25582 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 101 / Thursday, May 28, 2009 / Notices 

Spaceward Foundation, 725 N Shoreline 

Blvd., Mountain View, CA 94043, 

Phone: 650–965–2900. Questions and 

comments regarding the NASA 

Centennial Challenges Program should 

be addressed to Mr. Andrew Petro, 

NASA Headquarters, Suite 6J79, 300 E 

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20546, 

Phone: 202–358–0310. The Centennial 

Challenges Web site is http:// 

www.ip.nasa.gov/cc. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

maximum prize purse available for the 

2009 Power Beaming Challenge is 

$2,000,000. Each climber, powered by 

beamed energy, must climb to a height 

of one kilometer traveling at a minimum 

speed. The teams with the highest score 

(the product of average velocity and 

payload mass normalized by the climber 

mass) will win the competition. 

In the case of individuals, prizes can 

only be awarded to U.S. citizens or 

permanent residents and in the case of 

corporations or other entities, prizes can 

only be awarded to those that are 

incorporated in and maintain a primary 

place of business in the United States. 

Dated: May 20, 2009. 

Douglas A. Comstock, 

Director, Innovative Partnerships Program. 

[FR Doc. E9–12315 Filed 5–27–09; 8:45 am] 

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[NRC–2009–0217; Docket No. 030–35868] 

Notice of Availability of Environmental 

Assessment and Finding of No 

Significant Impact for License 

Amendment to Byproduct Nuclear 

Materials License No. 06–30693–01, for 

Termination of the License and 

Unrestricted Release of the 

Protometrix—an Invitrogen Company 

Facility in Branford, CT 

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission. 

ACTION: Issuance of Environmental 

Assessment and Finding of No 

Significant Impact for License 

Amendment and Termination. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Thomas K. Thompson, Sr. Health 

Physicist, Commercial and R&D Branch, 

Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, 

Region I, 475 Allendale Road, King of 

Prussia, Pennsylvania 19406; telephone 

(610) 337–5303; fax number (610) 337– 

5269; or by e-mail: 

Thomas.Thompson@nrc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction 

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (NRC) is considering the 

issuance of an amendment terminating 

Byproduct Materials License No. 06– 

30693–01. This license is held by 

Protometrix—an Invitrogen Company 

(the Licensee), for its facility located at 

688 East Main Street, Branford, 

Connecticut (the Facility). Issuance of 

the amendment would authorize release 

of the Facility for unrestricted use and 

terminate the NRC license. The Licensee 

requested this action in a letter dated 

March 12, 2009. The NRC has prepared 

an Environmental Assessment (EA) in 

support of this proposed action in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations 

(CFR), part 51 (10 CFR part 51). Based 

on the EA, the NRC has concluded that 

a Finding of No Significant Impact 

(FONSI) is appropriate with respect to 

the proposed action. The amendment 

will be issued to the Licensee, and the 

license will be terminated, following the 

publication of this FONSI and EA in the 

Federal Register. 

II. Environmental Assessment 

Identification of Proposed Action 

The proposed action would approve 

the Licensee’s March 12, 2009, license 

amendment and termination request, 

resulting in release of the Facility for 

unrestricted use and the termination of 

its NRC materials license. License No. 

06–30693–01 was issued on November 

19, 2001, pursuant to 10 CFR part 30, 

and has been amended periodically 

since that time. This license authorizes 

the Licensee to use hydrogen-3, carbon14, phosphorus-32, phosphorus-33, 

sulfur-35, and iodine 125 for conducting 

research and development. 

The Facility is a one story building of 

approximately 13,787 square feet, 

consisting of warehouse spaces, office 

spaces, and laboratories. Within the 

Facility, use of licensed materials was 

largely confined to two small 

laboratories with a total area of 

approximately 330 square feet. The 

Facility is located in an industrial area. 

Within the Facility, the radionuclides of 

concern were hydrogen-3 and carbon-14 

because the half-life of these isotopes is 

greater than 120 days. 

