ML18272A010
ML18272A010 | |
Person / Time | |
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Issue date: | 09/28/2018 |
From: | Mccubbin S Acquisition Management Division |
To: | |
References | |
NRC-HQ-12-C-02-0089 | |
Download: ML18272A010 (22) | |
Text
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 SECTION C - Description/Specifications C.0 TASK ORDER STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW) - REVISED
- 1. OBJECTIVE The project described in this Statement of Work (SOW) is to provide Contractor technical assistance to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff for the development of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and to assist in National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) Section 106 consultation activities, in support of the staffs environmental review for the license application request from Holtec International (HOLTEC) to construct and operate an Consolidated Interim Storage Facility (CISF) for spent nuclear fuel and high level waste at HOLTECs proposed site near the border of Eddy and Lea Counties, New Mexico. The project also includes providing relevant Contractor expertise for a potential adjudicatory hearing on the licensing action.
- 2. BACKGROUND HOLTEC has submitted a license application on March 31, 2017 for a CISF to be constructed and operated on HOLTECs site in Eddy and Lea Counties, New Mexico.
Based on information provided by HOLTEC at public meetings with the NRC, the CISF would have the capacity to store up to 10,000 canisters of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and high level waste (HLW). Other wastes may be included in the license application. HOLTEC estimates that 500 canisters of SNF and HLW would be shipped by rail from various nuclear power reactor sites in the U.S. to HOLTEC over a period of 20 years. An additional 20 years of storage would be addressed in the application and license.
The NRCs review of the HOLTECs license application request falls under the purview of the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS) for regulating activities which provide for the safe storage, transportation and disposal of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel and the transportation of radioactive materials regulated under the Atomic Energy Act. The NRC staff finds that the proposed action is a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, which pursuant to 10 CFR § 51.20(a)(9), requires the NRC to prepare an EIS to meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA) and pursuant to the NHPA, is also federal undertaking pursuant to 36 CFR 800. In addition, the NRC typically coordinates reviews required by other statutes, such as the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and Endangered Species Act (ESA), with its NEPA reviews. Furthermore, the NRC staff expects that HOLTECs CISF license application request will receive a high level of interest from potential interveners who live near the site and the licensing action could potentially be adjudicated (i.e., a contested hearing to be conducted by the NRCs Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB)). Consequently, the NRC staff requires Contractor technical assistance for the development of a Draft EIS and for consultation under Section 106 of the NHPA in support of the staffs review for the HOLTECs license application request to construct and operate a CISF, as well as relevant Contractor expertise for a potential adjudicatory hearing before the ASLB on environmental issues.
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- 3. SCOPE OF WORK The Contractor shall develop a Draft EIS that the NRC will use to document its environmental review of HOLTECs license application request to construct and operate an CISF in Eddy and Lea Counties, New Mexico, pursuant to 10 CFR Part 51. The resource/impact areas to be examined in the EIS in terms of the affected human environment and the potential impacts to that environment - shall include: land use; transportation; geology, seismology and soils; water resources (ground water and surface water); ecological resources (including threatened and endangered species); climatology; meteorology and air quality; climate change; noise; historic and cultural resources; visual and scenic resources; socioeconomics; public and occupational health (non-radiological and radiological); environmental consequences from accidents; waste management; and environmental justice. Of these, preliminary analysis by the NRC staff indicates that the most significant issues may relate to transportation, public and occupational radiological health, socioeconomics, and environmental justice. Cumulative impacts would also be of importance given the activities currently and/or potentially occurring at the proposed site as well as another potential CISF that is being proposed in the same geographic area.
The EIS will provide a comparative analysis of the potential environmental impacts from the applicants proposed action and from reasonable alternatives to that action, including, but not necessarily limited to, the no-action alternative. The EIS will also need to document the purpose and need for the applicants proposed action, the applicable statutory and regulatory requirements (including and in addition to those of the NRC), mitigation measures to avoid or minimize environmental impacts, environmental measurement and monitoring programs, an analysis of cumulative impacts, and a cost-benefit analysis.
As discussed above, the proposed action is likely to generate significant external stakeholder interest. Development of the EIS, therefore, will require a comprehensive and robust public outreach and facilitation program.
Preparation of the EIS may involve other federal agencies in the role of cooperating agencies, with the NRC as the lead federal agency. The NRC will coordinate the role of the cooperating agencies, if any, in the schedule for EIS preparation. These cooperating agencies may provide input to and comments on working copies of the draft EIS.
The Contractor shall prepare the EIS in accordance with the NRCs applicable NEPA-implementing regulations in 10 CFR Part 51 and associated NRC staff guidance in NUREG-1748. Also, the NRC typically coordinates reviews required by other statutes such as the NHPA and ESA with its NEPA reviews. Therefore, the Contractor is expected to be cognizant of other statutes that the NRC will need to comply with during its licensing review of the proposed action. In addition, the Contractor shall provide the NRC staff with relevant expertise for a potential adjudicatory hearing on environmental issues.
In addition, the Contractor shall provide support of the NHPA consultation process, potentially including research, facilitation, survey assistance, development of recommendations, survey and form reports, assessment of effects, and support in developing mitigation plans.
The Contractor shall obtain and leverage any information from other consolidated storage facility applications for this review.
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- 4. SPECIFIC TASKS The specific tasks and deliverables required for the Contractor to complete the EIS, assist the NHPA consultation process, and provide support for a potential adjudicatory hearing on environmental issues are described in detail below. See also Section 6 of this SOW for a list of required deliverables and the deliverable/milestone schedule and Section 12.1 for travel requirements for the task order.
In preparing the EIS, the Contractor shall use the information provided by the NRC and additional information obtained by the Contractor, as described in the tasks/subtasks below.
In addition, the Contractor shall incorporate in the EIS other information and conclusions developed during the NRC staffs safety review of HOLTECs license application request, as will be documented in the NRCs Safety Evaluation Report (SER), such as potential public and occupational health impacts, and environmental consequences from accidents.
