ML102240108
| ML102240108 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Seabrook  |
| Issue date: | 08/05/2010 |
| From: | Kurkul P US Dept of Commerce, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration |
| To: | Bo Pham License Renewal Projects Branch 1 |
| References | |
| Download: ML102240108 (6) | |
Text
0#,"T 0 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
/" \* *. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration S . NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE NORTHEAST REGION 2'* 55 Great Republic Drive "4rts of Gloucester, MA 01930-2276 AUG - 5 2010 Bo Pham, Chief Projects Branch I Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, DC 20555-0001 Re: Renewal application for Seabrook Station, Seabrook, New Hampshire
Dear Mr. Pham:
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has received your letter, dated July 16, 2010, regarding the request for a list of protected species and Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) within the area under evaluation for the Seabrook Station license renewal application review. The applicant (NextEra Energy Seabrook, LLC) proposes to maintain current operations over the license renewal period at the Seabrook Station.
The renewed license would use existing plant facilities and transmission lines and would not require additional construction or disturbance of new areas. In addition, any maintenance activities would be limited to previously disturbed areas.
The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) and the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act require federal agencies to consult with one another on projects such as this. Insofar as a project involves EFH, as this project does, this process is guided by the requirements of our EFH regulation at 50 CFR 600.905, which mandates the preparation of EFH assessments and generally outlines each agency's obligations in this consultation procedure.
The required contents of an EFH assessment include: 1) a description of the action; 2) an analysis of the potential adverse effects of the action on EFH and the managed species; 3) the federal agency's conclusion regarding the effects of the action on EFH; and 4) proposed mitigation, if applicable. Other information that should be contained in the EFH assessment, if appropriate, includes: 1) the results of on-site inspections to evaluate the habitat and site-specific effects; 2) the views of recognized experts on the habitat or the species that may be affected; 3) a review of pertinent literature and related information; and 4) an analysis of alternatives to the action that could avoid or minimize the adverse effects on EFH. Upon submittal of an EFH
assessment by the federal action agency, the NMFS will provide conservation recommendations for the proposed project, as necessary.
Additionally, We are providing the following discussion of living marine resources within estuarine and marine waters in the Gulf of Maine near Seabrook, the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor, and the associated brackish marsh habitats.
General Information The marine and estuarine waters in the area of Seabrook and the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor support a highly productive ecosystem, and the habitats within this area support a number of important living marine resources. A large recreational fishery for soft-shell clam exists in the harbor, including the middle-ground sand flat adjacent to Seabrook Harbor and the Blackwater River. Beds of blue mussels are also present in the harbor. In addition, the Gulf of Maine near Seabrook and in the outer portions of the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor supports a recreational and commercial fishery for American lobster. The dominant demersal species in the Gulf of Maine waters near Seabrook include winter flounder, windowpane flounder and longhorn sculpin (NAI 2009), and the dominant pelagic species include Atlantic herring, Atlantic mackerel, pollock, and blueback herring (NAI 1998).
Several diadromous fish species use the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor and the Blackwater River for their seasonal migration runs, including blueback herring, alewife, and rainbow smelt. Blueback herring and alewife adults typically leave freshwater streams and rivers and return to estuarine/marine waters during summer months, juveniles can be found migrating out of streams and rivers as late as October and early November (Collette and Klein-MacPhee 2002). Rainbow smelt adults begin their migration into estuaries and harbors in late fall/winter and enter freshwater streams to spawn in March or April; larvae are carried into the brackish water in May (Collette and Klein-MacPhee 2002). Due to declines in the populations of alewife, blueback herring, and rainbow smelt, these species have been classified as "species of concern" by NMFS.
"Species of Concern" are those species about which NMFS has some concerns regarding status and threats, but for which insufficient information is available to indicate a need to list the species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). Although the "species of concern" status does not carry any procedural or substantive protections under the ESA, concerns regarding their status and threats warrant proactive attention and conservation action.
