[Federal Register: January 29, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 19)]
[Notices]               
[Page 4803-4805]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29ja10-47]                         


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

 
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact 
Statement for Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship at the West 
Valley Demonstration Project and Western New York Nuclear Service 
Center

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announces the availability 
of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship at the West Valley Demonstration Project and 
Western New York Nuclear Service Center (DOE/EIS-0226) (referred to as 
the Final Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS or ``Final 
EIS'').
    The Final EIS was prepared in accordance with the Council on 
Environmental Quality's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
Implementing Regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508) and the DOE NEPA 
Implementing Procedures (10 CFR Part 1021). DOE and the New York State 
Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) are joint lead 
agencies for preparing the EIS, while the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and 
the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) 
are cooperating agencies. NYSDEC and the New York State Department of 
Health (NYSDOH) are involved agencies under the New York State 
Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR).
    The Proposed Action is the completion of the West Valley 
Demonstration Project (WVDP) and the decommissioning and/or long-term 
management or stewardship of Western New York Nuclear Service Center 
(WNYNSC). The Proposed Action includes the decontamination and 
decommissioning of the waste storage tanks and facilities used in the 
solidification of high-level radioactive waste, and any material and 
hardware used in connection with the WVDP. The EIS analyzes three 
action alternatives for decommissioning and/or long-term stewardship of 
the WNYNSC, and a No Action Alternative as required by NEPA and SEQR.

DATES: DOE will announce its decision regarding future actions at 
WNYNSC in a Record of Decision to be published in the Federal Register 
no sooner than 30 days after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
publishes a Notice of Availability for the Final Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship EIS. NYSERDA will publish its decisions regarding 
actions at the WNYNSC in a Findings Statement in the New York State 
Environmental Notice Bulletin no sooner than 10 days after the Final 
EIS is issued.

ADDRESSES: See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for addresses at which 
copies of the Final EIS are available for viewing, as well as addresses 
for use in requesting copies of the document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information regarding WVDP or the 
Final EIS, contact Catherine Bohan, EIS Document Manager, West Valley 
Demonstration Project, U.S. Department of Energy, Ashford Office 
Complex, 9030 Route 219, West Valley, NY 14171. The following Web sites 
may also be accessed for additional information on the Final EIS or the 
West Valley Site: http://www.westvalleyeis.com or http://
www.wv.doe.gov. Requests for information may also be submitted via e-
mail at http://www.westvalleyeis.com or by faxing toll-free to 866-306-
9094.
    For general information on DOE's NEPA process contact: Carol 
Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance (GC-54), U.S. 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20585; e-mail AskNEPA@hq.doe.gov; telephone 202-586-4600; or leave a 
message at 800-472-2756. The Final EIS is also accessible through the 
DOE's NEPA Web site at http://www.gc.energy.gov/NEPA.
    For general questions and information about NYSERDA's role in the 
EIS, contact Paul Bembia, Program Director, West Valley Site Management 
Program, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, 
Ashford Office Complex, 9030 Route 219, West Valley, NY 14171; 
telephone 716-942-9960, extension 4900; fax 716-942-9961; or e-mail 
pjb@nyserda.org.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: WNYNSC is a 1,351-hectare (3,338-acre) site 
located 48 kilometers (30 miles) south of Buffalo, New York, and owned 
by NYSERDA. In 1982, DOE assumed control but not ownership of the 68-
hectare (167-acre) Project Premises portion of the site in order to 
conduct the WVDP, as required under the 1980 West Valley Demonstration 
Project Act. In 1990, DOE and NYSERDA entered into an agreement to 
prepare a joint EIS to address both the completion of WVDP and closure 
or long-term management of WNYNSC. A Draft EIS was issued for public 
comment in January 1996: the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for 
Completion of the West Valley Demonstration Project and Closure or 
Long-Term Management of Facilities at the Western New York Nuclear 
Service Center, also referred to as the 1996 Cleanup and Closure Draft 
EIS (DOE/EIS-0226D).
    DOE and NYSERDA issued the Revised Draft Decommissioning and/or 
Long-Term Stewardship EIS on December 5, 2008, revising the 1996 Draft 
EIS. This revised draft considered the decommissioning criteria for 
WVDP issued by NRC since the publication of the 1996 Cleanup and 
Closure Draft EIS and public comments on that EIS. The public comment 
period on the Revised Draft Decommissioning and/or Long-Term 
Stewardship EIS, originally scheduled to end June 8, 2009, was extended 
through September 8, 2009, in response to requests from the public. 
Four public hearings on the Revised Draft EIS were held in locations in 
New York State and on the Seneca Nation of Indians Reservation during 
this time. DOE and NYSERDA have considered comments received and have 
incorporated both the comments and the agencies' responses in the EIS.
    Key changes between the Draft and Final EIS include: Incorporation 
of updated environmental and site-specific information, changes made in 
response to the NYSERDA View on the Revised Draft EIS, and revision of 
the description of alternatives, particularly that of the Phased 
Decisionmaking Alternative (described in the Draft EIS as encompassing 
30 years) to specify that a Phase 2 decision would be made no later 
than 10 years after issuance of the initial DOE Record of Decision and 
NYSERDA Findings Statement, if the Phased Decisionmaking Alternative is 
selected.
    The Final Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS has been 
prepared in accordance with NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508 and 10 CFR 
Part 1021) and the SEQR to examine the potential environmental impacts 
of the range of reasonable alternatives to decommission and/or maintain 
long-term stewardship at WNYNSC. The alternatives analyzed in the EIS 
include the Sitewide Removal Alternative, the Sitewide Close-In-Place 
Alternative, the Phased Decisionmaking Alternative (Preferred 
Alternative), and the No Action Alternative. The analysis and 
information contained in the EIS are intended to assist DOE and NYSERDA 
with consideration of potential environmental impacts prior to making 
decommissioning or long-term management decisions.
    The Final Decommissioning and/or Long-Term Stewardship EIS will

