IR 05000006/1987001

Health & Safety Insp Repts 50-006/87-01 & 70-0008/87-01 on 870112-16.Violation Noted:Failure to Renew Retired Reactor License Prior to Expiration Date

ML20210S414
Person / Time
Site:	Battelle Memorial Institute, 07000008
Issue date:	02/09/1987
From:	France G, Greger L NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION III)
To:
Shared Package
ML20210S300	List: IR 05000006/1987001 ML20210S297 ML20210S320
References
50-006-87-01, 50-6-87-1, 70-0008-87-01, 70-8-87-1, NUDOCS 8702170629
Download: ML20210S414 (7)

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U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY.COMISSION

REGION III

Reports No. 70-008/87001(DRSS);50-006/87001(DRSS)

Docket Nos. 07000008;.05000006 Licenses No. SNM-7; R-4 Licensee:

Battelle Colcmbus Laboratories 505 King Avenue Columbus, OH 43201 Facility Name:

Battelle Columbus Laboratories Inspection At: West Jefferson Facilities Inspection Conducted:

January 12-16, 1987 ft D0pMJ til Inspectors: GeorjeM. France,iII

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Approved By:

L. R. Greger, Chief cd ' f'87 Facilities Radiation Protection Date Section Inspection Summary Inspection on January 12-16, 1987 (Reports No. 70-008/87001(DRSS);

No. 50-006/8/001(DR55))

Areas Inspected:

Routine unannounced health and safety inspection, including:

nuclear criticality safety; radiation protection, including training, exposure control, surveys, and reports; radioactive waste management, including transportation activities; management organization and control; and discussions with' licensee representatives concerned with the formal status of the Retired Battelle Research Reactor, formally licensed under Facility License No. R-4.

Results: The licensee was found to to be in compliance with NRC requirements within the areas examined, except for the following item:

Reactor License - failed to renew the retired reactor license prior to the expiration date.

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DETAILS 1.

Persons Contacted W. Bradford, Master Technician (Instrument Maintenance)

T. Emswiler, Transportation Specialist R. Evans, Environmental Health Physics Program, (Part-time Employee)

E.' Fromm, Supervisor, Quality Assurance G.-Kirsch, Supervisor, Operational Health Physics

• V. Pasupathi,. Manager, Nuclear Technology

• E. Roe,-Radiological Safety Officer D. Stewart, Research Technician

• E. Swindall, Master Technician H. Toy, Manager, BCL Nuclear Services Group The inspector also interviewe'd'oth'er members of the licensee's staff.

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• Denotes those present at the exit meeting conducted.

2.

General

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'This inspection of onsite licensee activities', which began at 1:45 p.m.-

on' January 12, 1987, was conducted to examine activities at the West Jefferson site under Materials License No. SNM-7.

The inspector toured-the Hot Cell Laboratory and JN-4 Retired Reactor Building both located at the West Jefferson site.

An exit meeting was conducted on January 16, 1987, at the West Jefferson site.

3.

Licensee Action on Previous Inspection Findings (Closed)OpenItem(70-008/86002-01):

A worker received an uptake of

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cobalt-60, while on assignment (offsite) to 3rovide support as a contractor for a Byproduct Material License acility.

Licensee records r

indicate that urinalysis and fecal bioassay determinations-disclosed radioactivity levels were near detectable levels or background. No violation of regulatory intake limits were exceeded.

4.

Management Organization and Controls-The inspector reviewed the licensee's management organization and controls for radiation protection and operations,ttee activities, including changes in the organizational structure, and safety commi a.

Organization Since the last inspection, Inspection Report No. 70-008/86002(DRSS),

the Radiological Safety Officer (R50) position was officially assumed by a Health Physicist (HP) located at the licensee's West Jefferson site.

Meanwhile, the licensee has intensified the search for a replacement for the vacated HP position.

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b.

