ML080660048

Exemption from the Requirements of 10 CFR Part 74, Sec. 74.19(c)

ML080660048
Person / Time
Site:	McGuire
Issue date:	03/19/2008
From:	Stang J NRC/NRR/ADRO/DORL/LPLII-1
To:	Brandi Hamilton Duke Power Co
Stang J, NRR/DORL, 415-1345
Shared Package
ML080660040	List: ML080660048
References
TAC MD8013, FOIA/PA-2011-0148, FOIA/PA-2011-0137
Download: ML080660048 (10)

Text

March 19, 2008 Mr. Bruce H. Hamilton Vice President McGuire Nuclear Station Duke Power Company LLC 12700 Hagers Ferry Road Huntersville, NC 28078

SUBJECT:

MCGUIRE NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1, EXEMPTION FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF TITLE 10 OF THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (10 CFR), PART 74, SECTION 74.19(c), (TAC NO. MD8013)

Dear Mr. Hamilton:

The Commission has approved the enclosed exemption from specific requirements of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Part 74, Section 74.19(c), for the McGuire Nuclear Station, Unit 1 (McGuire Unit 1). This action is in response to your application dated December 3, 2007. You requested an exemption from the requirement to conduct a physical inventory for loose fuel pellets that were recovered and placed within the pellet can located in the McGuire Unit 1 spent fuel pool storage racks.

A copy of the exemption is enclosed. The exemption has been forwarded to the Office of the Federal Register for publication.

Sincerely,

/RA/

John Stang, Senior Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch II-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-369

Enclosure:

Exemption cc w/encl: See next page

March 19, 2008 Mr. Bruce H. Hamilton Vice President McGuire Nuclear Station Duke Power Company LLC 12700 Hagers Ferry Road Huntersville, NC 28078

SUBJECT:

MCGUIRE NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1, EXEMPTION FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF TITLE 10 OF THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (10 CFR), PART 74, SECTION 74.19(c), (TAC NO. MD8013)

Dear Mr. Hamilton:

The Commission has approved the enclosed exemption from specific requirements of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Part 74, Section 74.19(c), for the McGuire Nuclear Station, Unit 1 (McGuire Unit 1). This action is in response to your application dated December 3, 2007. You requested an exemption from the requirement to conduct a physical inventory for loose fuel pellets that were recovered and placed within the pellet can located in the McGuire Unit 1 spent fuel pool storage racks.

A copy of the exemption is enclosed. The exemption has been forwarded to the Office of the Federal Register for publication.

Sincerely,

/RA/

John Stang, Senior Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch II-1 Division of Operating Reactor Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-369

Enclosure:

Exemption cc w/encl: See next page DISTRIBUTION: Public RidsAcrsAcnwMailCenter RidsOgcRp LPL2-1 R/F RidsNrrDorlDpr JMarshall, NMSS RidsNrrPMJStang RidsRgn2MailCenter (JMoorman) RidsNmssMKelly RidsNmssTPham RidsNrrLAMO=Brien (hard copy) MCox, EDO Rgn II RidsNrrOd RidsNrrAdes RidsNrrDorlLpl2-1 (MWong)

Package No. ML080660040 Environmental Assessment No. ML080660043 Exemption No.: ML080660048 *SE transmitted by Memo dated OFFICE NRR/LPL2-1/PM Tech Editor NRR/LPL2-1/LA NMSS/MC&A/BC NRR/LPL2-1/ABC DORL/D OGC NRR/ADRO/AD NRR/D NAME JStang CHsu MOBrien JMarshall* MWong CHaney APessin BBoger JDyer DATE 3/7/08 03/13 /08 3/7/08 02/27/08 3/17/08 3/19/08 03/14/08 3/18/08 3/19/08 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

McGuire Nuclear Station, Units 1 & 2 cc:

Vice President Assistant Attorney General McGuire Nuclear Station NC Department of Justice Duke Power Company, LLC P.O. Box 629 12700 Hagers Ferry Road Raleigh, NC 27602 Huntersville, NC 28078 Manager Associate General Counsel and Managing Nuclear Regulatory Issues &

Attorney Industry Affairs Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC Duke Energy Corporation 526 South Church Street - EC07H 526 S. Church St.

Charlotte, North Carolina 28202 Mail Stop EC05P Charlotte, NC 28202 County Manager of Mecklenburg County 720 E. Fourth St. Division of Radiation Protection Charlotte, NC 28202 NC Dept of Environment, Health & Natural Resources Regulatory Compliance Manager 3825 Barrett Dr.