Furthermore, the Contractor shall also use any additional information as provided by the NRC, which either supplements or replaces HOLTECs original license application request.
For example, the additions to the application may come in the form of an application supplement(s), and/or HOLTECs responses to NRC requests for additional information. The Contractor shall leverage information and experiences from the WCS Interim Consolidated Storage Facility for this review.
4.1 Task 1 - Project Management (ONGOING)
This task shall last for the entire duration of the EIS development, the NHPA consultation process, and, if needed, the adjudicatory hearing. It may involve travel for the Contractor Project Manager to meet with the NRC Contracting Officers Representative (COR), if needed. Following task order authorization, in consultation with the NRC COR, the Contractors Project Manager shall develop and maintain a detailed project schedule electronically in MS Project. This schedule shall be updated as necessary and provided to the NRC COR periodically upon request.
Communication The Contractors Project Manager shall meet with the NRC COR for planning meetings at the beginning of Tasks 1 and 2, and quarterly thereafter to discuss progress. The Contractor Project Manager shall have a weekly status call or face-to-face meeting with the NRC COR to discuss the status of the project (e.g., technical issues, contract monitoring, file management). Communication may be more or less often depending on the need.
File Management The Contractor shall use the Pacific Northwest National Laboratorys EARRTH website for file management. EARRTH shall be accessible by all Contractor project team members and contain project-related documents, correspondence, and all working and final files.
The NRC COR will facilitate access to EARRTH for all Contractor staff. See Section 9 -
Government Furnished Property for more detail on EARRTH.
Quality Assurance Program The Contractor Project Manager shall have overall responsibility for ensuring that a robust and comprehensive quality assurance program is adequately implemented for all aspects of 5
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 the contract including, but not limited to, the quality of technical input as well as the editing of technical documents. The Contractor Project Manager shall ensure that all deliverables have been prepared in accordance with quality assurance standards and shall review all deliverables for adequacy, accuracy, and consistency in technical content. The Contract Project Manager shall assure that all NRC publishing requirements for documents are met.
4.2 Task 2 - Initial Technical Review The Contractor shall conduct Subtasks 2A2 and 2B below concurrently. The Contractor shall keep the NRC COR informed (via email, phone, or other correspondence) on at least a weekly basis, describing the information collected, reviewed, and analyzed under Subtasks 2A2 and 2B, including, but not limited to, deficiencies found in HOLTEC-submitted information (i.e., the license application, including the safety analysis report (SAR) and environmental report (ER), and any other supplemental information provided in support of the application); other information deficiencies; and any portions of other NEPA documents and other environmental reviews for activities at the proposed CISF site and in the vicinity of the proposed project that can be either adopted, tiered, and/or incorporated by reference into the NRCs EIS.
Subtask 2A1 - Perform Acceptance Review of Initial Application As required by the COR, the contractor shall conduct a cursory review of the application documents provided by HOLTEC in its application. The contractor shall perform this activity with guidance from the NRC COR and in accordance with information from NUREG-1748. The results of this review activity and any deficiencies shall be reported in writing to the NRC.
Subtask 2A2 - Collect and Review Information After completion of the acceptance review and as the initial step in the EIS development, the Contractor shall review project-related information provided by the NRC COR and shall also independently collect and review additional information related to the proposed CISF project area and its environs and to the activities proposed by HOLTEC in its license application request, as needed for preparation of the comprehensive Draft EIS document. The information initially provided by the NRC COR includes HOLTECs license application, SAR, and ER and the other documentation listed in Section 5 of this SOW. The NRC COR will provide additional relevant documents to the Contractor as they become available throughout the duration of the task order. The Contractors independent data collection shall include, among other available data and information sources, references cited in the applicants license application, SAR, and ER, and relevant documents found through a comprehensive search and utilization of the NRCs publicly available Agency-Wide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Relevant documents in ADAMS may be found by the Contractor by searching, for example, under Docket Number 72-1051.
As part of this information collection and review subtask, the NRC COR, with the assistance of the NRC safety/licensing project manager, will facilitate the Contractors coordination with the members of the NRCs safety review team for the project who are preparing the SER.
The NRC safety review team members and their contact information will be identified by the 6
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 NRC COR following task order authorization. The purpose of this coordination is for Contractor and NRC safety review staff counterparts to familiarize themselves with each other, establish an understanding for initial and ongoing coordination and discussions as needed, and identify and exchange information as needed for the ongoing environmental and safety reviews. Contacts may be by phone, email, or other correspondence, as necessary and appropriate. Contacts between Contractor staff and NRC safety review staff shall be made with the knowledge of the NRC COR and the NRC safety/licensing project manager, and may be arranged by the NRC COR when necessary.
Further, with the knowledge and approval of the NRC COR, the Contractor shall include in its EIS development process any additional coordination necessary to cover laws and regulations other than NEPA. In addition, as requested by the NRC COR, the Contractor shall provide support for NRC consultations, i.e., Section 106 consultation of the NHPA and Section 7 consultation under the ESA, as well as support for NRC coordination with other Federal, State, and local agencies. This support may include identification of agencies to contact, providing supporting information/documentation for consultations/coordination, input to and review of NRC letters/emails to agencies, etc. To these ends, the Contractor shall compile a list of federal, tribal, state, and local statutes, laws, and permits that are applicable to the project, with an accompanying short description of each statue, law, or permit. Information resulting from NRCs consultations/coordination with other agencies will be provided to the Contractor for use in the EIS analyses, as well as for summary, referencing, and reproduction, as necessary, in the EIS documents.
Although the Contractor shall endeavor to conduct the bulk of the required information collection and review at the outset of the project, the Contractor shall continue to collect and review information throughout the duration of the project, as necessary and as additional information may be identified or otherwise become available, to support the development and completion of the EIS and to provide support for a potential adjudicatory hearing on environmental issues. Coordination and discussions between Contractor, the NRC COR, and the NRC safety review staff are also expected to be ongoing, as necessary, throughout the duration of the task order.
The Contractor shall develop and maintain a bibliographic listing of all documents collected (reports, maps, papers, data files, etc.), including ADAMS Accession Numbers or web links where applicable, and shall also maintain on file electronic copies of all collected documents. The Contractor shall include in the listing a short description of each document and an accompanying brief discussion of how the document will be used in the EIS.
The bibliographic document list shall be in a format suitable for use in the EIS reference lists; and all references ultimately cited in both the EIS (cited references and maps, drawings, tables, etc.) must be already publicly available in ADAMS or elsewhere in the public record or can be made publicly available in ADAMS. The Contactor shall make the document list and electronic copies of documents, including periodic updates, available to the NRC COR upon request. The Contractor shall be responsible for obtaining and providing the NRC COR with appropriate permissions for use of any copyrighted materials and reference documents in the EIS.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Subtask 2B - Technical Review of License Application, SAR and ER and Development of Preliminary Information Needs for the EIS As a prelude to the potential development of formal requests for additional information (RAIs) from the applicant in Subtask 3B3 below, the Contractor shall also review the HOLTECs ER for completeness and acceptability in accordance with NUREG-1748, and in consideration of other information anticipated to be required for preparation of the EIS.
In conjunction with this review, the Contractor shall also review the applicants license application and SAR to determine if any identified information deficiencies in the ER are instead addressed in those documents. Note that this subtask is not meant to constitute a formal NRC Acceptance Review of the license application, the SAR or the ER.
The Contractor shall provide an Initial Technical Review Letter Report to the NRC COR in accordance with the schedule in Table 1 of this SOW. The Initial Technical Review Letter Report shall summarize the review and include a preliminary list in tabular format, by topical area, of information either not provided or not adequately provided in HOLTECs license application, SAR, and ER (i.e., information needs) and which will be required for the preparation of the EIS and which will need to be obtained from the applicant (i.e.,
information which is not available from other available information sources such as those collected and reviewed in Subtask 2A). The list shall identify which of the items of missing or inadequate information, if any, could be obtained or developed independently by the Contractor with little or no input from HOLTEC. The listing shall also provide a brief discussion of the expected use of the needed information. In addition to use in development of the RAIs in Subtask 3B3, the list of information needs may be used by the NRC and the Contractor for discussion purposes with the applicant and other agencies and organizations during the site visit and information gathering meetings and discussions in Subtask 3A3.
The Initial Technical Review Letter Report shall also include identification of and information on any required consultations and coordination necessary with Federal, State, and local government agencies to cover laws and regulations other than NEPA and to obtain information to complete the EIS. The report shall make use of information gathered in Subtask 2A concerning applicable federal, tribal, state, and local statutes, laws, and permits.
As necessary, the topical areas for the list of information needs in the Initial Technical Review Letter Report shall include, but not be limited to, the following: purpose and need for the proposed action; applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, permits, and consultations; descriptions of the proposed action and reasonable alternatives to the proposed action to be evaluated in detail in the EIS; descriptions of other alternatives considered but eliminated and reasons for elimination; applicable information on the affected environment and on environmental impacts of the proposed action and reasonable alternatives (in the following subject areas: site location and description, land use, transportation, geology, minerals and soils, water resources (ground water and surface water - water use and water quality), ecological resources, climatology, meteorology and air quality, climate change, noise, historic and cultural resources, visual and scenic resources, socioeconomics, public and occupational health (non-radiological and radiological),
accidents, waste management, and environmental justice); mitigation measures to avoid or minimize any potential adverse effects of the proposed action and reasonable alternatives; environmental measurement and monitoring programs; and cost-benefit analysis of the proposed action and reasonable alternatives.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 4.3 Task 3 - Plan, Draft, and Complete Draft EIS The Contractor shall plan, draft, and complete a Draft EIS that will document the NRC staffs evaluation of the potential environmental impacts of the construction and operation of the CISF as proposed by HOLTEC. The EIS shall be completed in accordance with the requirements specified in Subtasks 3A through 3E below. The Contractor shall format the EIS to meet NRC standards in NUREG-0650, Preparing NUREG-Series Publications, Revision 2, and NUREG-1379, NRC Editorial Style Guide. Graphics for the EIS shall be prepared by the Contractor in consideration that the NRCs published hardcopy versions of the EIS documents will be printed in black and white.
Prior to submission to the NRC, the Contractor shall review all versions of the EIS for adequacy, accuracy, and consistency in technical content. In addition, reviews of the EIS shall be conducted by the Contractors technical editor. To the maximum extent possible, the EIS shall read as if written by a single author, rather than seeming to be a compilation of individual articles written by multiple authors in differing styles. Additionally, the EIS shall be written in plain language, meeting the intent of NRCs plain writing philosophy, techniques, and guidance (see http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/open/plain-writing/nrc-philosophy.html#guidance).
Subtask 3A - EIS Scoping / Site Visit and Information Gathering Meetings The Contractor shall assist the NRC staff in preparing for, organizing, and implementing the EIS scoping process. The Contractor also shall support the NRC staff in preparing for and attending the site visit and other information gathering meetings with federal, tribal, state, and local organizations, public interest groups, and members of the public.
Subtask 3A1 - Scoping Meeting(s)
The Contractor is required to attend and support the EIS scoping meeting(s) for the project.
The scoping meeting(s) shall be attended by the Contractors Project Manager and up to five (5) Contractor technical staff members (subject matter experts). The Contractors meeting attendees shall be determined in consultation with the NRC COR in advance of the scoping meeting(s). Up to four (4) public scoping meetings will be held by the NRC during the public scoping comment period.
In addition, the Contractor may be requested by the NRC COR to provide information for and to review and provide comments on the PowerPoint (or similar format) presentation prepared by the NRC staff for the meeting(s), and to assist the NRC staff in the preparation of anticipated questions and responses to those questions as well as other materials for the meeting(s). The NRC staff presently anticipates that of the four potential scoping meetings, two (2) of the meetings will be held on the same day or on consecutive days in the vicinity of the project site.