Safety Committee Activities TheRadioactiveMaterialsSubcommittee(RSC-1)(oftheBattelle Columbus Laboratory Radiological Safety Committee) audits the radiological status of the West Jefferson site.

The committee recommended a " catch up" period on instruments past due for calibration. The inspector determined that several instruments (including critically monitors) although past due for calibration were actually in service during U.S. Tool and Die's fuel consolidation program; however, the overdue period was within 25%

of the semiannual surveillance interval.

The instruments were rescheduled for calibration soon after the fuel consolidation program was terminated.

c.

Audits An audit conducted by members of the licensee's Radiological Safety Committee disclosed that health physics assignments for the Hot Cell Laboratory should be rotated among the HP specialist to broaden-their experience for back-up coverage.

No violation or deviation were identified.

5.

Radiation Protection The inspector reviewed the licensee's internal and external exposure control programs including the required records, reports, and notifications.

a.

Internal Exposure Control Whole body count results for hot cell workers were below the maximum permissible body burden for mixed fission products, and isotopes of cesium, cobalt, plutonium and uranium.

Bioassay records for the last quarter 1986 disclosed that the 40 MPC-hour intake limit for uranium and plutonium was not exceeded.

b.

' External Exposure Higher exposure levels occurred for workers participating in the fuel consolidation programs or other hot cell activities.

Among these workers the highest exposure level was about 3.4 rem for the year.

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c.

ALARA Activities An accumulation of contarrinated items located at the manipulator repair station in the hot cell building was removed and packaged for waste disposal. This action lowered the radiation exposure rate to persons working in the vicinity of the repair station and to personsusingthoadjacentpassageway.

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Surveys and Containment Control The inspector reviewed the licensee's program for radiological surveys to verify compliance with the regulations and with licensee requirements, including:

schedule for periodic surveys, effectiveness of surveys, and adequacy of instrumentation.

Smear and radiation survey records were examined for the Retired Reactor facility.

Records of quarterly surveys conducted for the 1984-86 operating period disclosed that there have been no significant contamination or exposure problems.

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Sealed Source Checks Tests were 3erformed on eleven sealed sources. The periodic test on eaci source complied with the requirements of Annex B to the license which prohibits use of any sealed source with more than 0.005 microcuries of removable contamination.

No violations or deviations were identified.

6.

Transportation The inspector reviewed transportation activities to determine whether the licensee is maintaining an adequate program to assure radiological safety in the receipt, packaging, and delivery of licensed radioactive materials.

Packaged waste that exceeds 500 mrem / hour on contact or outside surface measurement must be packaged in the following manner:

Each drum will be equipped with a vent clip inserted on the top

rim of the drum.

A catalyst (sealed with paraffin in a metal screen package)

must be placed on top of the packaged waste prior to closing the container lid.

The catalyst is used as a precautionary device to retard pressure increases from hydrogenous material stored in drums.

Shipping papers were examined for five shipments of spent fuel assemblies.

Surface contamination was less than 2200 dpm/100 cm2 (beta gamma) as shown by the survey data for each of the shipments. The only irregularity occurred when the State Police of Pennsylvania did not meet the shipment after a two-hour late arrival of the shipment.

No violations or deviations were identified.

7.

Criticality Safety The inspector reviewed criticality safety audits, documentation of toured the Hot Cell Laboratory (HCL), and reviewed criticality training,lity changes requiring criticality considerations.

documentation of faci

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a RSC (Safety Committee) audits noted the need to maintain calibration schedules for criticality monitors.

Training for the Hot Cell staff in criticality, radiological safety, and

. industrial safety was conducted in accordance with internal policy.

The RSC provided nuclear safety guidance to the HCL staff on the proper spacing distance reguired for handling fuel pins and or fuel assemblies prior to consolidating assemblies for shipment.

Guidance was also provided in the packaging of failed fuel assemblies for transport.

There was no indication that criticality safety would be compromised.

No violations or deviations were identified.

6.

