ML16340B279
| ML16340B279 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Diablo Canyon  |
| Issue date: | 10/20/1980 |
| From: | Miraglia F Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | Baumgartner J, Baumgartner S AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 8012290010 | |
| Download: ML16340B279 (10) | |
Text
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t UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, O. C. 20555 Og <0 l980 Messrs.
Jerome and Sydney Baumgartner 311 Mesa Lane Santa Barbara, California 93109 Dear Messrs.
Baumgartner:
Your June 1,
1980 letters to President Carter, regarding the Diablo Canyon nuclear
- plant, have been referred to the NRC for reply.
I am pleased to make this response.
In your letters you expressed concern over the potential for construction deficiencies at this nuclear plant as well as concern over recent earthquake activity in the area.
With respect to construction quality for systems and structures important to
.safety, our regulations require that the plant be designed and constructed to high standards and have adequate safety margins.
The plant design was subjected to our review before construction was authorized.
Also our Office of Inspection and Enforcement inspects the construction.activities.
Enclosure 1 provides addi-tional information on NRC's role in assuring that nuclear plants are designed and built to comply with our requirements for high quality and that the plants are capable of safely withstanding design basis accidents.
You mentioned a recent earthquake in the area of this plant.
On May 28, 1980 a
moderate earthquake of Richter magnitude 4.6 occurred about 18 mi3es from the plant. 't was felt at the plant site but no damage or movement of objects were reported.
Earthquakes of this magnitude are not uncommon in this vicinity.
For example there was a magnitude 4.5 earthquake in February 1962 and a 3.4 earthquake in May of 1954.
The Diablo Canyon plant, however, has been designed to withstand much larger magnitude earthquakes as explained in Enclosure 2 to this letter.
tlith respect to earthquakes, the ability of the Diablo Canyon plant to withstand safely any earthquake that can reasonably be anticipated
.in its.vicinity was extensively reviewed by the NRC and affirmed by an Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) in September 1979.
Following the Fall 1979 major earthquake in California's Imperial Valley, the ASLB decision was appealed by inter venors in the proceeding and an Atomic Safety and Licensing Appeal Board granted a motion to reopen the hearing record.
The Appeal Board will conduct a reopened eviden-tiary hearing which is scheduled for the week of October 20, 1980.
The purpose of this hearing is to take the new seismic information generated by the Imperial Valley event into consideration.
Written testimony submitted to the Appeal Board by the NRC staff and its consultants indicates that the data generated from the Imperial Valley earthquake of 1979 does not adversely affect the adequacy of the seismic design criteria used for the Diablo Canyon plant.
However, it will be up to the Appeal Board to decide whether any additional seismic re-analysis or redesign will be required.
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Messrs.
Jerome and Sydney Baumgartner A copy of documents related to our licensing review of the Diablo Canyon plant can be found in the Local Public Document Room (LPDR).
This LPDR is located at the California Polytechnic State University Library, Documents and Maps Depart-
.ment, San Luis Obispo, California 93407.
I trust that this information is responsive to your request.
Sincerely, Frank J
.i 1'
Acting Chief Licensing Branch No.
3 Division of Licensing Encl osures:
1.
Inspection of nuclear power plant construction 2.
Proximity of the Hosgri Fault to Diablo Canyon
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ENCLOSURE 1
Concern:
Response
Inspection of nuclear power plant construction.
In regard to the quality of construction at the Diablo site, stringent construction controls, among other things, are required by the utility's guality Assurance Program which has been reviewed and found by the NRC staff to satisfy the Commission's requirements described in Appendix B to Part 50 of Title 10 of the Federal Code of Regulations.
While each utility is responsible for assuring that its nuclear power plants are built and operated safely in accordance with the above cited regulation, the NRC's Office of Inspection and Enforcement conducts periodic scheduled and unannounced field inspections of the utility's'implementation of its guality Assurance Program.
These field inspections during the construction phase are extensive and cover:
(1) a review of the applicant's guality Assurance performance, including audits of the applicant's guality Assurance records and documen-tation; (2) a witnessing of the construction practices and an inspection of the facility at various stages of construction; and (3) a review of the qualifications and training of the-construction personnel as well as those of the quality assurance and quality control personnel.
The review of the qualifica-ions and training of the quality assurance and quality control personnel is conducted for all personnel at the site, including the specialized subcontractors, and at the manufacturing facilities of the vendors and suppliers.
In the event of alleged deficiencies, the Office of Inspection and Enforcement would conduct a thorough investigation of the allegations and require the correction of any deficiencies that were found to exist.
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ENCLOSUPE 2
Concern:
Response
The proximity of the Hosgri Fault to the Diablo Canyon site and the ability of the plant to withstand a severe earthquake.
The Hosgri fault, which is located 3 1/2 miles from the Diablo
- plants, was discovered in 1971 and has been the subject of intensive investigation by the Pacific Gas 8 Electric Company (PG8E), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Nuclear Regulatory Coaeission.
."s a principal geologic advisor for the Comnission; the USGS in 1975 suggested that a magnitude of 7.5 be assigned as a
potential seismic value for the Hosgri Fault. It is important to note that the USGS did not say that the Hosgri would experience a 7.58 earthquake but from a conservative standpoint that magnitude could not be ruled out.
Comprehensive public hearings on this matter were held by the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) over about a two-month period (from December 1978 to early 1979).
Some of this nation's and the world's leading authorities testified and were subject to cross-examination.
The experts from the NRC staff and PG8E went on to say that the plant has been designed to withstand the greater seismic event of 7.5.
On September 26, 1979, the ASLB assigned to conduct the licensing hearings issued its partial initial decision which found that a 7.5 magnitude earthquake is reasonable and meets regulatory requirements.
On June 23, 1980 the Atomic Safety and Licensing Appeal Board for this matter issued a decision to reopen the hearing record to obtain testimony related to a major earthquake which occurred in California's Imperial Valley in October 1979 (shortly after the ASLB's favorable partial initial decision in September 1979).
The NRC staff testimony on this issue was submitted to the Appeal Board in August 1980.
Starting on October 20, 1980 the Appeal Board will hear this matter.
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