ML24206A085

NPS Section 106 Initiation Response - Hermes 2

ML24206A085
Person / Time
Site:	Hermes  File:Kairos Power icon.png
Issue date:	03/20/2024
From:	Berhman W US Dept of Interior, National Park Service, Manhattan Project National Historical Park
To:	Doub J Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
References
Download: ML24206A085 (1)

Text

United States Department of the Interior

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Manhattan Project National Historical H4217 (1.A.2) 12795 West Alameda Parkway

IN REPLY REFER TO: P. O. Box 25287 Denver, Colorado 80225-0287

Mr. J. Peyton Doub Environmental Project Management Branch 3 Division of Rulemaking, Environmental, and Financial Support Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards Peyton.Doub@nrc.gov

Dear Mr. Doub,

I am writing in response to your January 31, 2024 (received February 8, 2024) letter regarding the request to initiate Section 106 Consultation for Kairos Power Proposed Non-Power Test Reactors (Hermes 2) Construction Permit Review in Roane County, Tennessee.

I want to thank you and the rest of the project staff for your outreach to the National Park Service (NPS) regarding th e project that initiated in spring2022. In our scoping comments letter to NRC (April 12, 2022) we provided three main comments on the project: 1) concern with accessibility to/around the K -25 site; 2) NPS interest in collaborating to include interpretation material at or in proximity to the proposed Kairos facility, and 3) nexus to the ongoing Department of Energy (DOE) planning for the si te, and public access locations to the NPS K -25 site.

We appreciate the August 23, 2022,virtual meeting and the follow -up email on August 30, 2022.

The key takeaways from the follow up conver sation with your staff included:

1) Kairos Power would not limit recreation along that waterway. Kairos Power plans to have barriers preventing access to their property alongPoplar Creek; however, the Kairos Power property is relatively small and the length of any barrier on their side of Poplar creek would not i mpact recreation along the creek.

2) The NRC has discussed our request for collaboration with Kairos Power. We have had discussion since with the Kairos Power communications team to discuss possible interpretative opportunities and collaboration.

We appreciate the follow-up on our first two issues of concern.At this point DOE is still in the process of developing plans for the area and there is not clarity ye t about public access locations at the site. Until the access locations are defined, we cannot evaluate possible impacts to the park historical resources.

Thank you for the opportunity to continue to provide comments on the project. If you have questions, you may contact Manhattan Project NHP Oak Ridge Site Manager, Dr. Niki Stephanie Nicholas at niki_nicholas@nps.gov.

Sincerely,

Wendy Berhman Superintendent

cc: John Shewairy, DOE, John.Shewairy@Science.doe.gov Niki Stephanie Nicholas, Big South Fork Nation River & Recreation Area and Obed Wild &

Scenic River Superintendent and Manhattan Project NPS, niki_nicholas@nps.gov Beau Goldstein, NRC Environmental Project Manager, Beau.Goldstein@nps.gov