[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 43 (Friday, March 4, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12103-12104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-4987]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
National Nuclear Security Administration
Notice of Availability of the Final Site-Wide Environmental
Impact Statement for the Y-12 National Security Complex
AGENCY: National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S. Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a semi-
autonomous agency within the Department of Energy (DOE), announces the
availability of the Final Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement for
the Y-12 National Security Complex (Final Y-12 SWEIS, DOE/EIS-0387).
The Final Y-12 SWEIS analyzes the potential environmental impacts of
ongoing and future operations and activities at Y-12, including
alternatives for changes to site infrastructure and levels of operation
(using production capacity as the key metric for comparison), and
addresses public comments received on the Draft SWEIS and the Wetlands
Assessment related to the proposed Haul Road extension corridor. Five
alternatives are analyzed: No Action Alternative (maintain the status
quo); Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) Alternative; Upgrade-in-Place
Alternative; Capability-sized UPF Alternative; and the No Net
Production/Capability-sized UPF Alternative. DOE NNSA has prepared the
Final Y-12 SWEIS in accordance with the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA), the Council on Environmental Quality
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(CEQ) regulations that implement the procedural provisions of NEPA (40
CFR parts 1500-1508), and DOE regulations implementing NEPA (10 CFR
part 1021). NNSA's Preferred Alternative for Y-12, as identified in the
Draft and Final SWEIS, is the Capability-sized UPF Alternative.
DATES: NNSA will not issue any Record of Decision (ROD) based on the
SWEIS before 30 days have passed from the publication of the
Environmental Protection Agency's notice of availability.
ADDRESSES: Requests for additional information on the Final Y-12 SWEIS,
including requests for copies of the document, should be directed to:
Ms. Pam Gorman, Y-12 SWEIS Document Manager, Y-12 Site Office, 800 Oak
Ridge Turnpike, Suite A-500, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, or by telephone: 865-
576-9903. Additional information on the Y-12 SWEIS may be found at
http://www.y12sweis.com.
For general information regarding the DOE NEPA process, contact:
Ms. Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance,
GC-54, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave., SW.,
Washington, DC 20585, telephone 202-586-4600, or leave a message at 1-
800-472-2756. Additional information regarding DOE NEPA activities and
access to many of DOE's NEPA documents are available on the Internet
through the DOE NEPA Web site at http://www.nepa.energy.gov/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The continued operation of Y-12 is critical
to DOE NNSA's Stockpile Stewardship Program and to preventing the
spread and use of nuclear weapons worldwide. However, continued
operation of Y-12 is made more difficult by the fact that most of the
facilities at Y-12 are old, oversized, and inefficient. Because NNSA is
required to maintain the safety and security of the Nation's nuclear
weapons stockpile, and Y-12 is an important part of this effort, all
alternatives assumed that NNSA will continue to operate Y-12 as part of
the Nation's nuclear security enterprise for the foreseeable future. A
brief description of the SWEIS alternatives follows.
Alternative 1: The No Action Alternative reflects the current
nuclear weapons program missions at Y-12. Under the No Action
Alternative, operations at Y-12 would continue to support the programs
described in the SWEIS. The No Action Alternative includes certain
construction projects that are underway or planned for the future.
These projects include refurbishments or upgrades to plant systems,
such as those for potable water, which have been analyzed in separate
NEPA documentation.
Alternative 2: Under the UPF Alternative, NNSA would construct and
operate a new UPF, (approximately 388,000 sq. ft.) which would
consolidate enriched uranium operations into an integrated
manufacturing facility;
Alternative 3: Under the Upgrade- in-Place Alternative, NNSA would
upgrade existing facilities to contemporary environmental, safety, and
security standards to the extent possible within the limitations of the
existing structures and without prolonged interruptions of
manufacturing operations.
Alternative 4: Under the Capability-sized UPF Alternative, NNSA
would build a smaller UPF, (approximately 350,000 sq. ft.) compared to
the UPF described under Alternative 2. A smaller UPF would maintain all
capabilities, but would support a reduced production level.
Alternative 5: Under the No Net Production/Capability-sized UPF
Alternative, NNSA would build a smaller UPF (approximately 350,000 sq.
ft.) compared to the UPF described under Alternative 2. This smaller
UPF would maintain all capabilities, but would support an even further
reduced production level than Alternative 4.
A Complex Command Center (CCC), which would house equipment and
personnel for the plant shift superintendent, Fire Department, and
Emergency Operations Center, is also analyzed as a proposed action in
all action alternatives (alternatives 2, 3, 4, and 5).
The Draft SWEIS was issued in October 2009 for public review and
comment over a 90-day period. NNSA considered all comments received on
the Draft SWEIS in preparing the Final SWEIS. The Final SWEIS includes:
(1) A detailed wetlands assessment related to construction of a
proposed Haul Road extension corridor that would affect wetlands; and
(2) NNSA's responses to all comments received, including those received
on the wetlands assessment.
Subsequent Document Preparation: NNSA will consider the
environmental impact analysis presented in the Final Y-12 SWEIS, along
with other information, in making decisions regarding the continued
operation of Y-12. NNSA will not issue any RODs for at least 30 days
following publication in the Federal Register of the Environmental
Protection Agency's notice of availability. NNSA will publish all RODs
in the Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC on February 25, 2011.
Thomas P. D'Agostino,
Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2011-4987 Filed 3-3-11; 8:45 am]
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