December 9, 2013 

MEMORANDUM TO: Andy Imboden, Chief 

Communications, Planning, 

 and Rulemaking Branch 

Waste Confidence Directorate 

Office of Nuclear Material Safety 

 and Safeguards 

FROM: Sarah Lopas, NEPA Communications Project Manager /RA/ 

 Communications, Planning, 

 and Rulemaking Branch 

 Waste Confidence Directorate 

 Office of Nuclear Material Safety 

 and Safeguards 

SUBJECT: SUMMARY OF NOVEMBER 12 PUBLIC MEETING IN OAK BROOK, 

ILLINOIS, TO RECEIVE COMMENTS ON THE WASTE CONFIDENCE 

DRAFT GENERIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT AND 

PROPOSED RULE 

On Tuesday, November 12, 2013, members of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 

staff held a Category 3 public meeting at the Chicago Marriott Oak Brook in Oak Brook, Illinois. 

The purpose of the meeting was to provide an overview of the Waste Confidence draft generic 

environmental impact statement (DGEIS) and proposed rule, and to accept public comments on 

the documents. Participants also had an opportunity to ask questions about the NRC’s 

environmental review and rulemaking process. 

The NRC conducted an open house beginning at 6:00 p.m. CST where members of the public 

met informally with NRC staff and asked questions related to the DGEIS and proposed rule. 

The public meeting began at 7:00 p.m. CST and concluded at 10:50 p.m. CST. The meeting 

began with an introduction of NRC staff and a review of meeting ground rules, followed by a 

short presentation on the Waste Confidence DGEIS and proposed rule. The majority of the 

meeting was dedicated to receiving comments from members of the public. 

The staff's slide presentation is available in the NRC's Agencywide Document Management and 

Access System (ADAMS) under Accession No. ML13273A339. The transcript for the meeting is 

available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML13330C033. NRC handouts available at the 

meeting can be accessed at ML13319A111, ML13319A108, and ML13319A110. Posters 

displayed during the open house can be accessed at ML13279A004. The ADAMS Public 

Electronic Reading Room is accessible at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Persons 

who do not have access to ADAMS, or who encounter problems in accessing documents 

CONTACT: Sarah Lopas, WCD/CPRB 

 (301) 287-0675 
A. Imboden - 2 - 

located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC’s Public Document Room reference staff at 

1-800-397-4209, or via e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov. For convenience, web links to the staff’s 

presentation materials and the meeting transcript are also available on the Waste Confidence 

Directorate’s website at http://www.nrc.gov/waste/spent-fuel-storage/wcd/pub-involve.html. 

Approximately 147 people attended the meeting and 53 provided comments. Meeting 

attendees included members of the public, students from a local high school, representatives 

from state and local emergency management offices, staff members from the offices of Senator 

Mark Kirk (R – IL) and Representative Adam Kinzinger (IL 16th District), a representative from 

the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5, and members of industry and public 

advocacy groups. A list of meeting attendees is included as Attachment 1. 

Questions asked during the question-and-answer period concerned whether all comments on 

the DGEIS and proposed rule would be made public, and the types of spent fuel covered by 

Waste Confidence. Topics and concerns raised during the public comment portion of the 

meeting included: general opposition to nuclear power and support for renewable energy; calls 

to stop making additional nuclear waste; support for continuing the moratorium on issuance of 

licenses for facilities that relied on the Waste Confidence Rule; opposition to the Waste 

Confidence rulemaking and the term “Waste Confidence”; opposition to the generic approach of 

Waste Confidence and support for site-specific reviews; calls to withdraw the DGEIS; critique of 

the DGEIS assumption regarding institutional controls; critique of the accidents analysis in the 

DGEIS, including accidents caused by both natural events and terrorism; how uncertainty was 

taken into account in the DGEIS; Fukushima, Chernobyl, and Three Mile Island; safety concerns 

regarding General Electric Mark I boiling water reactors; safety concerns regarding dry cask 

storage including cask degradation and fuel deterioration; climate change impacts on the safe 

storage of spent fuel; concern about spent fuel pool density, and pool fires and leaks; support 

for hardened onsite storage (HOSS); issues specific to local and regional facilities including 

