IR 05000312/1978004
| ML19309A362 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Rancho Seco |
| Issue date: | 05/16/1978 |
| From: | Book H, Thomas R NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION V) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML19309A350 | List: |
| References | |
| 50-312-78-04, 50-312-78-4, NUDOCS 8003270818 | |
| Download: ML19309A362 (9) | |
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U. S. PRJCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT
REGION V
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Report No. 50-312/78-04
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Docket No. 50-312 License No.
OPR-54 Safeguards Group Licensee:
Sacramento Municipal Utility District
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P. O. Box 15830 Sacramento, California 95813
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Facility Name:
Rancho Seco
Inspection at:
Clay Station, California
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Inspection Condu ted: April 24-28.,1978
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Inspector :
p R. D. Thomas, Radiation' Specialist
' Data Signed
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Date Signed 8//6[7[
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Approved By:
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Date Signea
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H. E. Book, Chief, Fuel Facility and Materials Safety Branch
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Suninary:
Inspection on Aoril 24-28,1978 (Report No. 50-312/78-04)
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Areas Inspected: Licensee event followups; IE Circular 77-14 followup; action on previous inspection findings; unresolved items; followup on functionai testing of area monitors and I&C technicia'n training; confirmatory measurements; environ-mental proteccion including environmental monitoring, nonradiological effluents, quality control of measurements, management controls and reports; tour of facilit.)
which involved independent inspection effort for surveys and review of posting requirements. The inspection involved 39 inspector-hours on-site by one inspector.
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Results: Of the twelve areas inspected, no apparent items of noncompliance or deviations were identified in ten areas; three apparent items of noncompliance (infraction - no costing of raciation area; infraction - no costing of f.igh O
radiation area, Paragraph 10b; infraction - lack of required' training and/or instructions, Paragraph 7b) were identified in two areas.
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8003 IE:V form 219 (2)
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O DETAILS 1.
Persons Contacted
- R. Colombo, Technical Assistant
- R. Miller, Chemical and Radiation Protection Supervisor D. Gardiner, Senior Chemical and Radiation Assistant
- S. Coats. Health Physicist J. King, Shift Supervisor
- F. Kellie, Nuclear Chemist H. Schumacher, Safety Technician
- W. Wilson, Senior Chemical and Radiation Assistant J. Newey, Chemical and Radiation Assistant J. Deneen, Chemical and Radiation Assistant D. Brown, I&C Technician
- J. Sullivan, Senior Quality Engineer J. Mau, Training Supervisor
- Denotes those attending the exit interview.
2.
Licensee Event Followups a.
The licensee reported to the NRC by telephone on February 17, O
1978 that during a leak check on a liquid chlorine cylinder on February 16, 1978, a fitting for a pigtail blew off and released approximately five gallons of liquid chlorine.
Positive action was taken by the licentee's emergency response team to prevent
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personnel injuries from the resulting chlorine gas. The licensee has programed a training course to cover the use of protection i
equipment related to chlorine spills. Based upon the corrective actions taken by the licensee, this item is considered closed.
There were no Technical Specification limitations involved in the atmospheric release of the chlorine gas.
b.
The licensee reported to the NRC by telephone on April 14, 1978 and followed with a letter dated April 21, 1978 stating that on April 14,1978 approximately one gallon of hypochlorite was spilled
'and flushed to the site drain system.. For approximately two hours the Technical Specification, Appendix B, Section 2.2 for offsite liquid chlorine effluent release was exceeded. The maximum release was 3.9 mg/l as compared to a Technical Specification limit of 0.2 mg/ liter.
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An examination of the records of the Plan, Review Committee meeting dated April 21, 1978 indicated that the licensee has taken corrective actions to prevent the recurrence of the above situation.
In the future, the fill line from the tank truck will be capped prior to removal from the hypochlorite tank. - All excess hynochlorite in the fill line will be dis-charged into the spray pond.
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Since the licensee identified the noncompliance with the Technical Specifications, made the required notifications in a timely manner, and took the proper corrective actions, a citation was not issued and the situation is considered closed.
c.