Subtask 3A2 - Draft Scoping Summary Reports In cooperation with the NRC COR, the Contractor shall identify, sort and bin, review, and analyze all public comments presented at the scoping meeting(s) and otherwise provided to the NRC during the EIS scoping process. The Contractor shall prepare a Draft Scoping Summary Report. The Scoping Summary Report shall satisfy the requirements of 10 CFR 9
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§ 51.29(b). Specifically, the report shall summarize the public comments received by topical area and shall present a concise summary of the determinations and conclusions reached from the EIS scoping process, including the significant issues identified. The Draft Scoping Summary Reports shall be submitted to NRC COR according to the schedule provided in Table 1 of this SOW.
Subtask 3A3 - Site Visit and Information Gathering Meetings/Discussions The Contractor shall visit the CISF project site and vicinity as required by the NRC COR, and shall conduct a detailed survey of the site and environs. The NRC COR will coordinate the site visit with the applicant. The site visit shall also include pre-arranged meetings with other Federal, State and local agencies, Tribal government agencies, private sector organizations, public interest groups, and individuals, to be determined in consultation between the Contractor and the NRC COR. The duration of the site visit trip is presently anticipated to be up to five (5) days, although the trip may be conducted during the same week as the EIS Scoping meeting(s) [Subtask 3A1], if feasible.
In advance of the site visit and information gathering meetings, the Contractor shall provide the NRC COR with a compilation of the questions and issues that Contractor plans to use in its survey of the site and environs and in the meetings with the applicant and the other organizations. The Contractor shall revise this compilation in response to comments from the NRC COR, if provided.
The Contractors Project Manager and up to five (5) Contractor technical staff members (subject matter experts) shall attend the site visit. The Contractor shall coordinate with the NRC COR regarding which Contractor technical staff shall participate in the site visit in advance of the trip. At the NRC CORs request, the Contractor shall provide necessary security information (name of individual, citizenship, etc.) of the Contractor staff that will be participating prior to the site visit.
The Contractor shall document the site visit and associated meetings in concise Draft and Final Site Visit Trip Reports. The Draft and Final Site Visit Trip Reports shall describe any relevant information that was learned, requested, or obtained from the applicant and other agencies, organizations, and individuals with which meetings were held, as well as relevant observations from the reconnaissance of the CISF project area and vicinity. The Final Site Trip Report shall reflect and address comments, if any, received from the NRC COR on the Draft Site Trip Report.
Following the site visit, compilation of information for the EIS input may require additional contacts with and interviewing of stakeholders by the NRC and the Contractor, including, but not necessarily limited to: HOLTEC personnel and contractors; Federal, State, and local resource agency staff and other government officials; Tribal government agencies; local elected officials; local economic development organizations; public interest groups; and members of the public. Any needed contacts shall be coordinated through the NRC COR, in advance. These contacts may be made in person or by email, phone, or other correspondence, as necessary. Such additional contacts may continue throughout the duration of the task order, as necessary. The Contractor shall document the additional contacts made and the information gathered in a manner that allows use as reference in the EIS, as necessary, and for placement on EARRTH.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Subtask 3B - Prepare Preliminary Draft EIS The Contractor shall provide a Preliminary Draft EIS that is consistent with 10 CFR Part 51 (see 10 CFR 51.70, 51.71, and 51.80) and the guidance provided in NUREG-1748.
Subtasks involved in the preparation of the Preliminary Draft EIS by the Contractor include (1) a site visit and additional information gathering meetings/discussions with other federal, state, local, and tribal agencies [see Subtask 3A], (2) development of requests for additional information (RAIs), (3) preparation of a revised annotated EIS outline, a revised purpose and need, and a revised description of the proposed action and alternatives, and (4) preparation of all other preliminary draft chapters/sections of the EIS.
Note that the preparation of the RAIs shall be conducted concurrently with preparation of the Preliminary Draft EIS chapters/sections, and the RAIs shall be developed in consideration of the additional information needed from the applicant to complete the EIS. However, the RAI responses from HOLTEC are not expected to be available in time for inclusion in the Preliminary Draft EIS. Nevertheless, all of the Preliminary Draft EIS chapters/sections developed in Subtask 3B shall be as near complete and thorough as possible based on all other available data and information sources from Task 2, Subtasks 2A2 and 2B, and the site visit and information gathering meetings/discussions in Subtask 3A3.
Subtask 3B1 - Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline The Contractor shall develop a Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline for use in developing the EIS. The annotated outline shall concisely describe: (1) the anticipated scope of each EIS section; (2) the purpose and need for the proposed action; and (3) the planned format for incorporating the information collected in Subtasks 2A2 and 2B into the EIS.
The applicable requirements of 10 CFR § 51.70-51.71, and of Appendix A to Subpart A of 10 CFR Part 51 (Format for Presentation of Material in Environmental Impact Statements),
and NRC staff guidance in NUREG-1748 shall be incorporated into the outline.
The Contractors goal in developing the outline shall be to focus the EIS discussion on areas of true environmental concern. The Contractor shall submit the Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline to the NRC COR, and the NRC will review the outline and provide comments, as needed, to the Contractor.
Subtask 3B2 - Preliminary EIS Purpose and Need and Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives A clear agreement between the NRC and the Contractor on the EISs purpose and need and on the proposed action and reasonable alternatives to be considered is critical to the efficient preparation of the EIS. To facilitate this agreement, the Contractor shall prepare and provide the NRC COR with two concise documents: (1) Preliminary EIS Purpose and Need, and (2) Preliminary Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives, for use in developing the EIS and for possible use in Subtask 3A1 (Scoping Meeting(s)), and which may, in part, form the basis for NRC RAIs from the applicant (see Subtask 3B3). The content of these two documents shall be based on HOLTECs ER, information gathered and reviewed in Subtask 2A2 and 2B and NRC staff's input, and shall demonstrate that the Contractor understands these aspects of the EIS process.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 The alternatives to the proposed action shall include: (a) the no-action alternative, (b) the reasonable alternatives to the proposed action to be analyzed in detail in the EIS; and (c) additional alternatives to be identified in the EIS but eliminated from detailed evaluation (with reasons for their elimination).