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support DOE and NYSERDA decisions regarding the Proposed Action: 
Completion of WVDP and decommissioning and/or long-term management or 
stewardship of WNYNSC. This includes the disposition of the high-level 
radioactive waste storage tanks, the former spent nuclear fuel 
reprocessing plant, the North Plateau Groundwater Plume, the Cesium 
Prong, the NRC-Licensed Disposal Area (NDA), and the State-Licensed 
Disposal Area (SDA). The three action alternatives evaluated for the 
Proposed Action are as follows:
    Sitewide Removal: Under this alternative, all site facilities 
identified in the Final EIS would be removed; contaminated soil, 
sediment, and groundwater would be removed to meet criteria that would 
allow unrestricted release of WNYNSC; and all radioactive, hazardous, 
and mixed waste would be characterized, packaged as necessary, and 
eventually shipped off site for disposal. This alternative is expected 
to generate waste for which there is currently no offsite disposal 
location (e.g., potential non-defense transuranic waste, commercial 
Class B and C low-level radioactive waste, and Greater-Than-Class C 
waste). This orphan waste would be stored on site until an appropriate 
offsite facility is available. Completion of these activities would 
allow unrestricted use of the site (i.e., the site could be made 
available for any public or private use). The Sitewide Removal 
Alternative includes temporary onsite storage of canisters of high-
level radioactive waste previously vitrified under WVDP and currently 
in storage at WVDP until the waste can be shipped offsite.
    Sitewide Close-In-Place: Under this alternative, most facilities 
would be closed in place. Major facilities and sources of contamination 
such as the Waste Tank Farm, NDA, and SDA would be managed at their 
current locations. Residual radioactivity in facilities with larger 
inventories of long-lived radionuclides would be isolated by specially 
designed closure structures and engineered barriers. These structures 
would be designed to meet regulatory requirements both to retain 
hazardous and radioactive constituents and to ensure they would be 
resistant to long-term degradation. This approach would allow large 
areas of the site to be released for unrestricted use. The NRC license 
for remaining portions of WNYNSC could be terminated under restricted 
conditions, or could be converted to a long-term license. Long-term 
stewardship would be provided for facilities that are closed in place 
and any buffer areas around them.
    Phased Decisionmaking (the Preferred Alternative): Under this 
alternative, decommissioning would be completed in two phases. This 
alternative involves substantial removal actions in the first phase. In 
addition, during the first phase, this alternative provides for site 
characterization and scientific studies to facilitate decisionmaking 
for the remaining facilities or areas.
    Phase 1 would include removal of the Main Plant Process Building 
and the source area of the North Plateau Groundwater Plume. In 
addition, the lagoons and all facilities in Waste Management Area (WMA) 
2 (except the permeable treatment wall) would be removed. The 
Vitrification Facility, the Remote Handled Waste Facility, and a number 
of facilities in WMAs 5, 6, 9, and 10 would also be removed. 
Foundations, slabs or pads from these facilities, as well as those from 
previously demolished facilities, would also be removed. During Phase 
1, several facilities would continue under active management. These 
facilities include the Waste Tank Farm and its support facilities, the 
Construction and Demolition Debris Landfill, the non-source area of the 
North Plateau Groundwater Plume, the NDA, and the SDA. Activities 
undertaken in Phase 1 would make use of proven technologies and 
available waste disposal sites to reduce the potential short-term 
health and safety risks from residual radioactivity and hazardous 
contaminants at the site. Phase 1 activities are expected to take 8 to 
10 years to complete. During this 8 to 10 year period, DOE and NYSERDA 
would conduct a number of activities to facilitate determination of the 