The licensee reported to the NRC by telephone on March 6,1978 that the monthly sampling requirement for the Condenser Air Ejector releases was not fulfilled for November and December, 1977. Technical Specification. Appendix B, Table 2.6-2 requires sampling of the Condenser Air Ejector releases on a monthly basis for gamma emitters and tritium. An examina-tion of licensee records disclosed that the licensee has taken appropriate corrective action in.this matter.
It was noted that since the Condenser Air Ejector discharges to the Auxiliary Building stack, which is continuously monitored, that the licensee has submitted a proposed amendment to Tech-nical Specifications (No. 56 on April 12,1978) which would delete the monitoring requirement.
The proposed Amendment No. 56 also requests an additional monitoring requirement be placed in Table 2.6-2, Appendix B, Technical Specifications relative to the Auxiliary Building Exhaust Fan EF-A-9.
About a year ago, the licensee identified this fan as a potential radioactive effluent release path for O'
which monitoring was not being provided. Section 2.6.4.B. of Appendix B, Technical Specifications requires continuous moni-toring for gaseous releases to the environment. The fan is presently in a shutdown condition and will remain in this condition until the monitoring requirement can be fulfilled.
3.
Circular 77-14 Followup An examination of the minutes of the PRC meeting on Feburary 6, 1978 indicated that the licensee has reviewed the complete domestic water system to the plant. Proper separation of potable water supplies from contaminated water sources is provided by the currently installed system. To insure that only potable water is available for the site
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drinking) water, the isolation valve for the service water systemhas been (SWS-064 pling of the service water bgfore the valve is opened. Based upon the action taken by the licensee, this. item is considered closed.
4.
Action on previous Inspection Findings
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The corrective actions taken by the licensee in response to a Region V enforcement letter dated January 11, 1978 were examined.
The licensee's response to that letter, dated January 30, 1978, was acceptable. This item is considered closed.
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Unresolved Items a.
Recent discussions between Region V office and the. Divisian of Operating Reactors indicated that the HEPA filter efficiency limit specified in Technical Specifications for the DOP test relative to the Emergency Control Room Filtering System and the Reactor Building Purge Filtering System would be reduced to 99.0%.
(Reference IE Inspection Report No. 50-312/77-17.)
Since test results were above the proposed limit, this matter is considered to be satisfactorily resolved.
b.
The use of a radiation area monitor as a reactor coolant leak detection system is still being evaluated by DOR. This item remains in an unressived status. ' (Reference IE Inspection Report No. 50-312/77-17.)
6.
heeting with I&C Technicians As a result of a letter received from the Rancho Seco I&C technicians, dated March 3, 1978, a meeting was held with the technicians after normal working hours on March 14, 1978 at the Herald Elementary School in Herald, California. The letter expressed continued concerns of I&C technicians over having to enter the reactor containment during reactor operation to calibrate area monitors.
(See IE Inspection Report No. 50-312/78-01.)' The NRC Region V office was represented by three individuals: the Project Inspector, the Reactor Radiation
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Safety Section Chief, and the Public Affairs Officer.
As a result of the discussions with the technicians, two items were identified which appeared to be within the scope of NRC requirements.
These items concerned the functional testing of the area radiation
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monitors and training of I&C technicians with respect to the emer-gency personnel hatch of the containment.
7.
Followup on Functional Testing of Area Monitors and I&C Technician Training
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a.
During the course of this inspection, both of the above referenced items were examined. The operational records of the area radia-tion monitors were examined for the period of December 1977 to April 1978. All monitors showed an adequate response to the monthly functional testing requirement with the exception of one monitor which had a defectiv'e check sou~v mchanism during the period of December 1977 to February 1977
'ne e. heck source was repaired in March 1978 and the functW4 ir ts wre acceptable for March
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and April 1978.
During this inspection, t6a inspecW oeserved a functional test
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performed on several. area monio es by ad I&C technician. All monitors were working, and the functional tests were observed
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to be acceptable. Some difficulty was experienced in reading the functional test radiation levels when the monitor was reading 10 mr/hr or better.
