NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

 2443 Warrenville Road

 Lisle IL 60532

 Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov E-mail: opa3@nrc.gov

No. III-06-007 March 3, 2006

CONTACT: Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663 

Viktoria Mitlyng (630) 829-9662 

NRC ISSUES DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT FOR PALISADES 

LICENSE RENEWAL, ANNOUNCES APRIL 5 PUBLIC MEETING

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has reached the preliminary conclusion that

there are no environmental impacts which would preclude renewal of the operating license for the

Palisades Nuclear Power Plant located at Covert, Mich. The plant is operated by Nuclear Management

Co.

The NRC is seeking public comment on the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the

proposed license renewal which includes the agency’s preliminary assessment of the environmental

impacts of renewal of the Palisades license for an additional 20 years.

The draft EIS is open for public comment until May 18 and will also be the subject of public

meetings on April 5 in South Haven, Mich.

“The comments and views of the public help assure that we have identified and addressed the

appropriate issues in our environmental review of the Palisades license renewal application,” said

James Caldwell, NRC Regional Administrator. “The April 5 meeting also gives us a chance to discuss

any issues and questions firsthand with the public.”

The NRC has been reviewing the proposed extension of the Palisades license since Nuclear

Management Co. submitted its application in March 2005. Under NRC regulations, the original

operating license for a nuclear power plant is issued for up to 40 years. The license may be renewed for

up to an additional 20 years if NRC requirements are met. The current NRC license at Palisades will

expire on March 24, 2011.

The possible environmental effects of an additional 20 years of nuclear plant operation are

described in the NRC’s Generic Environmental Impact Statement or GEIS (NUREG-1437). The NRC

issues a site-specific supplement to the GEIS on each plant requesting license renewal to address the

potential environmental impacts. The NRC staff’s preliminary recommendation is that the adverse

environmental impacts of license renewal for the Palisades reactor are not so great that preserving the

option of license renewal for energy-planning decision makers would be unreasonable.

On Wednesday, April 5, the NRC staff will hold two similar meetings in South Haven to obtain

comments on the draft supplement to the GEIS. The meetings will be held at the Lake Michigan

College, 125 Veterans Boulevard. The sessions will begin at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. In addition, the NRC
staff will host informal discussions one hour prior to each meeting. NRC staff members will be

available to answer questions and provide additional information about the license renewal process

during those informal sessions. No formal comments on environmental issues will be accepted during

these pre-meeting discussions.

The two sessions will begin with identical overviews, including presentations by NRC staff on

the draft supplement to the GEIS. There will then be an opportunity for public comments.

Written comments on the draft Palisades supplement to the GEIS will also be considered by

NRC staff. Comments should be submitted either by mail to the Chief, Rules and Directives Branch,

Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, Mailstop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, or by e-mail to PalisadesEIS@nrc.gov.

The draft EIS and other documents related to the license renewal application are available for

public review at the South Haven Memorial Library, 314 Broadway St. Documents are also available

on the NRC’s web site at

http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/licensing/renewal/applications/palisades.html.

At the conclusion of the public comment period on May 18, the NRC staff will consider and

address the comments as it prepares the final Palisades supplement to the GEIS. The supplement is

scheduled to be issued in October.

###