ML19254D378

Responds to Requesting EIS Prior to Chemical Decontamination of Facility.Review Indicates No EIS Required.Decontamination Will Increase Plant Safety

ML19254D378
Person / Time
Site:	Dresden
Issue date:	10/06/1979
From:	Vollmer R Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Lang A AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
Shared Package
ML19254D379	List: ML19254D378 ML19254D381
References
NUDOCS 7910250410
Download: ML19254D378 (4)

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UNITED STATES

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-[k NUCLE AR REGULATORY COMMISSION

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E W ASHINGTON, D. C. 20555 s

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t r-w Octocer 6,1979

..f 2 ci c: *;o. 50-10

r s. An ita L a ng 12 Chathan Circle "In' a ' ee, 111 i r.oi s 6093:

Dear "rs. Lang:

This is in response to your recent letter to Dr. Fer.drie, which expressed your concern.related to the chemical decontanination o# Dresden i:uclear 7 cuer Station, L' nit fio.1.

Ue Fave been roviewing this project since Connonwealth Edisen's initial decontanination proposal on December 12, 1974.

On Dece,ber 9,1975, we issued a conditional authorization which allowed Cormonwealth Edison tc initiate the chemical decontamination subject to the com;1etion of three items '..hich would be resolved as follows:

The testing program will be completed and the resuits subnitted for the review and approval of the i;RC staff prior to :er#cring the pro;osed chemical cleaning.

2.

A pre-service inspection program for the prinary ccol ant bouncary will be formulated and submitted for fiRC review anc approval prior to returning the reactor to service.

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A post-cleaning surveillance program which includes additional a

surveillance specirens and a specimen withdrawal and exanination 9

schedule will be submitted for I!PI review and apprcval ;rior to returning the reactor to service.

A copy of our Safety Evaluation in support of these actions is enclosed for your information.

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fince cur 1975 authorization Commonwealth Edison has completed its nerials test program and construction of the necessary su; port fac"'t'cs to carry cut the croject in a sa#a and e-virome-t ally acct;;i:.e.anner.

Cur review of the testi ; erc;ri 1.c :'e facil ity

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c:nstructicn is continuing and will be conpleted prior to the chemical c :.

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.a.lon crocess involves tne circ.:I n'c c a ;,, !!.: acal ci _ ~ing solvent through the reactor primar,. c::lir; sys;e..

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ch, icentifiec as NS-1, has beer cevelcLed :c "e :c.: the thin, "y,

']'t', bdierent, lajCr of highly radica tiV6 oxide thi~ has for":ed on e ' sMe curfaces of the Dresden 1 prir ar,. coolin; s;. s t eT.

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'e solvent will f referentially dissolve the oxide withcut significantly

&::acking the uncerlying base metal of the prinary cco19.g system pipir.g.

E'ter renoval cf the uranium fuel, the solvent will be circulated thrcugh the prinary coclant system for approximately 100 hours0.00116 days <br />0.0278 hours <br />1.653439e-4 weeks <br />3.805e-5 months <br /> at about 250 F.

ter circui: tion the solvent and the dissolved oxides will be drained

'rc, the reactor to a teaste treatrent facility located adj acent to the nactcr.

i n, re vining solvent will be cleaned 'rc the reactor by rinsing with demineralized water. The rinse water and solvent will be stored in the waste t. aatment facility storage tents until processed to concentration and solidify the solvent and dissol,ed -adicactive ccrresion products.

-ne cecontar ir.ation will be carried out entirely wit-in a cicsed syster and all waste processing will be acconplished within a specially designed, earthquake proof, leak tight, building.

All transeortation of radioactive hastes will be done in accordance with all applicable EC and Department of Transportation regulations.

Because of these precauticns, there will be no increased hazard to the

>alth and safety of the citizens of Illinois cr any degracation of the envi.onnent in Illinois.

I'ter processing the concentrated waste solution will be solidified in 55 plicn druns using a process developed by the Dow Chenical Conrany for the

.-licification of icw level radioactive wastes.

This s:lidification process as been tested on the ',5-1 solvent and produced a s:li: waste fom that r

contained no free liquids.

