the staff) has received your application dated April 11, 2008, as supplemented by letter dated May 16, 2008, for the renewal of the Operating Licenses No. DPR-42 and DPR-60 for the Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant (PINGP). In support of the application and in accordance with Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 51 and 10 CFR Part 54, Nuclear Management Company, LLC (NMC) submitted an environmental report (ER). This letter provides information related to the staffs review of the PINGP ER.

In a letter dated June 26, 2008, the NRC had mention of a Notice of Intent to be published in the Federal Register advising the public that the NRC intends to gather information necessary to prepare a site-specific supplement to the Commissions Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, (NUREG-1437) related to the review of the application for the renewal of the PINGP, Units 1 & 2, operating licenses. This notice was not published, requiring staff to draft the attached version of the NRCs Notice of Intent. Important scoping period dates have been adjusted to reflect the documents delayed publication.

Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.28, NMC is invited to participate in the environmental scoping process.

As discussed in the enclosed notice, the staff is providing the public with the opportunity to participate in two environmental scoping meetings to be held Wednesday, July 30, 2008. The meetings will be held at the Red Wing Public Library, 225 East Ave, Red Wing, MN 55066. The first session will be held in the afternoon, and the second session, covering the same subjects, will be held in the evening. The NRC will present an overview of the environmental review process and will describe how the process will be implemented for the review of the PINGP license renewal application.

M. Wadley A separate NRC meeting notice with a more detailed agenda is forthcoming. You will be provided a copy of that notice.

In the interim, should you have any questions regarding the scoping meeting, please contact the NRCs Project Manager, Mr. Richard Plasse, at 301-415-1427 or by e-mail at richard.plasse@nrc.gov.

Sincerely,

\\RA\\

Rani Franovich, Branch Chief Projects Branch 2 Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-282 and 50-306

Enclosure:

As stated cc w/encl.: See next page

ML081970679 OFFICE LA:DLR PM:DLR:RPB2 BC:DLR:RPB2 NAME YEdmonds JLeous R.Franovich DATE 7/15/08 7/15/08 7/15/08

Letter to M. Wadley from R. Franovich dated July 15, 2008 DISTRIBUTION:

SUBJECT:

NOTICE OF INTENT TO PREPARE AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT AND CONDUCT SCOPING PROCESS FOR LICENSE RENEWAL FOR THE PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 & 2 (TAC NOS. MD8528 AND MD8529)

HARD COPY:

DLR RF E-MAIL T. Blount / S. Lee (RidsNrrDlr)

T. Combs, OCA T. Madden, OCA R. Shane, OCA B. Keeling, OCA R. Franovich (RidsNrrDlrRebb)

E. Benner (RidsNrrDlrReba)

R. Plasse M. Chawla R. Skokowski K. Stoedter P. Zurawski OPA (RidsOpaMail)

D. McIntyre, OPA V. Mitlyng D. Roth, OGC OGC (RidsOGCMailRoom)

DLR/REBB J.P. Leous

7590-01-P UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION NUCLEAR MANAGEMENT COMPANY, LLC.

PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 AND 2 NOTICE OF INTENT TO PREPARE AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT AND CONDUCT SCOPING PROCESS DOCKET NOS. 50-282 AND 50-306 Nuclear Management Company, LLC. (NMC) has submitted an application for renewal of Facility Operating Licenses No. DPR-42 and DPR-60 for an additional 20 years of operation at the Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 (PINGP). PINGP is located in the city of Red Wing, Minnesota, on the west bank of the Mississippi River.

The operating licenses for PINGP, Units 1 and 2, expire on August 9, 2013, and October 29, 2014, respectively. The application for renewal, dated April 11, 2008, and supplemented by letter dated May 16, 2008, was submitted pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 54. A notice of receipt and availability of the application, which included the environmental report (ER), was published in the Federal Register on May 6, 2008 (73 FR 25034), as corrected on May 27, 2008 (73 FR 30423). A notice of acceptance for docketing of the application for renewal of the facility operating license was published in the Federal Register on June 17, 2008 (73 FR 34335). The purpose of this notice is to inform the public that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will be preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) related to the review of the license renewal application and to provide the public an opportunity to participate in the environmental scoping process, which is described in 10 CFR 51.29. In addition, as outlined in 36 CFR 800.8, Coordination with the National Environmental Policy Act, the NRC plans to coordinate compliance with Section 106 of the ENCLOSURE

National Historic Preservation Act in meeting the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA).