Duke Energy Corporation Raleigh, NC 27609-7721 McGuire Nuclear Site 12700 Hagers Ferry Road Owners Group (NCEMC)

Huntersville, NC 28078 Duke Energy Corporation 4800 Concord Road Senior Resident Inspector York, SC 29745 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 12700 Hagers Ferry Road Group Vice President, Nuclear Generation Huntersville, NC 28078 & Chief Nuclear Officer P.O. Box 1006-EC07H Mecklenburg County Charlotte, NC 28201-1006 Department of Environmental Protection 700 N. Tryon St Senior Counsel Charlotte, NC 28202 Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC 526 South Church Street - EC07H Vice President Charlotte, NC 28202 Customer Relations and Sales Westinghouse Electric Company 6000 Fairview Road, 12th Floor Charlotte, NC 28210 NCEM REP Program Manager 4713 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-4713

7590-01-P UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION DUKE POWER COMPANY, LLC MCGUIRE NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 DOCKET NO. 50-369 EXEMPTION

1.0 BACKGROUND

Duke Power Company, LLC (the licensee) is the holder of Facility Operating License No. NPF- 9 which authorizes operation of the McGuire Nuclear Station, Unit 1 (McGuire 1). The license provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) now or hereafter in effect.

The facility consists of a pressurized-water reactor located in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

In 1986, the licensee found a fuel assembly (D03) to have been damaged, and this resulted in fuel pellets being released from some of the assemblys fuel rods. At that time, the licensee vacuumed the loose fuel pellets and placed, them along with the vacuum filters, in a pellet-can specifically fabricated onsite with readily available material (at the time of the event, commercial containers were not available to store the recovered material). A metal plate was placed on top of the filters, and the pellet-can was placed into a storage cell in the McGuire 1 spent fuel pool (SFP).

The pellet-can is approximately 12 feet in length. The bottom portion is constructed of metal plates welded together in the form of a rectangular can. The top portion consists of four

right-angled metal bars welded to the bottom portion of the pellet-can. These four right-angled metal bars extend the entire length of the pellet-can. To close off the open area of the top portion of the pellet-can, a steel mesh screen was tack-welded to the metal bars. At the top of the pellet-can, two bolt studs were welded in opposite corners. To move the pellet can, two wire ropes are used to snag the bolt studs.

Since the initial placement into the SFP in 1986, the pellet-can has not been moved or lifted until the licensee conducted a physical inventory in 2007. During the 2007 inventory, the pellet-can was moved to a low dose area in the SFP in order to take radiation readings of the pellet-can. Since the loose pellets in the pellet-can are not visible, an underwater radiation detector was used to acquire dose rate measurements as part of the 2007 physical inventory.

The results of this verification provided an indirect means of determining the presence of fuel pellet material within the pellet-can. High dose rate measurements provided confirmation of fuel pellet material within the pellet-can. Although this method is not capable of precisely determining the exact number of pellets, the results indicate multiple pellets within the pellet-can, potentially as many as five or six.

During the 2007 physical inventory, the licensee also conducted a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can, which showed that its contents had not been disturbed. The video inspection also showed a plate and small segments of the filter medium around the edges of the plate. This configuration appears consistent with the description of the pellet-can contents as provided by personnel involved with the 1986 incident and the station records from that time.

The loose pellets and fuel fragments within the pellet-can have always been treated as Special Nuclear Material (SNM).

When moved during the 2007 physical inventory, the licensee observed degradation of the pellet-can. During handling, removal of the steel mesh screen was necessary, since it was partially unattached, leaving the top portion of the pellet-can open. The following are pictures of

the pellet-can:

Pellet-can stored in SFP storage cell Attaching wire ropes to move pellet-can Inside bottom of pellet-can Outside bottom portion of pellet-can In order to take radiation readings of the pellet-can, the licensee must again move the pellet-can to a low dose area in the SFP. Due to the method used to handle the pellet-can and the pellet-cans degradation, there is a possible risk of dropping fuel pellets. Instead of utilizing a radiation monitor, the licensee is requesting the use of a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can to verify that its contents have not been disturbed since the previous inspection.

