[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 111 (Friday, June 8, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26708-26709]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-12350]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 40-8584; NRC-2015-0025]


Kennecott Uranium Corporation; Sweetwater Uranium Project

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact; 
issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering 
renewal of Source Material License SUA-1350 issued to Kennecott Uranium 
Corporation (KUC) for continued operations at the Sweetwater Uranium 
Project (SUP) in Sweetwater County, Wyoming (Docket No. 40-8584). The 
NRC has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) and finding of no 
significant impact (FONSI) for this licensing action.

DATES: The EA and FONSI referenced in this document are available on 
June 8, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2015-0025 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may obtain publicly-available information related to this document 
using any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal Rulemaking website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2015-0025. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Jennifer Borges; telephone: 301-287-
9127; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6e240b000007080b1c402c011c090b1d2e001c0d40090118"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3278575c5c5b5457401c705d40555741725c40511c555d44">[email protected]</span></a>. For technical questions, contact 
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document.
    <bullet> NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly-available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and 
then select ``Begin Web-based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, 
please contact the NRC's Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 
1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a8d8ccda86dacddbc7dddacbcde8c6dacb86cfc7de"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1d6d796f336f786e72686f7e785d736f7e337a726b">[email protected]</span></a>. The 
ADAMS accession number for each document referenced in this document 
(if that document is available in ADAMS) is provided the first time 
that a document is referenced.
    <bullet> NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ashley Waldron, Office of Nuclear 
Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-7317; email: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ecad9f84808995c2bb8d80889e8382ac829e8fc28b839a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="adecdec5c1c8d483faccc1c9dfc2c3edc3dfce83cac2db">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction

    The NRC is considering renewal of Source Material License SUA-1350 
issued to Kennecott Uranium Corporation (KUC) for continued operations 
at the SUP site located in Sweetwater County, Wyoming. As required by 
part 51 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), 
``Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and 
Related Regulatory Functions,'' the NRC performed an EA. Based on the 
results of the EA, the NRC has determined not to prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) for the amendment and is issuing a 
FONSI.

II. Environmental Assessment

Description of the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would authorize KUC to operate a conventional 
uranium mill at the SUP for an additional ten years. The licensee's 
application dated July 24, 2014, is available at ADAMS Package 
Accession No. ML14251A113.

Need for the Proposed Action

    The proposed action would allow KUC to recover uranium at the SUP. 
The licensee would process the recovered uranium into yellowcake on 
site at the SUP. Yellowcake is a type of uranium concentrate powder 
obtained from leach solutions in an intermediate step in the processing 
of uranium ores that is used to produce various products, including 
fuel for commercially-operated nuclear power reactors.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

    The NRC staff has assessed the potential environmental impacts from 
operations and decommissioning at the SUP. The NRC staff assessed the 
impacts of the proposed action on land use; historical and cultural 
resources; visual and scenic resources; climatology, meteorology and 
air quality; geology, minerals, and soils; water resources; ecological 
resources; socioeconomics; noise; traffic and transportation; public 
and occupational health and safety; and waste management. The NRC staff 
concluded that the renewal of Source Material License SUA-1350 
authorizing KUC to continue operations for ten years at the

[[Page 26709]]

SUP would not significantly affect the quality of the human 
environment. Approval of the proposed action would not result in 
increased radiological risk to public health or the environment.

Environmental Impacts of the 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). 
The no-action alternative would mean that the NRC would not approve 
license SUA-1350, and KUC would commence decommissioning activities.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

    In accordance with its stated policy, on March 26, 2018, the NRC 
staff consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the 
Wyoming State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO), and the Wyoming 
Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) regarding the proposed 
action. The FWS stated that no federally listed or proposed endangered 
or threatened species occur within the area affected by the proposed 
action. The SHPO notified NRC that it had no comments related to the 
historic and cultural resources on the proposed license renewal. The 
WDEQ stated that it had no comments on the draft EA.

Additional Information

    The NRC staff conducted an environmental review in accordance with 
10 CFR part 51, which implements the requirements of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA). The results of the 
NRC's environmental review can be found in the final EA (ADAMS 
Accession No. ML18135A206). Based on the results of this environmental 
assessment, the NRC has determined not to prepare an EIS for license 
renewal of the SUP and is instead issuing a FONSI.
    After weighing the impacts of the license renewal and comparing to 
the no-action alternative, the NRC staff, in accordance with 10 CFR 
51.91(d), sets forth its NEPA recommendation regarding the proposed 
action (granting the request for renewal of license SUA-1350). Unless 
safety issues mandate otherwise, the NRC staff's recommendation related 
to the environmental aspects of the proposed action is that an NRC 
license renewal be issued.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

    Based on its review of the proposed action, and in accordance with 
the requirements in 10 CFR part 51, the NRC staff has determined that 
license renewal of SUP would not significantly affect the quality of 
the human environment. Based on the EA, the NRC staff determined that 
approval of the proposed action would not result in a significantly 
increased radiological risk to public health or the environment. The 
NRC staff has determined that pursuant to 10 CFR 51.31, preparation of 
an EIS is not required for the proposed action and, pursuant to 10 CFR 
51.32, a FONSI is appropriate.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, on June 5, 2018.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Craig G. Erlanger,
Director, Division of Fuel Cycle Safety, Safeguards, and Environmental 
Review, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
[FR Doc. 2018-12350 Filed 6-7-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7590-01-P


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