[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 66 (Friday, April 5, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20625-20628]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-07994]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Spent Nuclear Fuel Management at the Savannah River Site
AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy.
ACTION: Amended Record of Decision.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is amending its August 7,
2000, Record of Decision (ROD) pursuant to the Savannah River Site
Spent Nuclear Fuel Management Final Environmental Impact Statement,
Aiken, SC (DOE/EIS-0279, 2000; SRS SNF EIS). In the 2000 ROD, DOE
decided to develop and demonstrate the ``melt and dilute'' technology
to manage approximately 28.6 metric tons of heavy metal (MTHM) of
aluminum-clad SNF, consistent with its preferred alternative identified
in the SRS SNF EIS.
DOE now amends that decision and will manage approximately 3.3 MTHM
from the currently projected inventory of 22 MTHM at SRS using
conventional processing \1\ at the H-Canyon facility at SRS, as
described and evaluated under the Conventional Processing Alternative
[[Page 20626]]
in the SRS SNF EIS. The quantity of 3.3 MTHM is the minimum amount of
SNF necessary to avoid the need for costly modifications to the L-Basin
that would allow DOE to accommodate expected receipts of SNF for the
foreseeable future. This includes up to 200 High Flux Isotope Reactor
(HFIR) cores generated at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and
approximately 1,000 bundles of aluminum-clad SNF currently stored at
SRS, as well as target residue materials \2\ containing enriched
uranium (including target materials from Canada that contain liquid
Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) of U.S. origin). DOE anticipates that
processing this SNF and target residue material would begin as early as
2014 and continue approximately four years. As a result of this amended
decision, HEU in the SNF and target materials will be down-blended to
low-enriched uranium (LEU). This end product will not be useable in
nuclear weapons, but will be available for use in commercial power
reactors such as those operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
to generate electricity. DOE will continue to safely store the
aluminum-clad SNF not addressed in this Amended ROD in L-Basin at SRS,
pending future analysis and DOE decisions.
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\1\ Conventional processing is a chemical separations process
that involves dissolving spent fuel in nitric acid and separating
fission products from uranium using solvent extraction.
\2\ Target materials are residual materials left after the
desired isotopes have been removed from the targets. For example,
target materials could be residual materials from the production in
a research reactor of molybdenum-99, which decays to technetium-99,
a medical isotope. Targets may be shaped as plates, pins, or
cylinders. Target materials are not high-level radioactive waste.
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In accordance with DOE regulations for implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), DOE has prepared a Supplement Analysis
(SA) to examine previous NEPA analyses of the management of SNF at SRS,
particularly the SRS SNF EIS and the Proposed Nuclear Weapons
Nonproliferation Policy Concerning Foreign Research Reactor Spent
Nuclear Fuel Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-0218, 1996, FRR
EIS) tiered from the Programmatic Spent Nuclear Fuel Management and
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory Environmental Restoration and
Waste Management Programs Final Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/
EIS-0203, 1995), to determine whether DOE's amended decision would make
substantial changes in its proposed actions or whether there are
significant new circumstances or information relevant to environmental
concerns and bearing on the proposed action or its potential impacts.
Based on the SA, DOE has determined that a supplemental or new EIS is
not required.
The actions to be taken pursuant to this Amended ROD strongly
support U.S. non-proliferation policy and goals by permanently
dispositioning HEU. In particular, this amended decision implements the
U.S. and Canadian agreement reached at the Nuclear Security Summit in
March 2012 to expand efforts to return U.S.-origin HEU currently stored
in Canada to the U.S. The commitment supports international efforts to
consolidate and dispose of HEU and to combat nuclear terrorism. The
actions addressed in this amended decision will free existing storage
space in L-Basin, avoiding the need and cost required to provide
additional new space in the Basin. This in turn will allow for
continued receipt of Foreign Research Reactor SNF (FRR SNF), adequate
storage for HFIR cores, continued operation of HFIR in support of DOE's
research and development mission, dispositioning of HEU out of South
Carolina, and cost-effective use of DOE's H-Canyon processing facility
at SRS.
ADDRESSES: This Amended ROD, the SA for SRS SNF Management, and related
NEPA documents are available on the DOE NEPA Web site at
www.nepa.energy.gov and the SRS Web site at www.srs.gov/general/pubs/envbul/nepa/htm. To request copies of these documents, please contact:
Mr. Andrew R. Grainger, NEPA Compliance Officer, Savannah River
Operations Office, U.S. Department of Energy, P.O. Box B, Aiken, South
Carolina 29802, Telephone: (803) 952-8001, Email:
[email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information on the
management of SNF at SRS, please contact Mr. Grainger as listed above.
