82 FR 43794 - Department of the Air Force; Robins Air Force Base, Georgia

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 180 (September 19, 2017)

Page Range		43794-43797
FR Document		2017-19799

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is considering an amendment to Materials License 42-23539-01AF, issued to the Department of the Air Force (licensee), Docket No. 030-28641, to approve a decommissioning plan (DP) for Building 181 at Robins Air Force Base (AFB), Georgia. If the DP is approved by the NRC, the licensee would be authorized to remediate residual depleted uranium (DU) from the building, prior to partial demolition of the building. As part of its review, the NRC conducted an assessment of the environmental impacts of the proposed decommissioning action. The NRC concluded that the proposed decommissioning project will have minimal impacts on the environment. This Notice provides details of the NRC's environmental assessment. Based in part on this assessment, the NRC plans to approve the proposed DP by amending the license.

Federal Register, Volume 82 Issue 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2017)

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43794-43797]
From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-19799]

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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 030-28641; NRC-2017-0095]

Department of the Air Force; Robins Air Force Base, Georgia

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 an
amendment to Materials License 42-23539-01AF, issued to the Department
of the Air Force (licensee), Docket No. 030-28641, to approve a
decommissioning plan (DP) for Building 181 at Robins Air Force Base
(AFB), Georgia. If the DP is approved by the NRC, the licensee would be
authorized to remediate residual depleted uranium (DU) from the
building, prior to partial demolition of the building. As part of its
review, the NRC conducted an assessment of the environmental impacts of
the proposed decommissioning action. The NRC concluded that the
proposed decommissioning project will have minimal impacts on the
environment. This Notice provides details of the NRC's environmental
assessment. Based in part on this assessment, the NRC plans to approve
the proposed DP by amending the license.

DATES: Materials License 42-23539-01AF, Docket No. 030-28641, will be
amended to approve the DP on or after September 19, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2017-0095 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:
Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2017-0095. Address
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-415-
3463; email: Carol.Gallagher@nrc.gov. For technical questions, contact
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this document.
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

[[Page 43795]]

Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-4737, or
by email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The ADAMS accession number for each
document referenced (if it is available in ADAMS) is provided the first
time that it is mentioned in this document. In addition, for the
convenience of the reader, the ADAMS accession numbers are provided in
a table in the ``Availability of Documents'' section of this document.
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: Vivian Campbell, Region IV Office,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 1600 E. Lamar Blvd., Arlington, TX
76011; telephone: 817-200-1455, email: Vivian.Campbell@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

The NRC is considering issuance of an amendment to Materials
License 42-23539-01AF, issued to Department of the Air Force, approving
the proposed DP for remediation of Building 181 at Robins AFB, Georgia
(ADAMS Accession Nos. ML17094A481 and ML17167A420, respectively). If
approved by the NRC, the licensee would be allowed to remediate
residual DU from inside and underneath the building as necessary to
meet the NRC's criteria for unrestricted use. Therefore, as required by
part 51 of title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), the NRC
performed an environmental assessment (EA) of the proposed
decommissioning activity. Based on the results of the EA that follows,
the NRC has determined not to prepare an environmental impact statement
for the licensing action and is issuing a finding of no significant
impact (FONSI).

II. Environmental Assessment

Description of the Proposed Action

The NRC's proposed action is to amend License 42-23539-01AF to
approve the proposed DP, as revised. The licensee would then be
authorized to conduct decommissioning work as specified in the NRC-
approved DP. Concurrently with the approval of the proposed
decommissioning work instructions, the NRC plans to approve the
licensee's proposed site-specific radiological release criteria and
final status survey plan.
If approved, the licensee's contractor will remediate residual
radioactive contamination and lead-based paint from the interior of the
building using instructions provided in the DP. After completion of
decommissioning, the contractor will conduct a final status survey of
the building surfaces in accordance with the instructions provided in
the DP. The residual radioactive and hazardous waste material will be
disposed at an authorized disposal site based on sample results of the
removed material. During building demolition, the contractor will
radiologically survey the soil underneath portions of the building to
ensure that the soil is not contaminated with radioactive material. If
contaminated, the soil will be removed for disposal.
After completion of building demolition, the contractor will
conduct a final status survey of the land underneath the area where
Cells 5 and 6 were previously located, to ensure that the soil does not
contain contamination greater than the NRC-approved release criteria.
The NRC staff plans to conduct routine inspections during
decommissioning and the final status surveys. The NRC will also review
and approve the licensee's final status survey results after completion
of the decommissioning process. The NRC may elect to conduct an
independent radiological confirmatory survey to confirm the licensee's
final status survey results.

