November 19, 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 OCTOBER 28 PUBLIC MEETING IN CHELMSFORD, 

MASSACHUSSETS, TO RECEIVE COMMENTS ON THE WASTE 

CONFIDENCE DRAFT GENERIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT 

STATEMENT AND PROPOSED RULE 

On Monday, October 28, 2013, members of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) 

staff held a Category 3 public meeting at the Radisson Hotel and Suites Chelmsford-Lowell in 

Chelmsford, MA. 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. EDT 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. EDT and concluded at 10:30 p.m. EDT. 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. ML13310B069. 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 79 people attended the meeting and 37 provided comments. Meeting 

participants included members of the public, representatives of State and local government from 

Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and New York, and members of industry and public 

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

Questions asked during the question-and-answer period concerned the three deficiencies 

identified by U.S. Court of Appeals in the 2010 Waste Confidence rulemaking, and the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency's review of the DGEIS. Topics and concerns raised during 

the public comment portion of the meeting included: support for the no-action alternative and 

evaluating Waste Confidence on a site-specific basis; support for continuing the NRC's current 

halt on licensing and relicensing; support for phasing out nuclear power and replacing that 

generation with renewable energy; general opposition to nuclear power; opposition to the term 

“Waste Confidence”; support for expedited transfer of spent fuel from fuel pools to hardened 

onsite storage (HOSS); concerns regarding spent fuel pool density and spent fuel pool 

accidents caused by earthquakes and tsunamis, similar to Fukushima; concerns about the 

safety of storing spent nuclear fuel, including potential impacts from climate change, natural 

events like flooding, and terrorism; critique of the NRC's analysis of risks from spent fuel pool 

fires; opposition to transporting spent nuclear fuel; the financial cost of decommissioning; health 

effects of radiation; concerns about local plants including Pilgrim, Seabrook, and Vermont 

Yankee; and support for the Waste Confidence rulemaking, the safe storage of spent nuclear 

fuel, and a permanent geologic repository. 

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 79 people attended the meeting and 37 provided comments. Meeting 

participants included members of the public, representatives of State and local government from 

Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and New York, and members of industry and public 

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

Questions asked during the question-and-answer period concerned the three deficiencies 

identified by U.S. Court of Appeals in the 2010 Waste Confidence rulemaking, and the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency's review of the DGEIS. Topics and concerns raised during 

the public comment portion of the meeting included: support for the no-action alternative and 

evaluating Waste Confidence on a site-specific basis; support for continuing the NRC's current 

halt on licensing and relicensing; support for phasing out nuclear power and replacing that 

generation with renewable energy; general opposition to nuclear power; opposition to the term 

“Waste Confidence”; support for expedited transfer of spent fuel from fuel pools to hardened 

onsite storage (HOSS); concerns regarding spent fuel pool density and spent fuel pool 

accidents caused by earthquakes and tsunamis, similar to Fukushima; concerns about the 

safety of storing spent nuclear fuel, including potential impacts from climate change, natural 

events like flooding, and terrorism; critique of the NRC's analysis of risks from spent fuel pool 

fires; opposition to transporting spent nuclear fuel; the financial cost of decommissioning; health 

effects of radiation; concerns about local plants including Pilgrim, Seabrook, and Vermont 

Yankee; and support for the Waste Confidence rulemaking, the safe storage of spent nuclear 

fuel, and a permanent geologic repository. 