Subtask 3B3 - Requests for Additional Information (RAIs)
If the Contractor determines that the information provided by HOLTEC (i.e., in the license application, SAR, and ER) and the information collected and reviewed during Subtasks 2A2 and 2B is not sufficient to allow the Contractor to complete the EIS, the Contractor shall inform the NRC COR and subsequently prepare and provide the NRC COR with draft RAIs in a letter report. The NRC COR will provide the required RAI format and guidance on drafting the RAIs to the Contractor. The draft RAIs shall cover all topical areas needed to complete the EIS.
The draft RAIs shall be documented in a letter report to the NRC COR, stating by topical area what information is missing, the basis for requesting the information (e.g., to support the analysis of potential environmental impacts), and the expected use of the requested information in the EIS analysis. The RAIs shall be both clear and concise to elicit the necessary information from the applicant. It is noted that should HOLTEC be unable to provide certain information, the Contractor shall be able to define (separate from the draft RAIs) what information could be developed by the Contractor versus information that must come from the applicant.
The NRC will review the draft RAIs and provide any comments to the Contractor, either in writing or through an electronic writing session (e.g., via webinar). The Contractor shall revise the draft RAIs to incorporate comments from the NRCs review and submit the final RAIs to the NRC COR. The NRC will transmit final RAIs to HOLTEC for response.
Following the applicants receipt of the RAIs, discussions regarding the RAIs with HOLTEC by the NRC and the Contractor shall be conducted as necessary to respond to the applicants questions and to provide clarification. Additionally, following the NRCs receipt and subsequent acceptance review of the applicants RAI responses, discussions by the NRC and the Contractor with HOLTEC regarding the RAI responses shall be conducted as necessary to obtain clarification of the responses, and identify any missing information.
Following the applicants response to the RAIs and any subsequent discussions with HOLTEC, the Contractor (in coordination with the NRC) shall determine if there is still insufficient information in any areas to complete the EIS. If it is determined that additional RAIs are required after the initial round, then the Contractor (in coordination with the NRC) shall assess the specific information needed in the additional RAIs, and shall provide the additional draft RAIs to the NRC COR in a letter report. Preparation of the final additional RAIs, transmittal to the applicant, and subsequent discussions with the applicant as necessary will be conducted as for the initial round of RAIs.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Subtask 3B4 - Revised Annotated EIS Outline The Contractor shall provide a Revised Annotated EIS Outline to the NRC COR to use as the basis for preparing the Preliminary Draft EIS. The Revised Annotated EIS Outline shall update the Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline provided in Subtask 3B1 to reflect (1) NRC review of the preliminary outline, (2) comments and other information from the EIS scoping process, and (3) new information from the site visit and other sources, as appropriate.
The NRC COR will provide approval of the revised outline, with comments on the outline as necessary.
Subtask 3B5 - Revised EIS Purpose and Need and Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives The Contractor shall prepare a Revised EIS Purpose and Need and a Revised Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives to update the two preliminary documents provided in Subtask 3B2. The revised documents shall reflect (1) the NRC's comments on the preliminary versions of these documents, (2) the applicants license application, SAR, and ER, (3) comments and other information from the EIS scoping process, and (4) new information from the site visit and other sources, as appropriate.
The proposed action and alternatives shall be described in sufficient detail to allow the Contractor to assess their impacts in the Preliminary Draft EIS and to continue to demonstrate the Contractor's understanding of the alternatives and impacts.
Subtask 3B6 - Preliminary Draft Description of the Affected Environment The Contractor shall prepare a Preliminary Draft Description of the Affected Environment.
The Contractors effort and attention shall be concentrated on important issues identified in (1) the applicants license application, SAR, and ER, (2) the NRCs input, (3) comments and other information from the EIS scoping process, and (4) new information from the site visit and other sources, as appropriate. Topical areas to be addressed shall be consistent with those identified in the Revised Annotated EIS Outline. Additionally, descriptions of the environmental resource areas to be affected shall identify the important attributes of the resource, the effect on which shall be the focus of the description of environmental impacts (see Subtask 3B7).
Subtask 3B7 - Preliminary Draft Description of Environmental Impacts - Activities associated with this subtask will have started but not be entirely completed to include initial chapters of the draft report (Chapters 1 through 3) which equates to approximately 40 percent of the effort for this subtask.
The Contractor shall prepare a Preliminary Draft Description of the Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action and Alternatives. For the proposed action and each of the reasonable alternatives described in the Revised Description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives, the Contractor shall assess the potential environmental impacts of normal operating conditions, including direct, indirect and cumulative impacts, as well as climate change and accident scenarios (as appropriate). Mitigation measures committed to and proposed by the applicant to avoid or minimize environmental impacts shall be identified and taken into consideration in the impact evaluation. The assessment of the impacts shall be based on the guidance provided in NUREG-1748, and shall be conducted for the following resource/impact areas, as appropriate: land use, transportation, geology, minerals and 13
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 soils, water resources (groundwater and surface water - water use and water quality),
ecological resources, air quality, climate change, noise, historic and cultural resources, visual and scenic resources, socioeconomics, public and occupational health (non-radiological and radiological), accidents, waste management, and environmental justice.
In consultation with the NRC COR, the Contractor shall limit impact descriptions to those resource areas that are reasonably impacted by the proposed action or alternatives.
