NRC FINDS NO SIGNIFICANT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

FROM PROPOSED RENEWAL OF NFS OPERATING LICENSE

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a final environmental assessment (EA) 

and finding of no significant impact from the proposed renewal of the operating license for 

Nuclear Fuel Services Inc. (NFS) in Erwin, Tenn. 

The NRC staff has determined that renewal of the NFS license for a 40-year period 

would not significantly affect the quality of the human environment, and the EA, published today 

in the Federal Register, thus makes a finding of no significant impact. The NRC staff is currently 

conducting a safety review of the NFS license renewal application as well.

Under the conditions of a special nuclear materials license (License SNM–124), NFS 

operates a nuclear fuel fabrication facility. .If granted, the renewed license would allow NFS to 

continue operations and activities at the site for a 40-year period that would begin with issuance 

of the renewed license. 

The current license authorizes NFS to receive, possess, store, use, and ship special 

nuclear material enriched up to 100 percent. Under the proposed action, NFS would continue 

production of reactor fuel for the U.S. Navy and for commercial domestic operations.

On June 30, 2009, NFS submitted its license renewal application and accompanying 

environmental report (ER) to the NRC. On Oct. 6, 2009, the NRC provided notice in the Federal 

Register (74 FR 51323) of its receipt of the license renewal application and also noticed an 

opportunity to request a hearing on the application. No requests for a hearing were received. 

The NRC staff published for public comment a draft EA for the proposed action on 

Oct. 15, 2010, (75 FR 63519). The NRC staff accepted comments on the draft EA until Dec. 31, 

2010, and hosted a meeting in Erwin on Oct. 26, 2010, to accept oral and written public 

comments. The NRC staff revised the draft EA in response to some of the comments. 

The public may examine and have copied, for a fee, publicly available documents related 

to the NFS facility and license renewal at the NRC’s Public Document Room (PDR), located at 

One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville, Md. 20852. Members of 

the public can contact the NRC’s PDR reference staff by calling 1-800-397-4209, by faxing a 

request to 301-415-3548, or by e-mail to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

Washington, D.C. 20555-0001

E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: www.nrc.gov

Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov

No. 11-203 October 26, 2011
Members of the public can access NRC’s ADAMS online document database on the 

NRC website. From this website, the following documents related to the NRC’s environmental 

review can be obtained by entering the accession numbers provided:

NFS license renewal application (ML091880040)

NFS environmental report (ML091900072)

NRC Final EA (ML112560265)

Documents will also be available at the Unicoi County Public Library in Erwin, the 

Jonesborough Branch of the Washington County Library in Jonesborough, Tenn., and the Green 

County Public Library in Greenville, Tenn.

###

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription or by clicking on the EMAIL UPDATES 

link on the NRC homepage (www.nrc.gov). E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are 

posted to NRC's website. For the latest news, follow the NRC on www.twitter.com/NRCgov.