NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING IN PIKETON, OHIO, TO DISCUSS
FINAL SAFETY, ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS FOR CENTRIFUGE PLANT
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The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a public meeting Oct. 18 in Piketon, Ohio, to discuss its final Safety Evaluation Report and Environmental Impact Statement on the proposed gas centrifuge uranium enrichment plant to be constructed and operated by USEC Inc.

The meeting will be held at the Ohio State University Endeavor Center, 1862 Shyville Road, in Piketon, from 7 - 9 p.m. Members of the NRC technical staff will present brief summaries of the safety and environmental reports, and the bulk of the meeting will be devoted to answering questions from the public.

USEC Inc. submitted its license application for the plant, to be known as the American Centrifuge Plant, on Aug. 23, 2004. USEC proposes to use a design based on gas centrifuge technology developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to enrich uranium for use in fuel for commercial nuclear power reactors. The plant is to be built at DOE’s Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant reservation in Piketon.

The Safety Evaluation Report (NUREG-1851), published in September, documents the NRC staff’s review and safety and safeguards evaluation of USEC’s application. The review evaluates the facility’s potential adverse impacts on worker and public health and safety, under both normal operating and accident conditions. The review also considers physical protection of special nuclear material and classified matter, material control and accounting of special nuclear material, as well as the management organization, administrative programs and financial qualifications provided to ensure the facility’s safe design and operation.

The Environmental Impact Statement (NUREG-1834) was published in April. That study concluded that there would be no significant adverse environmental impacts that would preclude granting a license. Both documents are available on the NRC Web site at this address: http://www.nrc.gov/materials/fuel-cycle-fac/usecfacility.html.

 The license review process is scheduled for completion in February, following an adjudicatory hearing by the Atomic Safety & Licensing Board.

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Thursday, February 22, 2007