Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 130 / Thursday, July 6, 2000 / Notices 41739

CFR Part 50), Appendix R, Section III.J

to Facility Operating License No. DPR–

65, issued to the Northeast Nuclear

Energy Company, et al., (NNECO or the

licensee), for operation of the Millstone

Nuclear Power Station, Unit 2, located

in Waterford, Connecticut.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

The licensee has requested an

exemption from the requirements of 10

CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III. J

to the extent that it requires emergency

lighting units with at least an 8-hour

battery power supply to light all areas

needed for operation of safe shutdown

equipment and in access and egress

routes thereto. The licensee based this

exemption request primarily on the

security lighting system currently

installed at the plant for access and

egress route emergency lighting to meet

the underlying purpose of the rule. The

underlying purpose of the rule is to

ensure that lighting of sufficient

duration and reliability is provided to

allow operation of equipment required

for post-fire, safe shutdown of the

reactor.

The proposed action is in accordance

with the licensee’s application for an

exemption dated February 14, 2000, as

supplemented by letters dated April 5

and May 31, 2000.

The Need for the Proposed Action

The proposed action is needed for the

licensee to avoid the burden of full

compliance with the regulations. Full

compliance with the regulations would

require battery powered lights to

illuminate a large outdoor area for an 8-

hour period. It is not considered

practical to illuminate large outdoor

areas with battery powered lighting for

an 8-hour period. The licensee already

has diesel-powered security lighting in

the same area and portable lighting

equipment is also available. As noted

above, the underlying purpose of the

rule can be met without the burden of

installing additional lighting.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed

Action

The NRC has completed its evaluation

of the proposed action. The underlying

purpose of the rule the licensee is

requesting to be exempted from is to

ensure that the plant can be safely shut

down in the event of a fire.

Based on the availability and

reliability of the security lighting and

the availability of portable lighting,

there is reasonable assurance that the

access and egress routes through the

yard area that are relied on for safe

shutdown of the facility can be accessed

in the event of a fire.

On the basis of its review, the staff

concludes that the licensee will still

have the capability to safely shut down

the plant, in the event of a fire, after this

exemption has been granted.

The proposed action will not

significantly increase the probability or

consequences of accidents, no changes

are being made in the types of effluents

that may be released off site, and there

is no significant increase in

occupational or public radiation

exposure. Therefore, there are no

significant radiological environmental

impacts associated with the proposed

action.

With regard to potential nonradiological impacts, the proposed

action does not involve any historic

sites. It does not affect non-radiological

plant effluents and has no other

environmental impact. Therefore, there

are no significant non-radiological

environmental impacts associated with

the proposed action.

Accordingly, the NRC concludes that

there are no significant environmental

impacts associated with the proposed

action.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

As an alternative to the proposed

action, the staff considered denial of the

proposed action (i.e., the ‘‘no-action’’

alternative). Denial of the application

would result in no change in current

environmental impacts. The

environmental impacts of the proposed

action and the alternative action are

similar.

Alternative Use of Resources

This action does not involve the use

of any resources not previously

considered in the Final Environmental

Statement for the Millstone Nuclear

Power Station, Unit 2.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

In accordance with its stated policy,

on March 16, 2000, the staff consulted

with the Connecticut State official,

Michael Firsick of the Division of

Radiation, Department of Environmental

Protection, regarding the environmental

impact of the proposed action. The State

official had no comments.

Finding of No Significant Impact

On the basis of the environmental

assessment, the Commission concludes

that the proposed action will not have

a significant effect on the quality of the

human environment. Accordingly, the

Commission has determined not to

prepare an environmental impact

statement for the proposed action.

For further details with respect to the

proposed action, see the licensee’s letter

dated February 14, 2000, as

supplemented by letters dated April 5

and May 31, 2000, which are available

for public inspection at the

Commission’s Public Document Room,

the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street,

NW., Washington, DC. Publicly

available records will be accessible

electronically from the Agencywide

Documents Access and Management

System (ADAMS) Public Library

component of the NRC Web site, <http:/

/www.nrc.gov> (the Electronic Reading

Room).

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day

of June, 2000.

For the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission.

Jacob I. Zimmerman,

Project Manager, Section 2, Project

Directorate I, Division of Licensing Project

Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor

Regulation.