Braidwood, Calloway, Byron, Dresden, Quad Cities, La Salle, Palisades, and Fermi; the Zion 

decommissioning; water quality in the Great Lakes; opposition to interim storage of spent fuel in 

Illinois; NRC oversight; nuclear industry safety culture; transportation; health effects of radiation; 

the cost of nuclear power and long-term management of spent fuel; natural-gas-fracking-related 

seismic impacts; publicity for the Waste Confidence public meetings and public participation in 

the rulemaking; support for nuclear power in light of climate change concerns and local 

economic factors; support for the continued safe storage of spent fuel; support for a permanent 

geologic repository (Yucca Mountain); and support for the DGEIS, proposed rule, and the 

NRC’s 24-month timeline. 

Enclosure: Meeting Attendees List 

cc: See next page 
A. Imboden - 2 - 

located in ADAMS, should contact the NRC’s Public Document Room reference staff at 

1-800-397-4209, or via e-mail at pdr@nrc.gov. For convenience, web links to the staff’s presentation 

materials and the meeting transcript are also available on the Waste Confidence Directorate’s website at 

http://www.nrc.gov/waste/spent-fuel-storage/wcd/pub-involve.html. 

Approximately 147 people attended the meeting and 53 provided comments. Meeting attendees included 

members of the public, students from a local high school, representatives from state and local emergency 

management offices, staff members from the offices of Senator Mark Kirk (R – IL) and Representative 

Adam Kinzinger (IL 16th District), a representative from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 

5, and members of industry and public advocacy groups. A list of meeting attendees is included as 

Attachment 1. 

Questions asked during the question-and-answer period concerned whether all comments on the DGEIS 

and proposed rule would be made public, and the types of spent fuel covered by Waste Confidence. 

Topics and concerns raised during the public comment portion of the meeting included: general 

opposition to nuclear power and support for renewable energy; calls to stop making additional nuclear 

waste; support for continuing the moratorium on issuance of licenses for facilities that relied on the Waste 

Confidence Rule; opposition to the Waste Confidence rulemaking and the term “Waste Confidence”; 

opposition to the generic approach of Waste Confidence and support for site-specific reviews; calls to 

withdraw the DGEIS; critique of the DGEIS assumption regarding institutional controls; critique of the 

accidents analysis in the DGEIS, including accidents caused by both natural events and terrorism; how 

uncertainty was taken into account in the DGEIS; Fukushima, Chernobyl, and Three Mile Island; safety 

concerns regarding General Electric Mark I boiling water reactors; safety concerns regarding dry cask 

storage including cask degradation and fuel deterioration; climate change impacts on the safe storage of 

spent fuel; concern about spent fuel pool density, and pool fires and leaks; support for hardened onsite 

storage (HOSS); issues specific to local and regional facilities including Braidwood, Calloway, Byron, 

Dresden, Quad Cities, La Salle, Palisades, and Fermi; the Zion decommissioning; water quality in the 

Great Lakes; opposition to interim storage of spent fuel in Illinois; NRC oversight; nuclear industry safety 

culture; transportation; health effects of radiation; the cost of nuclear power and long-term management 

of spent fuel; natural-gas-fracking-related seismic impacts; publicity for the Waste Confidence public 

meetings and public participation in the rulemaking; support for nuclear power in light of climate change 

concerns and local economic factors; support for the continued safe storage of spent fuel; support for a 

permanent geologic repository (Yucca Mountain); and support for the DGEIS, proposed rule, and the 

NRC’s 24-month timeline. 

