Notice2021-11557
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement-Browns Ferry Nuclear Site Subsequent License Renewal
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Published
June 1, 2021
Issuing agencies
Tennessee Valley Authority
Abstract
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to address the potential environmental effects associated with obtaining subsequent license renewals (SLR) for the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant (BFN) Units 1, 2, and 3 located in Limestone County, Alabama. Renewal of the operating licenses would allow the plant to continue to operate for an additional 20 years beyond the current operating licenses expiration dates of 2033, 2034, and 2036 for Units 1, 2, and 3, respectively. TVA plans to evaluate a variety of alternatives including a no-action alternative. Public comments are invited to identify other potential alternatives, relevant information, and analysis related to the proposed action.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 103 (Tuesday, June 1, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 103 (Tuesday, June 1, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29351-29353]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-11557]
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TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement--Browns Ferry Nuclear
Site Subsequent License Renewal
AGENCY: Tennessee Valley Authority.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) intends to prepare a
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to address the
potential environmental effects associated with obtaining subsequent
license renewals (SLR) for the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant (BFN) Units
1, 2, and 3 located in Limestone County, Alabama. Renewal of the
operating licenses would allow the plant to continue to operate for an
additional 20 years beyond the current operating licenses expiration
dates of 2033, 2034, and 2036 for Units 1, 2, and 3, respectively. TVA
plans to evaluate a variety of alternatives including a no-action
alternative. Public comments are invited to identify other potential
alternatives, relevant information, and analysis related to the
proposed action.
DATES: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this
Notice in the Federal Register and comments on the scope of the SEIS
must be received or postmarked by July 1, 2021. To accommodate social
distancing guidelines and public health recommendations related to the
COVID-19 pandemic, TVA will have a virtual meeting room available for
the duration of the scoping period. Visit <a href="https://www.tva.com/nepa">https://www.tva.com/nepa</a> to
obtain more information.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted in writing to J. Taylor Cates,
NEPA Specialist, 1101 Market Street, BR 2C-C, Chattanooga, TN 37402.
Comments may also be submitted online at: <a href="https://www.tva.com/nepa">https://www.tva.com/nepa</a> or
by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#16787366775662607738717960"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f39d968392b3878592dd949c85">[email protected]</span></a>. Due to COVID-19 teleworking restrictions,
electronic submission of comments is encouraged to ensure timely review
and consideration.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Other related questions should be sent
to Tennessee Valley Authority, J. Taylor Cates, NEPA Specialist, 1101
Market Street, BR 2C-C, Chattanooga, TN 37402, or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c6f2f4f5ebf1f3f7ebf4f1f5f4e9acb2a5a7b2a3b586b2b0a7e8a1a9b0">423-751-2732/<span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="96fce2f5f7e2f3e5d6e2e0f7b8f1f9e0">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This Notice is provided in accordance with
the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ) regulations for
implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) at 40 CFR
parts 1500-1508 and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act (NHPA), and its implementing regulations (36 CFR part 800). The
SEIS will be prepared consistent with the 2020 CEQ regulations for
implementing NEPA at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508 (85 FR 43304-43376, Jul.
16, 2020). The regulations of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
in 10 CFR part 54 set forth the applicable license extension
requirements.
TVA Power System
TVA is a corporate agency and instrumentality of the United States,
created by and existing pursuant to the TVA Act of 1933 (16 U.S.C. part
831), and created to, among other things, foster the social and
economic welfare of the people of the Tennessee Valley region and
promote the proper use and conservation of the Valley's natural
resources. TVA generates and distributes electricity for business
customers and local power distributors, serving more than 10 million
people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA is fully self-
financed without Federal
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appropriations, and funds virtually all operations through electricity
sales and power system bond financing. In addition to operating and
investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood
control, navigation and management for the Tennessee River system, and
assists local power companies and state and local governments with
economic development efforts.
Dependable electrical capacity on the TVA power system is about
33,000 Mega Watts Electric (MWe). TVA's current generating assets
include one pumped-storage facility, one diesel generator site, three
nuclear plants, five coal plants, nine combustion turbine plants, eight
combined cycle plants, 14 solar energy sites, 29 hydroelectric dams,
and several small renewable generating facilities. A portion of
delivered power is obtained through long-term power purchase
agreements. About 13 percent of TVA's annual generation is from hydro;
14 percent is from coal; 27 percent is from natural gas; 41 percent is
from nuclear; and the remainder is from wind and solar. TVA also gains
available capacity through its energy efficiency programs. TVA
transmits electricity from these facilities over almost 16,000 miles of
transmission lines. Like other utility systems, TVA has power
interchange agreements with utilities surrounding the Tennessee Valley
region, and routinely buys and sells power.
Background
TVA operates BFN Units 1, 2, and 3 in Limestone County, Alabama.
BFN is located on an 840-acre tract on the north shore of Wheeler
Reservoir at Tennessee River Mile (TRM) 294, approximately 10 miles
northwest of Decatur, Alabama, and 10 miles southwest of Athens,
Alabama. BFN consists of three General Electric boiling water reactors
(BWRs) and associated turbine generators that collectively supply
approximately 3,900 MWe of electric power to the TVA transmission and
distribution system.
In March 2002 and June 2002, TVA issued a Final SEIS (FSEIS) and a
Record of Decision (ROD) for the operating license renewal of BFN. TVA
submitted a License Renewal Application (LRA) to the NRC in December
2003 for a 20-year renewal of the operating licenses for each BFN unit.
The environmental conclusions of the NRC FSEIS did not differ from the
TVA FSEIS conclusions, and the NRC issued Supplement 21 regarding
Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Units 1, 2, and 3, to the Generic EIS (GEIS)
for License Renewal of Nuclear Plants (NUREG-1437) in June 2005. The
NRC issued operating license renewals for Units 1, 2, and 3 in May
2006, allowing continued operation of the three BFN units until 2033,
2034, and 2036, respectively.
In September 2015, TVA submitted a license amendment request (LAR)
for extended power uprate (EPU) of all three units. The NRC issued a
draft Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant
Impact (FONSI) in the Federal Register on December 1, 2016 for public
comment. On May 22, 2017 the NRC issued the Final EA and FONSI related
to the EPU license amendment.
Project Purpose and Need
The purpose of the proposed action is to help provide continued
generation of baseload power between 2033 and 2053 by obtaining license
renewals to operate BFN Units 1, 2, and 3. BFN is considered baseload
power because the plant generally runs at close to maximum output.
BFN's current baseload generation supports future forecasted baseload
power needs, as outlined in TVA's 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP),
by helping to maintain grid stability and generating capacity for TVA's
generation portfolio mix. As an integral part of TVA's current
generation portfolio, in 2020, BFN produced approximately 20 percent of
TVA's average generation capacity. Renewal of the current operating
licenses would allow BFN to continue supplying approximately 3,900 MWe
capacity of baseload power.
TVA needs to generate sufficient electricity to supply the
Tennessee Valley with increasingly clean, reliable, and affordable
electricity for the foreseeable future for the region's homes and
businesses, working with local power companies to keep service steady
and reliable. By renewing the licenses, TVA would maximize use of
existing assets to support TVA's goals of generating electricity at the
lowest feasible cost for the people of the Tennessee Valley. BFN's
carbon-free generating capacity supports TVA's goal of a net-zero
carbon emissions generating system by 2050.
Preliminary Proposed Action and Alternatives
TVA proposes to submit a Subsequent LRA (SLRA) to the NRC
requesting renewal of BFN operating licenses. Renewal of the current
operating licenses would permit operation for an additional 20 years
past the current operating license terms, which expire in 2033, 2034,
and 2036 for Units 1, 2, and 3, respectively. This SEIS is being
prepared to provide the public and TVA decision-makers an assessment of
the environmental impacts of renewing BFN Unit 1, 2, and 3 operations,
as well as provide the public an opportunity to participate in the SEIS
process. License renewal does not require any new construction or
modifications beyond normal maintenance and minor refurbishment.
However, there are other proposed projects not directly related to SLR
that are connected to, or could affect, license renewal.
The SEIS proposes to address a range of alternatives (A-D)
including: (A) The No-Action Alternative; (B) BFN Subsequent License
Renewal; (C) Use of Existing Generating Assets; and (D) Use of Existing
and Construction of New Generating Assets. Two additional alternatives,
(E) Replacement of BFN Generating Capacity Entirely with Renewable
Energy Sources and (F) Replacement of BFN Generating Capacity Entirely
with Purchase Power, were considered but eliminated.