[FR Doc. 00–17033 Filed 7–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

NUCLEAR REGULATORY

COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50–327 and 50–328]

Tennessee Valley Authority; Sequoyah

Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2,

Environment Assessment and Finding

of No Significant Impact

Introduction

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission (NRC) is considering

issuance of an amendment to Facility

Operating Licenses Nos. DPR–77 and

DPR–79, issued to the Tennessee Valley

Authority (TVA, the licensee) for

operation of the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant

(SQN) Units 1 and 2, respectively. The

facility is located in Hamilton County,

Tennessee.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

The proposed action would revise

License Condition 2.B.(5) in each of the

licenses, which authorizes possession of

byproduct and special nuclear materials

(SNM). The License Condition states:

Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR Parts 30,

40, and 70, to possess, but not separate, such

byproduct and special nuclear materials as

may be produced by the operation of the

facility.

These proposed amendments change

the words ‘‘as may be produced by the

operation of the facility’’ to ‘‘as may be

produced by the operation of the

Sequoyah or Watts Bar Unit 1 Nuclear

Plants.’’ Upon NRC approval of the

41740 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 130 / Thursday, July 6, 2000 / Notices

requested license amendments, TVA

plans to transport low-level radioactive

waste (LLRW) from Watts Bar Nuclear

Plant (WBN), Unit 1, to the SQN site for

storage in a facility designed for that

purpose.

The proposed action is in accordance

with TVA’s application for license

amendments dated December 17,1999.

The Need for the Proposed Action

Byproduct material and small

amounts of SNM are present as the

radioactive contaminants in certain

LLRW that has, in the past, been

shipped to the Chem-Nuclear facility

near Barnwell, South Carolina, for

permanent deep-trench disposal. The

LLRW being considered for storage at

the SQN site includes ion-exchange

resins, pressurized water reactor filters,

tank solids, irradiated metal reactor

components, and dry active waste.

TVA believes that License Condition

2.B.(5) was intended, consistent with

nonproliferation objectives, to restrict

licensees from separating nuclides

generated in the course of operation of

the licensed facility; it was not intended

to restrict licensees from possessing

low-level by-product and SNM

produced by operation of another

facility. Nonetheless, TVA is requesting

that License Condition 2.B.(5) be

modified as stated above to remove any

question of interpretation with respect

to receipt of LLRW generated at Watts

Bar Unit 1 at the SQN site.

TVA has, until now, made regular

shipments of Class B and Class C LLRW

(as defined in 10 CFR Part 61) to the

South Carolina Barnwell permanent

disposal facility. Class A dry active

waste (the lowest radioactivity level) is

routinely shipped to the Envirocare

facility in Utah, which is licensed to

receive Class A dry active waste, but not

other types of Class A, Class B, or Class

C wastes. Recent escalating LLRW

access and disposal fees at Barnwell,

and the prospect of sudden closure of

the facility, with no alternative disposal

facility for LLRW (other than Class A

dry active waste) becoming available in

the foreseeable future, have led TVA to

develop an alternative solution until

such time as a practical off-site

repository option again becomes

available. The cost to TVA of sending

LLRW to Barnwell for disposal has

increased 800% over the past 10 years.

Furthermore, South Carolina has

recently passed legislation to enter into

a LLRW disposal pact with the States of

Connecticut and New Jersey (known as

the Atlantic Compact) and has

announced that, ultimately, only those

states will be allowed to ship LLRW to

Barnwell. TVA has a very large interim

storage facility at the SQN site with

ample storage space for LLRW from

operation of both SQN units and the

single WBN unit. The LLRW storage

modules were constructed at SQN in the

early 1980s but have never been

utilized.

The proposed License Condition

revision is needed to allow the Watts

Bar Nuclear Plant the option to ship

LLRW to the SQN site, thereby

permitting continued operations of the

WBN plant. TVA has stated its intention

to ship any stored waste (predominantly

Class B and C) to the Envirocare of Utah

facility (or any other facility) at such

time as that facility is licensed to

receive and dispose of such wastes.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed

Action

The NRC has completed its evaluation

of the proposed action and concludes

that, with regard to radiological impacts

to the general public, the proposed

action involves activities located

entirely within the restricted area as

defined in 10 CFR Part 20. The

proposed action will not significantly

increase the probability or consequences

of accidents, no changes are being made

in the types of any effluents that may be

released off site, and there is no

significant increase in occupational or

public radiation exposure.