For information on DOE's NEPA process, please contact:
Ms. Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance,
GC-54, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585, Telephone: (202) 586-4600, or leave a message at
(800) 472-2756, Email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
DOE's purpose and need for action, as described in the SRS SNF EIS,
is to develop and implement a safe and efficient SNF management
strategy that includes preparing aluminum-clad SNF and target material
stored at SRS, or expected to be shipped to SRS, for ultimate
disposition offsite.
In the SRS SNF EIS, DOE grouped the SNF to be managed based on
characteristics such as fuel size, physical and chemical properties,
and radionuclide inventory. The fuel groups and the seven technologies
that could be used to prepare the SNF for disposition are described in
the SRS SNF EIS. The potential environmental impacts associated with
the use of these technologies, including conventional processing, were
analyzed in the SRS SNF EIS. In the ROD for the SRS SNF EIS (65 FR
48224; August 7, 2000), DOE identified the Minimum Impact Alternative
as the environmentally preferable alternative, but selected the
Preferred Alternative.\3\
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\3\ DOE developed five alternatives that could be used to manage
SNF: No Action; Minimum Impact; Direct Disposal; Maximum Impact; and
the Preferred Alternative; these alternatives and the fuel groups
are described in the SRS SNF EIS and summarized in the 2000 ROD.
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To implement the Preferred Alternative described in the SRS SNF
EIS, DOE decided to use a combination of technologies, including melt
and dilute, to manage the SNF. The melt and dilute technology was to be
used to treat all Group B fuel (about 20 MTHM of Material Test Reactor
fuel from foreign and domestic reactors), all Group C fuel (about 8
MTHM of oxide and silicide foreign and domestic reactor fuel) except
failed fuel (which DOE would treat by conventional processing), and
most Group D materials (about 0.6 MTHM of foreign research reactor
targets). DOE estimated that these fuels and target materials would
total approximately 28.6 MTHM, based on quantities then stored at SRS
and estimated quantities located at domestic and foreign reactor
locations scheduled or eligible to ship fuel to SRS.\4\ These shipments
began in 1996 and are continuing. DOE now estimates that there are
approximately 22 MTHM of SNF and target material at or eligible to be
sent to SRS. This is less than the 28.6 MTHM evaluated in the SRS SNF
EIS because DOE now expects to receive less FRR SNF than originally
estimated.
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\4\ On June 1, 1995, DOE announced that, among other actions,
aluminum-clad SNF would be consolidated at SRS for management and
non-aluminum-clad SNF would be consolidated at the Idaho National
Laboratory (INL) (60 FR 28680; June 1, 1995). In keeping with this
decision, when DOE announced its decision to implement a new foreign
research reactor spent fuel acceptance policy, DOE stated that
aluminum-clad fuel would be shipped to SRS and non-aluminum-clad
fuel would be shipped to the INL (61 FR 25092; May 17, 1996).
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The FRR EIS evaluated alternatives for return to the United States
of SNF and target materials containing HEU enriched in the United
States and supplied to foreign countries. Return of HEU for safe
storage and disposition
[[Page 20627]]
advances the United States nuclear material nonproliferation goals.
Appendix B1.5 of the FRR EIS discusses the two methods for preparing
the target residue materials for transport: calcining and oxidizing. In
the FRR EIS, DOE assumed that target residue material would be
transported in solid form, and DOE evaluated the impacts of
transportation accordingly. In Appendix B.2.1.2 of the FRR EIS, DOE
explained that foreign research reactor shipments would be carried out
in accordance with regulations set by the Department of Transportation
(49 CFR parts 171 through 178) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) (10 CFR part 71); those regulations remain in place. In the FRR
ROD, DOE decided, consistent with the programmatic decision to
consolidate storage by fuel type, to transport to and store aluminum-
clad SNF and target material at the SRS.
Supplement Analysis
In accordance with DOE NEPA regulations at 10 CFR 1021.314, DOE
prepared an SA for the SRS SNF EIS and the FRR EIS (DOE/EIS-0279-SA-01
and DOE/EIS-0218-SA-06, March 2013) to consider a proposal to process
the minimum quantity of SNF necessary to avoid the need for costly
modifications to the L-Basin that would allow DOE to accommodate
expected receipts of SNF for the foreseeable future. To do this, DOE
estimated that processing approximately 1000 bundles of SNF and up to
200 HFIR cores currently stored at SRS would provide the minimum
necessary amount of storage space. This could be accomplished over
approximately a four-year period and equates to approximately 3.3 MTHM
of the currently projected 22 MTHM total inventory. DOE would continue
to safely store the remaining SNF in L-Basin at SRS, pending future
analysis and DOE decisions. DOE also evaluated plans to receive FRR
target residue material from Canada in accordance with U.S. acceptance
policy and consistent with U.S. nonproliferation objectives. The target
material, containing U.S.-origin HEU in liquid form, would be shipped
in Type B casks certified by NRC.
