[Federal Register: December 10, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 237)]
[Notices]
[Page 75864-75865]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10de02-56]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-318]
Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, Inc., Calvert Cliffs Nuclear
Power Plant, Unit No. 2, Environmental Assessment and Finding of No
Significant Impact
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering
issuance of an exemption from Title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (10 CFR) part 50.44, 46 and Appendix K for Facility
Operating License No. DPR-69, issued to Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power
Plant, Inc. (the licensee), for operation of the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear
Power Plant, Unit No. 2 (Calvert Cliffs), located in Calvert County,
Maryland. Therefore, as required by 10 CFR 51.21, the NRC is issuing
this environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact.
Environmental Assessment
Identification of the Proposed Action
The proposed action, as described in the licensee's application for
exemption
[[Page 75865]]
dated July 12, 2002, would allow the licensee to use up to four lead
fuel assemblies (LFAs) with an advanced cladding material, a zirconium-
based alloy, that does not meet the definition of Zircaloy or ZIRLO,
which are referred to in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations
Section 50.46(a)(1)(i). The LFAs are scheduled to be loaded into the
Calvert Cliffs Unit 2 reactor core during the upcoming refueling outage
and would remain in the core for two (2) cycles.
The Need for the Proposed Action
The proposed exemption from 10 CFR 50.44, 10 CFR 50.46, and
Appendix K to 10 CFR part 50 is needed because these regulations
specifically refer to light-water reactors containing fuel consisting
of uranium oxide pellets enclosed in zircaloy or ZIRLO tubes. A new
zirconium-based alloy cladding has been developed, which is not the
same chemical composition as zircaloy or ZIRLO. Therefore, the licensee
needs an exemption to insert up to four assemblies containing the new
fuel cladding material into the Calvert Cliffs reactor core for test
during operation.
Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action
The NRC has completed its evaluation of the proposed action and
concludes that the proposed exemption will not present an undue risk to
the public health and safety. The safety evaluation performed by
Westinghouse demonstrates that the predicted chemical, mechanical and
material performance of the Advance zirconium-based cladding is within
that approved for Zircaloy-4 or ZIRLO under all anticipated operational
occurrences and postulated accidents. Furthermore, the LFAs will be
placed in non-limiting core locations. In the unlikely event that
cladding failures occur in the LFAs, environmental impact would be
minimal and is bounded by previous environmental impact statements.
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.
In regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed action
does not have a potential to affect any historic sites. It does not
affect nonradiological plant effluents and has no other environmental
impact. Therefore, there are no significant nonradiological
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 for
the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant (CCNPP) dated April 1973 or the
Final Environmental Impact Statement for licence renewal for the CCNPP
dated October 1999.
Agencies and Persons Consulted
On September 5, 2002, the staff consulted with the Maryland State
official, Richard McLean of the Maryland Department of the Environment,
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 July 17, 2002. 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 Agencywide Documents Access and Management
System (ADAMS) Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at the
NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons who do
not have access to ADAMS or who encounter problems in accessing the
documents located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC PDR Reference staff
by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail to
pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of December 2002.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission:
Guy S. Vissing,
Acting Chief, Section 1, Project Directorate I, Division of Licensing
Project Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 02-31167 Filed 12-9-02; 8:45 am]
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