Final SEIS for Clinch River Nuclear Site Unit 1

Content

ACTION:

Notice; issuance.

SUMMARY:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is issuing a final supplemental
environmental impact statement (SEIS), “Environmental Impact Statement for a Construction Permit Application at the Clinch
River Nuclear Site: Final Report.” The NRC is issuing this final SEIS as part of its review of the application submitted by
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for a construction permit (CP) for one GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 small modular reactor
(SMR) at a site in Roane County, Tennessee, designated as Clinch River Nuclear Site, Unit 1 (CRN-1). TVA plans to construct
and operate CRN-1 to demonstrate the feasibility of constructing and operating the BWRX-300 SMR. The final SEIS evaluates
the environmental impacts of the proposed action of issuing a CP that would allow the construction of CRN-1, as well as the
environmental impacts of alternatives to the proposed action.

DATES:

The final SEIS is available as of April 1, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2024-0146 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 Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2024-0146. Address questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Bridget Curran; telephone: 301-415-1003; email: Bridget.Curran@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 https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, select “Begin ADAMS Public Search.” For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's Public Document
Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, at 301-415-4737, or by email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov. The final SEIS is available in ADAMS under Accession No. ML26035A285. 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.

• NRC's PDR: The PDR, where you may examine and order copies of publicly available documents, is open by appointment. To make an appointment
to visit the PDR, please send an email to PDR.Resource@nrc.gov or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

• Project Website: The final SEIS will also be available online at the CRN-1 project website at https://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/advanced/who-were-working-with/applicant-projects/clinch-river.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Madelyn Nagel, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001;
telephone: 301-415-3470; email: Madelyn.Nagel@nrc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

By letters dated April 28, 2025 (ADAMS Accession No. ML25118A209) and May 20, 2025 (ADAMS Package Accession No. ML25140A062),
TVA submitted to the NRC, pursuant to section 103 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and part 50 of title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), “Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities,” an application for a CP that would allow the construction
of CRN-1 in Roane County, Tennessee. The proposed facility would house one GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 SMR. This submission
initiated the proposed Federal action of determining whether to issue the requested CP. A notice of receipt and availability
of the CP application was published in the
Federal Register
on June 10, 2025 (90 FR 24425). A notice of acceptance for docketing of the complete application and opportunity to request
a hearing was published in the
Federal Register
on July 15, 2025 (90 FR 31709). A notice of intent to prepare a supplement to the early site permit environmental impact statement
(EIS) was published on July 18, 2025 (90 FR 34015).

As set forth in 10 CFR 51.20(b), issuance of a CP to construct a nuclear power reactor is an action that requires an EIS or
a supplement to an EIS. This notice is being published in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended (NEPA), and the NRC's regulations implementing NEPA at 10 CFR part 51, “Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic
Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions.” In addition, pursuant to section 800.8(c) of title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations (36 CFR), the NRC used the process and documentation for the preparation of the SEIS to comply with section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, in lieu of the procedures set forth in 36 CFR 800.3 through 800.6.

A notice of availability and request for comment on the draft SEIS was published in the
Federal Register
on November 7, 2025 (90 FR 50498). The public comment period on the draft SEIS ended on December 22, 2025, and the comments
received on the draft SEIS are addressed in the final SEIS.

II. Discussion

As discussed in the final SEIS, after weighing the environmental, economic, technical, and other benefits against environmental
and other costs, and considering reasonable alternatives, the recommendation is, unless safety issues mandate otherwise, that
the NRC issue the requested CP to TVA. This recommendation is based on the CP application, information gathered during the
environmental audit, and responses to requests for clarifying information; consultation with Federal, State, Tribal, and local
agencies; the independent environmental review and assessment summarized in the final SEIS; and consideration of public comments
received on the draft SEIS. In addition, no environmentally preferable alternatives that meet the purpose and need for the
proposed action were identified; therefore, there is no obvious superior alternative to the proposed action from an environmental
perspective.

Dated: April 1, 2026. For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Jacob Zimmerman, Acting Director, Division of Rulemaking, Environmental, and Financial Support, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards. [FR Doc. 2026-06571 Filed 4-3-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7590-01-P

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