Need for the Proposed Action

The purpose of the proposed action is to reduce the residual
radioactivity within Building 181 to levels that allow the release of
the property for unrestricted use. If the licensee conducts site
remediation in accordance with instructions provided in the DP, the
licensee will be in compliance with the radiological criteria for
license termination as specified in regulation 10 CFR part 20, subpart
E. Approval of the DP would allow the NRC to fulfill its
responsibilities under the Atomic Energy Act to ensure protection of
public health and safety and the environment.

Environmental Impacts of the Proposed Action

The NRC staff considered the possible environmental impacts of the
proposed action. The staff considered the impacts on the following
environmental resources: (1) Land use; (2) transportation; (3) geology
and soils; (4) water resources; (5) ecology; (6) meteorology,
climatology, and air quality; (7) noise; (8) historical and cultural
resources; (9) visual/scenic resources; (10) socioeconomic; (11) public
and occupational health; and (12) waste management.
Building 181 is located within the boundary of Robins AFB. Other
structures and paved roads are located around the property. An airfield
and tarmac are located nearby. The property will remain under the
control of the Air Force during and after decommissioning. Upon
completion of decommissioning and NRC approval of the final status
survey results, the licensee is expected to release the land and
remainder of the building for unrestricted use. The land use is not
expected to change significantly as a result of this decommissioning
project.
The transportation resource will be impacted slightly during
demolition of the building. Additional vehicles will be needed to
demolish the building and to remove the demolished debris. This
increase in transportation resources will only exist as long as
building demolition is in progress. After completion of demolition, the
transportation resource should return to normal. A few additional
trucks will be needed for shipment of the radiologically contaminated
material to a disposal site. The number of additional trucks is
expected to be small, based on the low volume of material required to
be disposed.
The local geology and soils are not expected to be impacted by
building demolition. The local soils were already impacted by the
construction of the building and surrounding infrastructure. Although
unlikely, if the licensee discovers contaminated soil underneath the
building, the soil with contamination above the NRC-approved cleanup
criteria will have to be excavated and packaged for shipment. Clean
backfill may be needed to fill any soil removed during decommissioning.
The area of the demolition project is small when compared to the
overall size of the military base.
The water resources are not expected to be impacted by building
demolition. Based on the depth of the unsaturated zone (25 feet/7.6
meter) and the thickness of the floor (5-6 feet/1.5-1.8 meters), the
licensee concluded that it was unlikely that DU contamination within
Building 181 has migrated into the groundwater. As noted in the DP, the
contractor will try to prevent potentially contaminated water from
exiting the building. The contractor will plug building drains during
decommissioning work. If the buildup of water occurs in the building,
the contractor will install containments at exit points, such as
doorways, to prevent releases of potentially contaminated water from
leaving the building.

[[Page 43796]]

