Information Notice 1992-08, Revised Protective Action Guidance for Nuclear Incidents

Revised Protective Action Guidance for Nuclear Incidents

ML031200730
Person / Time
Site:	Beaver Valley, Millstone, Hatch, Monticello, Calvert Cliffs, Dresden, Davis Besse, Peach Bottom, Browns Ferry, Salem, Oconee, Mcguire, Nine Mile Point, Palisades, Palo Verde, Perry, Indian Point, Fermi, Kewaunee, Catawba, Harris, Wolf Creek, Saint Lucie, Point Beach, Oyster Creek, Watts Bar, Hope Creek, Grand Gulf, Cooper, Sequoyah, Byron, Pilgrim, Arkansas Nuclear, Three Mile Island, Braidwood, Susquehanna, Summer, Prairie Island, Columbia, Seabrook, Brunswick, Surry, Limerick, North Anna, Turkey Point, River Bend, Vermont Yankee, Crystal River, Haddam Neck, Ginna, Diablo Canyon, Callaway, Vogtle, Waterford, Duane Arnold, Farley, Robinson, Clinton, South Texas, San Onofre, Cook, Comanche Peak, Yankee Rowe, Maine Yankee, Quad Cities, Humboldt Bay, La Crosse, Big Rock Point, Rancho Seco, Zion, Midland, Bellefonte, Fort Calhoun, FitzPatrick, McGuire, LaSalle, Fort Saint Vrain, Shoreham, Satsop, Trojan, Atlantic Nuclear Power Plant
Issue date:	01/23/1992
From:	Cunningham R NRC/NMSS/IMNS
To:
References
IN-92-008, NUDOCS 9201160195
Download: ML031200730 (10)

UNITED STATES

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY AND SAFEGUARDS

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555 January 23, 1992 NRC INFORMATION NOTICE NO. 92-08: REVISED PROTECTIVE ACTION GUIDANCE FOR

NUCLEAR INCIDENTS

Addressees

All fuel cycle and materials licensees authorized to possess large quantities

of radioactive material.

Purpose

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this information

notice to notify addressees of recent revisions to the U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA) Manual of Protective Action Guides and Protective

Actions for Nuclear Incidents (PAG Manual). It is expected that recipients

will review the information for applicability to their operations and consider

actions, as appropriate, to update emergency response procedures. Suggestions

contained in this information notice are not new NRC requirements, and no

written response is required.

Description of Circumstances

On October 15, 1991, EPA revised Chapters 1, 2, and 5, -and added a new

Appendix C to its PAG Manual. The EPA's transmittal letter to emergency

response planners is attached. EPA revised this manual to incorporate new

dose units and to expand the scope of the manual to include nonreactor

facilities, although the primary focus of the manual is still nuclear power

reactors.

Discussion

The revisions update the PAG Manual in several important ways. The most

important revision is the use of committed effective dose equivalent units, to

express the protective action guides, instead of using whole-body dose units.

This revision allows the use of a total dose that includes: 1) external ex- posure from airborne radioactive material; 2) internal exposure from inhaled

airborne radioactive material; and 3) external exposure from radioactive

materials deposited on the ground.

Another important revision clarifies what offsite protective actions are most

suitable. EPA emphasizes that, for most incidents, under normal conditions, evacuation of the public should be initiated at a projected dose of 1 rem.

Sheltering the public may be used as an alternative to evacuation, under

certain circumstances.

9201160195A

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IN 92-08 I

January 23, 11992 An important factor to consider when preparing for an emergency is that most

incidents involving radioactive materials at nonreactor facilities are likely

to occur quickly and with little warning. Therefore, any necessary offsite

protective actions must be taken quickly to be effective. Usually, there will

not be enough time for complicated dose projections or lengthy consultations, during an incident. Licensees should be prepared to recommend offsite

protective actions to local officials immediately after an incident occurs.

This can only be accomplished by evaluating potential consequences during the

planning process and having preliminary recommendations for offsite protective

actions ready for use before an incident occurs.

Chapter 2 of the PAG Manual also provides guidance for controlling doses to

emergency workers onsite and should be discussed with those offsite emergency

workers (i.e., firemen, etc.) likely to respond to your facility during an

emergency.