The waste solidification precedures include a

_.ility contrcl process test on each barrel of waste tc provide additicnal

ssurance that the licuid waste has been properly sclic'fied.

i ter solidification the waste drons will be transporte: by a connercial M

edioactive waste carrier to a licensed solid waste burial ground such

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is Seatty, hevaca or Manfcrc, Washington.

These arid, desert sites have

een specifically selected for the dilsposal of the Cres:en waste to further assure that there is no interaction of the waste with ground water.

Because the waste is in a solid form, the ground water level is g

approximately 300 feet below the surface, and the burial sites are g

located in remote, uninhabited locations, there is ade: ate assurance h

that the waste will remain isolated from potential patNays for exposure af the population.

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az :st"~a e: at 2: ~i' l :

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' ;ch of this cost rearesents one ti e devel c: ent costs which 4

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i hever, prelininary estimates of the cost for deconta-inatirg currertly crerating U. S. reactors range from 1 nillion to 5 uillicn d:llars per reactor and would vary depending on the extent of nodificatico required at a specific facility to perform the decontamination.

re decontanination of reactor prinary cooling systens will reduce the

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radiation exposure levels in the areas of these systens, thereby permit-

• ing greate: acccss to the system for inspections, odificat"Ons, and repairs.

These activities provide greater assurance of the continued safe operation of the reactor and are therefore in the best interest of the health and safety of the public.

Furthernore, the decon;anination will reduce the occupational exposure of the individuals employed at Dresden.

Uith respect to requests for the preparation of an Environmental Impact

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St nenent for the Dresden Unit 1 decontamination, Title 10 Part 51.5 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations identifies the following actions as requiring the preparation of such a Statement:

"(1) Issuance of a permit to construct a nuclear power reactor, testing facility, or feel reprocessing plant pursuant te Part 50 of this chapter; (2) !ssuance of a full power cr design capacity license to operate a nucicar power reactor, testing facility, or fuel repr: cessing plant pursuant to Part 50 of this chapter; a.

(3) Issuance of a permit to construct or a design capacity license to operate an isotopic enrichment plant pursuant to &50.33 of this

.3 chapter; g

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(4) Issuance of a license to possess and use special nuclear material for processing and fuel f abrication, scrap reccvery, or conversion of uranium hexafluoride pursuant to Part 70 of this charter; a) uranium milling or production of uranium hexafluoride pursuant to

' ~ "g (5) Issuance of a license to possess and use source naterial for Part 40 of this chapter;

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- :< :' a 'icer:2 a ;therizing comrical radioactive waste cisposel ay les ri al oursucnt to u.s 30, G, Udk 70 of thi:

chapter; isi grq ;

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'ull er ;r ? e s i g r. cmcity liccme p:rsunt t: Pert 50 of this

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... !c 'i.al a c' en^ e c. f u pact state e-t us been cnap;er ereviourly - eLired; r

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1. 'ctober 6,197 0 rs. Inita Ling 4-(S) Issuance of a license to manufacture pursuant to appendix M of Part 50 of this chapter; (9) Amend.ents of Parts 30 and 40 of this chapter concerning the exemption from licensing and regulatory require ents of any equip-nent, devise, comodity or other product cortaining byproduct raterial or source naterial and (10) Any other action which the Commission deter-ines is a najor Connission action significantly affecting the quality of hunan environ.ent."

Our review to date has concluded that the decontamination of the Dresden 55

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1 prinar3 coolant system is not one of the identified actions requiring that an Environmental Impact Statement be prepared.

The Ccnmission has not determined that this action is a major Commission action significantly affecting the quality of the hunan environment.

In sunmary, the Dresden decontanination has been carefully planned to

. prove the safety of the reactor and reduce the exposure of plant ersonnel to radiation.

The waste produced by the Orccess is sinilar in type and quantity to the waste routinely produced at Dresden and its 2

processing, transportation, and disposal will not cause any new hazards J

rat previously evaluated and deemed acceptable.

