Press Release-12-128, NRC Seeks Public Comment on Draft Environmental Report for South Texas Project Nuclear Plant License Renewal

Press Release-12-128: NRC Seeks Public Comment on Draft Environmental Report for South Texas Project Nuclear Plant License Renewal

ML12353A356
Person / Time
Site:	South Texas
Issue date:	12/18/2012
From:	Office of Public Affairs
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Category:Press Release
References
Press Release-12-128
Download: ML12353A356 (2)

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NRC SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENT ON DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT FOR SOUTH TEXAS PROJECT NUCLEAR PLANT LICENSE RENEWAL The Nuclear Regulatory Commission seeks public comment on a draft supplemental environmental impact statement for the proposed renewal of the South Texas Project nuclear power plants operating licenses for an additional 20 years.

NRC staff will hold two public meetings in Bay City, Texas, on Jan. 15, 2013 to present the findings of the draft report and accept public comments. The meetings will be held at the Bay City Civic Center, 201 Seventh St., from 2-5 p.m. and 7-10 p.m. NRC staff members will be available for one hour prior to each session to meet informally with members of the public.

The South Texas Project nuclear plant has two pressurized-water reactors, located in Bay City, about 90 miles southwest of Houston. The plant operator, STP Nuclear Operating Co.,

submitted its license renewal application on Oct. 25, 2010. The current operating licenses expire Aug. 20, 2027, for Unit 1 and Dec. 15, 2028, for Unit 2.

The draft supplemental environmental impact statement contains the NRC staffs analysis of potential impacts specific to the South Texas Project site. In preparing the report, the staff held a public meeting in Bay City on March 2, 2011, as part of the public scoping process for the report. The staff also conducted site audits at the plant in May and July 2011 and consulted with other agencies while analyzing the applicants environmental report submitted with the application.

The draft NRC report does not discuss potential environmental impacts of extended storage of spent nuclear fuel after the plant eventually ceases operation. That issue will be addressed in the NRCs waste confidence environmental impact statement and rule, expected by September 2014.

In August 2012, the Commission decided that the agency will not issue final licensing decisions for reactors, including license renewal, until the waste confidence rule is completed. If at that time, site-specific issues relating to spent fuel storage at South Texas Project remain unresolved, they will be addressed separately.

Public comments on the draft environmental impact statement for the South Texas Project license renewal will be accepted through Feb. 22, 2013. They may be submitted online via the federal governments rulemaking website at www.regulations.gov using NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: www.nrc.gov Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov No.12-128 December 18, 2012

Docket ID NRC-2010-0375. They may also be mailed to Cindy Bladey, Chief, Rules, Announcements and Directives Branch (RADB), Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, Mail Stop: TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C., 20555-0001. Comments may also be faxed to 301-492-3446.

The South Texas Project draft supplemental environmental impact statement is available for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room at NRC headquarters, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md. Copies will also be available at the Bay City Public Library, 1100 7th St., Bay City, Texas.

The South Texas Project license renewal application, information about the NRC staffs environmental and safety reviews, and the draft supplemental environmental impact statement are available on the NRC website.

NOTE: Anyone wishing to take photos or use a camera to record any portion of a NRC meeting should contact the Office of Public Affairs beforehand.

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