[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 236 (Wednesday, December 9, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67941-67942]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-32637]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket 70-7002]
Notice of Amendment to Certificate of Compliance GDP-1 for the
U.S. Enrichment Corporation (Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant)
Piketon, Ohio
The Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, has
made a determination that the following amendment request is not
significant in accordance with 10 CFR 76.45. In making that
determination, the staff concluded that: (1) There is no change in the
types or significant increase in the amounts of any effluents that may
be released offsite; (2) there is no significant increase in individual
or cumulative occupational radiation exposure; (3) there is no
significant construction impact; (4) there is no significant increase
in the potential for, or radiological or chemical consequences from,
previously analyzed accidents; (5) the proposed changes do not result
in the possibility of a new or different kind of accident; (6) there is
no significant reduction in any margin of safety; and (7) the proposed
changes will not result in an overall decrease in the effectiveness of
the plant's safety, safeguards or security programs. The basis for this
determination for the amendment request is shown below.
The NRC staff has reviewed the certificate amendment application
and concluded that it provides reasonable assurance of adequate safety,
safeguards, and security, and compliance with NRC requirements.
Therefore, the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and
Safeguards, is prepared to issue an amendment to the Certificate of
Compliance for the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PORTS). The
staff has prepared a Compliance Evaluation Report which provides
details of the staff's evaluation.
The NRC staff has determined that this amendment satisfies the
criteria for a categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR
51.22(c)(19). Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental
impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for this
amendment.
USEC or any person whose interest may be affected may file a
petition, not exceeding 30 pages, requesting review of the Director's
Decision. The petition must be filed with the Commission not later than
15 days after publication of this Federal Register Notice. A petition
for review of the Director's Decision shall set forth with
particularity the interest of the petitioner and how that interest may
be affected by the results of the decision. The petition should
specifically explain the reasons why review of the Decision should be
permitted with particular reference to the following factors: (1) The
interest of the petitioner; (2) how that interest may be affected by
the Decision, including the reasons why the petitioner should be
permitted a review of the Decision; and (3) the petitioner's areas of
concern about the activity that is the subject matter of the Decision.
Any person described in this paragraph (USEC or any person who filed a
petition) may file a response to any petition for review, not to exceed
30 pages, within 10 days after filing of the petition. If no petition
is received within the designated 15-day period, the Director will
issue the final amendment to the Certificate of Compliance without
further delay. If a petition for review is received, the decision on
the amendment application will become final in 60 days, unless the
Commission grants the petition for review or otherwise acts within 60
days after publication of this Federal Register Notice.
A petition for review must be filed with the Secretary of the
Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, or may be
delivered to the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman
Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC, by the above date.
For further details with respect to the action see (1) the
application for amendment and (2) the Commission's Compliance
Evaluation Report. These items are available for public inspection at
the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L
Street, NW, Washington, DC, and at the Local Public Document Room.
Date of amendment request: October 14, 1998.
Brief description of amendment: The amendment involves extension of
the PORTS Compliance Plan completion date related to the removal of
residual quantities of highly enriched uranium (HEU) (uranium enriched
to 10 percent by weight U-235 or more) from cylinders and the cleaning
of the emptied HEU cylinders from December 31, 1998, to March 31, 2000.
The amendment also involves extension of the PORTS Compliance Plan
completion date, for transition of regulatory oversight responsibility
from the Department of Energy (DOE) to the NRC, for the section of the
X-705 decontamination building where HEU cylinder cleaning operations
are ongoing, from January 31, 1999, to April 30, 2000. All Compliance
Plan completion date changes require prior DOE approval. As such, USEC
requested DOE approval for the above-mentioned date changes on
September 25, 1998. On October 13, 1998, DOE approved the revision.
Basis for finding of no significance: 1. The proposed amendment
will not result in a change in the types or significant increase in the
amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite.
The proposed amendment, which involves extensions of the PORTS
Compliance Plan completion dates, does not involve any need for
cleaning of additional HEU cylinders and therefore would not increase
the amounts of any effluents that may be released offsite or result in
any impact to the environment.
2. The proposed amendment will not result in a significant increase
in individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure.
The proposed amendment does not involve any need for cleaning of
additional HEU cylinders. Therefore, it will not significantly increase
individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure.
[[Page 67942]]
3. The proposed amendment will not result in a significant
construction impact.
The proposed change will not result in any construction, nor will
this change effect any planned or existing construction project,
therefore, there will be no construction impact.
4. The proposed amendment will not result in a significant increase
in the potential for, or radiological or chemical consequences from,
previously analyzed accidents.
The proposed amendment does not involve any need for cleaning of
additional HEU cylinders and will not result in a significant increase
in the potential for, or radiological or chemical consequences from,
previously analyzed accidents.
5. The proposed amendment will not result in the possibility of a
new or different kind of accident.
The proposed amendment only involves extensions of the PORTS
Compliance Plan completion dates. Therefore, this change will not
result in the possibility of a new or different kind of accident.
6. The proposed amendment will not result in a significant
reduction in any margin of safety.
The proposed amendment only involves extensions of the PORTS
Compliance Plan completion dates. Therefore, the proposed change does
not represent a reduction in any margin of safety.
7. The proposed amendment will not result in an overall decrease in
the effectiveness of the plant's safety, safeguards or security
programs.
Currently, at PORTS, the X-705 West Annex is the only area leased
by USEC from DOE which has not been certified by the NRC. Based on the
agreement signed between DOE and USEC on October 11, 1995, the
Regulatory Oversight Agreement between DOE and USEC is required to
apply to all areas leased by USEC from DOE but not certified by the
NRC. As such, operations in the X-705 West Annex will continue to be
conducted under regulation of the ROA until the HEU cylinder cleaning
operations have been completed and the X-705 West Annex is certified by
the NRC. While the ROA is in effect, DOE staff has informed the NRC
staff, that they will maintain regulatory staff in Oak Ridge,
Tennessee, and a resident inspector at PORTS, to ensure that HEU
cylinder cleaning is conducted in a safe and secure manner. In
addition, the NRC staff has also reviewed the controls in place in the
X-705 West Annex, which are relied upon by USEC to prevent it from
exceeding the NRC-possession limits by accidentally transferring
significant quantities of HEU from the X-705 West Annex to NRC-
certified areas. The NRC staff has determined these controls, as well
as DOE's regulatory oversight of the X-705 West Annex operations, to be
sufficient for preventing USEC from exceeding its possession limits in
NRC-certified areas at PORTS. Therefore, the Compliance Plan date
extensions will not result in undue risk to the public health and
safety, common defense and security, or the environment.
Effective date: The amendment to GDP-2 will become effective upon
issuance by NRC.
Certificate of Compliance No. GDP-2: This amendment will revise
Issue A.4 of the PORTS Compliance Plan.
Local Public Document Room location: Portsmouth Public Library,
1220 Gallia Street, Portsmouth, Ohio 45662
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 2d day of December, 1998.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Carl J. Paperiello,
Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 98-32637 Filed 12-8-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