Maintenance Surveillance The licensee noted that mechanical components of the crane hoist assembly were inspected for safe operation.

An independent inspection was conducted by Ohio Crane an offsite vendor.

In addition, ventilation system components were examined and in place test (D0P tests) of hot cell filters, required annually, were conducted.

No violations or deviations were identified.

9.

Emergency Preparedness An RSC audit referenced a critigue conducted after an emergency drill, and recorded the following entries:

Designate area for initial assembly of first aid team.

• Fire team needs more hands on training.

• Portable generator gasoline cans were empty.

• One two-way radio was found inoperative.

• Film badges of exposed personnel were not collected.

• Instructions should be provided to the nurse for specific arrival

routes and the area for reporting should be designated.

Emergency team member roster was updated to accommodate site needs.

• During a tour of the Emergency Team's equipment storage location, the inspector examined the respiratory equipment and determined that utility straps, ventilation hoses, and other components associated with respiratory equipment appeared to be in operable condition.

In addition, the licensee noted that fire hoses were replaced throughout the Retired Reactor Facility during 1986.

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10. Operations Review The inspector toured the Hot Cell Laboratory and the Retired Reactor Facility and reviewed with the licensee the status of operations at the West Jefferson site.

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Hot Cell Laboratory

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Recent activities include solidification of resins in concrete for waste disposal; preparation of loose rods (weld end ca)s) and failed fuel for transport; conducting end reactor pressure tu)e analysis; and repackaging of fuel bundles for transport in accordance with RSC nuclear safety practices.

b.

Retired Reactor Facility In accordance with Amendment 13 to Reactor License No. R-4, the licensee is required to monitor radioactivity in the water released from a basement sump to the storm sewer conduct periodic radiation surveys, and maintain barriers preventin,g access to the retired reactor.

Records reviewed for the 1984-86 surveillance period i

disclosed that in the areas with unrestricted access removable beta contamination did not exceed 100 dpm/100 cm2 and radiation levels were less than 2 mR/hr.

In addition it appeared that all the above requirements (technical specification,s) of Amendment 13, License No. R-4 were satisfactorily met.

However, in a related matter it appears that the licensee inadvertently allowed the R-4 Retired Battelle Research Reactor to expire without timely renewal.

Officially, the operating license expired on or about Aug"ust 5, 1980, and in accordance with Amendment No. 10 was renewed as a possess

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but not operate" license.

The licensee has implemented administrative and procedural controls in order to retain the research reactor facility in its present condition indefinitely.

However, possession of the reactor technically has not been authorized by the Commission since the license expired on August 5, 1980.

By not making timely license renewal application, the licensee failed to meet the requirement for possessing the Battelle Research Reactor and byproduct material produced by operation of the reactor under 10 CFR 50.10(a).

One violation was identified.

11.

Environmental Protection In accordance with SNM-7, License Condition No. 19, the licensee is required to submit an annual environmental report to HQ NRC, with a copy to Region III.

A cursory review of the )reliminary data being, prepared for the environmental report disclosed tlat there were no significant levels of radioactivity found in area food crops (corn) and/or local pond fish (bass, blue gill), nor was there any evidence that facility operations had any radiological or deleterious impact upon the unrestricted areas contiguous to the West Jefferson site.

No violations or deviations were identified.

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Exit Meeting-The inspector met with licensee representatives (denoted in Section 1)

at the conclusion of the onsite inspection on January 16, 1987. The inspector summarized the scope and findings of the inspection.

In response to certain items discussed by the inspector, the licensee:

a.

Acknowledged that Region III would be informed of any meeting scheduled with DOE concerning decommissioning of the facility.

b.

Acknowledged that verbally NMSS had agreed to amend License No. SNM-7 and include License No. R-4, Retired Reactor, as a part of the license.

During the course of the inspection and the exit meeting, the licensee did not identify any documents or inspector comments and references to specific processes as proprietary.

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