The SA compared the proposal to the relevant NEPA reviews to
determine whether the proposal would make substantial changes in the
proposed actions identified in the SRS SNF EIS or FRR EIS, or whether
there are significant new circumstances or information relevant to
environmental concerns and bearing on the proposed action or its
impacts, consistent with the Council on Environmental Quality NEPA
implementing regulations at 40 CFR Parts 1502.9. DOE analyzed the use
of conventional processing for SNF in lieu of the melt and dilute
technology, which was never developed due to technical issues involving
the off-gas system and funding limitations. The conventional processing
approach is consistent with U.S. nuclear non-proliferation goals in
that HEU would be eliminated and plutonium present in the SNF would not
be separated from the fission products. Processing of the approximately
3.3 MTHM of SNF and target residue materials in H-Canyon will result in
plutonium-bearing high-level waste (HLW) that will be vitrified in the
Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) at SRS, creating up to
approximately 24 canisters of vitrified, proliferation-resistant HLW.
This increase is not significant in the context of the approximately
7,000 canisters DOE estimates will be otherwise produced by the DWPF,
and is within the DWPF production and SRS planned storage capabilities.
In the SA, DOE evaluated the addition of a third dissolver in H-
Canyon to return the dissolving capacity for SNF to the level supported
by H-Canyon's off-gas system and processing capability,\5\ which are
the capacities evaluated in the SRS SNF EIS. Installation and operation
of a third dissolver in H-Canyon will take place entirely within H-
Canyon and will not result in any land disturbance. Construction waste
generated will be managed using existing SRS facilities and procedures.
Operation of a third dissolver is within H-Canyon's dissolving capacity
for SNF and is supported by existing systems, e.g., off-gas system. DOE
would continue to use one existing dissolver to process plutonium
material; plutonium dissolution does not require use of the off-gas
treatment system or H-Canyon's solvent extraction capacity and
raffinate systems. The air and liquid releases and other impacts of
operating two dissolvers and the associated systems to process SNF
would not significantly differ from those reported in the SRS SNF EIS,
because the evaluation of the potential environmental impacts
associated with conventional processing assumed the use of two
dissolvers.
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\5\ One H-Canyon dissolver currently supports dissolution of
plutonium metal, preparatory to oxidizing it in the HB-Line to
prepare plutonium oxide feed material for the Mixed Oxide Fuel
Fabrication Facility (see Interim Action Determination, Use of H-
Canyon/HB-Line to Prepare Feed for Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication
Facility at the Savannah River Site, June 2012).
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In the SA, DOE also evaluated the transportation, receipt, and
processing of target residue materials in liquid form (from Canada)
rather than solid form and found that the potential environmental
impacts would not significantly differ from results presented in the
FRR EIS and the SRS SNF EIS. For this analysis, DOE assumed that the
NRC would certify use of an existing Type-B cask for the target residue
materials. NRC consideration of the certification request is ongoing.
Based on conclusions reached in the SA, DOE determined that the
preparation of a supplemental or new EIS is not required.
Amended Decision
DOE has decided to manage up to 200 HFIR cores, approximately 1,000
bundles of SNF, and target residue materials containing HEU (including
target residue materials containing liquid HEU from Canada) using
conventional processing in H-Canyon at SRS. This SNF and these target
residue materials, totaling approximately 3.3 MTHM, include material
from Groups B, C, and D identified in the SRS SNF EIS. HEU recovered
during conventional processing will be down-blended to create LEU
feedstock for fuel fabrication for commercial nuclear reactors. The
shipments of target residue materials in liquid form from Canada will
comply with all applicable transportation regulations in both countries
to ensure environmental protection and the safety of the involved
workers and the general public. No target material or waste from
processing target material will be returned to Canada. DOE will
implement minor modifications to H-Canyon to receive liquid HEU as
described in the SA.
DOE anticipates processing these materials beginning as early as
2014 and continuing approximately four years, consistent with program
and policy priorities. DOE will install a third dissolver in H-Canyon
in addition to two existing dissolvers, in order to cost-effectively
utilize H-Canyon, and expeditiously complete the mission.
