Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 223 / Wednesday, November 19, 1997 / Notices 61835

Purpose of Meeting: To provide advice to

Program Officers concerning proposals

submitted to NSF for financial support.

Agenda: To review and evaluate proposals

for the Statistics and Probability Program as

part of the selection process for awards.

Reason for Closing: The proposals being

reviewed include information of a

proprietary or confidential nature, including

technical information; financial data, such as

salaries and personal information concerning

individuals associated associated with the

proposals. These matters are exempt under 5

U.S.C. 552(c) (4) and (6) of the Government

in the Sunshine Act.

Dated: November 14, 1997.

M. Rebecca Winkler,

Committee Management Officer.

[FR Doc. 97–30363 Filed 11–18–97; 8:45 am]

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[Docket No. 50–458]

Entergy Gulf States, Inc. and Cajun

Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.; River

Bend Station, Unit No. 1,

Environmental Assessment and

Finding of No Significant Impact

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission (the Commission) is

considering issuance of an order

approving, under 10 CFR 50.80, the

transfer of Facility Operating License

No. NPF–47, to the extent now held by

Cajun Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.

(Cajun), to Entergy Gulf States, Inc.

(EGSI, the licensee) with respect to the

River Bend Station, Unit No. 1 (RBS),

located in West Feliciana Parish,

Louisiana, and issuance of a conforming

amendment under 10 CFR 50.90.

Environmental Assessment

Identification of the Proposed Action

The proposed action would consent,

by the issuance of an order, to the

transfer of the 30% minority ownership

interest in the facilities for RBS from

Cajun to EGSI and approve the issuance

of a conforming amendment to the

license.

The proposed action is in accordance

with the application, endorsed and

consented to by EGSI, dated October 15,

1997, filed by Ralph R. Mabey, Trustee

for Cajun.

The Need for the Proposed Action

The proposed action is required to

obtain the necessary consent to the

transfer of the license, to the extent now

held by Cajun, and approval of the

amendment discussed above. Cajun is a

minority owner of RBS with an

ownership share of 30%. In 1994, after

a two-year rate investigation, the

Louisiana Public Service Commission

disallowed from rate recovery Cajun’s

$1.8 billion investment in River Bend.

This action precipitated Cajun’s

decision on December 21, 1994, to file

a voluntary petition with the United

States Bankruptcy Court for the Middle

District of Louisiana (the ‘‘Bankruptcy

Court’’) for protection under Chapter 11

of the Bankruptcy Code. Cajun had

borrowed the majority of the $1.8 billion

to invest in RBS from the Rural Utilities

Service (‘‘RUS’’) of the United States

Department of Agriculture. On August

26, 1996, the Bankruptcy Court

approved the terms of a settlement

agreement between Cajun, EGSI, and the

RUS which allows the Trustee to seek

authority to transfer Cajun’s 30%

undivided ownership interest in RBS.

The application dated October 15, 1997,

seeks consent to transfer Cajun’s 30%

interest to EGSI and an amendment to

the license to reflect that transfer.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed

Action

The Commission has completed its

evaluation of the proposed action and

concludes that there will be no changes

to the facility or its operation as a result

of the proposed action. Accordingly, the

NRC staff concludes that there are no

significant radiological environmental

impacts associated with the proposed

action.

With regard to potential

nonradiological impacts, the proposed

action will not affect nonradiological

plant effluents and will have no other

environmental impact. Accordingly, the

Commission concludes that there are no

significant nonradiological

environmental impacts associated with

the proposed action.

Alternatives to the Proposed Action

Since the Commission has concluded

there is no measurable environmental

impact associated with the proposed

action, any alternatives with equal or

greater environmental impact need not

be evaluated. As an alternative to the

proposed action, the staff considered

denial of the proposed action. 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 River Bend Station,

Unit No. 1.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

In accordance with its stated policy,

on November 13, 1997, the staff

consulted with the Louisiana State

official, Mr. William Spell of the

Department of Environmental Quality,

Radiation Protection Division, regarding

the environmental impact of the

proposed action. The State official had

no comments.

Finding Of No Significant Impact

Based upon 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 proposed action.

For further details with respect to the

proposed action, see the application

dated October 15, 1997, which is

available for public inspection at the

Commission’s Public Document Room,

The Gelman Building, 2120 L Street,

NW., Washington, DC, and at the local

public document room located at the

Government Documents Department,

Louisiana State University, Baton

Rouge, LA 70803.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day

of November 1997.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

James W. Clifford,

Acting Director, Project Directorate IV–1,

Division of Reactor Projects III/IV, Office of

Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 97–30331 Filed 11–18–97; 8:45 am]

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Assurance of Equipment Operability

and Containment Integrity During

Design-Basis Accident Conditions;

Issue

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory

Commission.

ACTION: Notice of Issuance.

SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory

Commission (NRC) has issued Generic

Letter (GL) 96–06, Supplement 1 to

inform all holders of operating licenses

for nuclear power reactors, except those

who have permanently ceased

operations and have certified that fuel

has been permanently removed from the

reactor vessel, about ongoing efforts and

new developments associated with GL

96–06, and to provide additional

guidance that addressees may find

useful in planning and scheduling

future actions associated with GL 96–06.