best technical approach to complete decommissioning of the remaining 
facilities. These activities would include further characterization of 
site contamination and additional scientific studies. These additional 
studies would be conducted to possibly reduce technical uncertainties 
related to the decision on final decommissioning and long-term 
management of the balance of WNYNSC. In particular, these studies may 
address uncertainties associated with the long-term performance models, 
the viability and cost of exhuming buried waste and tanks, the 
availability of waste disposal sites, and technologies for in-place 
containment.
    While Phase 1 activities are being conducted, DOE and NYSERDA would 
assess the results of site-specific studies as they become available, 
along with other emerging information such as applicable technology 
development. In consultation with NYSERDA and cooperating and involved 
agencies on the EIS, DOE would determine whether new information would 
warrant preparation of a Supplemental EIS. NYSERDA also would assess 
the results of site-specific studies and other information during Phase 
1. NYSERDA expects to prepare and issue for public comment an EIS, or a 
supplement to the existing EIS, to evaluate Phase 2 decisions for the 
SDA and the balance of WNYNSC for which NYSERDA has responsibility.
    Phase 2 decisions would be made within 10 years of the initial DOE 
Record of Decision and NYSERDA Findings Statement, if the Phased 
Decisionmaking Alternative is selected. NYSERDA and DOE would strive to 
make a comprehensive Phase 2 decision for the entire site that is 
protective of public health and safety and the environment. For WVDP, 
Phase 2 actions would complete decommissioning or long-term management 
decisionmaking according to the approach determined most appropriate 
during the additional Phase 1 evaluations for each remaining facility. 
For the SDA, alternatives that would be considered for Phase 2 actions 
would include at least: complete exhumation, close-in-place, and 
continued active management consistent with SDA permit and license 
requirements.
    No Action Alternative: Under this alternative, no decommissioning 
actions would be taken. The No Action Alternative would involve the 
continued management and oversight of all facilities located on WNYNSC 
property as of the starting point for this EIS. The No Action 
Alternative does not meet the purpose and need for agency action, but 
analysis of the No Action Alternative is required under NEPA and SEQR.
    Preferred Alternative: DOE and NYSERDA have identified the Phased 
Decisionmaking Alternative as the Preferred Alternative. DOE will 
announce its decision regarding future actions at WNYNSC in a Record of 
Decision to be published in the Federal Register no sooner than 30 days 
after publication of the EPA Notice of Availability for the Final EIS. 
NYSERDA will publish its decisions regarding actions at the WNYNSC in a 
Findings Statement in the New York State Environmental Notice Bulletin 
no sooner than 10 days after the Final EIS is issued.
    Paper copies of the Final EIS are available at the Concord Public 
Library, 18 Chapel Street, Springville, NY 14141, (716) 592-7742; the 
WVDP Public Reading Room, U.S. Department of Energy, Ashford Office 
Complex, 9030

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Route 219, West Valley, NY 14171, (716) 942-4555; and the U.S. 
Department of Energy, FOIA Reading Room, 1G-033, Forrestal Bldg., 1000 
Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20585, (202) 586-5955. Written 
requests for copies of the document should be directed to: Catherine 
Bohan, EIS Document Manager, West Valley Demonstration Project, U.S. 
Department of Energy, Ashford Office Complex, 9030 Route 219, West 
Valley, NY 14171. This Final EIS is also available electronically at 
http://www.westvalleyeis.com and the DOE's NEPA Web site at http://
www.gc.energy.gov/NEPA.

    Signed in Washington, DC, this 20th day of January 2010.
Frank Marcinowski,
Acting Chief Technical Officer for Environmental Management.
[FR Doc. 2010-1725 Filed 1-28-10; 8:45 am]
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