ML24155A043
| ML24155A043 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Browns Ferry  |
| Issue date: | 04/18/2024 |
| From: | NRC/NMSS/DREFS/ELRB |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML24155A038 | List: |
| References | |
| EPID L-2024-SLE-0000 | |
| Download: ML24155A043 (1) | |
Text
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Summary of Public Meetings
Title:
Environmental Scoping Meetings Related to the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant License Renewal Application Meeting Identifiers: 20240393 and 20240394 Date of Meetings: April 11, 2024, and April 18, 2024 Locations: Webinars Type of Meeting: Comment-Gathering Meetings Purpose of the Meetings:
To gather information necessary to prepare an environmental impact statement to evaluate the environmental impacts for the potential subsequent license renewal of the operating license for Browns Ferry Plant, Units 1, 2, and 3 (Browns Ferry).
General Details:
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) held two virtual environmental scoping public meetings as part of the Browns Ferry, subsequent license renewal environmental review. The meetings were held via Microsoft Teams on April 11th, at 1 p.m., and on April 18, at 6 p.m. eastern standard time. 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 with a focus on the environmental review and scoping process. The presentation emphasized that scoping comments were welcome to help NRC define the scope of its environmental review for the Browns Ferry Nuclear, subsequent license renewal application (SLRA). 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 scoping comments.
Approximately ten people attended the meeting on April 11th, seven Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) employees and three members of the public. Approximately eleven people attended the meeting on April 18th, five TVA employees and six members of the public. These numbers do not include the NRC staff in attendance.
Summary of Presentation:
The NRC staff presented an overview of its review process for the Browns Ferry, SLRA, beginning with the safety review and then going into greater detail on the environmental review. TVA submitted its SLRA for Browns Ferry, on January 19, 2024 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) ML24019A009). Browns Ferry, was first issued facility operating licenses on December 20, 1973, for Unit 1, June 28, 1974, for Unit 2, and July 2, 1976, for Unit 3, respectively. All three units were granted initial renewed licenses on May 4, 2006. The current renewed licenses will expire on December 20, 2033, for Unit 1, June 28, 2034, for Unit 2, and July 2, 2036, for Unit 3. If a license renewal is granted, it will be for an additional 20 years.
Jessica Hammock, the safety review project manager, noted that the focus of the safety review is to identify aging effects that could impair the ability of systems, structures, and components within the scope of license renewal to perform their intended functions, and to demonstrate that these aging effects will be adequately managed during the period of extended operation. A single, complete Safety Evaluation Report will be issued prior to the NRC staff meeting with the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards Subcommittee on Plant License Renewal.
Jessica Umana, the environmental review project manager, explained that the NRC conducts its environmental review in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). NEPA requires federal agencies to follow a systematic approach in evaluating the potential impacts from the proposed action and alternatives to the proposed action. The environmental review begins with the scoping process. Scoping is process by which the NRC staff identifies the specific impacts and significant issues to be considered within the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Jessica Umana noted that public participation is an important aspect of scoping and that gathering comments was the purpose of this public meetings. The NRC staff considers all scoping comments provided during the public meetings, as well as written comments received during the scoping period in preparing the draft EIS. At the conclusion of the scoping process, NRC will prepare and issue an Environmental Scoping Summary Report that describes comments received during the scoping period and includes significant issues identified because of the scoping process.
Jessica Umana explained that the NRC also conducts an independent assessment and documents its findings within the draft EIS. The draft EIS for Browns Ferry subsequent license renewal will be issued for public comment in approximately May 2025. The NRC staff will consider any comments on the draft EIS in preparing the final EIS. In conducting its environmental review, the NRC staff will be coordinating with other Federal, State, and local agencies, as well as tribal leaders to ensure that local technical resource specialists are involved in the review. Within the EIS, the NRC evaluates impacts from the proposed license renewal for a wide range of environmental resources, such as air quality, human health, wetlands, and threatened and endangered species. Ultimately, the purpose of the environmental review is to determine whether the environmental impacts of license renewal could be so great that preserving the option of license renewal for decision makers would become unreasonable.
