ML19242C874
| ML19242C874 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 05000394 |
| Issue date: | 08/10/1979 |
| From: | Engelken R NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION V) |
| To: | Gordon R CALIFORNIA POLYTECHNIC STATE UNIV., SAN LUIS OBISPO |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7908140072 | |
| Download: ML19242C874 (1) | |
Text
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+,,,a August 10, 1979 Docket No. 50-394 California Poly. State University San Luis Obispo, California 93401 Attention:
R. G. Gordsn, Departraent Head Mechanical En;;ineering Department Gen tler.en:
Enclosed is IE Bulletin.No. 79-19 which requires action by you with regard to your reactor facility (ias) witn an operating license.
Should you have questions regar:'ing this Bulletin or the actions required of you, please contact this office.
Sincerely,
,[j-ul,>l>..
['R.H.Ingelken Director
Enclosures:
1.
lE Bulletin No. 79-19 2.
List of Bulletins Issued in Last Six Months 790814co? I t
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Accession fo:
7900070515 SSIMS No:
6320 UNITED STATZS NUCLEAR REGULATORY COM.'11SSION OFFICE OF INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT WASHINGTnN, D.C.
20555 August 10, 1979 IE Bulletin No. 79-19 PACKAGING OF LOW-LEVEL RADI0 ACTIVE WASTE FOR TRANSPORT AND BURIAL Description of CircLastarces:
Low-level radioactive waste is that waste which can be transferred and shipped to one of three waste burial facilities which are located in and licensed by the Agreenent States of Nevada, South Carolina, and Nashington.
On July 10, 1979, the Governors of the three states notified MRC Chairman Hendrie of the serious and repeated disreaard for rules covernina the shipnents of low-level radioactive wastes to these burial facilities.
Examples of violations of Agreement State, DOT and NRC rules follow:
Inproperly packaged uraniun fines ignitino 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 tuelve steel containers shipped to the Beatty burial facility were found to be leaking radioactive material.
The material was described on the bill of ladina as being a solid inoraanic salt (evaporator concentrates solidified with urea formaldehyde) from a reactor facility.
The Governor of the State of Nevada ordered the drume to be shipped out of tha 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 leachinq process at a uranium nill.
Forty-three shipnents 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 fron reactor, nedical, industrial and military facilities.
On June 28, 1979, the Federal Highway Administration issued a Notice of Violation to a reactor facility proposing a $10,000 fine for truck contamina-tion resulting from inproper closures on 55-gallon drum-LSA material and for improper loading of the drums on the vehicle.
These are a few examples of shipments of radicactive raterial to burial facilities which did not fully meet NRC, DOT and Aareenent State requirements which were developed to protect the health and safety of the public.
The Governors of the three States with licensed burial facilities have indicated that if the sitcation is not rectified, they nay have to initiate actions which would deny use of the three burial sites by violators.
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IE Bulletin fio. 79-19 August 10, 1979 Page 2 of 3 Sources of Information:
The DOT regulatory requirements can be found in 49 CFR Parts 170-179. The ilRC regulatory requirenents can be found in 10 CFR Parts 19 to 71.
The f?RC regu-latory requirements for Agreement State licensees in non-aqreement states are in 10 CFR Part 150.
Copies of the reaulations may be purchased from the Superintendent of Docunents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washinoton, D.C. 20402.
Information about licensing requirements for flRC packages can be obtained from the f;RC Transportation Branch (301 427-4122).
Information about DOT packaging and transport requirements can be chained ny calling the DDT Office of Hazardcus fiaterials (202-426-2311).
Action To Be Taken By Licensees:
To assure the safe transt er, packaginq, and transport of low-level radioactive waste, each licensee is expected to:
1.
i%intain a current set of DOT and tiRC regulations concerning the transfer, packaging and transport of low-level radioactive waste naterial.
2.
