Draft Environmental Impact StatementDecommissioning of the Babcock & Wilcox Shallow Land Disposal Area in Parks Township, Pennsylvania

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-3085]

Draft Environmental Impact Statement--Decommissioning of the

Babcock & Wilcox Shallow Land Disposal Area in Parks Township,

Pennsylvania

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has published a

Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) regarding the proposed

decommissioning of the Babcock & Wilcox (B&W) Shallow Land Disposal

Area (SLDA) in Parks Township, Pennsylvania. This DEIS describes and

evaluates the potential environmental impacts of B&W's proposed

approach to decommissioning the radiologically contaminated waste. The

B&W preferred approach would allow radioactive material to remain on-

site. The wastes would be stabilized by installing an engineered cover

system and a system of hydrologic barriers and controls surrounding the

trench areas to provide groundwater protection. The coal mine

underlying the SLDA would be stabilized by injecting grout into the

voids under the trenches to prevent subsidence. Institutional controls

would be required in perpetuity to prevent inadvertent intrusion into

the waste. The DEIS evaluates the radiological and nonradiological

impacts associated with the B&W proposed action and four alternative

actions, including no action. Based on the evaluations in this DEIS,

the staff's preliminary conclusion is that another alternative,

modified stabilization in-place, would protect public health and the

environment and would be less costly than the other alternatives. This

alternative would include institutional controls and backfilling of the

coal mine, but the engineered barriers and cap would not be

implemented. For any of the alternatives, off-site impacts would be low

and no off-site dose is expected. The DEIS is a preliminary analysis of

the environmental impacts of B&W's proposed approach and alternative

actions. The issuance of a final EIS, and any NRC decisionmaking based

on a final EIS, will not be made until public comments on the DEIS are

received and evaluated.

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS should be received at the address

listed below by December 15, 1997. Comments received after this date

will be considered if it is practical to do so, but NRC is able to

assure consideration only for comments received on or before this date.

To the extent practicable, NRC staff will grant reasonable requests

for extensions of time for comment up to fifteen (15) days.

ADDRESSES: Mail written comments to David L. Meyer, Chief, Rules and

Directives Branch, Mail Stop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001. Deliver comments to 11545

Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland, between 7:30 am and 4:15 pm,

Federal workdays.

Copies of comments received may be examined at the NRC Public

Document Room, 2120 L Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20555. A single copy

of the DEIS

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(NUREG-1613) may be requested by those considering public comment by

writing to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Printing and

Graphics Branch, Washington, DC 20555-0001. A copy of the DEIS is

available for inspection and/or copying in the NRC Public Document

Room, 2120 L St. NW., Washington, DC 20555-0001. A copy is being made

available for public inspection at the local Public Document Room in

the Apollo Memorial Library, 219 North Pennsylvania Avevue, Apollo,

Pennsylvania 15613; telephone number (412) 478-4214.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Phyllis Sobel, Low-Level Waste and

Decommissioning Projects Branch, Mail Stop T7F-27, Division of Waste

Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001. Telephone

301-415-6714.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NRC has prepared a DEIS that evaluates the

environmental impacts and alternatives associated with B&W's proposed

action to decommission radiologically contaminated wastes in trenches

at the SLDA. NRC noticed its intent to prepare an EIS on the

decommissioning of the SLDA facility in Parks Township, Pennsylvania

(59 FR 67344) on December 29, 1994, and conducted a public meeting to

obtain comments on the intended scope of the EIS in Leechburg,

Pennsylvania, on January 26, 1995.

Until 1970, the SLDA at Parks Township, Pennsylvania, was used for

the disposal of hazardous and low-level wastes from a nuclear fuel

fabrication facility in nearby Apollo, Pennsylvania. The materials

placed in the trenches consisted of wastes, scrap and trash. These

disposals were made pursuant to the requirements of 10 CFR 20.304,

which was in effect at the time. The radioactive materials in the SLDA

include natural uranium, enriched and depleted uranium, and lesser

quantities of thorium, americium, and plutonium.

