TITLE 10-ATOMIC ENERGY*

CHAPTER 1-ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION

PART 2-RULES OF PRACTICE

PART 50 LICENSING OF PRODUCTION AND UTILIZATION FACILITIES

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL
POLICY ACT OF 1969

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, Public Law 91-190, authorizes and directs that, to the fullest extent possible, the policies, regulations and public laws of the United States shall be interpreted and administered in accordance with the policies for the protection of the environment set forth in that Act. It also requires, among other things, Federal agencies to include in recommendations or reports on proposals for legislation and other major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, a detailed statement on specified environmental considerations.

The Atomic Energy Commission has adopted the statement of general policy, in the form of an Appendix D to Part 50, set forth below, indicating the manner in which the Commission will exercise its responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect to licensing of power reactors and fuel reprocessing plants pending (1) the development of more detailed procedures, in consultation with the Council on Environmental Quality established by Title II of that Act, (2) the development of arrangements between the Commission and other Federal agencies that may be designated as having jurisdiction by law or special expertise in environmental matters, and (3) the enactment of such legislation as may be proposed by the Commission in compliance with section 103 of that Act.

A conforming amendment to 10 CFR Part 2 has also been adopted. Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and sections 552 and 553 of Title 5 of the United States Code, the following amendments to Title 10, Chapter 1, Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 2 and 5, are published as a document subject to codification, to be effective upon publication in the Federal Register. The Commission invites all interested persons who desire to submit written comments or suggestions in connection with the amendments to send them to the Secretary, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Washington, D.C. 20545, Attention: Chief, Public Proceedings Branch, within 30 days after publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Consideration will be given to such submissions with the view to possible further amendments. Copies of comments received may be examined in the Commission's Public Document Room at 1717 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.

1. The fourth sentence in Section III(c)(7) of Appendix A of 10 CFR Part 2 is deleted.

2. A statement of general policy is appended to 10 CFR Part 50 to read as follows:

*35 F.R. 5463, April 2, 1970.

APPENDIX D-—STATEMENT OF GENERAL POLICY: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT OF 1969 (PUBLIC LAW 91–190).

On January 1, 1970, the National Envinronmental Policy Act of 1969 (Public Law 91-190) became effective. The stated purposes of that Act are: To declare a national policy which will encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man and his environment; to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and biosphere and stimulate the health and welfare of man; to enrich the understanding of the ecological systems and natural resources important to the Nation; and to establish a Council on Environmental Quality.

Section 101 (b) of that Act provides that, in order to carry out the policy set forth in the Act, it is the continuing responsibility of the Federal Government to use all practicable means, consistent with other essential considerations of national policy, to improve and coordinate Federal plans, functions, programs, and resources toward certain stated ends.

In section 102 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Congress authorizes and directs that, to the fullest extent possible, the policies, regulations, and public laws of the United States shall be interpreted and administered in accordance with the policies set forth in the Act. All agencies of the Federal Government are required, among other things, to include in every recommendation or report on proposals for legislation and other major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, a detailed statement by the responsible official on certain specified environmental considerations. Prior to making the detailed statement, the responsible Federal official is required to con: sult with and obtain the comments of any Federal agency which has jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved. Section 103 of that Act provides that all agencies of the Federal Government shall review their present statutory authority, administrative regulations, and current policies and procedures for the purpose of determining whether there are any deficiencies or inconsistencies therein which prohibit full compliance with the purposes and provisions of the Act and shall propose to the President not later than July 1, 1971, such measures as may be necessary to bring their authority and policies into conformity with the intent, purposes, and procedures set forth in the Act.

Pending (1) the development of more detailed procedures, in consultation with the Council on Environmental Quality established by Title II of that Act, (2) the development of arrangements between the Commission and other Federal agencies that may be designated as having jurisdiction by law or special expertise in environmental matters, and (3) the enactment of such legislation as may be proposed by the Commission in compliance with section 103 of the Act, and consistent with the public interest in avoiding unreasonable delay in meeting the growing national need for electric power, the Commission will exercise its responsibilities under the Act as follows with respect to the licensing of power reactors and fuel reprocessing plants:

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1. Applications for permits to construct and licenses to operate power reactors and fuel reprocessing plants will be transmitted by the Commission to Federal agencies which have jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to the environmental impact involved, with a request for comments, to the extent appropriate, on the following environmental considerations:

(a) the environmental impact of the proposed action,

(b) any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided should the proposal be implemented,

(c) alternatives to the proposed action,

(d) the relationship between local short-term uses of man's environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity, and

(e) any irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources which would be involved in the proposed action should it be implemented. 2. After obtaining the comments from those Federal agencies, the Commission's Director of Regulation or his designee will prepare a detailed statement on the environmental considerations specified in the preceding paragraph. Copies of the detailed statement and the comments and views of the appropriate Federal, State and local agencies, which are authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards, will be made available to the President, the Council on Environmental Quality and to the public as provided by section 552 of Title 5 of the United States Code, and will accompany the appication through the Com

mission's review processes. In preparing the detailed statement, the Director of Regulation or his designee may rely, in whole or in part, on, and may incorporate by reference, the comments and views of those Federal, State, and local agencies, as well as the regulatory staff's radiological safety evaluation. The detailed statement will be limited to the environmental effects of the facility that is subject to the licensing action involved.