The aluminum-clad SNF not addressed in this amended ROD will remain
safely in wet storage in L-Basin at SRS, pending future analysis and
DOE decisions. The water chemistry will continue to be rigorously
controlled to prevent any corrosion reactions between the storage
tubes, fuel, and the basin water.
No environmental impacts resulting from operations under this
amended decision would require specific mitigation measures. DOE will
continue its current practices and policies to use all practicable
means to avoid or minimize environmental harm and
[[Page 20628]]
impacts to workers when implementing the actions described herein. For
example, DOE will continue to evaluate and implement, as appropriate,
physical modifications to the H-Canyon facility and process chemistry
changes that would reduce personnel exposure, facility effluents, and
waste generation.
Basis for Decision
This amended decision reduces the overall cost of managing the
currently stored fuel by eliminating the need for additional SNF
storage racks in the L-Basin SNF storage facility and allows for future
receipt of foreign and domestic SNF, including continued receipt of
HFIR cores from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in support of DOE's
research and development mission. In addition, this amended decision
will maximize near-term utilization of H-Canyon and expeditiously
complete the mission
This amended decision supports DOE's ongoing approach for reducing
the proliferation risks inherent in stocks of HEU by down-blending
surplus HEU to LEU. The LEU would be available for use in commercial
reactors such as those operated by TVA. In addition, operation of H-
Canyon to process the SNF is consistent with section 3137 of the Floyd
D. Spence Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year (FY) 2001 (Pub. L.
106-398), as amended by section 3115 of the National Defense
Authorization Act for FY 2004 (Pub. L. 108-136), regarding the
continued operation and maintenance of a high state of readiness of the
H-Canyon facility at SRS.
Given the expense involved in designing and constructing a new melt
and dilute capability, and because an alternative processing technology
(conventional processing) is readily available, DOE determined that
melt and dilute is an unnecessarily costly duplication of treatment
capability for aluminum-clad SNF. Conventional processing and down-
blending the HEU to LEU, with vitrification rather than the recovery of
plutonium, furthers the Nation's non-proliferation goals.
Although the Secretary of Energy has determined that Yucca Mountain
is not a workable option for a geologic repository, DOE remains
committed to meeting its obligations to safely dispose of SNF and
HLW.\6\ While this Amended ROD will increase the number of canisters of
vitrified HLW, this is not expected to significantly affect the
quantity of vitrified HLW requiring management.
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\6\ The Secretary's Strategy for the Management and Disposal of
Used Nuclear Fuel and High-level Radioactive Waste, January 2013,
endorses the key principles of the 2012 Blue Ribbon Commission on
America's Nuclear Future report and represents an initial basis for
discussions among the Administration, the Congress, and other
stakeholders toward a sustainable path forward for disposition of
nuclear waste.
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Separately, the receipt of target residue materials from Canada in
liquid form under the U.S. Foreign Research Reactor Acceptance Policy
does not present significant new health or environmental concerns or
impacts as described in the SA. The repatriation of U.S.-origin HEU
from Canada will help ensure national and international safety and
security by downblending this material to LEU that would be available
for beneficial use in power reactors. This action is consistent with
U.S. agreements regarding receipt of FRR materials in which involved
countries with the economic ability to do so contribute to the costs of
transportation and U.S. receipt, processing and disposition of the
materials.
In summary, the proposed use of conventional processing for a
limited quantity of SNF as described in this amendment to DOE's 2000
SNF ROD takes advantage of existing processes in existing facilities.
It will allow near-term progress in processing a portion of the
inventory analyzed in the SRS SNF EIS currently stored on the site,
thus freeing storage space for expected material receipts and avoiding
the cost of creating additional space. The activities encompassed by
this amended decision will not incur potential health or environmental
impacts significantly different from those analyzed in existing NEPA
reviews. These activities will strongly contribute to DOE's commitment
to the United States' nuclear non-proliferation goals and are
consistent with the U.S. and Canadian agreement reached at the Nuclear
Security Summit in March 2012 to expand efforts to return U.S.-origin
HEU currently stored in Canada to the U.S. Further, the actions
resulting from this Amended ROD will contribute to the production of
material that can be put to beneficial energy production for public
use, thereby dispositioning some HEU out of South Carolina; and will
contribute to an overall safe, secure, and cost-effective strategy for
ongoing management of SNF and target residue materials at SRS.
Issued in Washington, DC on March 29, 2013.
David Huizenga,
Senior Advisor for Environmental Management.
[FR Doc. 2013-07994 Filed 4-4-13; 8:45 am]
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