The demolition of the building is not expected to have an impact on
local ecology. No critical or endangered species or habitats are
expected to be impacted, since the building is surrounded by other
buildings and pavement.
The demolition of the building may have short-term impacts on air
quality. These potential impacts include possible release of airborne
radioactive particulates during decommissioning, airborne dust during
demolition, and vehicle exhaust. To protect against releases of
potentially radioactive airborne effluents, the licensee's contractor
plans to collect outdoor air samples during decommissioning work. If
the airborne particulate action level is exceeded, the building doors
will be shut to minimize airborne effluents. With regards to the
potential for airborne dust during building demolition, the demolition
contractor is expected to take typical industrial precautions to
minimize airborne dust including use of water suppression or
discontinuing work during windy conditions. Finally, the work will
result in a short term increase of vehicle exhaust during building
demolition work. The percent increase in vehicle exhaust is expected to
be small compared to the relative size of the Air Force base.
Noise will increase during building demolition work. The increase
in noise is expected to be limited to daytime hours and will last only
for the duration of the work.
No historical, cultural, visual, or scenic resources are expected
to be impacted. Any cultural or historical resource would have been
impacted during the construction of the building. The demolition of the
building is not expected to impact any resources beyond the area
already impacted by current development. The decommissioning and
demolition of the building will not impact scenic or visual resources.
The building is not considered historically significant, otherwise, the
Air Force would not be demolishing it.
The decommissioning and demolition of the building will not impact
any social groups, and the economic impacts of the work activities are
expected to be minimal. The Air Force has not stated what it plans to
do with the area once the building has been partially demolished, but
the land use will most likely be similar to what is already in place.
The Air Force does not plan to relinquish control of the area after
building demolition, and the footprint of the building will continue to
remain within the boundary of Robins AFB.
The decommissioning contractor will provide measures to control
public and occupational health during work. For example, the
decommissioning contractor will monitoring workers for exposure to
airborne radioactivity. The demolition contractor is expected to
implement typical industrial safety controls such as issuance of safety
equipment to workers, control of work area boundaries, and suppression
of dust. As part of its review, the NRC considered the impacts of
residual radioactivity that may remain within building rubble or
subsurface soil. The licensee proposed cleanup criteria that is
protective of human health and safety. The licensee's contractor is
expected to remove the residual radioactive contamination to levels
that are at or below the cleanup criteria, an action that is protective
of public health and safety. Details about the NRC's analysis of the
cleanup criteria are provided in a separate Safety Evaluation Report
(ADAMS Accession No. ML17193A222).
Finally, the decommissioning contractor established procedures for
disposal of waste material. The DP indicates that the contractor plans
to sample the waste material, to identify the levels of radiological
and hazardous materials present. As noted earlier, the contractor will
also remove lead-based paint as part of the work project. The
concentrations of radioactive and hazardous wastes in the material will
dictate how the material will be packaged and transported, and the
concentrations will be used to identify the disposal sites that can
accept this material for disposal. The demolition contractor is
expected to sample the rubble to ensure that the material meets the
standards for the chosen waste landfill. Liquid wastes are not expected
to be created.
In summary, the proposed decommissioning and building demolition
are not expected to have significant, long-term impacts on
environmental resources. Additional details about the NRC's
environmental review are provided in an expanded EA (ADAMS Accession
No. ML17207A232).

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 assumes that the status quo is maintained.
With respect to the Building 181 project, the no-action alternative
means that the licensee would not be allowed to conduct decommissioning
work, and the contaminated building surfaces will continue to remain
onsite at Robins AFB.
The no-action alternative is not acceptable because it violates the
NRC's Timeliness Rule regulations specified in 10 CFR 30.36. The
Timeliness Rule requires licensees to decommission their facilities in
a timely manner when licensed activities have permanently ceased. In
addition, the radioactive contamination at Building 181 currently
exceeds the radiological criteria for license termination as specified
in 10 CFR part 20, subpart E. Approval of the no-action alternative
will prevent the licensee from conducting decommissioning work as
necessary to release the site for unrestricted use under Subpart E
requirements. Accordingly, the NRC staff eliminated the no-action
alternative from consideration.

Agencies and Persons Consulted

The NRC staff consulted with the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources, Radioactive Materials Program, regarding the EA of the
proposed action (ADAMS Accession No. ML17193A244). The State's comments
are discussed below.
The NRC staff determined that the proposed action will not affect
endangered species or critical habitats, because the project is located
within an area that was fully developed. Therefore, no further
consultations were deemed necessary under Section 7 of the Endangered
Species Act. Likewise, the NRC staff determined that the proposed
action is not the type of activity that has the potential to impact
historic properties, in part, because the building has not been
designated as a historic property by the Air Force. Therefore, no
further consultation was determined to be necessary under Section 106
of the National Historic Preservation Act.

Discussion of Comments

By email dated August 14, 2017 (ADAMS Accession No. ML17227A184),
the State of Georgia suggested that once demolition is complete and
soil contamination surveys are accomplished, if these surveys reveal
any soil contamination, a groundwater survey should be conducted. In
the past, the State has seen instances of groundwater contamination,
for example, around a contaminated vault that had to be remediated.
While there is no evidence of soil contamination beneath Building 181,
the State believes that sampling of the groundwater is prudent if the
soil is contaminated. The NRC staff informed the licensee of the

[[Page 43797]]

State's comments, and the NRC plans to review the results of the
licensee's soil contamination survey.