Isaintain a current set of requirerrents (license) placed on the waste burial firn by the Agreenent State of i evada, South Carolina, or Washington before packaging low-level radioactive waste naterial for transfer and shipnent to the Agreement State licensee.
If a waste collection contractor is used, obtain the appropriate requirements from the contractor.
3.
Designate, in writing, people in your oraanization who are responsible for the safe transfer, packaging and transport of low-level radioactive material.
4.
Provide management-approved, detailed instructions and operating procedures to all personnel involved in the transfer, packaging and transport of low-level radioactive raterial.
Special attention should be given to controls on the chemical and physical form of the low-level radioactive material and on the containment integrity of the packaging.
S.
Provide training and periodic retraining in the DDT and flRC regulatory requirements, the waste burial license requirements, and in your instruc-tions and operating procedures for all personnel involved in the transfer, packaging and transport of radioactive material.
tiaintain a record of training dates, attendees, and subject material for future inspections by i;RC perscr d.
6.
Provide training and periodic retraining to those employees who operate the processes which generate waste to assure that the volume of low-level radioactive waste is minimizeo and that such waste is proccssed into acceptable chenical and physical forn for transfer and shipnent to a low-level radioactive waste burial facility.
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IE Bulletin No. 79-19 Auqust 10, 1979 Page 3 of 3 7.
Establish and implement a manaqenent-controlled audit function of all transfer, packaqino and transport activities to provide assurance that personnel, instructions and procedures, and process and transport equip-ment are functionino to ensure safely and compliance with regulatory requireaants.
8.
Perform, within 60 days of the date of this bulletin, a nanaqenent-controlled audit of your activities associated with the transfer, packaging and trans-port of low-level radioactive waste.
Maintain a record of all audits for future inspections by URC or DOT inspectors.
(Note: If you have an estab-lished aud:c function and have performed such an audit of all activities in Items 1-6 within the past six months, this audit requirement is satisfied.)
9.
Report, in writing within 45 days, your plan of action and schedule with regard to the above items.
In addition, provide responses to the three questions below.
Reports should be submitted to the Director of the appropriate NRC Regional Office and a copy should be forwarded to the NRC Office of Inspection and Enforcement, Division of Fuel Facility and Materials Safety Inspection, Uashington, D.C.
20555.
Provide answers for 1978 and for the first six nonths of 1979 to the following questions:
1.
How nany low-level radioactive waste shipnents did you make? What was the volume of low-level radioactive waste shipped?
(Power rf actor licensees who report this information in accordance with Tec mical Specifications do not need to respond to this question.)
2.
What t as the quantity (curies) of low-level radioactive waste shipred?
'! hat were the major isotopes in the low-level radioactive waste?
(Power reactor licensees who report this information in accordance with Technical Specifications do not need to respond to this question.)
3.
Du you cenerate liquid low-level radioactive vaste?
If the answer is 'yes,' what process was used to solidify the liquid waste?
Licensees who do not generate low-level radioactive waste should so indicate in their responses and do not need to take other actions specified in the above items.
Approved by GAO, B180225 (R0072); clearance expires 7-31-80.
Approval was given under a blanket clearance snecifically for identified generic problens.
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IE Bulletin No. 79-19 Enclosure August 10, 1979 Page 1 of 3 LISTING OF IE Bl!LLETINS ISSUED IN LAST SIX T10NTliS Bulletin Subject Date Issuea Issued To
!!o.
79-18 Audibility Problems 8/7/70 All Power Reactor Encountered on Evaluation facilities with an o# Personnel From High OL Noise Areas 79-17 Pipe Cracks in Stagnan:
7/26/79 All PWR's w th i
Borated Water Systems at operating license PWR Plants 79-16 Vital Area Access Controls 7/26/79 All Helders of and applicants for Power Reactor Operating Licenses who anticipate loading fuel prior to 1981 79-15 Deeo Draft Punp 7/11/79 All Power Reactor Deficiencies Licensees with a CP and/or OL 79-14 Selsnic Analyses for 6/2/79 All Power Reac;or As "uilt Safety-Related facilities with an Piping System OL or a CP 79-13 Cracking In Feedwater 6/25/79 All PWRs with an System Pipinq OL for action. All BWRs with a CP for information.
