NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

 Office of Public Affairs Region IV 

 611 Ryan Plaza Drive - Suite 400

 Arlington, TX 76011-4005

No. IV-04-005 January 26, 2004

Contact: Victor Dricks E-Mail: opa4@nrc.gov

Phone: 817-860-8128

NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING ON ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW

FOR PROPOSED ARKANSAS NUCLEAR ONE, UNIT 2 LICENSE RENEWAL

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff invites the public to provide its comments on

Tuesday, February 3, regarding an application submitted by Entergy Operations to renew the

operating license for the Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO), Unit 2, nuclear power plant near

Russellville, Arkansas. Comments are invited on environmental issues the public believes the

NRC should consider in its review of the application. 

There will be two sessions held on February 3 at the Holiday Inn in Russellville. The

first session is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. The second session is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The NRC

will host an open house beginning one hour before the start of each meeting to provide members

of the public with an opportunity to talk informally with agency staff.

Both sessions will begin with identical overviews. The NRC staff will provide a

presentation on the license renewal and environmental review processes, the proposed scope of

the environmental review for the ANO Unit 2 application and the proposed time frame for the

review. Interested government agencies, organizations and individuals will then have an

opportunity to offer comments or suggestions on environmental issues they believe should be

reviewed or on the proposed scope of the review.

Under NRC regulations, the original operating license for a nuclear power plant has a

term of 40 years. The license may be renewed for up to an additional 20 years if NRC

requirements are met. The current operating license for ANO Unit-2 is due to expire on July 17,

2018. The Commission unanimously approved license extension for ANO Unit-1 on June 20,

2001, following a review of staff recommendations

As part of its application, Entergy submitted an environmental report. That report is

available for public review in the NRC Public Document Room at NRC headquarters, One White

Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland. In addition, the Pendergraft Library,
located at Arkansas Tech University, 305 West Q Street, Russellville, AR 72801 has agreed to

make the report available for public inspection. The application is also available on the NRC

Web page at: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/ano-2.html.

An existing NRC document, "Generic Environmental Impact Statement for License

Renewal of Nuclear Plants," (NUREG-1437), assesses the scope and impact of environmental

effects that would be associated with license renewal at any nuclear power plant site. The NRC

staff is gathering information at the meeting for a supplement to the generic environmental

impact statement that will be specific to ANO Unit-2. It will contain a recommendation

regarding the environmental acceptability of the license renewal action.

At the conclusion of the information-gathering process, the NRC staff will prepare a

summary of conclusions and significant issues and will send a copy to interested persons who

participated in the scoping process. The summary will also be available for public review at the

Pendergraft Library, located at Arkansas Tech University, 305 West Q Street, Russellville, AR

72801 and will be accessible electronically through the NRC Public Electronic Reading Room

found at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Assistance in using the electronic reading room

is available by calling the NRC Public Document Room at 1-800-397-4209, or 301-415-4737.

The NRC staff will then prepare a draft environmental impact statement (EIS)

supplement for public comment and will hold a public meeting to solicit comments. After

consideration of comments received on the draft, the NRC will prepare a final EIS supplement.

Members of the public may also submit written comments on the ANO Unit-2-specific

supplement to the generic environmental impact statement. Comments should be submitted by

February 20, either by mail to the Chief, Rules and Directives Branch, Division of

Administrative Services, Mail Stop T-6-D-59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, or by e-mail to: ANOEIS@nrc.gov.

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