2.0 REQUEST/ACTION Pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulation (10 CFR), Part 74 Section 74.7, Specific Exemptions, by application dated December 3, 2007 (Agencywide Documents Access

and Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML073450887), the licensee requested an exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 74.19(c) to address the physical inventory of loose fuel pellets stored in the pellet-can located in the McGuire 1 SFP storage racks. The licensee requests the physical inventory of the pellet can be limited to a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can that will not require the licensee to disturb the contents or require movement of the pellet-can. The licensee requests this exemption until such time that the pellet can is placed into an appropriate container, a more easily verifiable action planned no later than December 31, 2010. Section 74.19(c) requires that each licensee conduct a physical inventory of all SNM in its possession at intervals not to exceed 12 months. The NRC regulation, 10 CFR 74.4, defines the term physical inventory as a determination on a measured basis of the quantity of special nuclear material on hand at a given time. The methods of physical inventory and associated measurements will vary depending on the material to be inventoried and the process involved.

The requirement for a physical inventory would require the loose fuel pellets and fuel fragments from fuel assembly D03 within the pellet-can to be visually verified during a physical inventory.

Prior to 2007, the licensees past inventory practices were limited to a visual verification that the pellet-can was in the location specified by the SNM inventory record database. The loose pellets and fuel fragments within the pellet-can were, however, not visually verified.

As an alternative to a visual inspection of the loose fuel pellets and fuel fragments within the pellet-can, the NRC staff has concluded that use of a radiation monitor to acquire dose rate measurements, which could then be compared to previous readings, would be a sufficient verification measure for inventory purposes. The licensee employed this method in its 2007 physical inventory. In order to take future radiation readings of the pellet-can, however, the licensee must again move the pellet-can to a low dose area in the SFP. Due to both the method used to handle the pellet-can and the pellet-cans degradation, there is a possible risk of dropping fuel pellets if the pellet-can is moved. Instead of utilizing a radiation monitor, the

licensee is requesting the use of a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can to verify that its contents have not been disturbed since the 2007 inspection.

3.0 DISCUSSION Pursuant to 10 CFR 74.7, the Commission may, upon application by any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of 10 CFR Part 74, Material Control and Accounting of Special Nuclear Material, when the exemption is authorized by law, and will not endanger life or property or the common defense and security and is otherwise in the public interest.

The underlying purpose of 10 CFR 74.19 is to provide recordkeeping requirements for material control and accounting of SNM, including requirements for procedures and for conduct of an annual physical inventory of all SNM.

Authorized by Law This exemption would allow the licensee, until the pellet-can is relocated into another container, or until December 31, 2010, whichever occurs first, to perform a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can to verify that its contents have not been disturbed since the 2007 physical inventory, as a means of satisfying the physical inventory requirement of 10 CFR 74.19(c). As explained further below, the NRC staff has determined that granting of the licensee=s proposed exemption pursuant to 10 CFR 74.7 will not result in a violation of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, or the Commission=s regulations. Therefore, the exemption is authorized by law.

No Undue Risk to Public Health and Safety The underlying purposes of 10 CFR 74.19(c) is to ensure SNM is properly accounted for, appropriately secured, and that authorities are informed of any theft, diversion, or loss. Given the degraded condition of the pellet-can and the means available to the licensee to move the pellet-can, the very small amount of SNM involved, and the licensees plan to place the pellets into another, more easily verifiable, container by late 2010, the licensees request to undertake a video inspection of the interior of the pellet-can, without disturbing the contents or radiation monitoring, is considered adequate. Not requiring movement of the pellet-can will assure that, in its degraded condition, it will not fail and potentially allow the fuel pellets to become lost in the SFP. Therefore, there is no undue risk to public health and safety.

Consistent with Common Defense and Security The proposed exemption would allow the licensee to address the physical inventory of the loose fuel pellets within the pellet-can by the use of a video inspection of the interior without disturbing the contents or requiring the pellet-can movement. This ensures the accountability of the contents of the pellet-can and assures there has been no loss of SNM. In addition, the licensees programs, processes, and procedures for the control and accounting system ensures appropriate control and proper accounting over all SNM. Additional protection of the loose pellets is provided by the NRC-approved Physical Security Plan and the radiation monitoring system at McGuire 1. This limits the possibility that SNM would be inadvertently diverted or lost.

This change to the SNM inventory methods, which will last no later than December 31, 2010, does not affect security issues associated with SNM. Therefore, this exemption does not impact the common defense and security.

4.0 CONCLUSION

Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 74.7, the exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common defense and security. Therefore, the Commission hereby grants Duke Power Company LLC an exemption from the physical inventory requirements of 10 CFR 74.19(c) for McGuire 1.

Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, Finding of No Significant Impact, the Commission has determined that the granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on the quality of the human environment as published in the Federal Register on March 18, 2008 (73 FR 14504).

This exemption is effective upon issuance.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 19th day of March 2008.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

James T. Wiggins, Acting Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation