[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 237 (Thursday, December 10, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68316-68317]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-32813]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No.: 070-3085]
Notice of Consideration of Amendment Request for the Babcock and
Wilcox Shallow Land Disposal Area in Parks Township, Pennsylvania, and
Opportunity for a Hearing
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering issuance of
an amendment to Special Nuclear Materials License SNM-2001(SNM-2001)
issued to the Babcock and Wilcox Company (B&W) establishing the date
that B&W will submit a decommissioning plan for the Shallow Land
Disposal Area (SLDA) to NRC. This amendment does not pertain to NRC's
substantive review of the decommissioning plan itself or the merits of
any decommissioning alternative that has been proposed for the site in
past. Once B&W has submitted a decommissioning plan for NRC review, NRC
will publish a separate notice and opportunity for a hearing on the
decommissioning plan itself. In addition, the amendment, and
opportunity for a hearing, does not pertain to the adjacent Parks
Operating facility, which is administered under a separate license
(SNM-414).
The SLDA is located in Armstrong County, PA, approximately 23 miles
east-northeast of Pittsburgh. The SLDA consists of ten waste disposal
trenches comprising approximately 1.2 acres surrounded by a 40-acre
fenced buffer area. The SLDA was formerly owned by Nuclear Materials
and Equipment Corporation (NUMEC) which also operated the nearby Apollo
Nuclear Fuel Fabrication Facility. In the 1960s and 1970s, the SLDA was
used by NUMEC to dispose of radioactively contaminated (primarily
uranium and thorium) and non-radioactive wastes in accordance with NRC
regulations at 10 CFR 20.304. NRC rescinded 10 CFR 20.304 in 1981. In
1967, Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) purchased stock in NUMEC and
then sold it to B&W in 1971. In September 1994, B&W submitted several
remediation alternatives for the SLDA to NRC. B&W's preferred
alternative was to stabilize the waste in place by covering the buried
waste with a soil and synthetic cover and isolating the waste from the
groundwater with slurry walls, grout curtains and other engineered
barriers. Based on B&W's proposed alternative for decommissioning the
SLDA, NRC published a notice in the Federal Register announcing NRC's
intent to develop an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the
decommissioning of the site. In August 1997, NRC completed development
of a draft EIS (DEIS) and published a Notice of Availability in the
Federal Register on September 4, 1997. NRC withdrew the DEIS on
September 24, 1997, so that NRC staff could develop additional
information regarding the alternatives presented in the DEIS.
On July 9, 1998, B&W submitted a request to NRC to amend its
license, SNM-2001, to require that B&W submit a decommissioning plan
for the SLDA to NRC by December 6, 2000. On August 3, 1998, NRC staff
informed B&W that it would need to provide NRC with justification for
this date. On October 13, 1998, B&W provided this justification.
Therefore, NRC has determined that B&W's July 9 1998, and October 13,
1998, constitute a complete request to amend SNM-2001. However, NRC has
not made a final determination on whether the request is acceptable and
NRC will continue to review the request in accordance with the criteria
in NRC regulations at 10 CFR 70.38(g)(2).
The NRC hereby provides notice that this is a proceeding on an
application for amendment of a license falling within the scope of
Subpart L ``Informal Hearing Procedures for Adjudication in Materials
Licensing Proceedings,'' of NRC's rules and practice for domestic
licensing proceedings in 10 CFR Part 2. Pursuant to Sec. 2.1205(a), any
person whose interest may be affected by this proceeding may file a
request for a hearing in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(d). A request for
a hearing must be filed within thirty (30) days of the date of
publication of this Federal Register notice.
The request for a hearing must be filed with the Office of the
Secretary either:
1. By delivery to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, One White
Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852-2738 between
7:45 am and 4:15 pm Federal workdays; or
2. By mail or telegram addressed to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Attention: Rulemaking and
Adjudications Branch.
In addition to meeting other applicable requirements of 10 CFR Part
2 of the NRC's regulations, a request for a hearing filed by a person
other than an applicant must describe in detail:
1. The interest of the requester in the proceeding;
2. How that interest may be affected by the results of the
proceeding, including the reasons why the requestor should be permitted
a hearing, with particular reference to the factors set out in
Sec. 2.1205(h);
3. The requester's areas of concern about the licensing activity
that is the subject matter of the proceeding; and
4. The circumstances establishing that the request for a hearing is
timely in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(d).
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.1205(f), each request for a hearing
must also be served, by delivering it personally or by mail, to:
1. The applicant, BWX Technologies, P.O. Box 11165, Lynchburg, Va.
24506-1165 Attention: Mr. Philip Rosenthal; and
2. The NRC staff, by delivery to the Executive Director for
Operations, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD
20852, or by mail,
[[Page 68317]]
addressed to the Executive Director for Operations, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555.
For further details with respect to this action, the license
amendment request is available for inspection at the NRC's Public
Document Room, 2120 L Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20555.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dominick A. Orlando, Low-Level Waste
and Decommissioning Projects Branch, Division of Waste Management,
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Washington DC 20555-0001, telephone (301) 415-
6749.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 4th day of December, 1998.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
John W.N. Hickey,
Chief, Low-Level Waste and Decommissioning Projects Branch, Division of
Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 98-32813 Filed 12-9-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