Jessica Umana informed the attendees that the EIS will be considered in conjunction with the NRC staff's safety review in recommending to the Commission whether to renew the Browns Ferry operating licenses for an additional 20-year period.
The staff ended the meetings by reiterating that the closing date for submitting scoping comments is May 3, 2024. In addition to providing comments at the two public meetings, comments can be: (1) mailed to Office of Administration Mailstop TWFN-7A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001; (2) submitted online using the Federal Rulemaking website at regulations.gov (Docket ID: NRC-2024-0030); or (3) submitted electronically by email to BrownsFerryEnvironmental.Resource@nrc.gov.
Public Participation Themes:
April 11, 2024, Meeting Four speakers provided comments on a range of topics including age management, the Government Accountability Office report on climate change, public safety, and waste management.
April 18, 2024, Meeting One speaker from the Alabama Department of Public Health Office of Radiation Control and the Emergency Planning Environmental Monitoring Branch stated the Browns Ferry has been operating in compliance and with no environmental exceedances since he has worked as a Public Health Officer since 2017.
A complete accounting of the comments provided during both meetings can be found in the meeting transcripts which are available in the NRCs ADAMS 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 review of the Browns Ferry SLRA. The NRC staff will include an analysis of comments in the scoping summary report.
Attachments:
April 11, 2024, Meeting List of Attendees Meeting description and agenda - ML24102A044 NRC staff presentation - ML24078A272 Meeting transcript - ML24123A157 April 18, 2024, Meeting List of Attendees Meeting description and agenda - ML24109A005 NRC staff presentation - ML24078A272 Meeting transcript - ML24123A162 List of Attendees April 11, 2024, Browns Ferry Public Scoping Meeting Subsequent License Renewal Application Name Affiliation Jerry Dozier Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Angela Sabet NRC Elijah Dickson NRC Jessica Umana NRC Gerry Stirewalt NRC Rao Tammara NRC Jessica Hammock NRC Brian Glowacki NRC Caroline Hsu NRC Jay Robinson NRC Karen Loomis NRC Antoinette Walker-Smith NRC Carla Roque-Cruz NRC Sam Womack NRC Scott Burnell NRC Steve Koenick NRC Austin Im NRC Lynnea Wilkins NRC Lance Rakovan NRC Reuben Siegman NRC Robert Hoffman NRC Jeffrey Rikhoff NRC John Moses NRC Lloyd Desotell NRC Peyton Doub NRC Kevin Folk NRC Kimberly Green NRC Beth Alferink NRC Ashley Waldron NRC Kim Conway NRC Ted Smith NRC Dave Gasperson NRC Donald Palmrose NRC Tam Tran NRC Jennifer Davis NRC Don Safer Public Joe Bashore Public Grissom, Lindsey Renee Southern Nuclear Operating Company Aughtman, Amy G.
Southern Nuclear Operating Company Victor, William Ross Tennessee Valley Authority Rymer, Stuart Loveridge Tennessee Valley Authority Brian Paddock Public Bashore, Joseph Herbert Tennessee Valley Authority Braudt, Thomas Earl Tennessee Valley Authority Franzone, Stephan Southern Nuclear Operating Company List of Attendees April 18, 2024, Browns Ferry Public Scoping Meeting Subsequent License Renewal Application Name Affiliation Angela Sabet Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Jessica Hammock NRC Lance Rakovan NRC Steve Koenick NRC Jessica Umana NRC Nancy Martinez NRC John Pelchat NRC Dave Gasperson NRC Lynnea Wilkins NRC Jerry Dozier NRC Rao Tammara NRC Caroline Hsu NRC Beth Alferink NRC tam Tran NRC Ashley Waldron NRC Michelle Wines Public Grissom, Lindsey Renee Southern Nuclear Operating Company Bashore, Joseph Herbert Tennessee Valley Authority Unnamed Public Unnamed Public Unnamed Public Ryan Tozer Public Aughtman, Amy G.
Southern Nuclear Operating Company Michael Hallman, ADPH ORC EP&EM Public Guill, Paul F Duke Energy Carolinas Tozer, Ryan M Constellation Energy Corporation Bill Victor Excel Services Corporation