Subpart A--National Environmental Policy Act--Regulations Implementing Section 102(2)
§ 51.10 Purpose and scope of subpart; application of regulations of Council
on Environmental Quality.
(a) The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA)
directs that, to the fullest extent possible: (1) The policies, regulations,
and public laws of the United States shall be interpreted and administered
in accordance with the policies set forth in NEPA, and (2) all agencies
of the Federal Government shall comply with the procedures in section
102(2) of NEPA except where compliance would be inconsistent with other
statutory requirements. The regulations in this subpart implement section
102(2) of NEPA in a manner which is consistent with the NRC's domestic
licensing and related regulatory authority under the Atomic Energy Act
of 1954, as amended, the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as amended,
and the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978, and which
reflects the Commission's announced policy to take account of the regulations
of the Council on Environmental Quality published November 29, 1978 (43
FR 55978-56007) voluntarily, subject to certain conditions. This subpart
does not apply to export licensing matters within the scope of part 110
of this chapter nor does it apply to any environmental effects which NRC's
domestic licensing and related regulatory functions may have upon the
environment of foreign nations.
(b) The Commission recognizes a continuing obligation to conduct its domestic licensing and related regulatory functions
in a manner which is both receptive to environmental concerns and consistent with the Commission's responsibility as an
independent regulatory agency for protecting the radiological health and safety of the public. Accordingly, the Commission
will:
(1) Examine any future interpretation or change to the Council's NEPA regulations;
(2) Follow the provisions of 40 CFR 1501.5 and 1501.6 relating to lead agencies and cooperating agencies, except that the
Commission reserves the right to prepare an independent environmental impact statement whenever the NRC has
regulatory jurisdiction over an activity even though the NRC has not been designated as lead agency for preparation of the
statement; and
(3) Reserve the right to make a final decision on any matter within the NRC's regulatory authority even though another
agency has made a predecisional referral of an NRC action to the Council under the procedures of 40 CFR part 1504.
(c) The regulations in this subpart1
also address the limitations imposed on NRC's authority and responsibility
under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, by the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, Pub. L. 92-500,
86 Stat. 816 et seq. (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) In accordance with section
511(c)(2) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (86 Stat. 893, 33
U.S.C 1371(c)(2)) the NRC recognizes that responsibility for Federal regulation
of nonradiological pollutant discharges2
into receiving waters rests by statute with the Environmental Protection
Agency.
d) Commission actions initiating or relating to administrative or judicial civil or criminal enforcement actions or
proceedings are not subject to Section 102(2) of NEPA. These actions include issuance of notices of violation, orders, and
denials of requests for action pursuant to subpart B of part 2 of this chapter; matters covered by part 15 and part 160 of this
chapter; and issuance of confirmatory action letters, bulletins, generic letters, notices of deviation, and notices of
nonconformance.
[49 FR 9381, Mar. 12, 1984, as amended at 54 FR 43578, Oct. 26, 1989; 61 FR 43408, Aug. 22, 1996; 86 FR 67843, Nov. 30, 2021]
1See also Second Memorandum of Understanding Regarding Implementation of Certain NRC and EPA Responsibilities
and Policy Statement on Implementation of Section 511 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) attached as
Appendix A thereto, which were published in the Federal Register on December 31, 1975 (40 FR 60115) and became
effective January 30, 1976.
2On June 1, 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court held that "`pollutants' subject to regulation under the FWPCA [Federal Water
Pollution Control Act] do not include source, byproduct, and special nuclear materials, . . ." Train v. Colorado PIRG, 426
U.S. 1 at 25.
Page Last Reviewed/Updated Thursday, December 30, 2021