In accordance with 10 CFR 51.53(c) and 10 CFR 54.23, NMC submitted the ER as part of the application. The ER was prepared pursuant to 10 CFR Part 51 and is publicly available at the NRC Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, or from the NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS). The ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room is accessible at http://adamswebsearch.nrc.gov/dologin.htm. The Accession Numbers for the ER are ML081130677, ML081130681, and ML081130684. Persons who do not have access to ADAMS, or who encounter problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRCs PDR reference staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov. The ER may also be viewed on the Internet at www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/prairie-island.html. In addition, the ER is available for public inspection near PINGP at the Red Wing Public Library, 225 East Ave, Red Wing, MN 55066.

This notice advises the public that the NRC intends to gather the information necessary to prepare a plant-specific supplement to the Commissions Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, (NUREG-1437) related to the review of the application for renewal of the PINGP operating licenses for an additional 20 years.

Possible alternatives to the proposed action (license renewal) include no action and reasonable alternative energy sources. The NRC is required by 10 CFR 51.95 to prepare a supplement to the GEIS in connection with the renewal of an operating license. This notice is being published in accordance with NEPA and the NRCs regulations found in 10 CFR Part 51.

The NRC will first conduct a scoping process for the supplement to the GEIS and, as soon as practicable thereafter, will prepare a draft supplement to the GEIS for public comment.

Participation in the scoping process by members of the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal government agencies is encouraged. The scoping process for the supplement to the GEIS will follow 10 CFR 51.29 and will be used to:

a. Define the proposed action which is to be the subject of the supplement to the GEIS.

b. Determine the scope of the supplement to the GEIS and identify the significant issues to be analyzed in depth.

c. Identify and eliminate from detailed study those issues that are peripheral or that are not significant.

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 supplement to the GEIS being considered.

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 Commission's tentative planning and decision-making schedule.

g. Identify any cooperating agencies and, as appropriate, allocate assignments for preparation and schedules for completing the supplement to the GEIS to the NRC and any cooperating agencies.

h. Describe how the supplement to the GEIS will be prepared, and include any contractor assistance to be used.

The NRC invites the following entities to participate in scoping:

a. The applicant, Nuclear Management Company, 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.

f. Any person who has petitioned or intends to petition for leave to intervene.

In accordance with 10 CFR 51.26, the scoping process for an EIS may include a public scoping meeting to help identify significant issues related to a proposed activity and to determine the scope of issues to be addressed in an EIS. The NRC has decided to hold public meetings for the PINGP license renewal supplement to the GEIS. The scoping meetings will be held at the Red Wing Public Library, 225 East Ave, Red Wing, MN 55066, on Wednesday, July 30, 2008. There will be two sessions to accommodate interested parties. The first session will convene at 1:30 p.m. and will continue until 4:30 p.m., as necessary. The second session will convene at 7:00 p.m. with a repeat of the overview portions of the meeting and will continue until 10:00 p.m., as necessary. Both meetings will be transcribed and will include: (1) an overview by the NRC staff of the NEPA environmental review process, the proposed scope of the supplement to the GEIS, and the proposed review schedule; and (2) the opportunity for interested government agencies, organizations, and individuals to submit comments or suggestions on the environmental issues or the proposed scope of the supplement to the GEIS.

Additionally, the NRC staff will host informal discussions one hour prior to the start of each session at the same location. No formal comments on the proposed scope of the supplement to the GEIS will be accepted during the informal discussions. To be considered, comments must be provided either at the transcribed public meetings or in writing, as discussed below. Persons may register to attend or present oral comments at the meetings on the scope of the NEPA review by contacting the NRC Project Manager, Mr. Richard Plasse, by telephone at 1-301-415-1427, or by e-mail to the NRC at richard.plasse@nrc.gov no later than July 24, 2008.

Members of the public may also register to speak at the meeting within 15 minutes of the start of each session. Individual oral comments may be limited by the time available, depending on the number of persons who register. Members of the public who have not registered may also have an opportunity to speak, if time permits. Public comments will be considered in the scoping process for the supplement to the GEIS. Mr. Plasse will need to be contacted no later than July 24, 2008, if special equipment or accommodations are needed to attend or present information at the public meeting, so that the NRC staff can determine whether the request can be accommodated.

Members of the public may send written comments on the environmental scope of the PINGP license renewal review to: Chief, Rulemaking, Directives and Editing Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, Mailstop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, and should cite the publication date and page number of this Federal Register notice. Comments may also be delivered to the NRC, Room T-6D59, Two White Flint North, 11545 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. during Federal workdays. To be considered in the scoping process, written comments should be postmarked by September 22, 2008. Electronic comments may be sent by e-mail to the NRC at PrairieIslandEIS@nrc.gov, and should be sent no later than

September 22, 2008, to be considered in the scoping process. Comments will be available electronically and accessible through ADAMS at http://adamswebsearch.nrc.gov/dologin.htm.