This generic letter is for information
61836 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 223 / Wednesday, November 19, 1997 / Notices

only; no specific action or written

response is required. Conformance with

the guidance provided in the generic

letter is voluntary.

The generic letter is available in the

NRC Public Document Room under

accession number 9711050091.

DATES: The generic letter was issued on

November 13, 1997.

ADDRESSEES: Not applicable.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beth

A. Wetzel at (301) 415–1355.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Addressees of GL 96–06 have

experienced difficulty in determining

and implementing corrective actions for

resolving the issues identified in the

generic letter. Additionally, questions

have been raised regarding (1) the risk

implications of installing relief valves to

deal with the thermal

overpressurization issue; (2) the use of

the ASME Code, Section III, Appendix

F, criteria for permanent resolution of

the thermal overpressurization issue;

and (3) the NRC staff’s closure of

Generic Safety Issue 150,

‘‘Overpressurization of Containment

Penetrations.’’ Given these

considerations, risk insights, and

industry initiatives that are being

considered or that may be proposed,

addressees may require additional time

to fully evaluate and resolve the GL 96–

06 issues. Therefore, addressees who

find it necessary to revise their

corrective actions or schedular

commitments for resolving GL 96–06

issues may submit a revised response to

the generic letter. Nevertheless, specific

corrective actions that have been

defined and are clearly needed should

not be delayed without suitable

justification.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day

of November 1997.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

David B. Matthews,

Acting Director, Division of Reactor Program

Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor

Regulation.

[FR Doc. 97–30332 Filed 11–18–97; 8:45 am]

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Sunshine Act Meeting

DATE: Weeks of November 17, 24,

December 1 and 8, 1997.

PLACE: Commissioners’ Conference

Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville,

Maryland.

STATUS: Public and Closed.

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:

Week of November 17

Friday, November 21

11:30 a.m. Affirmation Session (Public

Meeting)

A. Final Rule—Deliberate Misconduct

by Unlicensed Persons (Tentative)

B. Louisiana Energy Services—

Financial Qualifications Aspects of

Petitions for Review of LBP–96–25

(Contact: Ken Hart, 301–415–1659)

Week of November 24—Tentative

There are no meetings the week of

November 24.

Week of December 1—Tentative

There are no meetings the week of

December 1.

Week of December 8—Tentative

Thursday, December 11

2:00 p.m. Briefing on Investigative

Matters (Closed—Ex. 5 & 7)

3:00 p.m. Affirmation Session (Public

meeting) (if needed)

Friday, December 12

9:00 a.m. Meeting with Northeast

Nuclear on Millstone (Public

meeting) (Contact: Bill Travers,

301–415–1200)

Note: The schedule for commission

meetings is subject to change on short notice.

To verify the status of meetings call

(recording)—(301) 415–1292. Contact person

for more information: Bill Hill (301) 415–

1661.

The NRC Commission Meeting

Schedule can be found on the Internet

at: http://nrc.gov/SECY/smj/

schedule.htm.

This notice is distributed by mail to

several hundred subscribers; if you no

longer wish to receive it, or would like

to be added to it, please contact the

Office of the Secretary, Attn: Operations

Branch, Washington, DC 20555 (301–

415–1661).

In addition, distribution of this

meeting notice over the Internet system

is available. If you are interested in

receiving this Commission meeting

schedule electronically, please send an

electronic message to wmh@nrc.gov or

dkw@nrc.gov.

Dated: November 14, 1997.

William M. Hill, Jr.,

SECY Tracking Officer, Office of the

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–30527 Filed 11–17–97; 12:32 pm]

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Biweekly Notice

Applications and Amendments to

Facility Operating Licenses Involving

No Significant Hazards Considerations

I. Background

Pursuant to Public Law 97-415, the

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

(the Commission or NRC staff) is

publishing this regular biweekly notice.

Public Law 97-415 revised section 189

of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as

amended (the Act), to require the

Commission to publish notice of any

amendments issued, or proposed to be

issued, under a new provision of section

189 of the Act. This provision grants the

Commission the authority to issue and

make immediately effective any

amendment to an operating license

upon a determination by the

Commission that such amendment

involves no significant hazards

consideration, notwithstanding the

pendency before the Commission of a

request for a hearing from any person.

This biweekly notice includes all

notices of amendments issued, or

proposed to be issued from October 27,

1997, through November 6, 1997. The

last biweekly notice was published on

November 5, 1997 (62 FR 59912).

Notice Of Consideration Of Issuance Of

Amendments ToFacility Operating

Licenses, Proposed No Significant

Hazards Consideration Determination,

And Opportunity For A Hearing

The Commission has made a

proposed determination that the

following amendment requests involve

no significant hazards consideration.

Under the Commission’s regulations in

10 CFR 50.92, this means that operation

of the facility in accordance with the

proposed amendment would not (1)

involve a significant increase in the

probability or consequences of an

accident previously evaluated; or (2)

create the possibility of a new or

different kind of accident from any

accident previously evaluated; or (3)

involve a significant reduction in a

margin of safety. The basis for this

proposed determination for each

amendment request is shown below.

The Commission is seeking public

comments on this proposed

determination. Any comments received

within 30 days after the date of

publication of this notice will be

considered in making any final

determination.

Normally, the Commission will not

issue the amendment until the