The Hampton-Seabrook Harbor estuary has been identified as a highly productive nursery ground for several species, including winter flounder. For example, winter flounder was reported to be the most abundant fishfish in the Hampton-Seabrook estuary during the summer and fall, and young-of-year and age-1 flounder were most prevalent (Fairchild et al. 2008). In addition, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department's 2006 estuarine survey of juvenile fish reported the seine collection stations in Hampton-Seabrook Harbor to have some of the highest catch numbers for all species out of the fifteen stations sampled in this state program (NHFG 2007). The catch per unit effort for juvenile winter flounder in the harbor was the highest for all seine stations, including Little Harbor, Piscataqua River, and Little Bay/Great Bay.
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Essential Fish Habitat The marine waters off Seabrook and the Hampton-Seabrook estuary have been designated as EFH under the MSA for a number of federally-managed species. These include Atlantic cod, whiting, red hake, winter flounder, ocean pout, Atlantic pout, Atlantic halibut, Atlantic sea scallop, monkfish, Atlantic butterfish, and Atlantic mackerel (all life stages); Atlantic herring, yellow flounder, windowpane flounder, American plaice, long-finned and short-finned squid, scup, and surf clam (juveniles and adults); haddock and pollock (juveniles); redfish (larvae, juveniles and adults); and bluefin tuna (adults).
Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act As discussed above, the Hampton-Seabrook estuary supports a large population of soft-shell clam and blue mussel. The New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game has produced maps depicting large and established shellfish beds in the middle-ground sand flat adjacent to the Seabrook anchorage area and the shoals adjacent to the Hampton anchorage and the entrance channel. The American lobster is known to utilize the rocky habitat within the channel entrance and jetties. In addition, a number of species of finfish use the Hampton-Seabrook estuary for various stages of their life history, such as for spawning migrations by blueback herring, alewife, and rainbow smelt.
Impingement and Entrainment The source water for the Seabrook Station cooling water is in the western Gulf of Maine, located approximately 17,000 feet offshore in about 60 feet of water via three concrete intake structures.
During normal operations, approximately 410,000 gallons of water per minute is pumped into Seabrook Station (NextEra 2010). Seabrook Station has been monitoring potential environmental impacts in the Hampton-Seabrook areas since 1975, including entrainment of eggs and larvae, impingement of juvenile and adult fish, and impacts associated with offshore thermal discharge of water. In 2008, an estimated 791 million eggs and 334 million fish larvae were entrained, and an estimated 17,932 fish were impinged within the cooling intake structures (NAI 2009). The majority of fish impinged at Seabrook Station are young-of-year and age-i, demersal species taken during the spring and fall, presumably when these young fish migrate between the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor nursery grounds and offshore waters. Because of the connections between the offshore and inshore environments in the life history of a number of estuarine-dependent species, the impingement and entrainment impact to fish from the offshore water intake structures also affects the productivity within the Hampton-Seabrook estuary.
Summary The marine and estuarine waters in the area of Seabrook and the Hampton-Seabrook Harbor support a highly productive ecosystem the habitats within this area support a number of important living marine resources. Specific issues of concern related to the license renewal application review include the impingement and entrainment of fishery resources resulting from the intake of water for cooling purposes. Based on data collected for the Seabrook Station environmental monitoring program, an evaluation of impacts from the proposed action should be conducted and alternatives which avoid and minimize the adverse effect to fishery resources should be considered. We look forward to reviewing your EFH assessment of this activity.
Should you have any questions about this information, please contact Michael Johnson at 978-281-9131 or at the letterhead address of this letter.
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Endangered Species Act Several species of sea turtle and whales are listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA.
Federally endangered Northern right whales (Eubalaenaglacialis),humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), and fin whales (Balaenopteraphysalus) are found seasonally off the coast of New Hampshire. However, as these species are typically found in deeper offshore waters, none of these species are likely to occur in the vicinity of the Seabrook facility or the facility's intake or discharge.
Sea turtles are also seasonally present off the coast of New Hampshire, and occasional individuals may occur in the vicinity of the Seabrook facility. The sea turtles in these waters are most likely to be endangered leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea)or threatened loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles. Endangered Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempi) sea turtles would be less likely to be present in these waters. Sea turtle species are typically present off the coast of New Hampshire between June and October.
