Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 144 / Monday, July 28, 1997 / Notices 40387

[FR Doc. 97–19706 Filed 7–25–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–23–C

NUCLEAR REGULATORY

COMMISSION

[Docket No.: 040–8767]

Consideration of Amendment Request

for Decommissioning Area 10 of the

Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in

Independence, Missouri, and an

Opportunity for a Hearing

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory

Commission.

ACTION: Notice of consideration of

amendment request for

decommissioning area 10 of the Lake

City Army Ammunition Plant in

Independence, Missouri, and an

opportunity for a hearing.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission is considering issuance of

a license amendment to Material

License No. SUC–1380 (SUC–1380),

issued to the Department of the Army

(the Army or the licensee), to authorize

decommissioning of Area 10 of its Lake

City Army Ammunition Plant (LCAAP)

in Independence, Missouri.

The Army built the plant and still

operates it for the purpose of

manufacturing and testing small caliber

conventional munitions for the U.S.

Army. LCAAP was founded in 1941 as

a Government-owned/contractoroperated facility. From its inception in

1941 until 1985, the plant operating

contractor was Remington Arms.

During the 1960s and 1970s, there

was a small depleted uranium (DU)

operation at LCAAP. Developmental

planning of the XM–101 DU spotting

projectile started in 1959, and by 1961

LCAAP was producing the round. The

Army designed these XM–101 rounds as

‘‘spotters’’ for small scale, shoulder fired

weapons.

The maximum production capability

was approximately 8,000 rounds per

month although various supply

problems resulted in a considerably

lower production rate. The XM–101

(later M–101) round consisted of a

fused, 20 millimeter (mm) projectile

with a body constructed from DU.

LCAAP also produced an XM–106

round that was identical to the XM–101,

but without the explosive components.

The installation designed, tested,

manufactured and in later years,

demilitarized some 75,000 20 mm DU

spotter rounds. These spotter rounds

were approximately six inches in

length, 20 mm in diameter and weighed

approximately one pound (lb) each. A

machined DU body made up 0.45 lbs of

the round’s weight. The round

contained a fused-white phosphorus

charge that would detonate on impact

with the ground.

By 1968, the program was terminated

and LCAAP was left with an estimated

44,000 spotter rounds. In 1971,

Remington Arms Company, Inc., the

operator of LCAAP at the time,

proposed a method for the disposal of

approximately 44,000 remaining rounds

of XM–101 ammunition. Because the

rounds were fused, the safest

demilitarization methodology involved

shooting the rounds into a sand-filled

catch box, identified as the ‘‘600-yard

bullet catcher.’’ The catch box was filled

with sand as an impact material. The

impact material was periodically

replaced in the catch box. Remington

would remove the ‘‘old’’ impact

material (i.e., DU contaminated sand)

from the 600-yard catch box and place

it in an area of the site known as ‘‘Area

10.’’ In 1976, an additional 40 rounds of

this ammunition were discovered and a

temporary permit was obtained to allow

disposal in the same manner as the

original disposal operation.

NRC is requiring the licensee to

remediate the Area 10 of LCAAP to meet

NRC’s decommissioning criteria and,

during the decommissioning activities,

to maintain effluents and doses within

NRC requirements and as low as

reasonably achievable.

Prior to approving the

decommissioning plan, NRC will make

the necessary findings required by the

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended,

and NRC’s regulations. These findings

will be documented in a Safety

Evaluation Report and an

Environmental Assessment. Approval of

the LCAAP Area 10 decommissioning

plan will be documented in an

amendment to SUC–1380.

NRC hereby provides notice that this

is a proceeding on an application for

amendment of a license falling within

the scope of Subpart L ‘‘Informal

Hearing Procedures for Adjudication in

Materials Licensing Proceedings,’’ of

NRC’s rules and practice for domestic

licensing proceedings in 10 CFR part 2.

Pursuant to § 2.1205(a), any person

whose interest may be affected by this

proceeding may file a request for a

hearing in accordance with § 2.1205(c).

A request for a hearing must be filed

within thirty (30) days of the date of

publication of this Federal Register

notice.

The request for a hearing must be

filed with the Office of the Secretary

either:

1. By delivery to the Docketing and

Services Branch of the Office of the

Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission, One White Flint North,

11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD

20852–2738; or

2. By mail or telegram addressed to

the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, Washington,

DC 20555–0001, Attention: Docketing

and Services Branch.

In addition to meeting other

applicable requirements of 10 CFR Part

2 of the NRC regulations, a request for

a hearing filed by a person other than

an applicant must describe in detail:

1. The interest of the requester in the

proceeding;

2. How that interest may be affected

by the results of the proceeding,

including the reasons why the requester

should be permitted a hearing, with

particular reference to the factors set out

in § 2.1205(g);

3. The requester’s areas of concern

about the licensing activity that is the

subject matter of the proceeding; and

4. The circumstances establishing that

the request for a hearing is timely in

accordance with § 2.1205(c).

In accordance with 10 CFR

§ 2.1205(e), each request for a hearing

must also be served, by delivering it

personally or by mail, to:

1. The applicant, Department of the

Army, Headquarters U.S. Army

Industrial Operations Command, Rock

Island, Illinois 61299–6000, Attention:

Mr. Stephen R. Mapley; and

2. NRC staff, by delivery to the Office

of the Secretary, U.S. Nuclear

Regulatory Commission, One White

Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike,

Rockville, MD 20852–2738, or by mail,

addressed to the Office of the Secretary,

U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission,

Washington, DC 20555–0001, Attention:

Docketing and Services Branch.

For further details with respect to this

action, the site decommissioning plan is

available for inspection at the NRC’s

Public Document Room, 2120 L Street

NW., Washington, DC 20555–0001.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 21st day

of July 1997.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

John W. N. Hickey,

Chief, Low-Level Waste and Decommissioning

Projects Branch, Division of Waste

Management, Office of Nuclear Material

Safety and Safeguards.

[FR Doc. 97–19804 Filed 7–25–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P