Enclosure: Meeting Attendees List 

DISTRIBUTION:

PUBLIC 

NMSS_WCD_Distribution 

TCampbell (OGC) 

LLondon (OGC) 

Miriam Juckett (mjuckett@swri.org) 

 

ADAMS Accession No.: ML13323B497

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

NAME SLopas TCampbell(NLO) MHorn for AImboden 

DATE 11/19/13 11/19/13 11/19/13 

OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
 Enclosure 

List of Attendees 

Public Meeting to Receive Comments on the 

Waste Confidence DGEIS and Proposed Rule 

Chelmsford, MA - October 28, 2013 - 7:00 – 10:30 PM EDT 

 First Name Last Name Organization 

1 David Agnew Cape Downwinders 

2 Sara Altherr Private Citizen 

3 Janet Azarovitz Cape Downwinders 

4 Thomas Azarovitz Cape Downwinders 

5 Anna Baker Pilgrim Coalition 

6 Maya Barak Private Citizen 

7 Doug Bogen Seacoast Anti-Pollution League 

8 Jerry Bonanno Nuclear Energy Institute 

9 Pam Boyes Private Citizen 

10 Samuel Brinton MIT Dept. of Nuclear Science and Engineering 

11 Genevieve Byrne Concerned Neighbors of Pilgrim 

12 Susan Carpenter Cape Downwinders 

13 Katharine Cederberg Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency 

14 Ben Chichester Private Citizen 

15 Daniel Curtis MIT Dept. of Nuclear Science and Engineering 

16 Ann Darling Safe and Green Campaign 

17 Mihai Diaconeasa MIT Dept. of Nuclear Science and Engineering 

18 Arthur Dickinson Cape Downwinders 

19 Elaine Dickinson Cape Downwinders 

20 Patrick Dostie State of Maine 

21 Joan Ecklien Private Citizen 

22 Robert Fleischer Private Citizen 

23 Nancy Fleischer Private Citizen 

24 Diego Garcia North American Young Generation in Nuclear 

25 Elizabeth Gerlach Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

26 Ellen Ginsberg Nuclear Energy Institute 

27 Tony Giunta City Councilor, City of Franklin, NH 

28 Debbie Grinnell C-10 Foundation 

29 Joanna Hammond No More Fukushimas 

30 Marsha Hart Private Citizen 

31 Paul Haugsjaa Private Citizen 

32 Birgit Johanson Private Citizen 

33 Patrick Karalekas MA Municipal Wholesale Electric Company 

34 Peter Katzen Private Citizen 

35 Stratton Kirton CASEnergy Coalition 

36 James Lampert Attorney 

37 Mary Lampert Pilgrim Watch 

38 William Maurer Cape Downwinders 
2

First Name Last Name Affiliation or Organization 

39 Rod McCullum Nuclear Energy Institute 

40 Joyce McMahon Entergy 

41 Dave McNeish Terra Vault 

42 Kelsi Morris CASEnergy Coalition 

43 Hattie Nestel Nuclear Free Future Coalition of Western MA 

44 Chris Nord C-10 Foundation 

45 Rie Okamura Harvard University 

46 Sheila Parks (on behalf of Planet Earth) 

47 Norman Pierce Private Citizen 

48 Herb Robinson Private Citizen 

49 Margo Roman Women's Actions for New Directions 

50 Gary Sachs Private Citizen 

51 Sally Shaw Private Citizen 

52 Bruce Skud No More Fukushimas 

53 Steven Stamm Private Citizen 

54 Cornelia Sullivan Pax Christie USA 

55 Leslie Sullivan Sachs Safe and Green Campaign 

56 Donald Tilbury Private Citizen 

57 Jeff Tkacs Town of Cortlandt Manor, NY 

58 Karen Vale Cape Cod Bay Watch 

59 Mark Welsh Areva 

60 Sylvia Westerlind Private Citizen 

61 Chris Williams Private Citizen 

62 Nancy Wrenn Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

63 David Brown Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

64 Chip Cameron Facilitator 

65 Tison Campbell Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

66 David Cylkowski Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

67 Andy Imboden Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

68 Miriam Juckett Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analysis 

69 Patrick LaPlante Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analysis 

70 Timothy McCartin Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

71 Keith McConnell Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

72 Paul Michalak Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

73 Scott Moore Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

74 Michelle Moser Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

75 TR Rowe Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

76 Neil Sheehan Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

77 John Stamatakos Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analysis 

78 Michael Wentzel Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

79 Susan Wittick Nuclear Regulatory Commission