ML061280564

License Amendment, Unit Staff Qualifications Requirements

ML061280564
Person / Time
Site:	Diablo Canyon
Issue date:	05/26/2006
From:	Wang A Plant Licensing Branch III-2
To:	Keenan J Pacific Gas & Electric Co
Wang A
Shared Package
ML061280555	List: ML061280564 ML061500174
References
TAC MC8880, TAC MC8881
Download: ML061280564 (12)

Text

May 26, 2006 Mr. John S. Keenan Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant P.O. Box 770000 San Francisco, CA 94177-0001

SUBJECT:

DIABLO CANYON POWER PLANT, UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENTS RE: UNIT STAFF QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS (MC8880 AND MC8881)

Dear Mr. Keenan:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 187 to Facility Operating License No. DPR-80 and Amendment No. 189 to Facility Operating License No. DPR-82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. The amendments consist of changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated October 19, 2005, as supplemented by letter dated December 23, 2005.

The amendments revise requirements that have been superseded. The revised requirements are based on licensed operator training programs being accredited by the National Academy for Nuclear Training and promulgation of the revised Part 55 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), "Operators' Licenses," which became effective on May 26, 1987. In addition, the proposed changes remove the non-licensed staff retraining and replacement training program requirements which have been superseded by requirements contained in 10 CFR 50.120.

A copy of the related Safety Evaluation is enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commission's next regular biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Alan Wang, Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch IV Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-275 and 50-323

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 187 to DPR-80

2. Amendment No. 189 to DPR-82

3. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: See next page

May 26, 2006 Mr. John S. Keenan Senior Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer Pacific Gas and Electric Company Diablo Canyon Power Plant P.O. Box 770000 San Francisco, CA 94177-0001

SUBJECT:

DIABLO CANYON POWER PLANT, UNIT NOS. 1 AND 2 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENTS RE: UNIT STAFF QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS (MC8880 AND MC8881)

Dear Mr. Keenan:

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 187 to Facility Operating License No. DPR-80 and Amendment No. 189 to Facility Operating License No. DPR-82 for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Unit Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. The amendments consist of changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated October 19, 2005, as supplemented by letter dated December 23, 2005.

The amendments revise requirements that have been superseded. The revised requirements are based on licensed operator training programs being accredited by the National Academy for Nuclear Training and promulgation of the revised Part 55 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), "Operators' Licenses," which became effective on May 26, 1987. In addition, the proposed changes remove the non-licensed staff retraining and replacement training program requirements which have been superseded by requirements contained in 10 CFR 50.120.

A copy of the related Safety Evaluation is enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commission's next regular biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Alan Wang, Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch IV Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-275 and 50-323

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 187 to DPR-80

2. Amendment No. 189 to DPR-82

3. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: See next page DISTRIBUTION: LPLIV Reading RidsNrrDorlDpr PUBLIC RidsNrrLALFeizollahi GHill (4)

RidsNrrDorl (CHaney/CHolden) RidsOgcRp KMartin, NRR/ADRO RidsNrrDorlLpl4 (DTerao) RidsAcrsAcnwMailCenter RPelton, NRR/ADRO RidsNrrPMAWang RidsRegion4MailCenter (BJones)

ACCESSION NO.: ML061280564 Pkg No: ML061280555 TS No: ML061500174 OFFICE NRR/LPL4/PM NRR/LPL4/LA NRR/IOLB/BC OGC NRR/LPL4/BC NAME AWang;mxr4 LFeizollahi NKeefe AHodgdon DTerao DATE 5/25/06 5/25/06 5/1/06 5/22/06 5/25/06 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY DOCKET NO. 50-275 DIABLO CANYON NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, UNIT NO. 1 AMENDMENT TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 187 License No. DPR-80

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (the licensee) dated October 19, 2005, as supplemented by letter dated December 23, 2005, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D. The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

2. Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, and paragraph 2.C.(2) of Facility Operating License No. DPR-80 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A and the Environmental Protection Plan contained in Appendix B, as revised through Amendment No. 187 , are hereby incorporated in the license. Pacific Gas and Electric Company shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications and the Environmental Protection Plan, except where otherwise stated in specific license conditions.

