§51.26. Requirement to publish notice of intent and conduct scoping process. — Inbound Citations

(a) In accordance with § 51.26, the appropriate NRC staff director will publish in the Federal Register a notice of intent stating that an environmental impact statement will be prepared. The notice will contain the information specified in § 51.27.

(a) The draft environmental impact statement will be prepared in accordance with the scope decided upon in the scoping process required by §§ 51.26 and 51.29. As appropriate and to the extent required by the scope, the draft statement will address the topics in paragraphs (b), (c), (d) and (e) of this section and the matters specified in §§ 51.45, 51.50, 51.51, 51.52, 51.53, 51.54, 51.61 and 51.62.

(a) The notice of intent required by § 51.26(a) shall:

(1) State that an environmental impact statement will be prepared;

(2) Describe the proposed action and, to the extent sufficient information is available, possible alternatives;

(3) State whether the applicant or petitioner for rulemaking has filed an environmental report, and, if so, where copies are available for public inspection;

(4) Describe the proposed scoping process, including the role of participants, whether written comments will be accepted, the last date for submitting comments and where comments should be sent, whether a public scoping meeting will be held, the time and place of any scoping meeting or when the time and place of the meeting will be announced; and

(5) State the name, address and telephone number of an individual in NRC who can provide information about the proposed action, the scoping process, and the environmental impact statement.

(d) If a draft environmental impact statement is being prepared in accordance with paragraph (a), (b), or (c) of this section, and if applicant's environmental report relied upon the findings of one or more of the issues identified as Category 1 issues in appendix C to subpart A of this part, the draft environmental impact statement must be prepared as a supplement to NUREG-2249, “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for Licensing of New Nuclear Reactors.” In addition, the NRC staff will conduct scoping in accordance with § 51.26(a) and (b). The draft supplemental environmental impact statement will incorporate the conclusions in NUREG-2249 for issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant has demonstrated that the applicable values and assumptions have been met and for which neither the applicant nor the NRC identified any new and significant information. The draft supplemental environmental impact statement must contain an analysis for those issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant could not demonstrate that the applicable values and assumptions were met or for which any new and significant information was identified by the applicant or the NRC, and for those issues identified as Category 2.

(f) A draft environmental impact statement prepared under this section must separately evaluate the environmental impacts and proposed alternatives attributable to the activities proposed to be conducted under the limited work authorization. However, if the “Applicant's Environmental Report—Limited Work Authorization Stage,” also contains the information required to be submitted in the environmental report required under § 51.50, then the environmental impact statement must address the impacts of construction and operation for the proposed facility (including the environmental impacts attributable to the limited work authorization), and discuss the overall costs and benefits balancing for the underlying proposed action, in accordance with §§ 51.71, and 51.75(a) or (c), as applicable. For any draft environmental impact statement prepared under this section, if the applicant's environmental report relied upon the findings of one or more of the issues identified as Category 1 issues in appendix C to subpart A of this part, the draft environmental impact statement must be prepared as a supplement to NUREG-2249, “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for Licensing of New Nuclear Reactors.” In addition, the NRC staff will conduct scoping in accordance with § 51.26(a) and (b). The draft supplemental environmental impact statement will incorporate the conclusions in NUREG-2249 for issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant has demonstrated that the applicable values and assumptions have been met and for which neither the applicant nor the NRC identified any new and significant information. The draft supplemental environmental impact statement must contain an analysis for those issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant could not demonstrate that the applicable values and assumptions were met or for which any new and significant information was identified by the applicant or the NRC, and for those issues identified as Category 2.

(d) If a draft environmental impact statement is being prepared in accordance with paragraph (a), (b), or (c) of this section, and if applicant's environmental report relied upon the findings of one or more of the issues identified as Category 1 issues in appendix C to subpart A of this part, the draft environmental impact statement must be prepared as a supplement to NUREG-2249, “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for Licensing of New Nuclear Reactors.” In addition, the NRC staff will conduct scoping in accordance with § 51.26(a) and (b). The draft supplemental environmental impact statement will incorporate the conclusions in NUREG-2249 for issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant has demonstrated that the applicable values and assumptions have been met and for which neither the applicant nor the NRC identified any new and significant information. The draft supplemental environmental impact statement must contain an analysis for those issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant could not demonstrate that the applicable values and assumptions were met or for which any new and significant information was identified by the applicant or the NRC, and for those issues identified as Category 2.

(f) A draft environmental impact statement prepared under this section must separately evaluate the environmental impacts and proposed alternatives attributable to the activities proposed to be conducted under the limited work authorization. However, if the “Applicant's Environmental Report—Limited Work Authorization Stage,” also contains the information required to be submitted in the environmental report required under § 51.50, then the environmental impact statement must address the impacts of construction and operation for the proposed facility (including the environmental impacts attributable to the limited work authorization), and discuss the overall costs and benefits balancing for the underlying proposed action, in accordance with §§ 51.71, and 51.75(a) or (c), as applicable. For any draft environmental impact statement prepared under this section, if the applicant's environmental report relied upon the findings of one or more of the issues identified as Category 1 issues in appendix C to subpart A of this part, the draft environmental impact statement must be prepared as a supplement to NUREG-2249, “Generic Environmental Impact Statement for Licensing of New Nuclear Reactors.” In addition, the NRC staff will conduct scoping in accordance with § 51.26(a) and (b). The draft supplemental environmental impact statement will incorporate the conclusions in NUREG-2249 for issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant has demonstrated that the applicable values and assumptions have been met and for which neither the applicant nor the NRC identified any new and significant information. The draft supplemental environmental impact statement must contain an analysis for those issues identified as Category 1 for which the applicant could not demonstrate that the applicable values and assumptions were met or for which any new and significant information was identified by the applicant or the NRC, and for those issues identified as Category 2.

(f) In making the determinations described in paragraph (e) of this section, the environmental impact statement will be deemed modified to the extent that findings and conclusions differ from those in the final statement prepared by the Secretary of Energy, as it may have been supplemented. The initial decision will be distributed to any persons not otherwise entitled to receive it who responded to the request in the notice of docketing, as described in § 51.26(c). If the Commission reaches conclusions different from those of the presiding officer with respect to such matters, the final environmental impact statement will be deemed modified to that extent and the decision will be similarly distributed.

(b) The notice of intent required by § 51.26(d) shall:

(1) State that a supplement to a final environmental impact statement will be prepared in accordance with § 51.72 or § 51.92. For a combined license application that references an early site permit, the supplement to the early site permit environmental impact statement will be prepared in accordance with § 51.92(e);

(2) For the case of a combined license referencing an early site permit, identify the proposed action as the issuance of a combined license for the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant as described in the combined license application at the site described in the early site permit referenced in the combined license application;

(3) Identify the environmental report prepared by the applicant and information on where copies are available for public inspection;

(4) Describe the matters to be addressed in the supplement to the final environmental impact statement;

(5) Describe any proposed scoping process that the NRC staff may conduct, including the role of participants, whether written comments will be accepted, the last date for submitting comments and where comments should be sent, whether a public scoping meeting will be held, the time and place of any scoping meeting or when the time and place of the meeting will be announced; and

(6) State the name, address, and telephone number of an individual in NRC who can provide information about the proposed action, the scoping process, and the supplement to the environmental impact statement.