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Based upon the data obtained from the records and observations of the inspector, this matter is considered closed.
b.
The matter of training for the--I&C technicians in regards to the
use and operation of the emergency personnel hatch of the contain-ment was examined.
I&C technicians are required to perform work in the reactor containment during reactor operation. Several tech-nicians had stated during the March 14 meeting that they were not familiar with, nor received training in the use of the emergency personnel hatch.
10 CFR 19.12 requires licensees to provide instruc-tions to workers in the purposes and functions of protective devices employed.
An examination of the training records and a discussion with the Training Coordinator established that training or instructions in the use and operation of the emergency personnel hatch had not
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been given. The lack of training or instruction was cited as an item of noncompliance with 10 CFR 19.12.
l The Training Coordinator stated that training in the use and operation of the emergency personnel hatch was scheduled to be
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completed by June 1,1978.
8.
Confirmatory Measurements During this inspection, a radioactive liquid sample was obtained
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from the Miscellaneous Waste Tank. The liquid sample was split with the licensee for comparison purposes. A gas sample was obtained from a Gas Decay Tank. A charcoal cartridge and a particulate filter were obtained from the Reactor Building. The data obtained from these samples will be used to verify the results of the licensee's analytical measure-ments program. Results will be reported in a subsequent inspection report.
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9.
Enyhonmental Protection a.
An examination was made of the records pertinent to nonradiological effluents for the period of January - March 1978. The areas examined were maximum discharge temperatures, chiccine releases, dissolved
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solids, PH levels, ' dissolved' oxygen, boran and zinc in the effluent water. All sampling was performed in a timely manner and all results were within Technical S,aecification limitations.
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No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
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An examination was made of the records pertinent to the
.non-radiological environmental surveillance program for the period of January - March 1978. The areas examined were erosion,-
drift contaminants, liquid effluent contaminants, noise, fogging, and reservoir drawdown. All surveillance procedures and sampling were performed in a timely manner and all results and data were acceptable in accordance with Technical Specification limitations.
No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
c.
An examination was made of the records pertinent to the radio-logical environmental monitoring program for the period of
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January - March 1978. The areas examined were the same as those listed in Table 4-1 of the Appendix B, Technical Speci-fication. All sampling was perfomed in a timely manner and all data were less than the reporting requirements specified in the Appendix B Technical Specifications with the exception of the TLD badges on the west perimeter fence.
For the period of July 1977 - March 1978 the west perime.ter fence TLD exceeded the 10 mr/ quarter limitation above the natural background trip point of 27.7 mr/ quarter. A discussion with the licensee indicated that the excessive radiation levels O
were the result of drums of radioactive was:.e material being stored nearby. The licensee stated that'the Plant Review Committee had recommended that'the drums be shipped to a burial ground by the end of January 1978. An examination of the waste disposal records indicated that twenty-eight drums were shipped out during February 1978 and three drums were shipped in March 1972. Approximately 380 curies of radioactive materials were removed from the storage site. The licensee stated that with the removal of the storage drums, the TLD readings should return to normal for the second quarter of 1978.
No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
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10. Tours
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a.
On April 26, 1978, a tour was made of several environmental sampling locations outside the plant site.. All sampling instru-
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mentation were in operation, and all TLD badges were posted. A visit was made to two dairies to observe the collection points of fresh milk. All areas on the tour were acceptable.
No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
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O'n April 27, 1978, a walk-through inspection tour was made in the Auxiliary Building.
Independent radiation surveys were made by the inspector. Two areas were identified that
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were not properly posted in accordance with 10 CFR 20.203.-
The stairway leading.to the Storage Tank Valve Gallery area was not posted with a CAUTION - RADIATION AREA' sign. A radiation survey conducted by the inspector identified ra-diation levels up to 20 mrems/hr in this area. This item was identified as an item of noncompliance with 10 CFR 20.203(b).
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I The second area was the Miscellaneous Waste Filter Room which was identified by the licensee as a SECURED AREA. The room was not posted with a CAUTION - HIGH RADIATION AREA sign. A secured
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area is defined by the licensee as an area with controlled access and radiation levels in excess of 1000 mrems/hr. This item was identified as an item of noncompliance with 10 CFR 20.203(c)(1).
11. Audits a.
An examination of the records indicated that the last semi-annual audit performed by Quality Assurance regarding the en-vironmental program was conducted on December 14-15, 1977 covering the period of July - December 1977. The audit indi-O cated one area needing corrective action.
Item No. 7 of Audit Report 0-162 stated that, " Records indicite that samples were taken on 8/10/77 and 11/8/77 and sulfate values did not exceed 50 ppm. However, the samples were taken and analyzed to AP-306 which is an unreviewed and unapproved procedure."
The use of unauthorized procedures is contrary to Section 5.5.3, Appendix B, of the Technical Specifications. This matter was examined (see Paragraph 12a).
b.
The records also indicated that Quality Assurance performed a Vendor Audit No. 0-59 on March 30, 1976 related to Controls -for Environmental Polution, Inc. (CEP), Santa Fe, New Mexico. CEP,
.Inc. performs analytical measurements of the environmental samples submitted to them by the licensee. The last audit indicated no
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corrective action required. The audit is performed on a three year cycle.
It was confirmed by the licensee by telephone that CEP, Inc.
conducts EPA comparison studies for environmental samples. Results I
of the EPA comparison studies were not examined during this inspection.
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The Type C Audit conducted by the Central Valley Water Quality Control Board on March 14, 1978 was examined. All comments.
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made to the licensee were minor and required only administrative changes.
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No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
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12.
Procedures a.
An examination was made of the procedure for the analysis of sulfates in soil.
For the period ~of 1974 to 1978 the procedure 'eing.used was the one supplied by the vendor of e
the analytical kit. As of January 27, 1978, a new proce-dure for the determination of sulfates in soil was approved as AP-306-IV.
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Based upon the corrective action taken by the licensee to establish an approved procedure for sulfate determinations in soil, a citation relative to Section 5.5.3., Appendix B of the Technical Specifications, was not issued and the item is considered closed.
b.
A new AP-306 Section VIII is being developed,as a basic quality control program in the analytical laboratory.
The new 'section is entitled " Quality Control - Secondary Chemistry, Radiochemistry and Counting Room." The licensee stated that
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the procedure was still in the developmental stage; however, a basic quality control program will be established and approved by June 1, 1978.
No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
13. Reports a.
A review of the licensee's annual Environmental Protection Report, dated February 28, 1978, was made as part of this inspection. The report appeared to be complete. No trends were noted except the increased radiation levels recorded on the TLD badge located on the west perimeter fence.
(See Paragraph 9c for more details). The reporting of environ-mental monitoring data appeared consisteat with the Technical Specification requirements.
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b.
'The monthly reports sent to California Regional Water Quality Control Board (CRWQCB) were examined for the period of
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January - December 1977. The reports appeared to be complete.
No trends were noted.
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No items of noncompliance or deviations were identified.
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14. Exit interview
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In addition to those' individuals denoted in Paragraph 1, the following individuals were in attendance:
P. Oubre, Plant i
Superintendent, Y. Schwieger, Director of Quality Assurance, and W. Ford, Assistant Superintendent of Operations. The
. inspector summarized the scope and findings of the inspection.
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The items of noncompliance were identified and discussed. A discussion was held pertinent to the I&C technicians' concern for the functional testing of the area radiation monitors and the training related to.the emergency personnel hatch in the containment.
(See Paragraph 7 for details.) The use of un-reviewed and unapproved procedures war discussed. The use of the new QC laboratory procedure, AP-306, VIII, was reviewed.
The licensee stated that the new procedure is still in -the developmental stage and would be approved when all the " bugs" have been worked out. The licensee stated that a basic QC program procedure, based on AP-306, VIII, would be completed and approved by June 1, 1978.
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