Enclosure: Meeting Attendees List 

DISTRIBUTION:

PUBLIC 

NMSS_WCD_Distribution 

TCampbell (OGC) 

LLondon (OGC) 

Miriam Juckett (mjuckett@swri.org) 

 

ADAMS Accession No.: ML13343A161

OFFICE PM: NMSS/WCD/CPRB OGC BC: NMSS/WCD/CPRB 

NAME SLopas LLondon(NLO) AImboden 

DATE 12/6/13 12/9/13 12/9/13 

OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
 Enclosure 

List of Attendees 

Public Meeting to Receive Comments on the 

Waste Confidence DGEIS and Proposed Rule 

Oak Brook, IL - November 12, 2013 - 7:00 – 10:50 PM CST

First Name Last Name Organization or Affiliation 

1 Grace Achepohl York High School Chemistry Class 

2 Francisco Aguilar Nuclear Energy Information Service 

3 Margaret Aguilar Nuclear Energy Information Service 

4 Reha Alkan Exelon Generation - Quad Cities Station 

5 Lauren Aloia York High School Chemistry Class 

6 Sarah Anderson Private Citizen 

7 Halil Avci Argonne National Lab 

8 Tina Balgeman Exelon 

9 Sandra Benzeer Nuclear Energy Information Service 

10 Joan Bielsaus Private Citizen 

11 Stephenie Bilenko Near West Citizens for Peace and Justice 

12 Bruce Biwer Private Citizen 

13 Bob Blaus York High School 

14 Bonnie Blustein Private Citizen 

15 Jan Boudart Private Citizen 

16 Connie Brooks LaSalle County Emergency Management 

17 Sandy Burcenski Citizens Against Ruining the Environment 

18 Liane Casten Nuclear Energy Information Service 

19 Fran Cella League of Women Voters 

20 Lora Chamberlain Frack Free IL 

21 S.Y. Chen Illinois Institute of Technology 

22 Marlene Ciavarella Private Citizen 

23 Corey Conn Private Citizen 

24 Scott Coren City of Daria 

25 Frank Costanza Private Citizen 

26 Evan Craig Sierra Club 

27 Mary Cray Riverside 

28 Ivy Czekanski Private Citizen 

29 Harry Damron Will County Emergency Management Agency 

30 Brandon de Graaf Exelon 

31 William Denton American Society of Mechanical Engineers 

32 Lisa Donovan Private Citizen 

33 Ardis Doolin Citizens Against Ruining the Environment 

34 Jeff Dunlap Exelon 

35 Lydia Faber York High School Chemistry Class 

36 Andrew Field Senator Mark Kirk's Office 

37 Scott Fleming Will County Center for Economic Development 

38 Rick Fox Global Warming Solutions Group of Cent. IL 
2

First Name Last Name Organization or Affiliation 

39 Tracy Fox Peoria Families Against Toxic Waste 

40 Jodie Futornick Nuclear Energy Information Service 

41 Terry Gallagher Public Theologian for Eco-Justice 

42 Marian Gamble League of Women Voters 

43 Doug Gerleman Private Citizen 

44 Joyce Good Nuclear Energy Information Service 

45 Karli Grace Private Citizen 

46 Kristin Gregory Exelon 

47 Karl Hachmuth Exelon 

48 Maureen Headington Stand Up/Save Lives Campaign 

49 Vincent Headington Private Citizen 

50 Alan Hernandez Exelon 

51 Kelly Horn Illinois Emergency Management Agency 

52 Joy Hunter Private Citizen 

53 Ajay Jain York High School Chemistry Class 

54 William Jones Chicago Nonviolent Activism 

55 Miriam Juckett Southwest Research Institute 

56 Randy Juris Homer Glen Environment Committee 

57 Paul Kakuris IL Dunesland Preservation Society 

58 Mike Kalas Chicago Independent Media Center 

59 Kevin Kamps Beyond Nuclear 

60 Shari Katz Private Citizen 

61 Chris Knudsen York High School Chemistry Class 

62 Stephen Kohlhase Exelon 

63 Susan Korn Exelon Corporation 

64 Ashley Kovacs Exelon - Win 

65 David Kraft Nuclear Energy Information Service 

66 Carol Kurz Private Citizen 

67 Dale Lehman Nuclear Energy Information Service 

68 Linda Lewison Nuclear Energy Information Service 

69 Krista Lopykinski Exelon 

70 Kerri Lydersen MW Energy News 

71 Sandy McComb Michigan Safe Energy Future 

72 Rod McCullum Nuclear Energy Institute 