3. This license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance, and shall be implemented within 90 days of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

David Terao, Chief Plant Licensing Branch IV Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: May 26, 2006

PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY DOCKET NO. 50-323 DIABLO CANYON NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, UNIT NO. 2 AMENDMENT TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 189 License No. DPR-82

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (the licensee) dated October 19, 2005, as supplemented by letter dated December 23, 2005, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D. The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

2. Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, and paragraph 2.C.(2) of Facility Operating License No. DPR-82 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A and the Environmental Protection Plan contained in Appendix B, as revised through Amendment No. 189, are hereby incorporated in the license. Pacific Gas and Electric Company shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications and the Environmental Protection Plan, except where otherwise stated in specific license conditions.

3. This license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance, and shall be implemented within 90 days of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

David Terao, Chief Plant Licensing Branch IV Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: May 26, 2006

ATTACHMENT TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 187 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-80 AND AMENDMENT NO. 189 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-82 DOCKET NOS. 50-275 AND 50-323 Replace the following page of the Appendix A Technical Specifications with the attached revised page. The revised page is identified by an amendment number and contains a marginal line indicating the area of change.

REMOVE INSERT 5.0-4 5.0-4

SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION RELATED TO AMENDMENT NO. 187 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-80 AND AMENDMENT NO. 189 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. DPR-82 PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC COMPANY DIABLO CANYON POWER PLANT, UNITS 1 AND 2 DOCKET NOS. 50-275 AND 50-323

1.0 INTRODUCTION

By application dated October 19, 2005 (Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML053010152), as supplemented by letter dated December 23, 2005 (ADAMS Accession No. ML060050325), Pacific Gas and Electric Company (or the licensee) requested changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs, Appendix A to Facility Operating License Nos. DPR-80 and DPR-82) for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2 (DCPP).

The proposed amendments would revise the DCPP TS Section 5.3, "Unit Staff Qualifications."

Specifically, the proposed changes that are based on licensed operator training programs being accredited by the National Academy for Nuclear Training and promulgation of the revised Part 55 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), "Operators' Licenses," which became effective on May 26, 1987, would revise the requirements that have been superseded.

In addition, the proposed changes remove the non-licensed staff retraining and replacement training program requirements, which have been superseded by requirements contained in 10 CFR 50.120, "Training and qualification of nuclear power plant personnel."

The additional information provided in the supplemental letter dated December 23, 2005, did not expand the scope of the application as originally noticed in the Federal Register on December 20, 2005 (70 FR 75495).

2.0 REGULATORY EVALUATION

On March 20, 1985, the NRC issued the Commission Policy Statement on Training and Qualification of Nuclear Power Plant Personnel, which endorsed the National Academy for Nuclear Training (NANT) and the training accreditation process. In Generic Letter 87-07, "Information Transmittal of Final Rulemaking for Revisions to Operator Licensing - 10 CFR 55 and Conforming Amendments," dated March 19,1987, and in NUREG-1262, "Answers to Questions at Public Meetings Regarding Implementation of Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 55 on Operators' Licenses," published November 1987, the NRC indicated it would accept a facilitys licensed operator training program if the facility certified in writing that the program was accredited and based on a systems approach to training (SAT). This certification would supersede the requirements of American National Standards Institute

(ANSI) N18.1-1971, "Selection and Training of Nuclear Power Plant Personnel," and ANSI/American Nuclear Society (ANS) 3.1-1978, "Selection, Qualification and Training of Personnel for Nuclear Power Plants." Facility licensees were advised to submit a request to the NRC for an administrative change to their licensing documents to revise or delete, as appropriate, the requirements that had been superseded.

In 1992, the NRC published its proposed rule 10 CFR 50.120, "Training and qualification of nuclear power plant personnel." The proposed rule stated that, if adopted, the rule would supersede the Policy Statement on training and qualification of nuclear power plant personnel and would not result in any change to accredited programs. The Commission concluded that accredited programs, implemented consistent with industry objectives and criteria, would be in compliance with this regulation. In April 1993, the NRC published its final rule on training and qualification of nuclear power plant personnel. The rule requires nuclear power plant licensees to establish, implement, and maintain SAT-based training programs for nine non-licensed positions. Accreditation of these nine training programs is an acceptable means of meeting the requirements of 10 CFR 50.120.

