ML19207B604
| ML19207B604 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 08/10/1979 |
| From: | Engelken R NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION V) |
| To: | U.S. NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL, MONTEREY, CA |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7909040284 | |
| Download: ML19207B604 (1) | |
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UNIT E D S i AT F f, NUCLE AR n;GUL ATORY COf311SSN 4{f /'
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r;nu.ui eni t. cau:-o,m A m'm August 10, 1979 NAVY, ULHAMTMtNT 05 THt U 5 NAVAL W U d i 'o N A 0 J A T t.
SCHUOL hun 1tHI.Y C l, 9394U Gentieren:
c Enclo :d is IL Bulletin :a. 79-19 tihich requires action t,y you v!i th regard to your I;RC lice.;sa.
Should you have questions regarding this Bulletin or ths actions re-quired of you, please contact this office.
Sincerely,
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,ga-R. }; Engelken Director
Enclosure:
IE Bulletin [10. 79-19 s
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Accession No:
7908070515 SSINS No:
6820 UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY C021SSION OFFICE OF INSPECTION AhT EhTORCEMENT WASHINGTON, D.C.
20555 August 10, 1979 IE Bulletin No. 79-19 PACKAGING OF LOW-LEVEL RADI0 ACTIVE WASTF FOR TRANSPORT AhT BLTIAL Description of Circumstances:
Low-level radioactive vaste is that waste which can be transferred and shipped to one of three waste burial facilities which are located in and licensed by the Agreement States of Nevada, South Carolina, and Washington.
On July 10, 1979, the Governors of the three states notified NRC Chairman Hendrie of the serious and repeated disregard for rules governing the shipments of low-level radioactive wastes to these burial facilities.
Examples of violations of Agreement State, DOT and NRC rules follow:
Improperly packaged uranium fines igniting packaged liquid scintillation vials in combustible waste is believed to have caused a fire and destruction of a truck at the Beatty, Nevada burial facility on May 14, 1979.
On July 2, 1979, three of twelve steel containers shipped to the Beatty burial facility were found to be leaking radioactive material. The material was described on the bill of lading as being a solid inorganic salt (evaporator concentrates solidified with urea formaldehyde) from a reactor facility.
The Governor of the State of Nevada ordered the drums to be shipped out of the state and the burial facility was temporarily closed.
On July 30, the first shipment into the reopened Beatty facility contained free liquid in " solid" material.
The radioactive contents were sand filters used at an insitu leaching process at a uranium mill.
Forty-three shipments with sixty-three deficiencies were observed during the package inspection program between April 10 and July 5, 1979, by the Agreement State of South Carolina, at the Barnwell, S.C. burial facility. The shipments were from reactor, medical, industrial and military facilities.
On June 28, 1979, the Federal Highway Administration issued a Notice of Violation to a reactor facility propning a $10,000 fine for truck contamina-tionresultingfromimproperclosureson~~.gjj Lg' "gEwgg~g*yg,p' -
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M%m for improper loading of the drums on the DUPLICATE DOC UMENT These are a few examples of shipments of g g 'ef Entire documcnt previously enter $;d facilities which did not fully meet NRC, which were developed to protect the heal into sys N n under:
Governors of the three States with licen.
that if the situation is not rectified,
$[C]d((
ggg would deny use of the three burial sites No. of pages:
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