III. Finding of No Significant Impact

The NRC staff have concluded that the proposed decommissioning
project at Robins AFB, Georgia, will have minimal impacts on the
environment. The NRC staff considered the impacts on land use,
transportation, geology and soils, water resources, ecology, air
quality, noise, historical and cultural resources, visual and scenic
resources, socioeconomic resources, public and occupational health, and
waste management. The staff also determined that the affected
environment and the environmental impacts associated with the
decommissioning of Building 181 are bounded by the impacts evaluated by
NUREG-1496, Volume 1, ``Generic Environmental Impact Statement in
Support of Rulemaking on Radiological Criteria for License Termination
of NRC-Licensed Nuclear Facilities'' (ADAMS Accession No. ML042310492).
The staff finds that the proposed decommissioning complies with 10
CFR 20.1402, which provides the radiological criteria for unrestricted
use. Further, the licensee will perform the remediation work under an
NRC license, using an NRC-approved decommissioning plan, which will
help ensure that the licensee and its contractor will establish and
implement programs to protect workers, the public, and the environment.
Further, the NRC plans to conduct inspections during work activities.
Past NRC experiences with decommissioning activities at similar sites
suggest that public and worker exposures to radioactivity will be far
below the limits specified in 10 CFR part 20.
The NRC staff have prepared this EA in support of the proposed
action to amend NRC Materials License 42-23539-01AF to approve the
licensee's proposed DP for Building 181 at Robins AFB. On the basis of
this EA, the NRC has concluded that there are no significant
environmental impacts and the license amendment does not warrant the
preparation of an environmental impact statement. Accordingly, it has
been determined that a FONSI is appropriate.

IV. Availability of Documents

The documents identified in the following table are available to
interested persons through one or more of the following methods, as
indicated.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Document ADAMS Accession No.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
U.S. Department of the Air Force, ``Updated ML17094A481
Decommissioning Plan dated February 2017 for
Building 181 at Robins Air Force Base,
Georgia,'' March 21, 2017.
U.S. Department of the Air Force, ``Building ML17167A420
181 Robins Air Force Base Decommissioning
Plan,'' June 13, 2017.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ``Robins ML17193A244
AFB Consultation Letter with State of
Georgia,'' July 24, 2017.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ``Memo to ML17207A232
File--Building 181 Robins AFB Georgia
Environmental Assessment,'' September 19,
2017.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ``Memo to ML17193A222
File--Building 181, Robins AFB Georgia
Safety Evaluation Report,'' September 19,
2017.
State of Georgia, ``State of Georgia's Review ML17227A184
and Comments on Proposed EA and SER for
Robins AFB, Georgia,'' August 14, 2017.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NUREG- ML042310492
1496, Volume 1, Generic Environmental Impact
Statement in Support of Rulemaking on
Radiological Criteria for License
Termination of NRC-Licensed Nuclear
Facilities, Main Report, July 31, 1997.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dated at Arlington, Texas, this 31st day of August 2017.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Mark R. Shaffer,
Director, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety, Region IV Office.
[FR Doc. 2017-19799 Filed 9-18-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 180 / Tuesday, September 19, 2017 / Notices 43795

