ML19259C990
| ML19259C990 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Rancho Seco |
| Issue date: | 07/16/1979 |
| From: | Harold Denton Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | James Smith DOWNWIND ALLIANCE |
| Shared Package | |
| ML19259C991 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7908280239 | |
| Download: ML19259C990 (3) | |
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UNITED STATES 1
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
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%..o j Docket No.: 50-312 JUL 16 :573 Mr. Jim Smith DOWNWIND ALLIANCE P. O. Box 13420 South Lake Tahoe, California 95702
Dear Mr. Smith:
Your letter of June 6,1979, addressed to Mr. S. J. Chilk, has been referred to me for reply.
Your letter requested our comments on the actions taken by the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) with respect to its decision not to hold a public hearing prior to the restart of the Rancho Seco Nuclear Gener-ating Station (Rancho Seco).
You also requested our comments on the
" apparent lack of knowledge or ethics on the part of the SMUD staff regarding the matter of the public hearing and the length of time of the shutdown."
In addition, you also expressed some concern about the public's need to know what steps have been taken at Rancho Seco in light of the accident at Three Mile Island, Unit No. 2 (TMI-2).
First, let me address the actions taken by the SMUD Board of Directors.
Its decision whether or not to hold a public hearing prior to restart of the Rancho Seco facility has no affect on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC or Commission) authority to hold a public hearing in this matter.
The Commission has received requests for a hearing fran Friends of the Earth, the Enviroanental Council of Sacramento and Original SMUD Ratepayers Association, from two individual members of the Board Of Directors of SMUD, and from the SMUD Board itself.
By Order dated June 21,1979, the Commission directed the Chairman of the Atomic Safety and Licensing Beard Panel to select a Licensing Board to detemine whether the requests for a hearing meet the requisite personal interest test for intervention and to conduct any hearing that may be required.
On June 22, 1979, a micensing Board was established for these purposes.
The Licensing Scard has reviewed all cf the requests and has detemined that scme or all of the requesters may be entitled to a hearing depend-ing upon a more precise description of how their interests may be affected by the Commission's confimatory Order of May 7,1979.
On July 3,1979, the Licensing Board issued an Order which directs the petitioners in this matter to file amended petitions with the Commissien by July 16, 1979.
In addition, this 0-der scheduled a prehearing conference for this matter which will be held on August 1,1979, at 10:00 a.m., in the Conference Room, West 1140, Federal Building, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, California.
For your infomation, copies cf the Ccamissien's Orders of May 7 and June 21 and a copy of the Licensing Board's Order of July 3 are enclosed with this letter.
2107 212 7908280 A3 f,o
i Mr. Jim Smith -
Secondly, with respect to the knowledge of the SMUD staff regarding the anticipated length of the shutdown at Rancho Seco, SMUD had uriginally de-sired to restart the plant on or about June 1,1979.
On May 18,1979, the l
NRC was notified by SMUD that during a routine inspection of the main gener-ator at Rancho Seco, it found a loose bolt inside the casing of the generator which appeared to have caused some damage to the stator windings. At that time, SMUD estimated the time of repair to be about three weeks. Upon further investigation, it was detemined that the damage was not as extensivem originally estimated. Repairs to the generator were completed on May 27,1979.
The authorization for Rancho Seco to resume power oper-e ation was not given to SMUD until June 27, 1979.
This additional shutdown period was necessary for the NRC staff and SMUD to conclude that all neces-1 sary actions taken by SMUD to fully comply with the Commission's Order of May 7,1979 had been accomplished. This additional delay in the restart was i
not attributable to any corrective maintenance on the Rancho Seco generator.
2 Finally, with respect to the steps which have been taken at Rancho Seco in light of the accident at TMI-2, as you are undoubtedly aware, the nuclear reactor at Rancho Seco was designed by Babcock & Wilcox Company (B&W),
which is the same basic design as the reactor at TMI-2.
The experience i
at TNI-2 raised certain questions among the NRC staff as to the capability 5
of B&W designed reactors to adequately respond to certain transient plant
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conditions. As a result of these concerns, the Commission issued the May 7 Order to SMUD, directing it to take certain actions with respect to Rancho
=j Seco. These actions were classified as either immediate or long-tem actions, i
The Order further directed SMUD to maintain the plant in a shutdown condition i
until the immediate actions specified in the Order were completed and con-i firmed by me (the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation).
The staff j
of the NRC completed its review of the immediate actions taken by the licensee i
to comply with the May 7 Order and found them acceptable. On June 26, 1979, the Commission was briefed on the licensee's actions and the NRC staff's review 5
i of these actions.
I informed the Commission that I was satisfied with the licensee's ccepliance with the immediate actions required by the Order and that I intended to authorize Ranco Seco to resume power operations. On June 27, 1979, I issued a letter to SMUD pemitting resumption of operation.
Enc 1csed with that letter was the NRC staff's Safety Evaluation which
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served as the basis for my conclusion that SMUD's immediate actions were in compliance with the Ma. 7 Order.
A copy of this June 27 letter and t
the Safety Evaluation are enclosed for your infomation.
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Mr. Jim Smith I hope this infonnation satisfies the concerns expressed in your June 6 letter.
If I can be of further assistance, please contact me.
Sincerely, Or!rnal s: grad by H. R. Denton Harold R. Denton, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Encl osures; 1.
Commission Order of May 7,1979 2.
Commission Order of June 21, 1979 3.
Licensing Board Order of Jul.y 3,1979 4.
NRC Letter to SMUD of June 27, 1979 5.
Safet/ Evaluation of Juna 27,1979 2107 214 e