The SLDA is currently owned by B&W, which maintains the site under

an active NRC license no. SNM-2001 for use in possession, storage,

monitoring, and characterization of the SLDA. B&W intends to

decommission the site as part of license termination activities. The

site requires decommissioning because it contains activities higher

than NRC regulations allow for release of the property for unrestricted

use and termination of the license. The site is listed in NRC's Site

Decommissioning Management Plan because it warrants special NRC

oversight to ensure safe and timely decommissioning.

B&W's preferred approach to decommissioning would allow radioactive

material to remain on-site. The wastes would be stabilized by

installing an engineered cover system and a system of hydrologic

barriers and controls surrounding the trench areas to provide

groundwater protection. The coal mine underlying the SLDA would be

stabilized by injecting grout into the voids under the trenches to

prevent subsidence. Institutional controls would be required in

perpetuity to prevent inadvertent intrusion into the waste. Because the

licensee's proposed decommissioning alternative would allow radioactive

material to remain on-site and the quantities of materials in some

areas would exceed existing radiological criteria for decommissioning

for unrestricted release, approval of the licensee's proposal requires

the preparation of an EIS in accordance with the National Environmental

Policy Act and NRC's implementing requirements in 10 CFR part 51.

The DEIS evaluates the radiological and nonradiological impacts

associated with the B&W proposed action (stabilization in-place) and

four alternative actions (no action, disposal off-site, stabilization

on-site, and modified stabilization in-place). Under the no action

alternative, wastes in the SLDA would be retained in their current

configuration within the trenches without any additional processing,

stabilization, or controls. This alternative is analyzed in the EIS to

provide a baseline for comparison with the other alternatives; however,

the no action alternative cannot be considered because the on-site

doses exceed NRC's criteria for unrestricted use and thereby require

institutional controls. Disposal off-site would involve excavating all

wastes, treating the waste, as necessary, to meet disposal facility

acceptance criteria, and shipping the waste to an off-site facility

licensed for disposal. No wastes would remain in the trenches at the

site after remediation, but contaminated soil and rock that are below

NRC and EPA cleanup limits would remain on-site. Under the

stabilization on-site alternative, all wastes would be excavated,

treated, and stored in a newly constructed on-site disposal cell. Under

NRC's staff-developed alternative, modified stabilization in-place,

institutional controls and backfilling of the coal mine would be used,

but the engineered barriers and cap would not be implemented.

The DEIS assesses the impacts of the B&W proposed action and the

four alternative actions for socioeconomics, land use, cultural

resources, geology, air quality, water quality, human health,

biological resources, and wetlands. Additionally an analysis and

comparison of the costs and benefits of each alternative has been

performed. The analyses indicate that the radioactive and chemical

contaminants at the SLDA, in their current condition (i.e., no action

alternative) would leach extremely slowly from the trenches and would

be heavily diluted to near background levels both by groundwater and by

surface water. For any of the alternatives, off-site impacts would be

low and no off-site dose is expected.

Based on the evaluations in this DEIS, the staff's preliminary

conclusion is that modified stabilization in-place would protect public

health and the environment and would be less costly than the other

alternatives. Since the uranium is highly immobile, the barriers

proposed in the stabilization in-place alternative are not needed to

prevent migration. The air quality and noise impacts of the modified

stabilization in-place alternative would be similar but not as large as

those for the stabilization in-place alternative in that there will be

some construction on-site for the mine stabilization and erosion

controls around Dry Run. However, the air quality and noise impacts

would be less because the cap, slurry wall, and grout curtain would not

be built and construction times would be much shorter than for

stabilization in-place. Human health impacts of the modified

stabilization in-place alternative would be similar to those for

stabilization in-place. The costs for modified stabilization in-place

would be about 31 percent of the cost for stabilization in-place, but

slightly greater (approximately $7 million) than no action because of

costs associated with mine stabilization and institutional controls.

The stabilization on-site alternative would offer no advantages. The

disposal off-site alternative would allow the SLDA property to be

released for unrestricted use, but there would be increased risks

associated with the removal and processing of the material from the

trenches.