Requests for copies of the PAG Manual can be directed to Allan C.B. Richardson

(ANR-460), Office of Radiation Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response. If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact one

of the technical contacts listed below or the appropriate regional office.

/dL Ace, Richard E. Cunningham, Director

Division of Industrial and

Medical Nuclear Safety

Office of Nuclear Material Safety

and Safeguards

Technical contacts: Kevin M. Ramsey, Nl:SS

(301) 504-2534 W. Scott Pennington, NFISS

(301) 504-2693 Attachments:

1. Letter from EPA Announcing Revision of the PAG Manual

2. List of Recently Issued NMSS Information Notices

3. List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

Attachment 1 IN 92-08 January 23. 1992 ,50 sots'.

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20480

OCT I 5 1991 OFFICE OF

AIR AI0 RADIATION

Dear Emergency Response Planner:

Enclosed are revised pages for your copy of the Manual of

Protective Action Guides and Protective Actions for Nuclear

Incidents. This Manual provides the Environmental Protection

Agency's (EPA) recommendations, pursuant to the Federal Emergency

Management Agency's regulations under 44 CFR Part 351, for the

levels of radiation exposure at which action should be taken to

protect members of the public in the event of a nuclear accident.

These revisions replace the 1980 versions of Chapters 1, 2 and 5, which were reprinted and distributed in February 1990, and add a

new Appendix C. The balance of the Manual, which contains the

Protective Action Guides (PAGs) for relocation and a reprint of

"Recommendations for Accidental Radioactive Contamination of

Human Food and Animal Feeds," published by the Food and Drug

Administration (FDA) in 1982, should be retained as is. Previous

versions of the Title Page, Preface, and Table of Contents should

also be discarded and replaced by the enclosed new versions. If

you do not have the complete manual, please advise us, and we

will send you a new copy.

These new Chapters update the 1980 Guidance for the early

phase of a nuclear incident in several important ways. First, they adopt current health physics practice for dose units. The

principal PAG for protection against an airborne radioactive

plume is now expressed in terms of the committed effective dose, rather than the previous whole body dose. This more general unit

encompasses the risks from all radionuclides, and the PAG now

addresses doses from all significant pathways. Chapter 5 contains extensive new tables which address important pathways

for all of the radionuclides that are likely to be significant at

nuclear incidents, for both commercial and Federal facilities.

Second, we have clarified the language regarding use of the

PAG range. Guidance for protective actions is, we believe, most

useful when the complexity of judgments required of decision- makers at the time of an incident is minimized. The guidance

clarifies that the upper end of the PAG range is intended for use

to accommodate special groups in the population and abnormal

circumstances present at the time of an incident. It is not

intended to accommodate differing views on the level of risk from

a given dose, or on the risk level at which protective action

should be initiated under normal circumstances. Finally, the

Attachment 1 IN 92- 08 January 23 , 1992 2 limits for workers exposed during the response to an incident

have been refined.

These revised recommendations are intended to be phased into

use in an orderly fashion. In the case of Nuclear Regulatory

commission (NRC) licensees, a period of time consistent with

their implementation of the new 10 CFR Part 20 regulations is

envisioned. The NRC will be advising its licensees, in due

course, on appropriate steps to carry this out. At that time, the State emergency management agency and the State agency

responsible for radiological protection should jointly work with

NRC and their licensees to ensure a coordinated implementation.

In the meantime, plans and procedures developed based on current

guidance are acceptable. It is anticipated that the substantive

change to most plans developed using the current guidance will be

to the dose projection methodology, and revision to other major

planning provisions will not be required at most of NRC's

licensed facilities. In the case of Federal facilities, these

recommendations are appropriate for use in any new, or at the

time of revision of any existing, emergency response plans.

It is our hope that these expanded and updated

recommendations will prove useful in implementing your emergency

response functions. We will appreciate you advising us of your

experience in applying these recommendations, including any

problems encountered. We are continuing work to develop PAGs for

drinking water and, in cooperation with FDA, revised PAGs for

food. When this development is completed, and one or two years

experience has been gained in the application of these

recommendations, EPA intends to propose all of these PAGs to the

President for formal incorporation into Federal Radiation

Protection Guidance. In this sense, these current PAGs must

still be regarded as interim recommendations. Requests for

additional copies of the PAG Manual, and any questions regarding

this revised Protective Action Guidance should be directed to

Allan C.B. Richardson (ANR-460), Office of Radiation Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460.