Additionally, the length and level of detail of the description of the impacts for each resource area shall be informed by the significance of the impacts to that resource area. For the impact discussion for resource areas other than environmental justice, historic and cultural resources, and threatened and endangered species, the Contractor shall make use of the impact significance levels (SMALL / MODERATE / LARGE) in Section 4.2.5.3 of NUREG-1748. The focus of the impact evaluation for those resource areas is to be on the important attributes of the resource and whether the environmental effects alter and separately destabilize those attributes. For environmental justice, historic and cultural resources, and threatened and endangered species, the Contractor shall use the impact wording specific to those resources (e.g., disproportionately high and adverse impact, adversely effect, adversely affect).
The Contractor shall coordinate development of impacts from any accident scenarios with the NRC COR. If accident scenarios and their impacts, if any, are developed by NRC safety staff in preparation of the NRCs SER for the license application, they will be provided, as necessary, to the Contractor for inclusion (and modification as necessary) in the EIS. Note, however, that if the accident scenarios and impacts (if any) are not yet available for inclusion in the Preliminary Draft EIS, they will be provided by the NRC COR for inclusion by the Contractor in a subsequent version of the Draft EIS. The accident scenario and impact information included in the Draft EIS (and later in the Final EIS) must be presented in a form that can be made publicly available.
Subtask 3B8 - Preliminary Draft EIS - Deleted Subtask 3B9 - Writing Session for the Preliminary Draft EIS - Deleted Subtask 3C - Prepare Draft EIS Subtask 3C1 - Working Copy of the Draft EIS - Deleted Subtask 3C2 - Writing Session for the Working Copy of the Draft EIS - Deleted Subtask 3C3 - Draft EIS - Deleted OPTIONAL Subtask 3C4 - Additional Support for EIS Development - Deleted 4.4 Task 4 - NHPA SECTION 106 REVIEW The Contractor shall continue to conduct the activities related to the NHPA Section 106 review and consultation that were begun in the initial year of the task order. As needed, the Contractor shall continue to coordinate meetings, site visits, and communication between all parties (Tribes, Tribal Historic Preservation Offices [THPOs], Texas and New 14
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Mexico State Historic Preservation Offices [SHPOs], NRC, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation [ACHP], etc).
Subtask 4A1 - Assistance with Section 106 Activities - (Partial Completion - The initial efforts include identifying and contacting interested tribes as well as an initial review of the incoming application.)
The Contractor shall plan, coordinate, and conduct activities relating to the NHPA Section 106 review, as needed and in consultation with the NRC COR. The schedule and timing of the consultation activities, review, and required findings shall be coordinated with the schedule of the NEPA review so that the Section 106 process, to the extent possible, is completed along with the NEPA review. That is, the NEPA and Section 106 reviews shall be coordinated together to leverage site visits, information gathering meetings, public involvement, among other opportunities, as appropriate.
Activities to be completed by the Contractor may include:
Conducting research, sharing expertise, and providing technical assistance to the NRC COR; Assisting with development, delineation and graphical representation for the Areas of Potential Effect; Participating in discussions with NRC experts as well as with the ACHP and the Licensees consultants to resolve conflicts and to help move the Section 106 process along; and Review of application and other documents that support the licensing action and provide feedback to COR.
The Contractor shall:
Develop reports and recommendations complying with SHPO guidelines for cultural reports; Participate in discussions with NRC and stakeholders to facilitate the Section 106 consultation process; and Interact with all Tribes involved, as established by the NRC, and ensure adequate communication is maintained between all parties.
If necessary, the Contractor shall prepare a summary report documenting the Section 106 consultation activities performed including details such as personnel involved and decisions made. Prior to initiation of this Task, the NRC COR will provide more direction on the details of the Section 106 Review Summary Report.
Subtask 4A2 - Tribal Meetings (Partial Completion - to facilitate the initial meeting with tribes.)
For at least one and up to three meetings, and at the direction of the NRC COR, the Contractor hall prepare for and attend in-person, multi-Tribe meetings in locations to be determined. Tasks may include:
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Arrange and facilitate meeting o Contact Tribes (including confirmation and response to questions);
o Coordinate approval for meeting materials; Provide logistics for meeting (select meeting location, provide necessary maps and other materials, instrumentation, and any other support including on site transportation, as needed);
o Support COR in all activities for the meeting; o Prepare summary of tribal meeting for NRC and stakeholder review; and o Follow-up with any action items.
Prepare for, attend and follow-up for teleconferences (at least 2 calls), including:
o Arranging teleconferences and providing for all logistics; o Contacting Tribes, including confirmation and response to questions; and o Preparing summary of teleconference for NRC review and approval.
OPTIONAL Subtask 4A3 - Ethnographic Study - Deleted OPTIONAL Subtask 4A4 - Traditional Cultural Property Survey and Report - Deleted OPTIONAL Subtask 4A5 - Additional Support to Conduct Required Analyses - Deleted 4.5 OPTIONAL Task 5 -Deleted
- 5. APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS AND STANDARDS The documents listed below are relevant to the requirement and shall be used by the Contractor in the performance of the task order. The documents are publically available and may be obtained by the Contractor from ADAMS or will be provided by the NRC COR.
The NRC COR will continue to identify and provide necessary documents to the Contractor as they become available throughout the period of performance of this task order.