TechnicalAssistancefor CandidateSpecies Candidate species are those petitioned species that are actively being considered for listing as endangered or threatened under the ESA, as well as those species for which NMFS has initiated an ESA status review that it has announced in the FederalRegister.
Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus) occur in the coastal waters of New Hampshire and are likely to occur in the vicinity of the Seabrook facility. In 2006, NMFS initiated a status review for Atlantic sturgeon to determine if listing as threatened or endangered under the ESA is warranted. The Status Review Report was published on February 23, 2007.
NMFS is currently considering the information presented in the Status Review Report to determine if any listing action pursuant to the ESA is warranted at this time. If it is determined that listing is warranted, a final rule listing the species could be published within a year from the date of publication of the listing determination or proposed rule. Currently, NMFS expects to publish a finding as to whether any listing action is appropriate by the Fall of 2010. As a candidate species, Atlantic sturgeon receive no substantive or procedural protection under the ESA; however, NMFS recommends that project proponents consider implementing conservation actions to limit the potential for adverse effects on Atlantic sturgeon from any proposed project.
Please note that once a species is proposed for listing the conference provisions of the ESA apply (see 50 CFR 402.10). As the listing status for this species may change, NMFS recommends that NRC obtain updated status information from NMFS prior to the completion of any NEPA documentation.
Marine Mammal ProtectionAct Several species of marine mammals are common residents or occasional visitors to the waters of New Hampshire, including gray seals, harbor seals, and harbor porpoise. All marine mammals receive protection under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) of 1972, as amended.
The MMPA prohibits, with certain exceptions, the take of marine mammals in U.S. waters and by U.S. citizens on the high seas, and the importation of marine mammals and marine mammal products into the U.S. NMFS may issue permits under MMPA Section 104 (16 U.S.C. 1374) to persons that authorize the taking or importing of specific species of marine mammals. As you 4
may know, an MMPA permit has been issued for the Seabrook facility in the past. It is recommended that the applicant and/or the NRC discuss permitting needs with NMFS' Office of Protected Resources Permits, Conservation, & Education Division (301-713-2289) to determine if any additional coordination under the MMPA is necessary.
Section 7 Consultation Under Section 7(a)(2) of the ESA, each Federal agency is required to insure that any action they authorize, fund or carry out is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered species or threatened species. The renewal of the operating license for the Seabrook facility by the NRC would be a federal action requiring section 7 consultation.
We encourage NRC and the applicant to work with NMFS throughout the relicensing process as environmental documentation is developed to identify and evaluate the potential for impacts to the species under NMFS' jurisdiction. Informal discussions can greatly facilitate consultation.
Should you have any questions regarding these comments as they relate to ESA matters, please contact Julie Crocker of my staff at (978)282-8480 or Julie.Crocker@Noaa.gov.
Sincerely, Patricia A. Kurkul Regional Administrator CC: Crocker - F/NER3 Johnson, Chiarella - F/NER4 References Collette BB, Klein-MacPhee G, editors. 2002. Bigelow and Schroeder's fishes of the Gulf of Maine. 3rd ed. Washington (DC): Smithsonian Institution Press. 748.p.
Fairchild EA, Sulikowski J, Rennels N, Howell WH, Gurshin CWD. 2008. Distribution of winter flounder, Pseudopleuronectesamericanus, in the Hampton-Seabrook estuary, New Hampshire: observations from a field study. Estuaries and Coasts 31: 1158-1173.
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NAI (Normandeau Associates, Inc.). 1998. Seabrook Station 1996 Environmental Monitoring in the Hampton-Seabrook Area: A characterization of environmental conditions. Prepared for Northeast Utilities Service Company.
NAI (Normandeau Associates, Inc.). 2009. Seabrook Station 2008 Environmental Monitoring in the Hampton-Seabrook area: A characterization of environmental conditions. Prepared for Nextera Energy Seabrook, LLC.
Nextera (Nextera Energy Seabrook, LLC.). 2010. Final applicant's environmental report-operating license renewal stage, Seabrook Station, Unit 1, Docket No. 05000443, License No. NPF-86.
NHFG (New Hampshire Fish and Game Department). 2007. Marine fisheries investigations, project I: anadromous fish investigations. Job 9: estuarine survey of juvenile finfish.
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