Document Room (PDR) reference staff at instructions provided in the DP. After Building 181 is located within the
1–800–397–4209, 301–415–4737, or by completion of decommissioning, the boundary of Robins AFB. Other
email to pdr.resource@nrc.gov. The contractor will conduct a final status structures and paved roads are located
ADAMS accession number for each survey of the building surfaces in around the property. An airfield and
document referenced (if it is available in accordance with the instructions tarmac are located nearby. The property
ADAMS) is provided the first time that provided in the DP. The residual will remain under the control of the Air
it is mentioned in this document. In radioactive and hazardous waste Force during and after
addition, for the convenience of the material will be disposed at an decommissioning. Upon completion of
reader, the ADAMS accession numbers authorized disposal site based on decommissioning and NRC approval of
are provided in a table in the sample results of the removed material. the final status survey results, the
‘‘Availability of Documents’’ section of During building demolition, the licensee is expected to release the land
this document. contractor will radiologically survey the and remainder of the building for
• NRC’s PDR: You may examine and soil underneath portions of the building unrestricted use. The land use is not
purchase copies of public documents at to ensure that the soil is not expected to change significantly as a
the NRC’s PDR, Room O1–F21, One contaminated with radioactive material. result of this decommissioning project.
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville If contaminated, the soil will be The transportation resource will be
Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. removed for disposal. impacted slightly during demolition of
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: After completion of building the building. Additional vehicles will be
Vivian Campbell, Region IV Office, U.S. demolition, the contractor will conduct needed to demolish the building and to
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 1600 a final status survey of the land remove the demolished debris. This
E. Lamar Blvd., Arlington, TX 76011; underneath the area where Cells 5 and increase in transportation resources will
telephone: 817–200–1455, email: 6 were previously located, to ensure that only exist as long as building
Vivian.Campbell@nrc.gov. the soil does not contain contamination demolition is in progress. After
greater than the NRC-approved release completion of demolition, the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
criteria. The NRC staff plans to conduct transportation resource should return to
I. Introduction routine inspections during normal. A few additional trucks will be
The NRC is considering issuance of an decommissioning and the final status needed for shipment of the
amendment to Materials License 42– surveys. The NRC will also review and radiologically contaminated material to
23539–01AF, issued to Department of approve the licensee’s final status a disposal site. The number of
the Air Force, approving the proposed survey results after completion of the additional trucks is expected to be
DP for remediation of Building 181 at decommissioning process. The NRC small, based on the low volume of
Robins AFB, Georgia (ADAMS may elect to conduct an independent material required to be disposed.
Accession Nos. ML17094A481 and radiological confirmatory survey to
The local geology and soils are not
ML17167A420, respectively). If confirm the licensee’s final status
expected to be impacted by building
approved by the NRC, the licensee survey results.
demolition. The local soils were already
would be allowed to remediate residual Need for the Proposed Action impacted by the construction of the
DU from inside and underneath the The purpose of the proposed action is building and surrounding infrastructure.
building as necessary to meet the NRC’s to reduce the residual radioactivity Although unlikely, if the licensee
criteria for unrestricted use. Therefore, within Building 181 to levels that allow discovers contaminated soil underneath
as required by part 51 of title 10 of the the release of the property for the building, the soil with
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), the unrestricted use. If the licensee contamination above the NRC-approved
NRC performed an environmental conducts site remediation in accordance cleanup criteria will have to be
assessment (EA) of the proposed with instructions provided in the DP, excavated and packaged for shipment.
decommissioning activity. Based on the the licensee will be in compliance with Clean backfill may be needed to fill any
results of the EA that follows, the NRC the radiological criteria for license soil removed during decommissioning.
has determined not to prepare an termination as specified in regulation 10 The area of the demolition project is
environmental impact statement for the CFR part 20, subpart E. Approval of the small when compared to the overall size
licensing action and is issuing a finding DP would allow the NRC to fulfill its of the military base.
of no significant impact (FONSI). responsibilities under the Atomic The water resources are not expected
II. Environmental Assessment Energy Act to ensure protection of to be impacted by building demolition.
public health and safety and the Based on the depth of the unsaturated
Description of the Proposed Action environment. zone (25 feet/7.6 meter) and the
The NRC’s proposed action is to thickness of the floor (5–6 feet/1.5–1.8
amend License 42–23539–01AF to Environmental Impacts of the Proposed meters), the licensee concluded that it
approve the proposed DP, as revised. Action was unlikely that DU contamination
The licensee would then be authorized The NRC staff considered the possible within Building 181 has migrated into
to conduct decommissioning work as environmental impacts of the proposed the groundwater. As noted in the DP,
specified in the NRC-approved DP. action. The staff considered the impacts the contractor will try to prevent
Concurrently with the approval of the on the following environmental potentially contaminated water from
asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES

proposed decommissioning work resources: (1) Land use; (2) exiting the building. The contractor will
instructions, the NRC plans to approve transportation; (3) geology and soils; (4) plug building drains during
the licensee’s proposed site-specific water resources; (5) ecology; (6) decommissioning work. If the buildup
radiological release criteria and final meteorology, climatology, and air of water occurs in the building, the
status survey plan. quality; (7) noise; (8) historical and contractor will install containments at
If approved, the licensee’s contractor cultural resources; (9) visual/scenic exit points, such as doorways, to
will remediate residual radioactive resources; (10) socioeconomic; (11) prevent releases of potentially
contamination and lead-based paint public and occupational health; and (12) contaminated water from leaving the
from the interior of the building using waste management. building.

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Category		Regulatory Information
Collection		Federal Register
sudoc Class		AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106:
Publisher		Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
Section		Notices
Action		Environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact; issuance.
Dates		Materials License 42-23539-01AF, Docket No. 030-28641, will be amended to approve the DP on or after September 19, 2017.
Contact		Vivian Campbell, Region IV Office, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 1600 E. Lamar Blvd., Arlington, TX 76011; telephone: 817-200-1455, email: [email protected]
FR Citation		82 FR 43794