In January 2009, the Licensee last 

handled byproduct materials, ceased 

licensed activities, and initiated a 

survey of the affected areas of the 

Facility. Based on the Licensee’s 

historical knowledge of the site and the 

conditions of the Facility, the Licensee 

determined that only routine 

decontamination activities, in 

accordance with the NRC-approved 

operating radiation safety procedures, 

would be required. The Licensee was 

not required to submit a 

decommissioning plan to the NRC 

because worker cleanup activities and 

procedures are consistent with those 

approved for routine operations. The 

Licensee conducted surveys of the 

Facility and provided information to the 

NRC to demonstrate that it meets the 

criteria in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20 

for unrestricted release and for license 

termination. 

Need for the Proposed Action 

The Licensee has ceased conducting 

licensed activities at the Facility, and 

seeks the unrestricted use of its Facility 

and the termination of its NRC materials 

license. Termination of its license 

would end the Licensee’s obligation to 

pay annual license fees to the NRC. 

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed 

Action 

The historical review of licensed 

activities conducted at the Facility 

shows that such activities involved use 

of the following radionuclides with a 

half-life greater than 120 days: 

hydrogen-3 and carbon-14. 

The Licensee conducted a final status 

survey in January 2009. This survey 

covered the areas of use in the Facility. 

The final status survey report was 

received March 12, 2009. The Licensee 

demonstrated compliance with the 

radiological criteria for unrestricted 

release as specified in 10 CFR 20.1402 

by using the screening approach 

described in NUREG–1757, 

‘‘Consolidated Decommissioning 

Guidance,’’ Volume 2. The 

radionuclide-specific derived 

concentration guideline levels (DCGLs), 

developed by the NRC, which comply 

with the dose criterion in 10 CFR 

20.1402. These DCGLs define the 

maximum amount of residual 

radioactivity on building surfaces, 

equipment, and materials, and in soils, 

that will satisfy the NRC requirements 

in Subpart E of 10 CFR Part 20 for 

unrestricted release. The Licensee’s 

final status survey results were below 

these DCGLs and are in compliance 

with the As Low As Reasonably 

Achievable (ALARA) requirement of 10 

CFR 20.1402. The NRC thus finds that 

the Licensee’s final status survey results 

are acceptable. 

Based on its review, the staff has 

determined that the affected 

environment and any environmental 

impacts associated with the proposed 

action are bounded by the impacts 

evaluated by the ‘‘Generic 

Environmental Impact Statement in 

Support of Rulemaking on Radiological 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 101 / Thursday, May 28, 2009 / Notices 25583 

Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities’’ Volumes 

1–3 (NUREG–1496) (ADAMS Accession 

Nos. ML042310492, ML042320379, and 

ML042330385). The staff finds there 

were no significant environmental 

impacts from the use of radioactive 

material at the Facility. The NRC staff 

reviewed the docket file records and the 

final status survey report to identify any 

non-radiological hazards that may have 

impacted the environment surrounding 

the Facility. No such hazards or impacts 

to the environment were identified. The 

NRC has identified no other radiological 

or non-radiological activities in the area 

that could result in cumulative 

environmental impacts. 

The NRC staff finds that the proposed 

release of the Facility for unrestricted 

use and the termination of the NRC 

materials license is in compliance with 

10 CFR 20.1402. Based on its review, 

the staff considered the impact of the 

residual radioactivity at the Facility and 

concluded that the proposed action will 

not have a significant effect on the 

quality of the human environment. 

Environmental Impacts of the 

Alternatives to the Proposed Action 

Due to the largely administrative 

nature of the proposed action, its 

environmental impacts are small. 

Therefore, the only alternative the staff 

considered is the no-action alternative, 

under which the staff would leave 

things as they are by simply denying the 

amendment and termination request. 

This no-action alternative is not feasible 

because it conflicts with 10 CFR 

30.36(d), requiring that 

decommissioning of byproduct material 

facilities be completed and approved by 

the NRC after licensed activities cease. 

The NRC’s analysis of the Licensee’s 

final status survey data confirms that 

the Facility meets the requirements of 

10 CFR 20.1402 for unrestricted release 

and for license termination. 

Additionally, denying the amendment 

and termination request would result in 

no change in current environmental 

impacts. The environmental impacts of 

the proposed action and the no-action 

alternative are therefore similar, and the 

no-action alternative is, accordingly, not 

further considered. 

Conclusion 

The NRC staff has concluded that the 

proposed action is consistent with the 

NRC’s unrestricted release criteria 

specified in 10 CFR 20.1402. Because 

the proposed action will not 

significantly impact the quality of the 

human environment, the NRC staff 

concludes that the proposed action is 

the preferred alternative. 