Participation in the scoping process for the supplement to the GEIS does not entitle participants to become parties to the proceeding to which the supplement to the GEIS relates.

Notice of opportunity for a hearing regarding the renewal application was the subject of the aforementioned Federal Register notice (73 FR 34335). Matters related to participation in any hearing are outside the scope of matters to be discussed at this public meeting.

At the conclusion of the scoping process, the NRC will prepare a concise summary of the determination and conclusions reached, including the significant issues identified, and will send a copy of the summary to each participant in the scoping process. The summary will also be available for inspection in ADAMS at http://adamswebsearch.nrc.gov/dologin.htm. The staff will then prepare and issue for comment the draft supplement to the GEIS, which will be the subject of separate notices and separate public meetings. Copies will be available for public inspection at the above-mentioned addresses, and one copy per request will be provided free of charge. After receipt and consideration of the comments, the NRC will prepare a final supplement to the GEIS, which will also be available for public inspection.

Information about the proposed action, the supplement to the GEIS, and the scoping process may be obtained from Mr. Plasse at the aforementioned telephone number or e-mail address.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 15th day of July 2008.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

\\RA\\

Rani Franovich, Branch Chief Projects Branch 2 Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 cc:

Peter M. Glass Assistant General Counsel Xcel Energy Services, Inc.

414 Nicollet Mall (MP4)

Minneapolis, MN 55401 Manager, Regulatory Affairs Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant Nuclear Management Company, LLC 1717 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089 Manager - Environmental Protection Division Minnesota Attorney General=s Office 445 Minnesota St., Suite 900 St. Paul, MN 55101-2127 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Resident Inspector's Office 1719 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089-9642 Administrator Goodhue County Courthouse P.O. Box 408 Red Wing, MN 55066-0408 Philip R. Mahowald General Counsel Prairie Island Indian Community 5636 Sturgeon Lake Road Welch, MN 55089 Heather Westra Prairie Island Indian Community 5636 Sturgeon Lake Road Welch, MN 55089 Gene Eckholt Nuclear Management Company, LLC 1717 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089 Jim Holthaus Nuclear Management Company, LLC 1717 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089 Katie Himanga, Mayor City of Lake City 205 West Center St.

Lake City, MN 55041 Commissioner Minnesota Department of Commerce 85 7th Place East, Suite 500 St. Paul, MN 55101-2198 Tribal Council Prairie Island Indian Community ATTN: Environmental Department 5636 Sturgeon Lake Road Welch, MN 55089 Nuclear Asset Manager Xcel Energy, Inc.

414 Nicollet Mall (MP4)

Minneapolis, MN 55401 Dennis L. Koehl Chief Nuclear Officer Nuclear Management Company, LLC 414 Nicollet Mall (MP4)

Minneapolis, MN 55401 Joel P. Sorenson Director, Site Operations Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant Nuclear Management Company, LLC 1717 Wakonade Drive East Welch, MN 55089

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 cc:

Joan Marshman 30129 County 2 Blvd.

P.O. Box 62 Frontenac, MN 55026 Kristen Eide-Toffefson Florence Township Commission P.O. Box 130 Frontenac, MN 55026 Carolyn Homsten, CPA Goodhue County Goodhue County Government Center 509 W. 5th St., 2nd Floor Red Wing, MN 55066 Kay Kuhlmann Council Administrator 315 West 4th St.

Red Wing, MN 55066 Deanna Sheely Assistant City Council Administrator 315 West 4th St.

Red Wing, MN 55066 Lisa Hanni Goodhue County Land Use Management Goodhue County Government Center 509 W. 5th St.

Red Wing, MN 55066 Nancy Shouweiller Commissioner - Forth District Dakota County Administrator Center 1590 Highway 55 Hastings, MN 55033 Mr. Tony Sullins Field Supervisor U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Twin Cities Ecological Services Office 4101 East 80th Street Bloomington, MN 55425 Stanley Crooks Chairman Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community 2330 Sioux Trail NW Prior Lake, MN 55372 Stan Ellison Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community 2330 Sioux Trail NW Prior Lake, MN 55372 Leonard Wabasha Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community 2330 Sioux Trail NW Prior Lake, MN 55372 Emily Rusch, Environmental Review Assistant Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Endangered Species P.O. Box 7921 Madison, WI 53707 Ms. Lisa A. Joyal Endangered Species Environmental Review Coordinator Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program Minnesota Department of Natural Resources 500 Lafayette Road Box 25 St. Paul, MN 55155 Mr. Don L. Klima, Director Advisory Council on Historic Preservation Office of Federal Agency Programs 1100 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Suite 803 Washington, DC 20004

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 cc:

Terrance Virden Midwest Regional Director U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs 1 Federal Drive Room #550 Fort Snelling, MN 55111 John L. Stine, Division Director Minnesota Department of Health Environmental Health Division P.O. Box 64975 St. Paul, MN 55164-0975 John Wurst 3433 Staehili Park Rd.

