ML24071A170
| ML24071A170 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Oconee  |
| Issue date: | 03/15/2024 |
| From: | Lance Rakovan NRC/NMSS/DREFS/ELRB |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML24071A166 | List: |
| References | |
| Download: ML24071A170 (6) | |
Text
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Summary of Public Meetings
Title:
Public Meetings to Receive Comments on the Draft Site-Specific Oconee Environmental Impact Statement
Meeting Identifiers: 20240150 and 20240153
Meeting Dates: Wednesday, February 21, 2024, and Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Location: Seneca, SC (2/21) and Webinar (2/27)
Type of Meeting: Comment-Gathering Meetings
Purpose of the Meetings:
To provide the results of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff's environmental review of the subsequent license renewal environmental report, as supplemented, for Oconee Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2, and 3 (Oconee Station), as documented in its draft site-specific environmental impact statement and provide an opportunity for public comment on the NRC staff's findings.
General Details:
The NRC held two public meetings as part of the Oconee Station subsequent license renewal environmental review. The meeting held on February 21 2024, started at 7:00 p.m. eastern standard time (ET) and ended at approximately 8:50 p.m. ET. The meeting held on February 27, 2024, started at 1:00 p.m. ET and ended at approximately 2:20 p.m. ET. Both meetings followed the same agenda, beginning with a review of meeting ground rules and an introduction of the NRC staff, followed by a presentation by the NRC staff on the license renewal process and the preliminary findings of the draft environmental impact statement (EIS).
The presentation emphasized that comments on the draft EIS were welcome to help NRC refine the document. There was an opportunity for attendees to ask questions about the NRC staffs presentation followed by an opportunity for members of the public to provide oral comments on the draft EIS.
Approximately 30 people attended the meeting held on February 21, 2024, and approximately 60 people attended the meeting held on February 27, 2024. These numbers include the NRC staff in attendance. Participants included members of the public, government agencies as well as representatives of Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC., and members of public advocacy organizations.
Summary of Presentation:
The NRC presentation noted that the operating licenses for Oconee Station were issued in 1973 for Units 1 and 2 and 1974 for Unit 3. The renewed licenses were issued for all three units in 2000. The proposed expiration dates, assuming the 20-year extension is granted once the environmental review is completed, would shift the expiration dates to 2053 for Units 1 and 2 and 2054 for Unit 3.
Enclosure
In terms of the environmental review, the NRC previously was using a generic environmental impact statement to address generic (Category 1) issues for environmental reviews. However, the Commission Orders directed that NRC could not apply the generic issues to subsequent license renewal; so, NRC had to take an in-depth look at both Category 1 and 2 topics as part of this review. The draft site-specific EIS was issued at the beginning of February. An announcement informing the public the draft site-specific EIS was available was published in the Federal Register on February 13 th and a 45-day comment period began on February 16th, with public comments due April 1, 2024.
Per the draft EIS preliminary findings, the vast majority of the resource areas analyzed by NRC staff were found to have a potential small impact. For historical and cultural resources, the preliminary finding is that the action, subsequent license renewal, would not adversely affect known historic properties. For environmental justice, the preliminary finding is that the action would have no disproportionately high and adverse human health and environmental effects on minority and low-income populations. For special species and habitats, the NRC identified that the action may affect but is not likely to adversely affect the monarch butterfly and tricolored bat.
No essential fish habitat or national marine sanctuaries are present.
The presentation noted that the NRC does not make decisions in terms of whether a plant should continue to operate or what the ratio of types of power production should be in the United States. The primary finding in the draft EIS is that the adverse environmental impacts of subsequent license renewal for Oconee Station for an additional 20 years beyond the current expiration dates are not so great that preserving the option of subsequent license renewal for energy-planning decisionmakers would be unreasonable.
The staff ended the meeting by stressing that the closing date for submitting comments on the draft report is April 1, 2024. In addition to providing comments at the meeting, comments can be: (1) mailed to Office of Administration Mailstop TWFN7A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; (2) submitted online using the Federal Rulemaking website at regulations.gov (Docket ID: NRC-2021-0146); or (3) submitted electronically by email to OconeeEnvironmental@nrc.gov.
Public Participation Themes:
February 21, 2024, Meeting
Eight speakers provided remarks. Comments addressed several topics including: uranium fuel cycle, processing of uranium fuel, waste management, timing of public meetings and availability to the public (i.e. not on Wednesday due to religious conflict), general draft EIS process and public comment timing, general support of nuclear power, renewable energy, climate change, flooding due to climate change, climate change effects on animals, roadway flooding due to climate change, concern that the earthen dam could fail and cause flooding, public health and safety, public participation, age of the Oconee Plant, new NRC chair appointment, and concern for future impacts on future generations.