Agencies and Persons Consulted 

NRC provided a draft of this 

Environmental Assessment to the State 

of Connecticut, Department of 

Environmental Protection, Division of 

Radiation, for review on April 9, 2009. 

The State replied by electronic mail on 

April 17, 2009, indicating they agreed 

with the conclusions of the 

Environmental Assessment. 

The NRC staff has determined that the 

proposed action is of a procedural 

nature, and will not affect listed species 

or critical habitat. Therefore, no further 

consultation is required under Section 7 

of the Endangered Species Act. The 

NRC staff has also determined that the 

proposed action is not the type of 

activity that has the potential to cause 

effects on historic properties. Therefore, 

no further consultation is required 

under Section 106 of the National 

Historic Preservation Act. 

III. Finding of No Significant Impact 

The NRC staff has prepared this EA in 

support of the proposed action. On the 

basis of this EA, the NRC finds that 

there are no significant environmental 

impacts from the proposed action, and 

that preparation of an environmental 

impact statement is not warranted. 

Accordingly, the NRC has determined 

that a Finding of No Significant Impact 

is appropriate. 

IV. Further Information 

Documents related to this action, 

including the application for license 

amendment and termination and 

supporting documentation, are available 

electronically at the NRC’s Electronic 

Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/ 

reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, 

you can access the NRC’s Agencywide 

Documents Access and Management 

System (ADAMS), which provides text 

and image files of NRC’s public 

documents. The documents related to 

this action are listed below, along with 

their ADAMS accession numbers. 

1. NRC License No. 06–30693–01 

Amendment 05 issued January 15, 2009 

(ADAMS Accession No. ML013270325); 

2. Termination request dated March 

12, 2009 (ADAMS Accession No. 

ML090780841); 

3. Additional information on 

termination request dated March 20, 

2009 (ADAMS Accession No. 

ML090970767); 

4. NUREG–1757, ‘‘Consolidated 

NMSS Decommissioning Guidance,’’ 

Volume 2; 

5. Title 10, Code of Federal 

Regulations, Part 20, Subpart E, 

‘‘Radiological Criteria for License 

Termination’’; 

6. Title 10, Code of Federal 

Regulations, Part 51, ‘‘Environmental 

Protection Regulations for Domestic 

Licensing and Related Regulatory 

Functions’’; 

7. NUREG–1496, ‘‘Generic 

Environmental Impact Statement in 

Support of Rulemaking on Radiological 

Criteria for License Termination of NRCLicensed Nuclear Facilities,’’ Volumes 

1–3. 

If you do not have access to ADAMS, 

or if there are problems in accessing the 

documents located in ADAMS, contact 

the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) 

Reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301– 

415–4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. 

These documents may also be viewed 

electronically on the public computers 

located at the NRC’s PDR, O 1F21, One 

White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 

Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR 

reproduction contractor will copy 

documents for a fee. 

Dated at 475 Allendale Road, King of 

Prussia, PA this 19th day of May 2009. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

James P. Dwyer, 

Chief, Commercial & R&D, Division of 

Nuclear Materials Safety, Region I. 

[FR Doc. E9–12402 Filed 5–27–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Advisory Committee on Reactor 

Safeguards (ACRS); Meeting of the 

ACRS Subcommittee on ESBWR; 

Notice of Meeting 

The ACRS Subcommittee on the 

Economic Simplified Boiling Water 

Reactor (ESBWR) will hold a meeting on 

June 17–18, 2009, 11545 Rockville Pike, 

Room T2–B3 Rockville, Maryland. 

The entire meeting will be open to 

public attendance, with the exception of 

a portion that may be closed to protect 

information that is proprietary to 

General Electric—Hitachi Nuclear 

Americas, LLC (GEH) and its contractors 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(4). 

The agenda for the subject meeting 

shall be as follows: 

Wednesday, June 17, 2009–8:30 a.m.–5 

p.m. 

Thursday, June 18, 2009–8:30 a.m.–5 

p.m. 

The Subcommittee will review the 

resolution of Open Items associated 

with ESBWR design certification related 

to containment issues and review the 

Safety Evaluation Report with Open 

Items associated with the North Anna 

Combined License Application 

referencing the ESBWR design. The 

Subcommittee will hear presentations