Press Release-09-117, NRC Issues Final Environmental Impact Statement for Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant License Renewal Application

Press Release-09-117: NRC Issues Final Environmental Impact Statement for Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant License Renewal Application

ML091770518
Person / Time
Site:	Three Mile Island
Issue date:	06/26/2009
From:	Office of Public Affairs
To:
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Press Release-09-117
Download: ML091770518 (2)

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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: http://www.nrc.gov No.09-117 June 26, 2009 NRC ISSUES FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT FOR THREE MILE ISLAND NUCLEAR PLANT LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has issued its final supplemental safety environmental impact statement (SEIS) for the proposed renewal of the operating license for the Three Mile Island Nuclear Station, Unit 1 (TMI-1), located in Middletown, Pa. The report concluded there are no environmental impacts that would preclude license renewal for an additional 20 years of operation.

TMI-1 is a pressurized-water reactor located 10 miles southeast of Harrisburg, Pa. The current operating license expires April 19, 2014. Exelon Generation Group, LLC, owner and operator (formerly Amergen Energy Company, LLC.), submitted an application to the NRC on Jan. 8, 2008 to extend the TMI-1 license by 20 years. Under NRC regulations, the original operating license for a nuclear power plant has a term of 40 years. The license may be renewed for up to an additional 20 years if NRC requirements are met. Therefore if approved, the current operating license for TMI-1 would be extended until 2034.

As part of its environmental review of the application, the NRC held public meetings near the plant to discuss the review process and the draft version of the environmental impact statement. Comments were received and considered from members of the public, local officials, and representatives of state and federal agencies.

Publication of the final environmental impact statement does not represent final NRC action on the license renewal application. The agency staff has completed its safety evaluation report that will be evaluated by the NRCs Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS) in September. The ACRS will make its recommendation to the Commission before the agency makes a final decision.

The TMI-1 final environmental impact statement is available on the NRCs Web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1437/supplement37/ and can also be viewed in the NRCs ADAMS online documents system at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html by entering accession number ML091751063 in the search window.

The TMI-1 license renewal application is posted at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/three-mile-island.html.

Additional information about the license renewal process is available at:

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal.html. Help in using ADAMS is available by contacting the NRCs Public Document Room at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at: PDR.Resource@nrc.gov.

Documents related to TMI-1 are also located at the following locations: the Middletown Public Library, 20 North Catherine Street in Middletown; the Penn State Harrisburg Library, 351 Olmsted Drive in Middletown; and the Londonderry Township Municipal Building, 783 South Geyers Church Road in Middletown.

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.

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's Web site.