February 27, 2024, Meeting
Ten speakers provided remarks. Comments primarily focused on climate change, flooding, and the Jocasse Dam. Alternative energy options, radioactive waste storage, and other topics were touched upon as well.
A complete accounting of the comments provided during both meetings can be found in the meeting transcripts which are available in the NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System public electronic reading room under the accession numbers listed below, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
Action Items/Next Steps:
The NRC staff will address the comments received during the public commenting period as part of the subsequent license renewal review for Oconee Station. The NRC staff will include an analysis of comments in the final NUREG-1437, Supplement 2, Second Renewal, "Site-Specific Environmental Impact Statement for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants Supplement 2, Second Renewal Regarding Subsequent License Renewal."
References:
February 21, 2024, Meeting
- Meeting Description and Agenda - ML24039A102
- NRC Staff Presentation - ML24046A160
- Meeting Transcript - ML24071A167
February 27, 2024, Meeting
- Meeting Description and Agenda - ML24039A046
- NRC Staff Presentation - ML24046A161
- Meeting Transcript - ML24071A168 List of Attendees February 21, 2024, Public Meeting to Receive Comments on the Draft Site-Specific Oconee Environmental Impact Statement
NAME AFFILIATION Dave Gasperson U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Keion Henry (He/Him) NRC Stephen Koenick NRC Jared Nadel NRC Lance Rakovan NRC Evan Robinson NRC Angela Sabet NRC Nick Smalley NRC Eric Stamm NRC Shawn Williams NRC Trent Acker Duke Energy Carolinas Rosellen Aleguire Steven Capps Duke Energy Carolinas Elaine Cooper Sierra Club Jamie Dodson Duke Energy Carolinas Robert Fennell Duke Energy Carolinas Heather Galloway Duke Energy Carolinas Jeremy Galloway Duke Energy Carolinas Todd Grant Duke Energy Carolinas MK Green Duke Energy Carolinas Audrey Jones Sierra Club Mikayla Kreuzberger Duke Energy Carolinas Tracey LeRoy Duke Energy Carolinas Eunice Lehmacher Sierra Club Rounette Nader Duke Energy Carolinas Frank Powell Jane Powell Daniel Roberts Duke Energy Carolinas Greg Robinson Duke Energy Carolinas Steve Snider Duke Energy Carolinas Bert Spear Duke Energy Carolinas Joanne Sweeney Nuclear Watch South David Wilson Duke Energy Carolinas
Enclosure
List of Attendees February 27, 2024, Public Meeting to Receive Comments on the Draft Site-Specific Oconee Environmental Impact Statement
NAME AFFILIATION Scott Burnell U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Beth Alferink NRC Kim Conway NRC Elijah Dickson NRC Dave Gasperson NRC Keion Henry NRC Hsiang-Yuan Ho NRC Steven Koenick NRC Karen Loomis NRC Nancy Martinez NRC Marla Morales NRC John Moses NRC Jared Nadel NRC Leah Parks NRC Lance Rakovan NRC Jeff Rikhoff NRC Evan Robinson NRC Miranda Ross NRC Angela Sabet NRC Nick Smalley NRC Zee St Hilaire NRC Eric Stamm NRC Antoinette Walker-Smith NRC Lynnea Wilkins NRC Ashley Waldron NRC Mark Yoo NRC Rosellen Aleguire Jana Bergman Curtiss Wright Anna Bishop Crystal Bowers Duke Energy Carolinas Lucas Calvert Duke Energy Carolinas Glenn Carroll Elaine Frick Chase Fulk Duke Energy Carolinas Heather Galloway Duke Energy Carolinas Michael Geers Duke Energy Carolinas
Lloyd Generette Environmental Protection Agency Elizabeth Glenn Duke Energy Carolinas Mary Kathryn Green Duke Energy Carolinas Paul Guill Duke Energy Carolinas Paul Gunter Beyond Nuclear Susan Jenkins State of South Carolina Stephanie Johansen Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Marsha Kinley Duke Energy Carolinas Leslie Jones Arun Kapur Duke Energy Carolinas Will Lane Leslie Minerd Rounette Nader Duke Energy Carolinas Dan Nally Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Abigail Patterson Duke Energy Carolinas Frank Powell William Powell Priscilla Preston Betsy Rivard Daniel William Roberts Duke Energy Carolinas Greg Robinson Duke Energy Carolinas Joanne Sweeney Ellie Taylor