Lake City, MN 55041 Joe Ellingson 30163 County 2 Blvd.

Red Wing, MN 55066 Michael McKay Chair, Wacouta Township 30895 Lake View Ave.

Red Wing, MN 55066 Elaine and Arlen Diercks Hay Creek Township 33835 Diercks Lane Red Wing, MN 55066 Doub Lansing Maiden Rock Village Hwy. 35 Maidenrock, WI 54750 Matrix Energy Solutions 802 N. Pine Creek Rd.

Maiden Rock, WI 54750 Mr. Ronald Johnson, President Prairie Island Indian Community 5636 Sturgeon Lake Road Welch, MN 55089 Mr. Kevin Jensvold, Chairman Upper Sioux Community of Minnesota P.O. Box 147 Granite Falls, MN 56241-0147 Jean Stacy, President Lower Sioux Indian Community of Minnesota 39527 Res Highway 1 P.O. Box 308 Morton, MN 56270 Joseph Brings Plenty, Chairman Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe P.O. Box 590 Eagle Battle, SD 57625 Lester Thompson, Chairman Crow Creek Sioux Tribal Council P.O. Box 50 Fort Thompson, SD 57339 Joshua Weston, President Flandreau Santee Sioux Executive Committee P.O. Box 283 Flandreau, SD 57028 Michael Jandreau, Chairman Lower Brule Sioux Tribal Council 187 Oyate Circle Lower Brule, SD 57548 John Yellow Bird Steele, President Oglala Sioux Tribal Council P.O. Box 2070 Pine Ridge, SD 57770

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 cc:

Rodney Bordeaux, President Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council P.O. Box 430 Rosebud, SD 57570 Roger Trudell, Chairman Santee Sioux Nation 108 Spirit Lake Avenue West Niobrara, NE 68760-7219 Michael Selvage, Sr., Chairman Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation P.O. Box 509 Agency Village, SD 57262 Myra Pearson, Chairperson Spirit Lake Tribal Council P.O. Box 359 Fort Totten, ND 58335 Ron His Horse Is Thunder, Chairman Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Council P.O. Box D Fort Yates, ND 58538 Marcus D. Wells, Jr., Chairman Three Affiliated Tribes Business Council 404 Frontage Road New Town, ND 58763 David Brien, Chairman Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa P.O. Box 900 Belcourt, ND 58316 Matthew Pilcher, Chairman Winnebago Tribal Council 100 Bluff Street P.O. Box 687 Winnebago, NE 68071 Robert Cournoyer, Chairman Yankton Sioux Tribal Business & Claims Committee P.O. Box 248 Marty, SD 57361-0248 Wilfrid Cleveland, President Ho-Chunk Nation W9814 Airport Road P.O. Box 667 Black River Falls, WI 54615 Norman Deschampe, President Minnesota Chippewa Tribe P.O. Box 217 Cass Lake, MN 56633 Kevin Leecy, Chairman Bois Forte Reservation Business Committee P.O. Box 16 Nett Lake, MN 55770 Karen R. Diver, Chairwoman Fond du Lac Reservation Business Committee Fond du Lac Center 1720 Big Lake Road Cloquet, MN 55720 Norman Deschampe, Chairman Grand Portage Reservation Business Committee P.O. Box 428 Grande Portage, MN 55605 George Goggleye, Chairman Leech Lake Reservation Business Committee 6530 U.S. Highway #2 NW Cass Lake, MN 56633

Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 Melanie A. Benjamin, Chief Executive Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Indians 43048 Oodena Drive Onamia, MN 56359 Erma Vizenor, Chairwoman White Earth Reservation Business Committee P.O. Box 418 White Earth, MN 56591 Floyd Jourdain, Chairman Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians of Minnesota P.O. Box 550 Red Lake, MN 56671 Hazel Hindsley, Chairwoman St. Croix Chipewa Indians of Wisconsin 24663 Angeline Avenue Webster, WI 54893 Mr. Dennis A. Gimmestad Government Programs and Compliance Officer State Historic Preservation Officer Minnesota Historical Society 345 Kellogg Boulevard West Saint Paul, MN 55102-1903 Katrina Kessler Minnesota Pollution Control Agency 520 Lafayette Road N St. Paul, MN 55155-4194