No. I-08-56 

Contact: Diane Screnci 610/337-5330 

 Neil Sheehan 610/337-5331 

October 14, 2008

NRC SEEKS PUBLIC INPUT ON DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT FOR 

BEAVER VALLEY LICENSE RENEWAL; MEETINGS OCT. 30 

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff is seeking public comment on its preliminary 

conclusion that there are no environmental impacts that would preclude renewal of the operating 

license for the Beaver Valley Power Station in Shippingport, Pa. 

The information is contained in a draft supplemental environmental impact statement on 

the proposed license renewal issued last month. As part of its license renewal application, First 

Energy submitted an environmental report. The NRC staff reviewed the report and performed an 

on-site audit. The staff also considered comments made during the environmental scoping 

process, including comments offered at public meetings held last Nov. 22 in Pittsburgh. Based 

on its review, the NRC staff has preliminarily determined that the adverse environmental impacts 

of license renewal for Beaver Valley are not so great that preserving the option of license 

renewal for energy planning decision-makers would be unreasonable. 

The draft supplemental environmental impact statement is open for public comment until 

Dec. 17, and will also be the subject of public meetings on Oct. 30th at the Embassy Suites 

Pittsburgh-International Airport, 550 Cherrington Parkway, in Pittsburgh. There will be two 

identical sessions, at 1:30 p.m., and at 7:00 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 information about the 

process during those informal sessions, but no comments on environmental issues will be 

accepted then. The two sessions will begin with identical overviews, including a discussion by 

NRC staff and its contractors of the contents of the draft supplement to the GEIS. The meeting 

will then be opened for public comment. 

For planning purposes, those interested in attending are encouraged to pre-register by 

contacting Emmanuel Sayoc of the NRC by telephone at 800/368-5642, extension 1924, or by email at BeaverValleyEIS@nrc.gov no later than Dec. 17. Interested persons may also register to 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs, Region I 

475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406 

E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov 

Site: http://www.nrc.gov
speak before the start of each session. Time for individual comments at the meetings may be 

limited to accommodate all speakers. 

Written comments on the draft 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, Mail Stop T-6D59, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 

Washington, DC 20555-0001, or by e-mail to BeaverValleyEIS@nrc.gov. 

The NRC has been reviewing the Beaver Valley license renewal application since First 

Energy submitted it on Aug. 27, 2007. 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 licenses for Beaver Valley Units 1 

and 2 are due to expire on Jan. 29, 2016, and May 27, 2027, respectively. 

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. Issues specific to Beaver Valley are addressed in 

Supplement 36. 

The draft supplement to the GEIS, along with other related documents, is available 

electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room at NRC headquarters, 

One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md.; or electronically through the 

Agencywide Documents Access and Management System through the NRC webpage at 

www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams/web-based.html. The accession number of the draft Supplement 

36 to the GEIS is ML082001028. In addition, two libraries, Beaver Area Memorial Library,100 

College Ave, in Beaver, Pa., and Beaver County Library System, 1 Campus Drive, in Monaca, 

Pa., have agreed to make the draft supplement to the GEIS available for public inspection. 

At the conclusion of the public comment period the NRC staff will consider and address 

the comments received and issue a final supplement to the GEIS. That supplement will contain a 

recommendation regarding the environmental acceptability for license renewal. 

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