NRC Staff to Meet with Public to Discuss Big Rock Point Decommissioning

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	NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION III 801 Warrenville Road, Lisle IL 60532
	CONTACT:	Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663/e-mail: rjs2@nrc.gov
		Angela Dauginas (630) 829-9662/e-mail: opa3@nrc.gov

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NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT: RIII-97-17

February 19, 1997

NRC STAFF TO MEET WITH PUBLIC TO DISCUSS BIG ROCK POINT DECOMMISSIONING

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a public meeting on March 4 to discuss the decommissioning of the Big Rock Point Nuclear Station, Charlevoix, Michigan. The facility's operating license will expire on May 31, 2000.

The meeting will be chaired by Philip Johnson, Chairman, Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners and will begin at 7 p.m. in the Charlevoix Township Hall (Stroud Hall), 12491 Waller Road in Charlevoix.

The program will include presentations by the NRC on the decommissioning regulatory process and by Consumers Power Company on decommissioning activities. A question-and-answer period will follow.

Consumers Power plans to continue operations at Big Rock Point until the expiration of its operating license in slightly more than three years. Once operations cease, the utility plans to leave the facility in safe storage for 27 years to allow much of the onsite radioactivity to decay, and then to dismantle the plant. Consumers Power then plans to restore the site to a "green field" condition. These plans are spelled out in detail in the Big Rock Point post-shutdown decommissioning activities report which Consumers Power has filed with NRC.

The report (previously referred to as the Big Rock Point Decommissioning Plan) was submitted February 27, 1995, and is available for public inspection in the NRC local public document room at the North Central Michigan College, 1515 Howard Street in Petoskey, Michigan.

Another public meeting will be held before license termination and completion of decommissioning activities at Big Rock Point.