The principal health concern related to leaving wastes on-site

would be the effects of possible future human intrusion directly into

the waste. Direct intrusion into the waste could be prevented by

continuing institutional controls on the site in perpetuity. Under the

modified stabilization in-place alternative, institutional controls

would be used to: (1) Prevent people from

[[Page 46782]]

intruding into the trenches or living on the site; (2) provide for a

maintenance program to maintain the soil cap in its present condition

and to prevent any erosion of the cap caused by runoff or headward

erosion of Dry Run; and (3) provide for a monitoring program to

continue monitoring the wells on-site to ensure off-site doses continue

to be negligible.

NRC is offering an opportunity for public review and comment on the

DEIS in accordance with NRC requirements in 10 CFR 51.73, 51.74, and

51.117. Any comments of Federal, State, and local agencies, Indian

tribes, or other interested parties will be made available for public

inspection when received. The DEIS is a preliminary analysis of the

environmental impacts of B&W's proposed approach. The issuance of a

final EIS, and any NRC decisionmaking based on a final EIS, will not be

made until public comments on the DEIS are received and evaluated. NRC

staff will review the comments, conduct any necessary analyses, and

make appropriate revisions in developing the final EIS on the

decommissioning of the SLDA facility in Parks Township, Pennsylvania.

NRC anticipates completing the EIS on this facility in 1998; however,

this schedule may need to be adjusted during the review of public

comments.

NRC is also arranging a public meeting on the DEIS to be held in

the vicinity of Parks Township, Pennsylvania, during the public comment

period in the fall of 1997. The meeting will consist of an overview of

the DEIS and an opportunity for the NRC to hear any public comments on

the DEIS. NRC will announce the date and location for this meeting in a

subsequent Federal Register notice in advance of the public meeting.

Opportunity for a Hearing

Pursuant to the Commission's rules in 10 CFR part 2, subpart L, an

opportunity for a hearing is hereby offered with respect to the

licensee's proposed action, stabilization in place, or any alternative

described in the DEIS that the licensee may include in a request to

amend its license to incorporate a decommissioning plan. Pursuant to

Sec. 2.1205(a), any person whose interest may be affected by the

licensee's decommissioning actions (the ``proceeding'') may file a

request for a hearing in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(c). A request for

a hearing must be filed within thirty (30) days of the date of

publication of this Federal Register notice.

The request for a hearing must be filed with the Office of the

Secretary either:

1. By delivery to the Rulemakings and Adjudications staff, Office

of the Secretary at One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike,

Rockville, MD 20852-2738; or

2. By mail or telegram addressed to the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555. Attention: Rulemakings and

Adjudications staff.

In addition to meeting other applicable requirements of 10 CFR Part

2 of the NRC's regulations, a request for a hearing filed by a person

other than an applicant must describe in detail:

1. The interest of the requester in the proceeding;

2. How that interest may be affected by the results of the

proceeding, including the reasons why the requester should be permitted

a hearing, with particular reference to the factors set out in

Sec. 2.1205(g);

3. The requester's areas of concern about the proposed activity

that is the subject matter of the proceeding; and

4. The circumstances establishing that the request for a hearing is

timely in accordance with Sec. 2.1205(c).

In accordance with 10 CFR Sec. 2.1205(e), each request for a

hearing must also be served, by delivering it personally or by mail,

to:

1. The licensee, B & W Nuclear Environmental Services, Inc., 2220

Langhorne Road, P.O. Box 10548, Lynchburg, VA 24506-0548 Attention: Mr.

Philip R. Rosenthal; and

2. The NRC staff, by delivery to the Executive Director for

Operations, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD

20852, or by mail, addressed to the Executive Director for Operations,

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 28th day of August 1997.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

John W. N. Hickey,

Chief, Low-Level Waste and Decommissioning Projects Branch, Division of

Waste Management, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.

[FR Doc. 97-23475 Filed 9-3-97; 8:45 am]

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