73 Debra Michaud Business Owner 

74 Frank Montana Private Citizen 

75 Kerry Mortensen Private Citizen 

76 Sue Mortensen Private Citizen 

77 Tom Murray Will County Emergency Management Agency 

78 Ron Nowicki Homeowner 

79 Doug O'Brien Illinois Clean Energy Coalition 
3

 First Name Last Name Organization or Affiliation 

80 Tess O'Brien York High School Chemistry Class 

81 Kristin Otterniss Exelon 

82 Douglas Ower Private Citizen 

83 Jill Paulus Frack Free IL 

84 Jerry Peck Illinois Manufacturers' Association 

85 Bette Pierman Michigan Safe Energy Future 

86 Elizabeth Poole U.S. EPA Region 5 - NEPA 

87 Cindy Prokop Private Citizen 

88 Jay Rendos Private Citizen 

89 Tom Rielly Vista 360 

90 Tony Rigor Private Citizen 

91 Charles Roberson Exelon 

92 Jon Rogozinski Exelon 

93 Bridgit Rorem Private Citizen 

94 Christopher Rosso North American Young Generation in Nuclear 

95 Kathleen Rude Private Citizen 

96 Maria Santaella Private Citizen 

97 Jeffrey Schramek Nuclear Energy Information Service 

98 Samantha Schussele Exelon Corporation 

99 Robert Schwartz Boilermakers Local One 

100 Tina Seastrom Private Citizen 

101 Alwyn Settles Illinois Emergency Management Agency 

102 Saman Shafaie Private Citizen 

103 Tom Shepherd SE Environment Task Force 

104 Marilyn Shineflug Private Citizen 

105 Adela Showronski York High School Chemistry Class 

106 Roberta Siegel Nuclear Energy Information Service 

107 Howard Siegel Nuclear Energy Information Service 

108 Donna Skubic Private Citizen 

109 Edward Smith Missouri Coalition for the Environment 

110 Gail Snyder Nuclear Energy Information Service 

111 Marshall Sorkin Nuclear Energy Information Service 

112 Carol Stark Citizens Against Ruining the Environment 

113 Eric Stein Exelon 

114 Amanda Stenson Exelon Corporation Braidwood NPP 

115 Bridgette Strawbridge York High School Chemistry Class 

116 Tamae Takarabe Nuclear Energy Information Service 

117 Ray Termini Exelon Generation 

118 Brittany Theis Whitt Law 

119 Tammy Thompson Private Citizen 

120 Clare Tobin Nuclear Energy Information Service 
4

First Name Last Name Organization or Affiliation 

121 Katie Tochey York High School Chemistry Class 

122 Marian Tompson Nuclear Energy Information Service 

123 Bruce Toomire Private Citizen 

124 Tom Walsh LaSalle County Board 

125 Beverly Walter Nuclear Energy Information Service 

126 Hannah Welsh Private Citizen 

127 Reed Wilson Office of Congressman Adam Kinzinger 

128 Jacob Wirtala Exelon 

129 Patricia Withers Private Citizen 

130 Tom Wolf Illinois Chamber of Commerce 

131 David Brown Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

132 Chip Cameron Facilitator 

133 Prema Chandrathil Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

134 Jennifer Davis Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

135 Miriam Juckett Southwest Research Institute 

136 Patrick LaPlante Southwest Research Institute 

137 Matthew Learn Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

138 Harral Logaras Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

139 Lisa London Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

140 Sarah Lopas Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

141 Timothy McCartin Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

142 Keith McConnell Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

143 Paul Michalak Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

144 TR Rowe Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

145 Wayne Slawinski Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

146 Michael Wentzel Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

147 Susan Wittick Nuclear Regulatory Commission