01-21854. Virginia Electric and Power Company; Surry Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2; Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is considering issuance of amendments to Facility Operating License (FOL) Nos. DPR-32 and DPR-37, issued to Virginia Electric and Power Company (the licensee), for operation of the Surry Power Station, Units 1 and 2, respectively, located in Surry County, Virginia.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

The proposed action would revise the FOLs and the Technical Specifications (TS) to remove obsolete license conditions, make editorial changes to the FOLs, and implement associated changes to the TS and Bases as follows:

1. Removal of license conditions associated with completed facility modifications (including the Steam Generator Repair Program and support modifications related to Leak-Before-Break Technology);

2. Removal of superseded license conditions (addressing security);

3. Relocation of secondary water chemistry monitoring program requirements from the FOLs to the TS;

4. Removal of expired license conditions and TS (addressing service water piping restoration);

5. Editorial changes.

The proposed action is in accordance with the licensee's application dated September 22, 2000.

The Need for the Proposed Action

The proposed action is needed because some requirements in the Surry FOLs have become obsolete. In addition, the need for editorial changes has been identified.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and concludes that the proposed license amendments and associated changes to the TS are administrative in nature and have no effect on plant equipment or plant operation.

The proposed action will not significantly increase the probability or consequences of accidents, no changes are being made in the types of effluents that may be released off site, and there is no significant increase in occupational or public radiation exposure. Therefore, there are no significant radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

With regard to potential non-radiological impacts, the proposed action does not have a potential to affect any historic sites. It does not affect non-radiological plant effluents and has no other environmental impact. Therefore, there are no significant non-radiological environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

Accordingly, the NRC concludes that there are no significant environmental impacts associated with the proposed action.

Environmental Impacts of the Alternatives to the Proposed Action

As an alternative to the proposed action, the staff considered denial of the proposed action (i.e., the “no-action” alternative). Denial of the application would result in no change in current environmental impacts. The environmental impacts of the proposed action and the alternative action are similar.

Alternative Use of Resources

The action does not involve the use of any different resource than those previously considered in the Final Environmental Statement Related to Operation of Surry Power Station Unit 1, May 1972, or the Final Environmental Statement Related to Operation of Surry Power Station Unit 2, June 1972.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

On August 6, 2001, the staff consulted with the Virginia State official, Mr. Les Foldesi of the Virginia Department of Health, Bureau of Radiological Health, regarding the environmental impact of the proposed action. The State official had no comments.

Finding of No Significant Impact

On the basis of the environmental assessment, the NRC concludes that the proposed action will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment. Accordingly, the NRC has determined not to prepare an environmental impact statement for the proposed action.

For further details with respect to the proposed action, see the licensee's letter dated September 22, 2000. Documents may be examined, and/or copied for a fee, at the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible electronically from the ADAMS Public Library component on the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov (the Public Electronic Reading Room). If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in accessing the documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC PDR Reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at [e-mail].

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 23rd day of August 2001.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Gordon E. Edison,

Senior Project Manager, Section 1, Project Directorate II, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.