[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 216 (Wednesday, November 9, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-27741]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: November 9, 1994]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Illinois Power Co. et al.; Notice of Environmental Assessment and
Finding of No Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is
considering issuance of an amendment to Facility Operating License No.
NPF-62, issued to Illinois Power Company (the licensee), for operation
of the Clinton Power Station, Unit 1 (CPS), located in Dewitt County,
Illinois.
Environmental Assessment
Identification of the Proposed Action
The proposed amendment will replace the existing Technical
Specifications (TS) in their entirety with the Improved Technical
Specifications (ITS). The proposed action is in accordance with the
licensee's amendment request dated October 26, 1993.
The Need for the Proposed Action
It has been recognized that nuclear safety in all plants would
benefit from improvement and standardization of TS. The ``NRC Interim
Policy Statement on Technical Specification Improvements for Nuclear
Power Reactors,'' (``Federal Register 52 FR 3788, February 6, 1987) and
later the Final Policy Statement, formalized this need. To facilitate
the development of individual ITS, each reactor vendor owners group
(OG) and the NRC staff developed standard Technical Specifications. For
General Electric (GE) plants, the standard TS (STS) are NUREG-1433 for
BWR/4 reactor facilities and NUREG-1434 for BWR/6 facilities. NUREG-
1434 formed the basis of the CPS ITS. The NRC Committee to Review
Generic Requirements (CRGR) reviewed the STS and made note of the
safety merits of the STS and indicated its support of conversion by
operating plants to the STS.
Description of the Proposed Change
The proposed revision to the TS is based on NUREG-1434 and on
guidance provided in the Policy Statement. Its objective is to
completely rewrite, reformat, and streamline the existing TS. Emphasis
is placed on human factors principles to improve clarity and
understanding. The Bases section has been significantly expanded to
clarify and better explain the purpose and foundation of each
specification. In addition to NUREG-1434, portions of the existing TS
were also used as the basis for the ITS. Plant-specific issues (unique
design features, requirements, and operating practices) were discussed
at length with the licensee, and generic matters with the GE and other
OGs.
The proposed changes from the existing TS can be grouped into four
general categories, as follows:
1. Non-technical (administrative) changes, which were intended to
make the ITS easier to use for plant operations personnel. They are
purely editorial in nature or involve the movement or reformat of
requirements without affecting technical content. Every section of the
CPS TS has undergone these types of changes. In order to ensure
consistency, the NRC staff and the licensee have used NUREG-1434 as
guidance to reformat and make other administrative changes.
2. Relocation of requirements, which includes items that were in
the existing CPS TS but did not meet the criteria set forth in the
Policy Statement for inclusion in TS. In general, the proposed
relocation of items in the CPS TS to the Updated Safety Analysis Report
(USAR), appropriate plant-specific programs, procedures and ITS Bases
follows the guidance of the BWR/6 STS, NUREG-1434. Once these items
have been relocated by removing them from the TS to other licensee-
controlled documents, the licensee may revise them under the provisions
of 10 CFR 50.59 or other NRC staff-approved control mechanisms which
provide appropriate procedural means to control changes.
3. More restrictive requirements, which consist of proposed CPS ITS
items that are either more conservative than corresponding requirements
in the existing CPS TS, or are additional restrictions which are not in
the existing CPS TS but are contained in NUREG-1434. Examples of more
restrictive requirements include: Placing a Limiting Condition of
Operation (LCO) on plant equipment, which is not required by the
present TS to be operable; more restrictive requirements to restore
inoperable equipment; and more restrictive surveillance requirements.
4. Less restrictive requirements, which are relaxations of
corresponding requirements in the existing CPS TS which provided little
or no safety benefit and placed unnecessary burden on the licensee.
These relaxations were the result of generic NRC action or other
analyses. They have been justified on a case-by-case basis for CPS as
described in the Safety Evaluation to be issued with the license
amendment, which will be noticed in the Federal Register.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The Commission has completed its evaluation of the proposed
revision to the TS. Changes which are administrative in nature have
been found to have no effect on technical content of the TS, and are
acceptable. The increased clarity and understanding these changes bring
to the TS are expected to improve the operator's control of the plant
in normal and accident conditions.
Relocation of requirements to other licensee-controlled documents
does not change the requirements themselves. Future changes to these
requirements may be made by the licensee under 10 CFR 50.59 or other
NRC-approved control mechanisms, which assures continued maintenance of
adequate requirements. All such relocations have been found to be in
conformance with the guidelines of NUREG-1434 and the Policy Statement,
and, therefore, to be acceptable.
Changes involving more restrictive requirements have been found to
be acceptable.
Changes involving less restrictive requirements have been reviewed
individually. When requirements have been shown to provide little or no
safety benefit or to place unnecessary burden on the licensee, their
removal from the TS was justified. In most cases, relaxations
previously granted to individual plants on a plant-specific basis were
the result of a generic NRC action, or of agreements reached during
discussions with the OG and found to be acceptable for CPS. Generic
relaxations contained in NUREG-1434 have also been reviewed by the NRC
staff and have been found to be acceptable.
In summary, the proposed revision to the TS was found to provide
control of plant operations such that reasonable assurance will be
provided that the health and safety of the public will be adequately
protected.
These TS changes will not increase the probability or consequences
of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of any effluent
that may be released offsite, and there is no significant increase in
the allowable individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure.
Therefore, the Commission concludes that there are no significant
radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed TS
amendment.
With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed
amendment involves features located entirely within the restricted
areas as defined in 10 CFR 20. It does not affect non-radiological
plant effluents and has no other environmental impact. Therefore, the
Commission concludes that there are no significant non-radiological
impacts associated with the proposed amendment.
Alternatives to the Proposed Action
Since the Commission has concluded there is no measurable
environmental impact associated with the proposed amendment, any
alternatives with equal or greater environmental impact need not be
evaluated. The principal alternative to the amendment would be to deny
the amendment request. Such action would not enhance the protection of
the environment.
Alternative Use of Resources
This action does not involve the use of resources not considered
previously in the Final Environmental Statement for Clinton Power
Station.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
The NRC staff consulted with the State of Illinois regarding the
environmental impact of the proposed action. The State official had no
comments.
Finding of No Significant Impact
Based upon the environmental assessment, the Commission concludes
that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the
quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the Commission has
determined not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the
proposed amendment.
For further details with respect to this proposed action, see the
licensee's letter dated October 26, 1993. This letter is available for
public inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman
Building, 2120 L Street, NW., Washington, DC 20555, and at the local
public document room located at the Vespasian Warner Public Library,
120 West Johnson Street, Clinton, Illinois 61727.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 1st day of November, 1994.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Cynthia A. Carpenter,
Acting Director, Project Directorate III-3, Division of Reactor
Projects III/IV, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 94-27741 Filed 11-8-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M