Sincerely, Marg' T. Oge

Ac tng Directi Office of

Radiation Programs

Enclosures

Attachment 2 IN 92-08 January 23, 1992 LIST OF RECENTLY ISSUED

NKSS INFORMATION; NOTICES

Information Date of

Subject Issuance Issued to

Notice No.

New Reporting Requirements 12/27/91 All licensees authorized

91-86 to use byproduct materials

for Contamination Events at

Medical Facilities for human use.

(10 CFR 30.50)

Problems with Criticality 12/26/91 All Nuclear Regulatory

91-84 Coamission (NRC) fuel

Alarm Components/Systems

cycle licensees, interim

spent fuel storage licens- ees, and critical mass

licensees.

Training and Supervision 11/12/91 All IfiC r.iecic4l licensees.

91-71 of Individuals Supervised

by an Authorized User d

(1) Erroneous Data in 10/18/91 All fuel cycle licensees,

91-66 critical LAss licensees,

• Nuclear Safety Guide, TID-7016, Revision 2, interim spent fuel storage

(NUREG/CR-0095, ORAL/ licensees, and all holders

of operating licenses or

NUREG/CSD-6 (1978)) arn construction permits for

(2) Thermal Scattering

Data Limitation in the test, research, and nuclear

Cross-Section Sets Provided power reactors.

with the KENO and SCALE Codes

10/16/91 All NRC licensees.

91-65 Emergency Access to

Low-Level Radioactive

Waste Disposal Facilities

False Alarms of Alarm 09/24/91 All Nuclear Regulatory Com-

91-60 mission (NRC) licensees

Ratemeters Because of authorized to use sealed

Radiofrequency Interference sources for industrial

radiography

0&/15/91 All Nuclear Regulatory Com-

91-49 Enforcement of Safety mission (NRC) licensees

Requirements for Radiographers authorized to use sealed

sources for industrial radi- ography.

.Attachment 3 IN 92.08 ..

January.23, 1992 Page. 1 of 1 LIST OF RECENTLY ISSUED

NRC INFORMATION NOTICES

Information Date of

Notice No. Subject Issuance Issued to

92-07 Rapid Flow-Induced Erosion/- 01/09/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

Corrosion of Feedwater Piping for pressurized water

reactors.

92-06 Reliability of ATWS Mitiga- 01/15/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

tion System and Other NRC for nuclear power reactor:

Required Equipment Not

Controlled by Plant Tech- nical Specifications

92-05 Potential Coil Insulation 01/08/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

Breakdown in ABB RXMH2 Relays for nuclear power reactors

92-04 Potter & Brumfield Model 01/06/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

MDR Rotary Relay Failures for nuclear power reactors

92-03 Remote Trip Function 01/06/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

Failures in General Electric for nuclear power reactors

F-Frame Molded-Case Circuit

Breakers

92-02 Relap5/Mod3 Computer Code 01/03/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

Error Associated with the for nuclear power reactors.

Conservation of Energy

Equation

92-01 Cable Damage Caused by 01/03/92 All holders of OLs or CPs

Inadequate Cable Installa- for nuclear power reactors.

tion Procedures and Controls

91-87 Hydrogen Enbrittlement of 12/27/91 All holders of OLs ur CPs

Raychem Cryofit Couplings for nuclear power reactors.

91-86 New Reporting Requirements 12/27/91 All licensees authorized

for Contamination Events at to use byproduct materials

Medical Facilities for human use.

(10 CFR 30.50)

OL = Operating License

CP = Construction Permit.

IN 92-08 January 23, 1992 An important factor to consider when preparing for an emergency is that most

incidents involving radioactive materials at nonreactor facilities are likely

to occur quickly and with little warning. Therefore, any necessary offsite

protective actions must be taken quickly to be effective. Usually, there will

not be enough time for complicated dose projections or lengthy consultations, during an incident. Licensees should be prepared to recommend offsite

protective actions to local officials immediately after an incident occurs.

This can only be accomplished by evaluating potential consequences during the

planning process and having preliminary recommendations for offsite protective

actions ready for use before an incident occurs.