Si ncerely,

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n e.)U i m's Richa d H. Vcilrer, '.cting Assi stant Director for Systenatic Evaluation Program N#:

Divisior of Operating Reactors TE

Enclosure:

Safety Evaluation

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UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION W ASHINGTON. D. C. 2055s SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION SUPPORTING AUTHORIZATION TO CHEMICALLY DECONTAMINATE THE PRIMARY COOLING SYSTEM AT DRESDEN UNIT 1 COR10NWEALTH EDISON COMPANY DRESDEN NUCLEAR POWER STATION UNIT I DOCKET NO. 50-10 INTRODUCTION By letters dated December 16, 1974, April 1, 1975 and April 14, 1975, the Commonwealth Edison Company (CECO) requested authori: ation to carry out a chemical decontamination of the interior surfaces of the Dresden Unit 1 primary coolant system.

The purpose of the decontanination is to remove a deposition of activated corrosion products which is tightly bonded te the primary coolant system piping and components. The presence of the corrosion products in the syster results in high levels of radiation in ijacent areas and limits access to these areas for the purpose of in-se rvice inspection, routine maintenance and plant modifications.

CECO has tentatively scheduled the chemical cleaning proj ect to begin in Jaruary 1977 with an anticipated return to service scheduled for July 1977.

EVALUATION The staff's review of CECO's proposed chemical decontanination of the interior surfaces of the Dresden Unit 1 primary coolant system has been completed.

The results of this review are as follows:

1.

Environmental Impact The chenical decontamination of the Dresden I primary coolant system will be performed entirely within a closed decontamination system.

The system has been designed so that no chemical or radiological wastes will be released to the environment from the decontamination process. All wastes generated in the process will be either solidified for offsite burial at a licensed burial ground or reprocessed for reuse onsite. The solid wastes produced are similar in type and quantity to those handled routinely at the site. Therefore, no adverse environmental impacts are anticipated due to the decontamination.

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2 2.

Materials Compatibility The staff has reviewed the results of the material testing program that has been carried out in support of the proposed Dresden 1 decontamination program. The test program was organized to look at corrosive effects during the decontamination process and possible residual effects during subsequent reactor operation.

Based upon our review of the results of the testing program completed to date, we have concluded that the test program adequately evaluated those aspects of the materials compatibility that we consider to be important.

As a result cf our discussions with CECO's consultant, Dr. Craig Cheng of Argonne National Laboratory, we find that the remaining prograr will be conducted in a manner that will answer our presently unresolved concerns and the test results will be adequately interpreted and reported.

We conclude that upon the successful completion of the testing program described in the submittals and with an adequate surveillance and inspection program, the Dresden Nuclear Power Station Unit I can be subjected to the described chemical cleaning process without undue

orrosion or other deleterious materials compatibility effects that would adversely effect the integrity of the primary coolant system ind connected systems.

A sm 11 number of items of concern have not been resolved to the staff's full satisfaction at this time. However, we conclude that authori:ation to c?rry out the chemical decontamination should be Eranted in anticipation of the successful resolution of these open items in the near future. The following open items are identified at this time as requirin; resolution to the staff's satisfaction:

(a) The materials test program will be completed and the test results will be analyzed and reviewed prior to the beginning of the cleaning process.

(b)

Surveillance specimens in addition to those now planned will be determined by mutual agreement with the applicant and a schedule for specimen withdrawal will be stated.

(c)

A pre-service inspection program for the primary coolant boundary and safety related systems will be formulated and performed prior to return to power.

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e 3.

Effluent Treatment Systems We have determined that the effluent treatment system, if constructed as described in the Ceco submittals, is capable of handling the types and quantities of effluents expected to be generated by the decon-tamination program. Our review was limited to the use of the system for cheuical decontamination only, and use of the system for any other purpose subsequent to that program must be reviewed prior to such use.

4.

Radiological Safety We have further concluded that the radiological safety program described in the submittals is adequate to assure that the health and safety of the public and the onsite personnel will not be endangered by the Dresden 1 decontanination project.

CONCLUSION We have concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that:

(1) because the chemical cleaning does not involve a significant increase in the probability or consequences of accidents previously considered and does not involve a significant decrease in a safety margin, the cIcaning proj ect does not involve a significant ha:ards consideration, (2) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, and (3) such activities will be conducted in conpliance with the Commission's regulations and the issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.

Date:

December 9, 1975

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