Anticipated Environmental Impacts
The SEIS will include a detailed evaluation of the environmental,
social, and economic impacts associated with implementation of the
proposed action. Resource areas to be addressed in the SEIS include,
but are not limited to: Air quality; aquatics; botany; climate change;
cultural resources; emergency planning; floodplains; geology and
groundwater; hydrothermal; land use; navigation; noise and vibration;
radiological safety; soil erosion and surface water; socioeconomics and
environmental justice; threatened and endangered species;
transportation; visual; waste; water use; wetlands; and wildlife.
Measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate adverse effects will be
identified and evaluated in the SEIS.
In preparing this SEIS, TVA will consider the analysis within the
NRC's Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for License Renewal
of Nuclear Plants (NUREG-1437, Revision 1), where the NRC generically
considered the environmental effects of renewing nuclear power plant
operating licenses for a 20-year period (results are codified in 10 CFR
part 51). The GEIS identified 78 environmental issues and reached
generic conclusions on environmental impacts for 59 of those issues
that apply to all plants or to plants with specific design or site
characteristics. The GEIS' generic assessment is relevant to the
assessment of impacts of the proposed action at BFN. Generic
information from the NRC GEIS that is related to the current assessment
would be incorporated by reference, generally following the tiering
process described in 40 CFR 1501.11,
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with the SEIS providing a more narrow analysis relevant to the specific
aspects of this proposed project. Additional plant-specific review
would be conducted for impacts not covered by the GEIS and which are
encompassed by the range of resource issue areas identified above.
Anticipated Permits and Other Authorizations
TVA anticipates consulting with the required authorities including,
but not limited to: The Endangered Species Act; Bald and Golden Eagle
Protection Act; Rare Species Protection and Conservation Act; National
Historic Preservation Act; Clean Air Act; and Federal Clean Water Act.
TVA anticipates seeking required permits or authorizations as
appropriate, from the following governmental entities: The Nuclear
Regulatory Commission; US Army Corps of Engineers; US Coast Guard; US
Environmental Protection Agency; Alabama Department of Environment and
Conservation; US Fish and Wildlife Service; Alabama State Historic
Preservation Officer; and Tribal Historic Preservation Officers. This
is not an exhaustive list, other permits or authorizations may be
sought as required or appropriate.
Public Participation and Scoping Process
TVA seeks comment and participation from all interested parties for
the proposed action, including, but not limited to, assisting TVA in
determining the scope of issues for analysis in the SEIS. Information
about this project is available at <a href="https://www.tva.com/nepa">https://www.tva.com/nepa</a>, which
includes a link to an online public comment page. TVA invites the
public to identify other alternatives, and analysis relevant to the
proposed action. Comments must be received or postmarked no later than
July 1, 2021. Federal, state, local agencies, and Native American
Tribes are also invited to provide comments.
Please note that any comments received, including names and
addresses, will become part of the project administrative record and
will be available for public inspection.
To accommodate social distancing guidelines and public health
recommendations related to the COVID-19 pandemic, TVA will have a
virtual meeting room available for the duration of the scoping period
that includes a range of information on the proposed action. Visit
<a href="https://www.tva.com/nepa">https://www.tva.com/nepa</a> to obtain more information about the virtual
open house.
SEIS Preparation and Schedule
TVA will consider comments received during the scoping period and
develop a scoping report which will be published at <a href="https://www.tva.com/nepa">https://www.tva.com/nepa</a>. The scoping report will summarize public and agency
comments that were received and identify the projected schedule for
completing the SEIS process. Following completion of the environmental
analysis for SLR, TVA will post a Draft SEIS for public review and
comment on the project web page. TVA anticipates holding a public open
house, which may be virtual, after releasing the Draft SEIS. Open house
details will be posted on TVA's website in conjunction with the Draft
SEIS. TVA expects to release the Draft SEIS in mid-2022.
TVA will consider comments received on the Draft SEIS, as well as
cost, engineering, risk and other applicable evaluations before
selecting one or more alternatives as preferred in the Final SEIS. TVA
projects completing a Final SEIS in early 2023. A final determination
on proceeding with the preferred alternative will be documented in a
ROD.
Authority: 40 CFR 1501.9.
Rebecca Tolene,
Vice President, Environment.
[FR Doc. 2021-11557 Filed 5-28-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8120-08-P
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