79-02 Pipe Support Base Plate 6/21/79 All Power Reactor (Rev. 1)
Designs Using Concrete Facilities with an Expansion Anchor Bolts OL or a CP 79-12 Short Period Scrams at 5/31/79 All GE BWR Facilities BWR Facilities with an OL 79-11 Faulty Overcurrent Trip 5/22/79 All Power Reactor Device in Circuit Breakers Facilities with an for Engineered Safety OL or a CP Systens 79-10 Requalification Traininq 5/11/79 All Power Reactor Progran Statistics Facilities with an CL Oki
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IE Bulletin tio. 79-19 August 10, 1979 Enclosure Page 2 of 3 LISTU;G OF IE BULLETIllS ISSUED Irl LAST SIX tt0NTHS Bulletin Subject Ho.
Date Issued Issued To 79-09 Failures of GE Type AK-2 4/17/70 All Power Reactor Circuit Breaker in Safety Facilities with an Related Systens OL or CP 79.07 E/erts Relevant to E.-l2 4/S/79 All BWR Power Peactor Reactors Identified During Three tiile Island Incident Facilities with an OL 79-07 Seismic Stress Analysis 4/14/79 All Power Reactor of Safety-Related Piping Facilities with an OL or CP 79-05C&CSC Nuclear Ircident at Three 7/26/79 To all "WR Power Mile Island - Supplement Reactor Facilities with an OL 79-06B Review of Operational 4/14/79 All Combus' ion Engineer-Errors and Systen tiis-aligrments Identified ing Cesigned Pressurized During the Three iti!e Water Power Reactor Island Incident Facilities with an Operatino License 79-06A Review of Operational 4/18/79 All Pressuri'ed Water (Rev 1)
Errors end Systen Mis-alignments Identified Fower Reactor Facilities During the Three Mile of Westinghouse Design Island Incident with an OL 79-06A Review of Operational 4/14/79 All Pressurized Water Errors and System Mis-alignments Identified Power Reactor Facilities During the Three itile of Westinghouse Design Island Incident with an OL 79-06 Review of Operational 4/11/75 All Pressurized Water Errors an
- Systen Mis-alignments Identified Power Reactors with an During the Three tiile OL except BEM facilities Island Incident r10 7 u) v
IE Bulletin flo. 79..>
Enclosure August 10, 1979 Page 3 of 3 LISTI"G OF IE BULLETINS ISSUED IN LAST SIX MONTHS Bulletin Subject Date Issued Issued To No.79-05B Nuclear Incident at 5/21/79 All B&W Power Reactor Three Mile Island Facilities with an OL 73-05A Nuclear Incident at 4/5/79 All B&W Power Reactor Three Mile Island Facilities with an OL 79-05 Nuclear Incident at 4/2/79 All Pover Reactor Three Mile Island Facilities with an OL and CP 79-04 Incorrect Weights for 3/30/79 All Power Reactor Swing Check Valves Facilities with an fianufactured by Velan OL or CP Engineering Corporatior 78-12B Atypical Weld "aterial 3/19/79 Ali Power Reactor in Reactor Pressure Facilities with an Vessel Welds OL or CP 79-03 Longitudinal Welds Defects 3/12/79 All Power Reactor In AS"E SA-312 Type 304 Facilities with an Stainless Steel Pipe Epools CL or CP flanufactured by Youngstown Welding and Engineering Co.79-01A Environnental Qualification 6/6/79 All Power Reactor of Class lE Equipment Facilities with _n (Deficiencies in the Envi-OL or CP ronmental Qualification of ASCO Sol aid Valves)
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