The NRC granted Materials License

No. 41–08165–14 (Docket No. 30–

19101) on September 17, 1982, for use

of the LLRW storage facility at SQN for

a period of 5 years. At the same time,

the NRC issued a Safety Evaluation

Report and Environmental Impact

Appraisal to support operation of the

storage facility using assumptions

consistent with the 40-year plant

operating license. However, consistent

with the NRC’s policy of utilizing

permanent off-site disposal of LLRW

whenever possible, LLRW shipments

were continued to the Barnwell facility.

Consequently, no radioactive waste has

ever been stored in the SQN LLRW

storage facility. The Materials License

was renewed once prior to expiration,

but TVA requested its termination on

April 25, 1990, since there were no

plans for use of the storage facility in

the foreseeable future. The termination

request noted that if use of the facility

became necessary, TVA would not need

to renew the materials license but

would, instead, perform a 10 CFR 50.59

evaluation as allowed in Generic Letter

81–38, ‘‘Storage of Low-Level

Radioactive Wastes at Power Reactor

Sites.’’

Because of the licensee’s ALARA [As

Low As Reasonably Achievable]

program and significant reductions in

generation of LLRW (including coolant

chemistry and reactor fuel quality

improvements), the amount of LLRW

expected to be generated and stored in

the SQN LLRW storage facility for two

SQN units and one WBN unit is

significantly less in volume and

radioactivity than the assumptions used

in the Environmental Impact Appraisal

that supported the Materials License

granted by the NRC in 1982 for

operation of two SQN units for the life

of the plant. Specifically, there would

be no incremental increase in

occupational radiation exposure over

that assumed in previous NRC actions

related to operation of this storage

facility. Therefore, there are no

significant radiological environmental

impacts associated with the proposed

action.

With regard to potential

nonradiological impacts, the proposed

action does not involve any historic

sites. It does not affect nonradiological

plant effluents and has no other

environmental impact. Therefore, there

are no significant nonradiological

environmental impacts associated with

the proposed action.

As stated by the NRC in its

Environmental Impact Appraisal for

Materials License No. 41–08165–14 for

the SQN LLRW on-site storage facility,

the quality of the human environment

will not be significantly affected and

there will be no significant

environmental impact from the

operation of the existing SQN LLRW

interim storage facility. The added

LLRW stored as a result of WBN’s

single-unit operations will remain well

within the original design and proposed

capacity limitations considered in the

above-mentioned Environmental Impact

Appraisal.

Accordingly, the NRC concludes that

there are no significant environmental

impacts associated with the proposed

action.

Alternative to the Proposed Action

As an alternative to the proposed

action, the staff considered denial of the

proposed action (i.e., the ‘‘no action’’

alternative). Denial of the exemption

would result in no change in

environmental impacts already analyzed

by the NRC and TVA. The

environmental impacts of the proposed

action and the alternative action are

similar.

Alternative Use of Resources

This action does not involve the use

of any resources not previously

considered in the Environmental Impact

Appraisal for Materials License No. 41–

08165–14, dated September 17, 1982,

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 130 / Thursday, July 6, 2000 / Notices 41741

supporting the materials license for the

SQN LLRW storage facility.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

In accordance with its stated policy,

the NRC staff consulted with an official

of the State of Tennessee, Ms. Joelle

Key, on May 4, 2000, regarding the

environmental impact of the proposed

action. Ms. Key had a question

regarding the quality of packaging for

LLRW material to be stored at this

facility. She was advised that the

material will be packaged in 300-year

high-integrity containers and will not

need repackaging prior to shipment to a

permanent disposal facility. Ms. Key

indicated the State was in general

agreement with TVA’s request.

Finding of No Significant Impact

On the basis of the environmental

assessment, the NRC concludes that the

proposed action will not have a

significant effect on the quality of the

human environment. Accordingly, the

NRC has determined not to prepare an

environmental impact statement for the

proposed action.

For further details with respect to this

action, see the licensee’s letter dated

December 17, 1999, which is available

for public inspection at the

Commission’s Public Document Room,

the Gelman Building, 2120 L Street

NW., Washington, DC. Publically

available records are also accessible

electronically from the ADAMS Public

Library component on the NRC Web

site, http://www.nrc.gov (the Electronic

Reading Room) and from the

Agencywide Documents Access and

Management System.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 29th day

of June 2000.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Ronald W. Hernan,

Senior Project Manager, Section 2, Project

Directorate II, Division of Licensing Project

Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor

Regulation.

