ML051260337

G20050322/LTR-05-0226 - Diane Curran Ltr Request for Measures to Correct Apparent Illegal Shipment of Plutonium MOX Fuel to Catawba Nuclear Power Plant

ML051260337
Person / Time
Site:	Catawba
Issue date:	05/20/2005
From:	Reyes L NRC/EDO
To:	Curran D Harmon, Curran, Harmon, Curran, Spielberg & Eisenberg, LLP
Martin RE, NRR/DLPM, 415-1493
Shared Package
ML051310157	List: ML051260337
References
G20050322, LTR-05-0226, TAC MC6901, TAC MC6902
Download: ML051260337 (3)

Text

May 20, 2005 Ms. Dianne Curran Harmon, Curran, Spielberg & Eisenberg, LLP 1726 M Street, NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036

Dear Ms. Curran:

I am responding to your letter dated April 12, 2005, on behalf of the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League (BREDL) to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Your letter reviewed recent milestones regarding the use of mixed oxide (MOX) fuel at Duke Powers Catawba Nuclear Station (Catawba), and expressed concerns about whether Duke has met the security-related conditions of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Boards March 10, 2005, decision on the use of MOX fuel.

Since your letter of April 12, 2005, Duke Power issued a press release on April 29, 2005, confirming that Catawba has received the four MOX fuel lead assemblies. The NRC staff confirmed that Duke had complied with the Boards conditions before the fuel arrived at Catawba. Your letter indicates that you had not been notified of Dukes fulfillment of the Boards licensing conditions. There was no requirement in the Boards decision that such information be provided to BREDL.

Your letter asked whether the shipment of the fuel to Catawba represented a security risk to the public. Duke Power, in conjunction with numerous other interested stakeholders in this issue, has made extensive provisions, both within its physical security plan (PSP) and as discussed in the proceedings before the Board, to ensure the physical protection and security of the MOX fuel. The NRC staff has reviewed Dukes PSP and, as reported in the NRC safety evaluation dated May 5, 2004 (ADAMS ML041260544), found Dukes provisions to protect MOX fuel acceptable.

Consistent with the NRC staffs policy of protecting information on physical security issues from inadvertent disclosure to persons who do not have a need to know the information, the NRC staff will not make further details of this issue public. Accordingly, we are providing no further information in this letter on activities that may or may not have been taken by Duke Power or the NRC staff related to this subject.

Ms. Diane Curran In response to the overall issues raised in your letter of April 12, 2005, the NRC staff is not aware of any areas where Duke has not taken the appropriate measures specified by NRC regulatory requirements.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Luis A. Reyes Executive Director for Operations

Ms. Diane Curran In response to the overall issues raised in your letter of April 12, 2005, the NRC staff is not aware of any areas where Duke has not taken the appropriate measures specified by NRC regulatory requirements.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Luis A. Reyes Executive Director for Operations Distribution: G20050322/LTR-05-0226 RidsNrrOd RidsNrrDlpmLpdii GBollwerk RidsNrrAdpt RidsNrrDlpmLpdii1 WTravers, RgnII RidsOgcMail RidsNrrPMSPeters RZimmerman RidsOpaMail RidsNrrPMRMartin JStrosnider RidsOcaMailCenter RidsRgn2MailCenter RidsNrrWpcMail CHawes (Hard Copy)

RidsNrrDlpm RidsEdoMailCenter Package: ML051310157 Incoming: ML051250200 Accession Number: ML051260337 EDO-002 OFFICE PDII-1/PM PDII-1/PM PDII-1/LA PDII-1/SC PDII/D NAME SPeters RMartin CHawes JNakoski EHackett DATE 05/10/05 05/09/05 05/13/05 05/10/05 05/10/05 OFFICE OGC Tech Ed DLPM/D NRR/D EDO NAME KWinsberg PKleene LMarsh JDyer LReyes (RBorchardt for)

DATE 05/10/05 05/11/05 05/13/05 05/17/05 05/20/05 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY