[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 241 (Tuesday, December 16, 1997)] [Notices] [Pages 65823-65824] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 97-32761] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket 70-7001] Notice of Amendment and Denial of Amendment Application to Certificate of Compliance GDP-1 for the U.S. Enrichment Corporation, Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Paducah, Kentucky The Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, made a determination that the following amendment request is significant in accordance with 10 CFR 76.45. Notice of Receipt of Amendment Request appeared in the Federal Register on July 31, 1997, allowing a 30-day public comment period on the application. The NRC staff has reviewed the certificate amendment application and concluded that, in part, it provides reasonable assurance of adequate safety, safeguards, and security, and compliance with NRC requirements. Therefore, the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, is prepared to issue an amendment to the Certificate of Compliance for the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, approving portions of the amendment application. Other portions of the amendment application, as explained herein, are proposed to be denied. The staff has prepared a Compliance Evaluation Report which provides details of the staff's evaluation. The NRC staff has determined that this amendment satisfies the criteria for a categorical exclusion in accordance with 10 CFR 51.22. Therefore, pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared for this amendment. USEC, or any person whose interest may be affected and who submitted written comments in response to the Federal Register Notice on the amendment application under Sec. 76.37, may file a petition, not exceeding 30 pages, requesting review of the Director's Decision. The petition must be filed with the Commission not later than 15 days after publication of this Federal Register Notice. A petition for review of the Director's Decision shall set forth with particularity the interest of the petitioner and how that interest may be affected by the results of the decision. The petition should specifically explain the reasons why review of the Decision should be permitted with particular reference to the following factors: (1) the interest of the petitioner; (2) how that interest may be affected by the Decision, including the reasons why the petitioner should be permitted a review of the Decision; and (3) the petitioner's areas of concern about the activity that is the subject matter of the Decision. Any person described in this paragraph (USEC or any person who filed a petition) may file a response to any petition for review, not to exceed 30 pages, within 10 days after filing of the petition. If no petition is received within the designated 15-day period, the Director will issue the final amendment to the Certificate of Compliance without further delay. If a petition for review is received, the decision on the amendment application will become final in 60 days, unless the Commission grants the petition for review or otherwise acts within 60 days after publication of this Federal Register Notice. A petition for review must be filed with the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, or may be delivered to the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC, by the above date. For further details with respect to the action see (1) the application for amendment and (2) the Commission's Compliance Evaluation Report. These items are available for public inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room, the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC, and at the Local Public Document Room. Date of amendment request: April 23, 1997, revised July 31, 1997. Brief description of amendment: The amendment is related to the planned modifications to upgrade the seismic capability of Buildings C- 331 and C-335 at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion plant. Specifically, the proposed amendment will move back the completion date for the seismic modifications required by Compliance Plan Issue 36, from December 31, 1997, to June 30, 1999. Additionally, the amendment approves proposed resolutions of the following three issues: (1) The increased stiffness of the buildings following completion of the modifications may change the predicted type and number of seismically-induced equipment failures inside the buildings; (2) the process of installing the new structural steel will temporarily make the building and contained equipment more susceptible to seismically-induced failures as the existing structural frames are altered and/or replaced; and (3) the process of installing the new structural steel may temporally increase the probability of equipment failures due to load handling accidents during construction. The amendment will also partially deny the USEC request. USEC will be required to begin the planned 18-month construction effort when the amendment is effective, instead of delaying until after the NRC completes review of an updated seismic risk analysis, USEC's updated safety analysis report, and USEC's final design for the planned seismic modifications. The proposed amendment will also approve two editorial changes to the Justification for Continued Operation (JCO) in Compliance Plan Issue 36; one other proposed change to the JCO will be denied. Effective date: The amendment to Certificate of Compliance GDP-1 becomes effective immediately upon being signed by the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. Certificate of Compliance No. GDP-1: The amendment will revise Compliance Plan Issue 36 on the seismic modifications and will allow the planned modifications to proceed. Local Public Document Room location: Paducah Public Library, 555 Washington Street, Paducah, Kentucky 42003. Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 8th day of December 1997. [[Page 65824]] For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Carl J. Paperiello, Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. 97-32761 Filed 12-15-97; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P