3. With respect to those proceedings which take place in the immediate and near future, it is recognized that the detailed statements may not be as complete as they will be after there has been an opportunity to deveop appropriate working arrangements between the Commission and other Federal agencies having jurisdiction by law or special expertise in these matters. With respect to the operation of power reactors, it is expected that in most cases the detailed statement will be prepared only in connection with the first licensing action that authorizes full-power operation of the facility.

4. The filing of the detailed statement described in paragraphs 2 and 3 shall in no way be construed as extending the licensing or regulatory jurisdiction of the Commission to making independent determinations on matters other than those specified in Part 50 of its regulations for construction permit or operating license applications.

5. The Commission will incorporate in construction permits and operating licenses for power reactors and fuel reprocessing plants a condition to the effect that the licenseee shall observe such Federal and State standards and requirements for the protection of the environment, including standards and requirements for the control of the thermal effects of the release of liquid effluents from the facility to the environment, as are validly imposed pursuant to authority established under Federal and State law and as are determined by the Commission to be applicable to the facility that is subject to the licensing action involved. This condition will not applly to radiological effects since radiological effects are dealt with in other provisions of the construction permit and operating license.

6. Determinations made by cognizant Federal or State bodies of non-observance of the standards and requirements encompassed by the condition described in paragraph 5 will be deemed proper for consideration in Commission licensing proceedings. However, said conditions shall in no way be construed as extending the jurisdiction of this agency to making an independent review of (a) standards or requirements validly imposed pursuant to authority established under Federal and State law of (b) equipment or measures proposed by the applicant to meet standards or requirements validly imposed pursuant to authority established under Federal and State law.

Nothing in this Appendix should be construed as affecting (a) the manner in which the Commission obtains advice from other agencies, Federal and State, with respect to the control of radiation effects, or (b) the other, and separate, provisions of the construction permit and operating license which deal with radiological effects. Procedures and measures similar to those described in the preceding paragraphs of this Appendix will be followed in proceedings other than these involving power reactors and fuel reprocessing plants when the Commission determines that the proposed action is one significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.

(Sec. 102, 83 Stat. 853.)

Dated at Germantown, Md., this 31st day of March, 1970.

For the ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION,

F. T. HOBBS, Acting Secretary.

9

AEC PROPOSED REVISION TO STATEMENT OF POLICY ON IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT

The Atomic Energy Commission is proposing revisions to its recently adopted statement of general policy on implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, with respect to the licensing of nuclear power plants and plants which process used fuel from nuclear

reactors.

Since publication of the AEC statement of policy on April 2, the Council on Environmental Quality has issued interim guidance to Federal agencies for the preparation of detailed statements on environmental considerations. In addition, the Water Quality Improvement Act of 1970 has become effective. This law provides for certification by a State or interstate water pollution control agency or the Secretary of the Interior that Federally licensed activities will not violate applicable water quality standards. The proposed revisions to the AEC statement reflect both the guidance and the new law.

A copy of the proposed revised statement of general policy is attached. Some of the significant new or amended provisions are:

Applicants for construction permits for nuclear power reactors and fuel reprocesing plants would be required to submit with the application a separate report on specified environmental considerations. The Commision intends to provide appropriate guidance as to the scope and content of the report.

Copies of these reports would be transmitted with a request for comments to appropriate Federal Agencies designated by the Council on Environmental Quality which have jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to any environmental impact involved, or which are authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards. A summary notice of the availability of the report would be published in the Federal Register, with a request for comments on the proposed action and on the report from state and local agencies of any affected state (with respect to matters within their jurisdiction) which are authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards. The Commission will also, as a matter of practice, routinely send a copy of the report to the Governor of the State or his designee.

After receipt of the comments, the Commission's Director of Regulation would prepare a detailed statement on the environmental considerations, including a discussion of problems and objections raised by such agencies. In preparing the statement, the Director of Regulation would rely on the applicant's environmental report and on the comments submitted by the Federal, State and local agencies as well as the AEC regulatory staff's radiological safety evaluation.

The applicant's environmental report submitted with application for an operating license would incorporate by reference information submitted earlier with the application for a construction permit. The detailed statement for the operating license stage would cover only those environmental considerations which differ significantly from those discussed at the construction permit stage.

In addition, similar procedures would be used for some types of licenses for the use of radioactive materials which are not specifically covered by the present policy statement. These would ordinarily include: (1) licenses for possession and use of special nuclear material for fuel element fabrication, scrap recovery and conversion of uranium hexafluoride; (b) use of source material for uranium milling and production of uranium hexafluoride; and (c) licenses authorizing commercial radioactive waste disposal by land burial.

The Commission believes the provisions of the proposed revised policy statement will be useful as interim guidance until further action is taken.

Notice of the proposed amendment to Appendix D of Part 50 of AEC regulations is being published in the Federal Register on June 3, 1970. Interested persons may submit written comments to the Secretary, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Washington, D.C. 20545, Attention: Chief, Public Proceedings Branch, within 30 days after that date.

[Appendix D, referred to in final paragraph above, follows:]

APPENDIX D-STATEMENT OF GENERAL POLICY AND PROCEDURE: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT OF 1969 (PUBLIC Law 91–190)*

On January 1, 1970, the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (Public Law 91-190) became effective. The stated purposes of that Act are: To declare a national policy which will encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man and his environment; to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environ

*35 F.R. 8594, June 3, 1970.