[FR Doc. 00–17034 Filed 7–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WO–350–1430–PE–01–24–1A]

OMB Approval Number 1004–0010;

Notice of Information Collection To Be

Submitted to the Office of Management

and Budget for Review Under the

Paperwork Reduction Act

The Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) has submitted the proposed

collection of information listed below to

the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) for approval under the

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction

Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). On March

20, 2000, the BLM published a notice in

the Federal Register (65 FR 15001)

requesting comment on this proposed

collection. The comment period ended

on May 19, 2000. The BLM received no

comments from the public in response

to that notice. Copies of the proposed

collection of information and related

forms and explanatory material may be

obtained by contacting the BLM

information clearance officer at the

telephone number listed below; (202)

452–5033.

The OMB is required to respond to

this request within 60 days but may

respond after 30 days. For maximum

consideration your comments and

suggestions on the requirement should

be made within 30 days directly to the

Office of Management and Budget,

Interior Department Desk Officer (1004–

0010), Office of Information and

Regulatory Affairs, Washington, DC

20503, telephone (202) 395–7340. Please

provide a copy of your comments to the

Bureau Clearance Officer (WO–630),

1849 C St., NW., Mail Stop 401 LS,

Washington, DC 20240.

Nature of Comments: We specifically

request your comments on the

following:

1. Whether the collection of

information is necessary for the proper

functioning of the BLM, including

whether the information will have

practical utility;

2. The accuracy of the BLM’s estimate

of the burden of collecting the

information, including the validity of

the methodology and assumptions used;

3. The quality, utility and clarity of

the information to be collected; and

4. How to minimize the burden of

collecting the information on those who

are to respond, including the use of

appropriate automated electronic,

mechanical, or other forms of

information technology.

Title: Color-of-Title (43 CFR part

2540). OMB approval number: 1004–

0010.

Abstract: The BLM is proposing to

renew the approval of an information

collection for an existing rule at 43 CFR

part 2540. That rule provides guidelines

and procedures for transferring legal

title to public lands administered by the

BLM from the United States to eligible

individuals, groups, or corporations

who have valid claims under the Colorof-Title Act of December 22, 1928 (45

Stat. 1069) as amended by the Act of

July 28, 1953 Stat. 227), (U.S.C. 1068–

1068b).

Bureau Form Number: 2540–2.

Frequency: Once.

Description of Respondents:

Respondents are individuals, groups, or

corporations.

Estimated Completion Time: 1 hour.

Annual Responses: 20.

Filing Fee Per Response: $10.

Annual Burden Hours: 20.

Bureau Clearance Officer: Shirlean

Beshir (202) 452–5033.

Dated: June 23, 2000.

Shirlean Beshir,

Acting BLM Information Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 00–17087 Filed 7–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–84–M

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Notice of Sale of Business and

Disaster Assistance Loans

AGENCY: Small Business Administration.

ACTION: Notice of sale of business and

disaster assistance loans—Loan Sale #2.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

Small Business Administration’s

(‘‘SBA’’) intention to sell approximately

25,000 secured and unsecured business

and disaster assistance loans,

(collectively referred to as the ‘‘Loans’’).

This is the first sale of Disaster

Assistance Loans and includes both

business and consumer loans. The total

unpaid principal balance of the Loans is

approximately $1 billion. SBA

previously guaranteed some of the

Loans under various sections of the

Small Business Investment Act, as

amended, 15 U.S.C. 695 et seq. Any

SBA guarantees that might have existed

at one time have been paid and no SBA

guaranty is available to the successful

bidders in this sale. The majority of the

loans originated from and are serviced

by SBA. The collateral for the secured

Loans includes commercial and

residential real estate and other

businesses and personal property

located nationwide. This notice also

summarizes the bidding process for the

Loans.

DATES: The Bidder Information Package

will be available to qualified bidders

beginning on or about May 26, 2000.

The Bid Date is scheduled for August 1,

2000, and closings are scheduled to

occur between August 14, 2000 and

September 8, 2000. These dates are

subject to change at SBA’s discretion.

ADDRESSES: Bidder Information

Packages will be available from the

SBA’s Transaction Financial Advisor,

Merrill Lynch Mortgage Capital Inc.

(‘‘Merrill Lynch’’). Bidder Information

Packages will only be made available to