ML093140747
| ML093140747 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Browns Ferry  |
| Issue date: | 11/10/2009 |
| From: | Reyes L Region 2 Administrator |
| To: | Swafford P Tennessee Valley Authority |
| References | |
| IR-09-007 | |
| Download: ML093140747 (5) | |
Text
UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION REGION II SAM NUNN ATLANTA FEDERAL CENTER 61 FORSYTH STREET, SW, SUITE 23T85 ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303-8931 November 10, 2009 Mr. Preston D. Swafford Chief Nuclear Officer and Executive Vice President Tennessee Valley Authority 3R Lookout Place 1101 Market Street Chattanooga, TN 37402-2801
SUBJECT:
BROWNS FERRY NUCLEAR PLANT - STATUS OF NRC TRIENNIAL FIRE PROTECTION BASELINE INSPECTION
Dear Mr. Swafford:
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with a status of our efforts regarding recently-performed fire protection inspections conducted at your Browns Ferry site.
On April 24, 2009, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) completed a focused fire protection baseline inspection at your Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, Units 1, 2, and 3. The purpose of that inspection was to assess the impact of revised safe shutdown instructions on your operators ability to perform required actions in response to fire events, and to verify that operator manual actions with short time requirements were both feasible and reliable. The inspection team identified four unresolved items involving your fire safe shutdown analysis and your use of operator manual actions, documented in NRC Inspection Report 5000259/2009007, 5000260/2009007, 5000296/2009007.
On October 9, 2009, the NRC completed the onsite portion of our scheduled triennial fire protection baseline inspection at your Browns Ferry facility. This inspection included a review of the unresolved items identified during the April 2009, inspection. We conducted a meeting with Browns Ferry management and staff to describe the results of this inspection, including potential violations of NRC regulations. These potential violations involve the use of manual actions in lieu of providing the physical protection of safe shutdown equipment and cables required by 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Sections III.G.1 and III.G.2. In addition, the inspection team identified potential violations associated with an inadequate fire response procedure, inadequate compensatory measures and inadequate emergency lighting.
During our in-office inspection, we have been working with your staff to get additional information needed to assess the significance of these potential violations. We expect to complete this effort soon and issue the inspection report in early December. Before issuing the report, we will conduct a final inspection exit meeting to inform you of the results of the inspection, including the significance of any identified violations.
Although we have identified some issues with the Browns Ferry fire protection program, we recognize that you have taken steps, including revised procedures and additional compensatory measures such as fire watches, to address these issues. In addition, we anticipate that your transition to National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 805 will thoroughly address these fire protection issues at Browns Ferry.
TVA 2
In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRCs Rules of Practice, a copy of this letter will be available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the Publicly Available Records (PARS) component of the NRCs document system (ADAMS).
ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html (the Public Electronic Reading Room).
Sincerely,
/RA: Original signed by Kriss Kennedy for/
Luis A. Reyes Regional Administrator Docket Nos.: 50-259, 50-260, 50-296 License Nos.: DPR-33, DPR-52, DPR-68 cc: (See page 3)
TVA 3
cc :
Ashok S. Bhatnagar Senior Vice President Nuclear Generation Development and Construction Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Preston D. Swafford Chief Nuclear Officer and Executive Vice President Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution William R. Campbell Senior Vice President Fleet Engineering Tennessee Valley Authority 6A Lookout Place 1101 Market Place Chattanooga, TN 37402-2801 Keith J. Polson Vice President Nuclear Operations Support Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution R. G. (Rusty) West Site Vice President Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Frederick Russell Godwin Manager, Licensing and Industry Affairs Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Tennessee Valley Authority P.O. Box 2000 Decatur, AL 35609 James J. Randich Plant Manager Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Tennessee Valley Authority P.O. Box 2000 Decatur, AL 35609 General Counsel Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Larry E. Nicholson General Manager Performance Improvement Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Michael A. Purcell Senior Licensing Manager Nuclear Power Group Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Michael J. Lorek Vice President - Nuclear Oversight Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution Fredrick C. Mashburn (Acting) Manager Corporate Nuclear Licensing and Industry Affairs Tennessee Valley Authority Electronic Mail Distribution R. M. Krich Vice President Nuclear Licensing Tennessee Valley Authority 3R Lookout Place 1101 Market Street Chattanooga, TN 37402-2801 Robert J. Whalen Tennessee Valley Authority 3R Lookout Place 1101 Market Street Chattanooga, TN 37402-280 Senior Resident Inspector U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 10833 Shaw Road Athens, AL 35611-6970 (cc contd - See page 4)
TVA 4
(cc contd)
Kirksey E. Whatley Director Office of Radiation Control Alabama Dept. of Public Health Electronic Mail Distribution Chairman Limestone County Commission 310 West Washington Street Athens, AL 35611 Dr. D. E. Williamson State Health Officer Alabama Dept. of Public Health Electronic Mail Distribution
x SUNSI REVIEW COMPLETE OFFICE RII:DRS RII:ORA RII:DRP RII:DRP RII:DRS RII:ORA SIGNATURE RA
- NAME R. Nease R. Hannah E. Guthrie L. Wert K. Kennedy L.Reyes DATE 11/10/2009 11/10/2009 11/10/2009 11/10/2009 11/10/2009 11/ /2009 E-MAIL COPY?
YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO