NRC SEEKS PUBLIC INPUT ON DRAFT SUPPLEMENT TO WATTS BAR 2 NUCLEAR 

PLANT ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT; MEETINGS ON DEC. 8

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

finding that there are no environmental impacts that would preclude issuing an operating license 

for the under-construction Watts Bar 2 reactor near Spring City, Tenn.

Staff from the NRC will discuss their Draft Supplement to the Final Environmental 

Statement (DSFES) in meetings from 2-4 p.m. and 6:30-8:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 8, at the 

Magnuson Hotel, 1421 Murrays Chapel Road in Sweetwater, Tenn. The NRC will transcribe the 

meetings and post the transcript on the agency’s website. NRC staff will also be available for 

informal discussions with members of the public during “open house” sessions from 1-2 p.m. 

and 5:30-6:30 p.m. No formal comments on the DSFES will be accepted during these open 

houses.

The DSFES is available on the agency’s website, as well as the NRC’s electronic 

document database, ADAMS, by entering accession number ML112980199 in the ADAMS 

search engine. In addition, the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Bicentennial Library, at 1001 

Broad St. in Chattanooga, Tenn., will have a hardbound copy of the DSFES available for public 

inspection.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) originally applied for Unit 2’s operating license 

in 1976, then halted construction in late 1985. TVA informed the NRC in Aug. 2007 that it 

would resume construction of Unit 2. TVA issued a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement for Unit 2 in February 2008 and updated its operating license application on March 4, 

2009. TVA is requesting permission to operate Unit 2, a 1,150-megawatt electric, Westinghousedesigned pressurized-water reactor of the same type as Unit 1, which began operating in 1996. 

The Watts Bar site is approximately 50 miles northeast of Chattanooga, Tenn.

The NRC held meetings in Sweetwater in October 2009 to gather the community’s 

comments on the environmental review before drafting the DSFES. The NRC also sought input 

from Federal, state, tribal, regional and local agencies during the review. The NRC continues its 

safety review of the license application, and the agency expects to update its Final Safety 

Evaluation Report on Unit 2 in May 2012. The NRC must complete both the safety and 

environmental reviews before reaching a decision on whether TVA can begin operating Watts 

Bar Unit 2.

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. 11-211 November 10, 2011
Those wishing to register in advance to present their comments at the meeting, or with 

special needs for attending or presenting information at the meeting, should contact Carmen Fells 

by telephone at (800) 368-5642 x6337, or via e-mail at Carmen.Fells@nrc.gov by Dec. 1. Those 

wishing to speak may also register at the meetings no later than 1:45 p.m. and 6:15 p.m., 

respectively. Individual comments could be limited by the time available and the number of 

people wishing to speak.

NRC staff will also consider written comments on the DSFES through Dec. 27. 

Comments may be submitted through the federal government’s Rulemaking website at 

www.regulations.gov using Docket ID NRC-2008-0369; by fax to 301-492-3446; or by mail to 

Chief, Rulemaking, Directives, and Editing Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office 

of Administration, Mailstop TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 

Washington, DC 20555-0001.

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