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"Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed International Isotopes Uranium Processing Facility AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Notice of Intent. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. (IIFP), a wholly owned subsidiary of International Isotopes, Inc. (INIS), submitted a license application, which included an Environmental Report (ER) on December 30, 2009, that proposes the construction, operation, and decommissioning of a fluorine extraction and depleted uranium de- conversion facility to be located near Hobbs in Lea County, New Mexico. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its regulations in 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 51, announces its intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) evaluating this proposed action. The EIS will examine the potential environmental impacts of the proposed INIS facility. DATES: NRC invites public comments on the appropriate scope of issues to be considered in the EIS. The public scoping process required by NEPA begins with publication of this Notice of Intent. Written comments submitted by mail should be postmarked by no later than August 30, 2010 to ensure consideration. Comments mailed after that date will be considered to the extent practical. "

The Star's story "$500 million Honeywell project gets final OK" (4/7, Business) neglected to mention a crucial detail regarding plans to close the existing government-owned Kansas City plant and construct a $600 million privately developed industrial park to produce parts for nuclear weapons. The General Services and National Nuclear Security Administrations, the two federal agencies involved in the complex $1.2 billion, 20-year lease-back scheme, are being sued by a coalition of regional and national organizations and local citizens because they have pursued this project without first meeting their obligations under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). In similar cases, courts have told government agencies they must start all over again because they decided upon a course of action before doing appropriate NEPA review.

You would think that after spending tens of millions of dollars on Environmental Impact Statements and Supplement Analyses that the DOE would be proud of its work. Yet so many documents relating to the Nevada Test Site (NTS) are missing online. This includes the 1996 NTS Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and the most recent Draft Supplement Analysis, or Draft SA, a document that is drawn up, and reviewed by the public, every five years per the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to see if the most recent EIS is still applicable, or adjustments need to be made. They appear to no longer exist online at the website of the DOE/NNSA/NSO (www.nv.doe.gov).*

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has extended the public comment period on the proposed rule revisions to the environmental protection regulations, specifically the Summary of Findings on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Issues for License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants and the draft revision of Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, NUREG-1437, originally published in 1996. The submittal deadline is extended from Oct. 14 to Jan. 12, 2010. The public can view the NRC's original notice on the proposed rule revisions in the Federal Register at: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-24153.pdf exit icon PDF Iconand the original press release at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2009/09-130.html. The NRC has held public meetings to obtain comments in Georgia, Massachusetts, Illinois and Maryland; the California meetings will be held in October and have been announced separately. Comments on the proposed rule, draft revised GEIS and associated documents may be submitted via the federal e-Rulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov exit icon (Docket I.D. NRC-2008-0608); by e-mail to Rulemaking.Comments@nrc.gov ; by mail to Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff; or by fax to 301-492-3466. Written comments on the draft revised GEIS should be sent to: Chief, Rulemaking, Directives and Editing Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, Mailstop TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has extended the public comment period on the proposed rule revisions to the environmental protection regulations, specifically the Summary of Findings on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Issues for License Renewal of Nuclear Power Plants and the draft revision of Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants, NUREG-1437, originally published in 1996. The submittal deadline is extended from Oct. 14 to Jan. 12, 2010. The public can view the NRC's original notice on the proposed rule revisions in the Federal Register at: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-24153.pdf exit icon PDF Iconand the original press release at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2009/09-130.html. The NRC has held public meetings to obtain comments in Georgia, Massachusetts, Illinois and Maryland; the California meetings will be held in October and have been announced separately. Comments on the proposed rule, draft revised GEIS and associated documents may be submitted via the federal e-Rulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov exit icon (Docket I.D. NRC-2008-0608); by e-mail to Rulemaking.Comments@nrc.gov ; by mail to Secretary, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff; or by fax to 301-492-3466. Written comments on the draft revised GEIS should be sent to: Chief, Rulemaking, Directives and Editing Branch, Division of Administrative Services, Office of Administration, Mailstop TWB-05-B01M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20555-0001.

Draft SWEIS Dear Interested Party Letter Summary Table of Contents and Front Matter Chapter 1: Introduction and Purpose and Need for Action Chapter 2: Operations Overview of Y-12 National Security Complex Chapter 3: Alternatives Chapter 4: Affected Environment Chapter 5: Environmental Consequences Chapter 6: Cumulative Impacts Chapter 7: Regulatory Requirements Chapter 8: Short-Term Uses and Long-Term Productivity Chapter 9: Irreversible and Irretrievable Commitment of Resources Chapter 10: References Chapter 11: Glossary Chapter 12: List of Preparers and Contributors Chapter 13: Index Chapter 14: Distribution List Appendix A: Y-12 Planning Process and Facility Information Appendix B: Notice of Intent Appendix C: Consultation Letters and Biological Assessment Appendix D: Human Health and Accidents Appendix E: Impact Methodology Appendix F: NEPA Disclosure Statement for Preparation of the Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement for the Y-12 National Security Complex Reference Materials