Chapter 2 of the PAG Manual also provides guidance for controlling doses to

emergency workers onsite and should be discussed with those offsite emergency

workers (i.e., firemen, etc.) likely to respond to your facility during an

emergency.

Requests for copies of the PAG Manual can be directed to Allan C.B. Richardson

(ANR-460), Office of Radiation Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response. If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact one

of the technical contacts listed below or the appropriate regional office.

.0ginalsigned by jyohv fi-fiM k- Richard E. Cunningham, Directb

Division of Industrial and

Medical Nuclear Safety

Office of Nuclear Material Safety

and Safeguards

Technical contacts: Kevin M. Ramsey, NMSS

(301) 504-2534 W. Scott Pennington, NMSS

(301) 504-2693 Attachments:

1. Letter from EPA Announcing Revision of the PAG Manual

2. List of Recently Issued NMSS Information Notices

3. List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

Editor/NMSS

EKraus

1/09/92 OFC :IMOB :IMOB :IMOB :IMSB :IMNS :IMNS

_ - _ - __- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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NAME :KRamsey/ll :CTrottier :JGrobe :JHickey  :,4000fyo :RECunningham:

- - - - - - -

-____________ - - - -____________

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_____

DATE :1/14/92 :1/14/92 :1/14/92 :1/15/92 :1/ /92 :1/15/92 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

IN 92-08

IN 92- January , 1992 An important factor to consider when preparing for an emergency is that most

incidents involving radioactive materials at nonreactor facilities are likely

to occur quickly and with little warning. Therefore, any necessary offsite

protective actions must be taken quickly to be effective. Usually, there will

not be enough time for complicated dose projections or lengthy consultations, during an incident. Licensees should be prepared to recommend offsite

protective actions to local officials irmiediately after an incident occurs.

This can only be accomplished by evaluating potential consequences during the

planning process and having preliminary recommendations for offsite protective

actions ready for use before an incident occurs.

Chapter 2 of the PAG Manual also provides guidance for controlling doses to

emergency workers onsite and should be discussed with those offsite emergency

workers (i.e., firemen, etc.) likely to respond to your facility during an

emergency.

Requests for copies of the PAG Manual can be directed to Allan C.B. Richardson

(ANR-460), Office of Radiation Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response. If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact one

of the technical contacts listed below or the appropriate regional office.

Richard E. Cunningham, Director

Division of Industrial and

Medical Nuclear Safety, NMSS

Technical Contacts: Kevin M. Ramsey, NMSS

(301) 504-2534 W. Scott Pennington, NMSS

(301) 504-2693 Attachments:

1. Letter from EPA Announcing Revision of the PAG Manual

2. List of Recently Issued NMSS Information Notices

3. List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

Editor/NMSS

EKraus

1/09/92 OFC :IMOB

NAME :KRamsey/ll

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DATE :1/14/92 :1/ lf/92 1/14/92 :1//i/92 :1/ /9 :1/1-192 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

IN/NUCLEAR INCIDENTS

IN 92- January , 1992 Page 3 of

Requests for copies of the PAG Manual can be directed to Allan C.B. Richardson

(ANR-460), Office of Radiation Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20 O.

This information notice\.requires no specific action or written response. If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please con t one I

of the technical contacts listed below or the appropriate regional office.

Richard E. Cunningham, Director

\ Division of Industrial and

Medical Nuclear Safety, NMSS

Technical Contacts: Kevin M. Ramsey-* NMSS

(301) 504-2534 X

W. Scott Penningto n NMSS

(301) 504-2693 Attachments:

1. Letter from EPA Announcing Revision of the\PAG Manual

2. List of Recently Issued NMSS Information No~tices

3. List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

Ed& NMSS

EK1It/9

1/q /92 OFC :IMOB :IMOB :IMOB :IMSB :IMNS :IMNS  :

____ _ __- _______- ______- __-__ __- _____- _______- __- ____- ________________________ __________

NAME :KRamsey/ll :CTrottier :CJones :JHickey :JGreeves :RECunningham:

_ - __

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____________ ____________ ___________

DATE :1/ /92 :1/ /92 :1/ /92 :1/ /92 :1/ /92 :1/ /92 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

IN/NUCLEAR INCIDENTS

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