The Contractor shall be familiar with and shall rely upon the following documents in the performance of this effort:
HOLTECs license application, SAR, and ER HOLTECs responses to RAIs and any other supplemental information provided by HOLTEC NUREG-1748, Environmental Review Guidance for Licensing Actions Associated with NMSS Programs
- 6. DELIVERABLES AND DELIVERY SCHEDULE The presently anticipated schedule for deliverables/milestones required under this task order is outlined in Table 1 below. All deliverables shall be provided electronically to the NRC COR in MS Word format. The MS Word documents shall be saved such that they are compatible with previous MS Word versions. In addition, certain deliverables (primarily the final and revised final versions of the Draft EIS, but others if requested) shall also be provided electronically in PDF format, upon request from the NRC COR. Except where otherwise noted, all deliverables/milestones are the responsibility of the Contractor.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Table 1. Deliverable/Milestone Schedule Task Subtask Deliverable/Milestone Anticipated Schedule Project Manager Detailed Project Schedule in 1 -- Provided to NRC COR upon request MS Project Within 30 calendar days of task order 2 2A1 Acceptance review report initiation or receipt of application Developed, maintained and updated as Bibliographic listing of all documents 2 2A2 stated in Subtask 2A description, and collected and file of electronic copies provided to NRC COR upon request Permissions for use of copyrighted materials 2 2A2 Provided to NRC COR as needed and reference documents Listing and description of applicable federal, Within 15 business days from task order 2 2A2 tribal, state, and local statues, laws, and kickoff meeting (to be held by permits teleconference) 30 business days from task order kickoff 2 2B Initial Technical Review Letter Report meeting 10 business days prior to scheduled scoping 3 3A1 Scoping meeting materials meetings if requested by NRC COR Within 20 business days from receipt of final 3 3A2 Draft Scoping Summary Report set of public comments by Contractor from NRC COR Compilation of questions and issues for use 3 3A3 At least 5 business days prior to site visit trip in site visit, information gathering meetings Within 10 business days of the conclusion of 3 3A3 Draft Site Trip Report the site visit trip Within 10 business days of receipt of NRC 3 3A3 Final Site Trip Report comments on Draft Site Trip Report Within 15 business days after direction from 3 3B1 Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline the COR to proceed on the subtask Within 15 business days from after direction 3 3B2 Preliminary EIS Purpose and Need from the COR to proceed on the subtask Preliminary Description of the Proposed Within 15 business days from after direction 3 3B2 Action and Alternatives from the COR to proceed on the subtask Within 20 business days after conclusion of 3 3B3 Draft RAI Letter Report site visit trip Within 10 business days from receipt of 3 3B3 Final RAI Letter Report NRCs comments on the Draft RAI Letter Report, as received from NRC COR As needed to support EIS preparation, with 3 3B3 Additional Draft and Final RAI Letter Report schedule to be agreed to between NRC COR and Contractor Within 15 business days from either (1) receipt of NRCs comments on the 3 3B4 Revised Annotated EIS Outline Preliminary Annotated EIS Outline, as received from NRC COR, or (2) the close of the EIS scoping period, whichever is later 17
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Task Subtask Deliverable/Milestone Anticipated Schedule Within 15 business days from either (1) receipt of NRCs comments on the 3 3B5 Revised EIS Purpose and Need Preliminary EIS Purpose and Need, as received from NRC COR, or (2) the close of the EIS scoping period, whichever is later Within 15 business days from either (1) receipt of NRCs comments on the Revised Description of the Proposed Action Preliminary Description of the Proposed 3 3B5 and Alternatives Action and Alternatives, as received from NRC COR, or (2) the close of the EIS scoping period, whichever is later Preliminary Draft Description of the Affected 40 business days after conclusion of site visit 3 3B6 Environment trip Preliminary Draft Description of 60 business days after conclusion of site visit 3 3B7 Environmental Impacts - partial completion trip approximately 40 percent Summary Reports of Section 106 As needed, with schedule to be agreed to 4 4A1 Consultation Activities between NRC COR and Contractor Comments and review of cultural resource Within 10 business days from initiation of 4 4A1 report for NHPA Section 106 consultation -
Section 106 consultation partial completion of task
- 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS Monthly Letter Status Report (MLSR)
The contractor shall provide a Monthly Letter Status Report in accordance with the base contract which consists of a technical progress report and financial status report by the 20th day of the following month. This report will be used by the Government to assess the adequacy of the resources proposed by the contractor to accomplish the work contained in this SOW and provide status of contractor progress in achieving activities and producing deliverables. The report shall include order summary information, work completed during the specified period, milestone schedule information, problem resolution, travel plans, and staff hour summary.
- 8. REQUIRED LABOR CATEGORIES/STAFFING The Contractor shall ensure that the technical staff performing under this task order possess the necessary experience and expertise in the technical areas assigned to them. The NRC reserves the right to approve the Contractors Project Manager and the individual technical staff assigned to each task from the necessary technical disciplines.
The Contractors Project Manager shall have in-depth expertise in at least one of the significant issues for the EIS preliminarily identified by the NRC staff (i.e., transportation, public and occupational radiological health, socioeconomics, and environmental justice) and a general understanding of the range of issues covered by an EIS. In addition, the Contractors Project Manager shall have extensive experience in the technical and regulatory aspects necessary for evaluating the environmental impacts of the construction and operation of industrial facilities, including nuclear facilities that require reviews under NEPA, and shall have expertise in methods used to mitigate impacts on the environment.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 The Contractors senior technical staff assigned to this task order shall have specialized experience to include a Bachelors Degree and at least 5 years of technical experience in conducting environmental reviews in the specific technical areas assigned or an advanced degree and experience reflecting continued achievement in their chosen profession, and shall have an appropriate combination of education, training, and experience in the areas required to complete the EIS, including land use, transportation, geology, minerals and soils, water resources (groundwater and surface water), ecological resources, climatology, meteorology and air quality, climate change, noise, historic and cultural resources, visual and scenic resources, socioeconomics, public and occupational health (non-radiological and radiological), accidents, waste management, environmental justice, cumulative impacts assessment, mitigation measures, environmental measurements and monitoring, and cost-benefit analysis, again with the most important of these areas preliminarily identified by the NRC staff as transportation, public and occupational radiological health, socioeconomics, and environmental justice. Additionally, the Contractors technical staff shall have a clear understanding of the depth of review generally required by the NRC for an EIS and specifically required by the type of activity proposed by the applicant for the disciplines they represent. Experience presenting technical information in written reports and providing written and oral testimony at adjudicatory hearings on the proposed license termination action also is required.