Draft SWEIS Dear Interested Party Letter Summary Table of Contents and Front Matter Chapter 1: Introduction and Purpose and Need for Action Chapter 2: Operations Overview of Y-12 National Security Complex Chapter 3: Alternatives Chapter 4: Affected Environment Chapter 5: Environmental Consequences Chapter 6: Cumulative Impacts Chapter 7: Regulatory Requirements Chapter 8: Short-Term Uses and Long-Term Productivity Chapter 9: Irreversible and Irretrievable Commitment of Resources Chapter 10: References Chapter 11: Glossary Chapter 12: List of Preparers and Contributors Chapter 13: Index Chapter 14: Distribution List Appendix A: Y-12 Planning Process and Facility Information Appendix B: Notice of Intent Appendix C: Consultation Letters and Biological Assessment Appendix D: Human Health and Accidents Appendix E: Impact Methodology Appendix F: NEPA Disclosure Statement for Preparation of the Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement for the Y-12 National Security Complex Reference Materials

"- An organization long critical of Los Alamos National Laboratory's plan for a new nuclear facility says the National Environmental Policy Act needs to be followed before the building can move ahead. The Los Alamos Study Group contends the project is on a larger scale than alternatives analyzed seven years ago and has not been subjected to a NEPA analysis. The watchdog group is sending a letter to Energy Secretary Steven Chu and National Nuclear Security Administration head Tom D'Agostino about their concerns. The group says reasonable alternatives to the project were never analyzed."

Record of Decision for the Complex Transformation Supplemental Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement--Operations Involving Plutonium, Uranium, and the Assembly and Disassembly of Nuclear Weapons AGENCY: National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S. Department of Energy. ACTION: Record of decision. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a separately organized agency within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is issuing this Record of Decision (ROD) for the continued transformation of the nuclear weapons complex (Complex). This ROD is based on information and analyses contained in the Complex Transformation Supplemental Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (SPEIS) (DOE/EIS-0236-S4) issued on October 24, 2008 (73 FR 63460); comments received on the SPEIS; other NEPA analyses as noted; and other factors, including cost, technical and security considerations, and the missions of NNSA. The SPEIS analyzes the potential environmental impacts of alternatives for transforming the nuclear weapons complex into a smaller, more efficient enterprise that can respond to changing national security challenges and ensure the long-term safety, security, and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile.

Ralph Hutchison, long-time coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, said he has reviewed many, many NEPA documents over the past 20 years, but he called DOE's draft programmatic EIS for the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership was a special document. And he didn't mean that in a kind way. "I've never seen one as pathetic as this, and I've seen some doozies," Hutchison said at Tuesday night's public hearing at the New Hope Center in Oak Ridge. The peace activist criticized DOE for not including any cost figures on the GNEP plans and not spelling out specifics on a preferred altnernative.

Categorical Exclusions From Environmental Review SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its regulations describing the categories of actions which do not require an environmental review under the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) because they have no significant effect on the human environment. The proposed revisions would eliminate the preparation of environmental assessments for NRC actions that are minor, administrative, or procedural in nature. The proposed rule would not change any requirements for licensees but would provide for more timely NRC action.

The "green agenda" of the Obama administration is being felt almost immediately in the western states where ISR mining abounds. Newly appointed NRC Chairman Gregory B. Jaczko announced on June 4 that the agency is making a significant change in the way it approaches environmental reviews for new ISR facilities. The agency has decided that it will require a full environmental impact statement (EIS), with all of the costs, opportunities for intervention, and inevitable delays, for new ISR permit applications. Previously, the NRC conducted an environmental assessment (EA), which under the agency's implementing regulations authorized by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a much more compact and faster process.

Finding of No Significant Impact: Disposition of DOE Excess Depleted Uranium, Natural Uranium, and Low-Enriched Uranium AGENCY: Department of Energy. ACTION: Finding of No Significant Impact. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE, the Department) has completed an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Disposition of DOE Excess Depleted Uranium (DU), Natural Uranium (NU), and Low-Enriched Uranium (LEU) (DOE/EA-1607). Based on the analysis in the EA, the Department has determined that the proposed action, DOE dispositioning its excess uranium inventory using one or a combination of two methods--(1) enrichment to either NU or LEU product and subsequent storage or sale of the resultant NU or LEU product (Enrichment Alternative), and (2) direct sale to appropriately licensed entities (Direct Sale Alternative)--does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the context of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is not required and the Department is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

AREVA Enrichment Services (AES) LLC submitted the original license application on December 30, 2008, that proposes the construction, operation and decommissioning of a gas centrifuge uranium enrichment facility to be located near Idaho Falls, Idaho. On April 24, 2009, AREVA resubmitted the application to request an enrichment capacity increase. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and 10 CFR Part 51, announces its intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) evaluating this proposed action. The EIS will examine the potential environmental impacts of the proposed facility. DATES: NRC invites public comments on the appropriate scope of issues to be considered in the EIS. The public scoping process begins with publication of this NOI. Written comments submitted by mail should be postmarked by no later than June 19, 2009

"Earlier this month, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals approved a controversial permit for uranium mining operations at sites in Church Rock, New Mexico. The operation includes a site associated with the largest release of liquid radioactive waste in United States History -- a catastrophe which continues, a generation later, to negatively impact the lives and health of Navajo people residing near the spill site. Over a decade after Navajo leaders and community groups first challenged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) issuance of a mining permit to Hydro Resources, Inc. (HRI) for uranium extraction in Church Rock, the appellate court decided on March 8th to uphold the NRC's decision. The court rejected the plaintiffs' argument that since the site already emits more radiation than federal regulations allow, a license for a new operation is impermissible because even the most miniscule amounts of new radiation emitted would exceed regulatory limits. Instead, the court affirmed both the NRC's decision under the Atomic Energy Act to only review an isolated portion of radiation from the site, as well as its corollary finding that the cumulative impacts of radiation emitted from the site are acceptable under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). "