Volume 1 Chapters Draft EIS for Plutonium Pit Production At
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DOE/EIS-0541 Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Plutonium Pit Production at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina April 2020 U.S. Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration IV&.'"~-····~~,-~ Savannah River Site National Nuclear Security Administration Volume 1 CONVERSION CHART To Convert Into Metric To Convert Into English If You Know Multiple By To Get If you Know Multiple By To Get Length Inch 2.54 Centimeter Centimeter 0.3937 Inch Foot 30.48 Centimeter Centimeter 0.0328 Foot Foot 0.3048 Meter Meter 3.281 Foot Yard 0.9144 Meter Meter 1.0936 Yard Mile 1.60934 Kilometer Kilometer 0.62414 Mile Area Square inch 6.4516 Square Square centimeter 0.155 Square inch centimeter Square foot 0.092903 Square meter Square meter 10.7639 Square foot Square yard 0.8361 Square meter Square meter 1.196 Square yard Acre 0.40469 Hectare Hectare 2.471 Acre Square mile 2.58999 Square kilometer Square kilometer 0.3861 Square mile Volume Fluid ounce 29.574 Milliliter Milliliter 0.0338 Fluid ounce Gallon 3.7854 Liter Liter 0.26417 Gallon Cubic foot 0.028317 Cubic meter Cubic meter 35.315 Cubic foot Cubic yard 0.76455 Cubic meter Cubic meter 1.308 Cubic yard Weight Ounce 28.3495 Gram Gram 0.03527 Ounce Pound 0.45360 Kilogram Kilogram 2.2046 Pound Short ton 0.90718 Metric ton Metric ton 1.1023 Short ton Force Dyne 0.00001 Newton Newton 0.00001 Dyne Temperature Fahrenheit Subtract 32 Celsius Celsius Multiply by Fahrenheit then multiply 9/5th then add by 5/9ths 32 METRIC PREFIXES Prefix Symbol Multiplication factor exa- E 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 = 1018 peta- P 1,000,000,000,000,000 = 1015 tera- T 1,000,000,000,000 = 1012 giga- G 1,000,000,000 = 109 mega- M 1,000,000 = 106 kilo- k 1,000 = 103 deca- D 10 = 101 deci- d 0.1 = 10-1 centi- c 0.01 = 10-2 milli- m 0.001 = 10-3 micro- μ 0.000 001 = 10-6 nano- n 0.000 000 001 = 10-9 pico- p 0.000 000 000 001 = 10-12 SRS Pit Production EIS April 2020 CONTENTS CONTENTS.................................................................................................................................. iii LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... ix ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ................................................................................ xiiiii Chapter 1 – Introduction Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1-1 Relevant History—Pit Production ..................................................................................... 1-1 National Security Considerations ...................................................................................... 1-3 1.2.1 Nuclear Posture Review ......................................................................................................... 1-3 1.2.2 Nuclear Weapons Stockpile Memorandum and Nuclear Weapons Stockpile Plan ............... 1-3 1.2.3 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty ............................................................................................ 1-4 1.2.4 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty ............................................................................................ 1-4 Purpose and Need for the Proposed Action ....................................................................... 1-5 1.3.1 Pit Aging and Pit Lifetime ...................................................................................................... 1-5 1.3.2 Enhanced Safety Features ...................................................................................................... 1-6 1.3.3 Deterrent Requirements by Growing Threats ......................................................................... 1-6 1.3.4 Dual Pit Production Sites ....................................................................................................... 1-6 Proposed Action, EIS Scope, and Alternatives ................................................................. 1-6 NEPA History and Relevant Documents .......................................................................... 1-7 1.5.1 NEPA History—Pit Production .............................................................................................. 1-7 1.5.2 Programmatic NEPA and Other Relevant Documents ........................................................... 1-9 1.5.3 Site-Wide NEPA and Other Relevant Documents ............................................................... 1-10 1.5.4 WIPP-Related NEPA and Other Relevant Documents ........................................................ 1-11 1.5.5 Site-Specific Plutonium-Related NEPA Documents ............................................................ 1-12 1.5.6 Other Relevant Documents .................................................................................................. 1-12 Public Participation Process ............................................................................................ 1-13 Organization of this EIS .................................................................................................. 1-16 Chapter 2 – Proposed Action and Alternatives Proposed Action and Alternatives ...................................................................................... 2-1 Proposed Action—Repurpose the MFFF into the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility (SRPPF) ............................................................................................. 2-1 2.1.1 Construction of the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility ...................................... 2-1 2.1.2 Pit Production Process ............................................................................................................ 2-6 2.1.2.1 Material Receipt, Unpacking, and Storage ............................................................ 2-8 2.1.2.2 Feed Preparation and Purification ......................................................................... 2-8 2.1.2.3 Manufacturing ....................................................................................................... 2-9 2.1.3 SRPPF Operations ................................................................................................................ 2-10 2.1.4 Transportation Activities Associated with Pit Production at the SRPPF ............................. 2-11 2.1.5 Production of 125 Pits per Year (Sensitivity Analysis #1) ................................................... 2-12 2.1.6 Wrought Production Process (Sensitivity Analysis #2) ....................................................... 2-12 2.1.7 Option to Retain Existing Administration Building (Sensitivity Analysis #3) .................... 2-12 No-Action Alternative ..................................................................................................... 2-15 Alternatives Considered but Eliminated From Detailed Study ....................................... 2-15 iii SRS Pit Production EIS April 2020 2.3.1 Utilize Other Savannah River Site Facilities ........................................................................ 2-15 2.3.2 Construct a New Greenfield Pit Production Facility at SRS ................................................ 2-15 2.3.3 Redesign of Weapons to Require Less or No Plutonium ..................................................... 2-16 2.3.4 Only Reuse Existing Pits ...................................................................................................... 2-16 2.3.5 Locate the Pit Production Mission at Other DOE/NNSA Sites ............................................ 2-16 Preferred Alternative ....................................................................................................... 2-16 Planning Assumptions and Basis for Analysis ................................................................ 2-16 Comparison of Alternatives ............................................................................................. 2-19 Chapter 3 – Affected Environment Affected Environment ......................................................................................................... 3-1 Land Use and Visual Resources ........................................................................................ 3-2 3.1.1 Land Use ................................................................................................................................ 3-2 3.1.1.1 General Site Description ....................................................................................... 3-2 3.1.1.2 Proposed Facility Location .................................................................................... 3-4 3.1.2 Visual Resources .................................................................................................................... 3-4 3.1.2.1 General Site Description ....................................................................................... 3-5 3.1.2.2 Proposed Facility Location .................................................................................... 3-6 Geology and Soils ............................................................................................................. 3-6 3.2.1 Geologic and Topographic Setting ......................................................................................... 3-7 3.2.2 SRS Stratigraphy .................................................................................................................... 3-7 3.2.3