The NRC considers the following technical disciplines to be essential for this effort:
- 1. Project Manager
- 2. Environmental Specialist / Scientist / Engineer
- 3. Radiation Health Physicist
- 4. Hydrologist / Hydrogeologist
- 5. Geologist / Seismologist
- 6. Nuclear Physicist / Engineer / Criticality
- 7. General Engineer / Chemical Engineer
- 8. Historic and Cultural Resources Specialist
- 9. Ecology and Interrelated Earth Sciences Specialist
- 10. Environmental Justice Specialist
- 11. Socioeconomics Specialist
- 12. Transportation impact assessment Specialist
- 13. Cumulative impacts assessment Specialist
- 14. Facilitation/Public Outreach Specialist
- 15. Nuclear Fuel Facility and/or Spent Fuel Facility Specialist
- 16. Federal, Tribal, State, and/or other Local Agency Consultation and Coordination Specialist
- 17. Technical Editor
- 9. GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED PROPERTY The COR will facilitate the Contractors access to PNNLs EARRTH SharePoint site.
The Comment Response Database is also found on the EARRTH website.
- 10. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE Refer to SECTION F - Deliveries or Performance.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005
- 11. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE Except as otherwise indicated in Section 4 and Section 12.1 of this SOW, the work shall be performed at the Contractors facilities.
- 12. SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS Include in this section, items such as the following as applicable:
12.1 MEETINGS/TRAVEL Throughout the task order period of performance, the Contractor shall maintain effective communication with the NRC COR and staff (and with cooperating agency staff, if any) to help coordinate and integrate EIS preparation with NRC and the cooperating agency (if any) technical and decision making activities. Several meetings between the Contractor and NRC staff throughout the duration of this task order are presently anticipated. Meetings are presently anticipated to be held at the NRC offices in Rockville, Maryland, but may alternately be held at the Contractors offices. The meetings will be held to review progress, provide input into the project, and work on project deliverables. During Task 3, travel to the HOLTEC site vicinity shall be required for the EIS scoping meeting(s), site visit and information gathering meetings, and Draft EIS public meeting(s). Travel to the NRC Offices in Rockville, Maryland, shall also be required for the Draft EIS Review Meetings (Writing Sessions). In addition, if necessary, the Contractor shall also attend meetings in Rockville, Maryland, to discuss RAIs with the NRC staff and HOLTEC and for coordination with cooperation agencies (if any) on the EIS. During Task 5, travel shall be required for pre- hearing support in Rockville, Maryland.
The contractor shall be authorized travel expenses consistent with the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) and the limitation of funds for this task order. All travel requires prior written COR approval. Meetings and other activities that may require Contractor travel are summarized in Table 2 below. At the NRC CORs discretion, some of these meetings may be held in the form of teleconferences or webinars or at the contractors site.
Table 2. Meetings and Travel Contractor Number Days Staff of Trips per Members Task Purpose Location per Trip Trip Task Planning Meetings (Tasks 1 1-2 Rockville, MD 2 3 2 and 2) 1-3 Quarterly Progress Meetings Rockville, MD 6 3 2 HOLTEC site vicinity 3A2 EIS Scoping Meeting(s) 2 5 6 Hobbs, New Mexico)
Site Visit and Information Gathering HOLTEC site vicinity 3A3 1 5 6 Meetings Hobbs, New Mexico 3B3 RAI Meetings Rockville, MD 1 3 2 Cooperating Agency Coordination 3A3 Rockville, MD 2 3 2 (if needed) 20
NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 12.2 SECURITY The work under this task order will be UNCLASSIFIED.
12.3 KEY PERSONNEL The Contractors designated key personnel for this task order shall include at a minimum the Contractors Project Manager and senior technical staff in the following discipline areas:
transportation, public and occupational radiological health, socioeconomics, and environmental justice. See Section 8, Staffing for additional information.
Refer to SECTION H.2 2052.215-70 KEY PERSONNEL (JAN 1993) 12.4 LICENSE FEE RECOVERY The EIS preparation work and the NHPA Section 106 work are fee-recoverable.
The Hearing Support work is not fee-recoverable.
12.5 DATA RIGHTS The NRC shall have unlimited rights to and ownership of all deliverables provided under this contract/order, including reports, recommendations, briefings, work plans and all other deliverables. All documents and materials, to include the source codes of any software, produced under this contract/order are the property of the Government with all rights and privileges of ownership/copyright belonging exclusively to the Government. These documents and materials may not be used or sold by the contractor without written authorization from the CO. All materials supplied to the Government shall be the sole property of the Government and may not be used for any other purpose. This right does not abrogate any other Government rights. The definition of unlimited rights is contained in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 27.401, Definitions. FAR clause at FAR 52.227-14, Rights in Data-General, is hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this contract/order.
12.6 QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM The Contractors approach to quality control shall focus on project management and document production processes and tools that assure the quality of the deliverables and integrity of the environmental review process.
The Contractors project manager will serve as the focal point for coordinating the project activities and will be responsible for assuring the timely and high quality submittal of deliverables. All information shall be accurate and complete. The project management responsibilities include verifying quality requirements and deliverables specifications, responding satisfactorily and in a timely manner to feedback, and continuously improving products and services by communicating and applying lessons learned. The Contractors project manager shall also ensure that scientific and technical reports are developed in accordance with established practices for publishing scientific and technical information.
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NRC-HQ-12-C-20-0089 NRC-HQ-50-17-T-0002 M0005 Project deliverables will be reviewed by someone other than the project manager to ensure that they are accurate and complete. Management approval is necessary for all final deliverables.
Document version control is critical to the document production process. The Contractor shall ensure that previous versions are kept so the Contractor will be able to return to any earlier version of a document and be able to track the changes and the basis for those changes.
Editorial review involves a complete review of the entire document by an editorial review team. The editorial review will help ensure that a coherent and complete story is being told in accordance with writing and format guidelines. The quality of the graphics is also evaluated to understand if these are legible or need to be improved.
All other terms and conditions of the task order remain the same.
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