On January 18, 2001, the NRC published NRC Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) 2001-01, "Eligibility of Operator License Applicants," to familiarize licensees with the NRC's current guidelines for the qualification and training of reactor operator and senior operator license applicants. RIS 2001-01 acknowledged that 10 CFR 55.31(a)(4) allows the NRC to accept an application for an operators license if the facility licensee certifies that the applicant has successfully completed a Commission-approved training program that is based on a systems approach to training. In addition, RIS 2001-01 stated that: (1) a training program would be considered approved by the NRC when it received or renewed accreditation from the National Nuclear Accrediting Board (NNAB); (2) accreditation of operator training programs suggests that facilities are implementing the education and experience guidelines endorsed by the NNAB; (3) NANT guidelines for education and experience (those in effect in 1987 or those issued in January 2000) outline acceptable methods for implementing the Commission's regulations; and (4) the staff encourages all facility licensees to review their requirements and commitments related to licensed operator and senior operator education and experience and to update their documentation (e.g., Final Safety Analysis Report, Technical Specifications, and training program descriptions) to enhance consistency and minimize confusion."

3.0 TECHNICAL EVALUATION

The proposed revision will update the licensed operator qualification requirements that have been outdated. The updated licensed operator qualification requirements are based on licensed operator training programs being accredited by the NANT and by promulgation of the revised 10 CFR Part 55, "Operators' Licenses." The proposed changes conform to the current requirements of 10 CFR Part 55.

In the application, the licensee states that DCPP uses the SAT methodology for non-licensed staff training programs. Non-licensed staff training programs are accredited by the NANT and, therefore, are in compliance with 10 CFR 50.120. Specifying requirements for non-licensed personnel training programs in 10 CFR 50.120 obviates the need to further specify requirements in the TSs. As a result, the NRC staff concludes that deleting the TS retraining

and replacement training requirements for non-licensed staff is acceptable, as the requirements governing the training and retraining of non-licensed personnel are contained in 10 CFR 50.120.

The NRC staff concludes that the revised licensed operator qualification requirements and the non-licensed staff training and retraining programs in TS Section 5.3 are adequate as they conform with licensed operator eligibility criteria, the training and qualification requirements of 10 CFR 50.120, and standards acceptable to the NRC.

Based on the above discussion, the NRC staff finds that the revised DCPP TS Section 5.3, "Unit Staff Qualifications," is consistent with 10 CFR Part 55 and 10 CFR 50.120, does not adversely affect nuclear safety or plant operations, and provides adequate requirements to assure an acceptable and competent operating staff. Each member of the DCPP staff is required to meet or exceed the minimum qualifications of specific Regulatory Guides or ANSI Standards acceptable to the NRC staff.

4.0 STATE CONSULTATION

In accordance with the Commission's regulations, the California State official was notified of the proposed issuance of the amendments. The State official had no comments.

5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATION

The amendments relate to changes in recordkeeping, reporting, or administrative procedures or requirements. Accordingly, the amendments meet the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(10). Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b), no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the issuance of the amendments.

6.0 CONCLUSION

The Commission has concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that: (1) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, (2) such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations, and (3) the issuance of the amendments will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.

Principal Contributors: R. Pelton K. Martin Date: May 26, 2006

Diablo Canyon Power Plant, Units 1 and 2 cc:

NRC Resident Inspector Richard F. Locke, Esq.

Diablo Canyon Power Plant Pacific Gas & Electric Company c/o U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission P.O. Box 7442 P.O. Box 369 San Francisco, CA 94120 Avila Beach, CA 93424 City Editor Sierra Club San Lucia Chapter The Tribune ATTN: Andrew Christie 3825 South Higuera Street P.O. Box 15755 P.O. Box 112 San Luis Obispo, CA 93406 San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0112 Ms. Nancy Culver Director, Radiologic Health Branch San Luis Obispo State Department of Health Services Mothers for Peace P.O. Box 997414, MS 7610 P.O. Box 164 Sacramento, CA 95899-7414 Pismo Beach, CA 93448 Mr. James D. Boyd, Commissioner Chairman California Energy Commission San Luis Obispo County 1516 Ninth Street (MS 31)

Board of Supervisors Sacramento, CA 95814 1055 Monterey Street, Suite D430 San Luis Obispo, CA 93408 Mr. James R. Becker, Vice President Diablo Canyon Operations Mr. Truman Burns and Station Director Mr. Robert Kinosian Diablo Canyon Power Plant California Public Utilities Commission P.O. Box 56 505 Van Ness, Room 4102 Avila Beach, CA 93424 San Francisco, CA 94102 Jennifer Tang Diablo Canyon Independent Safety Field Representative Committee United States Senator Barbara Boxer ATTN: Robert R. Wellington, Esq. 1700 Montgomery Street, Suite 240 Legal Counsel San Francisco, CA 94111 857 Cass Street, Suite D Monterey, CA 93940 Regional Administrator, Region IV U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Harris Tower & Pavillion 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400 Arlington, TX 76011-8064 March 2006