[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 48 (Monday, March 11, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9683-9685]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-5699]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Availability of the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Draft
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of availability and public hearings.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE) announces the availability of
the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Draft Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS), and the dates and locations for
public hearings to receive comments on the Draft PEIS. DOE prepared the
Stockpile Stewardship and Management PEIS pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) The
Stockpile Stewardship and Management PEIS analyzes the consequences to
the environment associated with alternative ways of maintaining the
safety and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence
of underground nuclear testing.
DATES: The public comment period on the Draft PEIS will extend until
May 7, 1996. The dates, times and locations of the public hearings on
the Draft PEIS are identified in the Supplementary Information.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the Draft PEIS, as well as requests for
copies of the Draft PEIS or its Summary may be submitted to the Office
of Reconfiguration, DP-25, U.S. Department of Energy, P.O. Box 3417,
Alexandria, Virginia 22302. Requests for copies may also be made by
calling 1-800-776-2765.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information on the
Department's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, please
contact: Ms. Carol Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and
Assistance, EH-42, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave.,
S.W., Washington,
[[Page 9684]]
D.C. 20585. Ms. Borgstrom may be contacted by calling (202) 586-4600 or
by leaving a message at 1-800-472-2756.
Specific information regarding the public hearings, including
registration information, can also be obtained by calling 1-800-776-
2765, writing to the address above, or electronically via computer as
follows: Federal Information Exchange Bulletin Board, InterNet Address:
http://web.fie.com/fedix/doeoor.html, Modem Toll-Free: 1-800-783-3349,
D.C. Metro Modem: 301-258-0953.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In response to the end of the Cold War and
changes in the world political situation, the United States is no
longer producing new nuclear weapons. Instead, the emphasis of the
United States' nuclear weapons program is on reducing the size of the
Nation's nuclear stockpile by dismantling existing nuclear weapons. DOE
has been directed by the President and Congress to maintain the safety
and reliability of the reduced nuclear weapons stockpile in the absence
of underground nuclear testing. In order to fulfill that
responsibility, DOE has developed the Stockpile Stewardship and
Management Program to provide a single, highly integrated technical
program for maintaining the continued safety and reliability of the
nuclear stockpile. The Stockpile Stewardship and Management PEIS
describes and analyzes alternative ways to implement the Stockpile
Stewardship and Management Program.
Stockpile stewardship refers to activities associated with the
research, design, development, and testing of nuclear weapons, and the
assessment and certification of their safety and reliability of the
weapons. The stockpile stewardship portion of the PEIS evaluates the
potential environmental impacts of three proposed facilities: the
National Ignition Facility (NIF), the Contained Firing Facility, and
the Atlas Facility. Four sites are potentially affected by the
Stockpile Stewardship alternatives: Los Alamos National Laboratory
(LANL), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Sandia National
Laboratories (SNL), and the Nevada Test Site (NTS).
Stockpile management refers to activities associated with the
production, maintenance, surveillance, refurbishment, and dismantlement
of the nuclear weapons stockpile. The stockpile management portion of
the PEIS evaluates the potential environmental impacts of reasonable
alternatives for carrying out the stockpile management functions.
Alternative sites are assessed for nuclear weapons assembly/
disassembly, and for fabrication of plutonium, uranium, high
explosives, and nonnuclear components. Eight sites are potentially
affected: Savannah River Site (SRS), Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR),
Pantex Plant (Pantex), Kansas City Plant (KCP), LANL, LLNL, SNL, and
NTS. The PEIS also evaluates the No Action alternative of relying on
existing facilities in their current configuration and continuing the
missions at current sites to achieve both stockpile stewardship and
stockpile management missions.
As of February 9, 1996, the date when the Stockpile Stewardship and
Management Draft PEIS was sent to the printer, the Department had
identified only one preferred alternative: to construct and operate the
NIF at LLNL. Since that date, DOE has identified additional preferred
alternatives. The complete list of preferred alternatives is as
follows:
Stockpile Stewardship
Construct and operate the NIF at Lawrence Livermore
National Laboratory, at Livermore CA.
Construct and operate the Contained Firing Facility at
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, at Livermore CA.
Construct and operate the Atlas Facility at Los Alamos
National Laboratory, at Los Alamos NM.
