NUREG-2116 Safety Evaluation Report for the International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. Fluorine Extraction Process and Depleted Uranium Deconversion Plant in Lea County, New Mexico Docket No. 40-9086 International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards AVAILABILITY OF REFERENCE MATERIALS IN NRC PUBLICATIONS NRC Reference Material Non-NRC Reference Material As of November 1999, you may electronically access Documents available from public and special technical NUREG-series publications and other NRC records at libraries include all open literature items, such as NRC=s Public Electronic Reading Room at books, journal articles, and transactions, Federal http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm.html. Register notices, Federal and State legislation, and Publicly released records include, to name a few, congressional reports. Such documents as theses, NUREG-series publications; Federal Register notices; dissertations, foreign reports and translations, and applicant, licensee, and vendor documents and non-NRC conference proceedings may be purchased correspondence; NRC correspondence and internal from their sponsoring organization. memoranda; bulletins and information notices; inspection and investigative reports; licensee event reports; and Commission papers and their Copies of industry codes and standards used in a attachments. substantive manner in the NRC regulatory process are maintained atC NRC publications in the NUREG series, NRC The NRC Technical Library regulations, and Title 10, Energy, in the Code of Two White Flint North Federal Regulations may also be purchased from one 11545 Rockville Pike of these two sources. Rockville, MD 20852B2738 1. The Superintendent of Documents U.S. Government Printing Office Mail Stop SSOP These standards are available in the library for Washington, DC 20402B0001 reference use by the public. Codes and standards are Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov usually copyrighted and may be purchased from the Telephone: 202-512-1800 originating organization or, if they are American Fax: 202-512-2250 National Standards, fromC 2. The National Technical Information Service American National Standards Institute Springfield, VA 22161B0002 11 West 42nd Street www.ntis.gov New York, NY 10036B8002 1B800B553B6847 or, locally, 703B605B6000 www.ansi.org 212B642B4900 A single copy of each NRC draft report for comment is available free, to the extent of supply, upon written request as follows: Legally binding regulatory requirements are stated only Address: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in laws; NRC regulations; licenses, including technical Office of Administration specifications; or orders, not in Publications Branch NUREG-series publications. The views expressed in Washington, DC 20555-0001 contractor-prepared publications in this series are not E-mail: [email protected] necessarily those of the NRC. Facsimile: 301B415B2289 The NUREG series comprises (1) technical and Some publications in the NUREG series that are administrative reports and books prepared by the staff posted at NRC=s Web site address (NUREGBXXXX) or agency contractors http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs (NUREG/CRBXXXX), (2) proceedings of conferences are updated periodically and may differ from the last (NUREG/CPBXXXX), (3) reports resulting from printed version. Although references to material found international agreements (NUREG/IABXXXX), (4) on a Web site bear the date the material was brochures (NUREG/BRBXXXX), and (5) compilations accessed, the material available on the date cited may of legal decisions and orders of the Commission and subsequently be removed from the site. Atomic and Safety Licensing Boards and of Directors= decisions under Section 2.206 of NRC=s regulations (NUREGB0750). NUREG-2116 Safety Evaluation Report for the International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. Fluorine Extraction Process and Depleted Uranium Deconversion Plant in Lea County, New Mexico Docket No. 40-9086 International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc. Manuscript Completed: May 2012 Date Published: May 2012 Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards ABS TRACT This report documents the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC’s) staff review and safety and safeguards evaluation of International Isotopes Fluorine Products, Inc.=s (IIFP), application for a license to construct a Fluorine Extraction Process & Depleted Uranium Deconversion Plant (FEP/DUP) and possess and use source materials. INIS proposes that the FEP/DUP be located in Lea County, New Mexico, approximately 24 kilometers (15 miles) west of the city of Hobbs. The facility will possess natural and depleted uranium, and significant quantities of hazardous chemicals derived from licensed material, e.g., hydrogen fluoride. The objective of this review is to evaluate the facility=s potential adverse impacts on worker and public health and safety, under both normal operations and accident conditions. The review also considers the management organization, administrative programs, and financial qualifications provided to ensure safe design and operation of the facility. The NRC staff concludes, in this safety evaluation report, that the applicant=s descriptions, specifications, and analyses provide an adequate basis for safety of facility operations and that operation of the facility does not pose an undue risk to the worker and public health and safety. Potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed facility and its reasonable alternatives are addressed in a separate document, “Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Fluorine Extraction Process and Depleted Uranium Deconversion Plant in Lea County, New Mexico,” NUREG-2116. The draft Environmental Impact Statement was published in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, dated Friday, January 13, 2012, see pages 2096-2098 and the final EIS is scheduled to be published in the fall of 2012. iii CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................ iii CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................v TABLES ..................................................................................................................................... xi EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ......................................................................................................... xiii ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................................... xvii 1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION ......................................................................................... 1-1 1.1 Facility and Process Description ............................................................................ 1-1 1.1.1 Regulatory Requirements ........................................................................... 1-1 1.1.2 Regulatory Guidance and Acceptance Criteria ........................................... 1-1 1.1.3 Staff Review and Analysis .......................................................................... 1-1 1.2 Institutional Information .......................................................................................... 1-4 1.2.1 Regulatory Requirements ........................................................................... 1-4 1.2.2 Regulatory Guidance and Acceptance Criteria ........................................... 1-4 1.2.3 Staff Review and Analysis .......................................................................... 1-4 1.3 Site Description ................................................................................................... 1-11 1.3.1 Regulatory Requirements ......................................................................... 1-11 1.3.2 Regulatory Guidance and Acceptance Criteria ......................................... 1-11 1.3.3 Staff Review and Analysis ........................................................................ 1-11 1.3.4 Site Description Conclusions .................................................................... 1-29 1.4 References .......................................................................................................... 1-29 2.0 ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION.................................................................. 2-1 2.1 Regulatory Requirements ...................................................................................... 2-1 2.2 Regulatory Guidance and Acceptance Criteria ...................................................... 2-1 2.3 Staff Review and Analysis ..................................................................................... 2-1 2.3.1 Organization ............................................................................................... 2-2 2.3.2 Pre-operational Testing and Initial Startup .................................................. 2-2 2.3.3 Organizational Responsibilities and Qualifications ..................................... 2-3 2.3.4 Procedures ................................................................................................. 2-6 2.3.5 Incidents and Items of Concern .................................................................. 2-6 2.4 Evaluation Findings ............................................................................................... 2-7 2.5 References ............................................................................................................ 2-7 3.0 INTEGRATED