Stockpile Management
Secondary and Case Component Fabrication--downsize the Y-
12 Plant at Oak Ridge Reservation, at Oak Ridge TN.
Pit Component Fabrication--re-establish pit component
fabrication capability at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, at Los
Alamos NM.
Assembly/Disassembly--downsize the Pantex Plant, at
Amarillo TX.
Nonnuclear Component Fabrication--downsize the Kansas City
Plant, Kansas City MO.
Ten public hearings to receive comments on the Draft Stockpile
Stewardship and Management PEIS will be held. A workshop-type format
will be used for each hearing, including: a program overview;
interactive discussions; and a summary session. For the four sites
which are being considered as alternative locations for both the
Stockpile Stewardship and Management Draft PEIS and the Storage and
Disposition of Weapons-Usable Fissile Materials Draft PEIS (Nevada Test
Site at Las Vegas, NV, Oak Ridge Reservation at Oak Ridge, TN, the
Pantex Plant at Amarillo, TX, and Savannah River Site at North Augusta,
SC), joint public hearings will be held to receive comments on both
documents. The Pantex Site-Wide PEIS is also scheduled to be discussed
at the public hearings in Amarillo, TX, and North Augusta, SC. The
public hearing to be held in Washington, D.C. will also be a joint
hearing. These joint hearings are scheduled to explain the
interrelationship between the programs and to facilitate comments by
persons interested in the proposals. These public hearings have been
scheduled as follows:
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Location Date Time
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Los Alamos, New Mexico, Fuller March 26, 1996................... 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
Lodge, 2132 Central Avenue, Los
Alamos, NM 87544.
March 26, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, March 28, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Albuquerque Convention Center, 401
Second Street, N.W., Albuquerque,
NM 87102.
Las Vegas, Nevada, The Sands Expo March 28, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m.
and Convention Center, 201 East
Sands Avenue, Las Vegas, NV 89109.
March 29, 1996................... 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Garden Plaza April 1, 1996.................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Hotel, 215 S. Illinois Avenue, Oak
Ridge, TN 37830.
(1) (Stockpile Stewardship and
Management only)
April 2, 1996.................... 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
(1) (Both Programs)
April 2, 1996.................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
(1) (Storage and Disposition only)
Kansas City, Missouri, Rockhurst April 9, 1996.................... 12:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
College, 1100 Rockhurst Roadway,
Kansas City, MO 64110.
[[Page 9685]]
April 9, 1996.................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Livermore, California, LLNL April 11, 1996................... 12:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
Research Drive Training Center,
2140 Research Drive, Livermore, CA
94550.
April 11, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Washington, D.C., Forrestal Bldg., April 18, 1996................... 9:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Rm. 1E-245, 1000 Independence
Avenue, SW., Washington, D.C.
20585.
Amarillo, Texas, Radisson Inn April 22, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m.
Airport, 7909 I-40 East, at
Lakeside, Amarillo, TX 79102.
April 23, 1996................... 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
(1) (An evening meeting may be held
April 23, 1996 if there is
sufficient interest)
Santa Fe, New Mexico, High Mesa April 25, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Inn, 3347 Cerrillos Road, Santa
Fe, NM 87505.
North Augusta, SC, North Augusta April 30, 1996................... 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Community Center, 101 Brookside
Drive, North Augusta, SC 29841.
April 30, 1996................... 6:00 p.m.-11:00 p.m.
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Details regarding the format and procedures for the public hearings
will be published locally. Hearing times will be extended, as
appropriate, to accommodate public interest.
The public comment period will extend until May 7, 1996. Written or
oral comments on the Draft EIS are invited from the general public,
other government agencies, and all other interested parties. Comments
received or postmarked by May, 7, 1996, whether written or oral,
submitted directly to the Department, or presented during a public
hearing, will be given equal consideration in preparation of the Final
EIS. Comments received after that date will be considered to the extent
practicable. DOE will use the comments received to help prepare the
Final version of the EIS. A Final PEIS for Stockpile Stewardship and
Management is expected to be completed by July 1996. A Record of
Decision would be completed no sooner than 30 days after the Final PEIS
is issued.
Signed in Washington, D.C. this 6th day of March, 1996.
Eldon W. Joersz,
Major General, USAF, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary For Military
Application, Defense Programs.
[FR Doc. 96-5699 Filed 3-8-96; 8:45 am]
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