ML19294B942

Forwards F Romano,Of Air & Water Pollution Patrol,791228 Ltr Re Conduct of NRC Investigation Into Quarry Blasting Near Facility.Requests Comments

ML19294B942
Person / Time
Site:	Limerick
Issue date:	01/09/1980
From:	Schweiker R SENATE
To:	NRC COMMISSION (OCM)
Shared Package
ML19294B936	List: ML19294B935 ML19294B942
References
NUDOCS 8003060435
Download: ML19294B942 (5)

Text

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'?JCnifeb Stafes Senale W AS HINGTON. D.C. 20SIO January 9, 1980 E-.....

To:

'uclear Regulatory Commission

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1717 H St eet, N.W.

Washington, D. C.

20555 I.I I,

FF O:4: Eichard S. Schweiker

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United States Senator g Because of the desire of this of fice to be responsive to all inquiries and communications, your consideration of the attached is requested.

?'.EAS E T Y TO O ESEND WI"HIU 2 WEE 7S C7 YOUD rrCEI?T OF

~9?S CEOUES".

YCW 7'NDI:!';S A?:D VIEN'S, IN DUCLICATE, ALONG FI"? TT URN CF TUIS :4EMO PIUF ETCIOSUPE, WTI.I. 37 A??DECIATED.

4any thanks.

0008060007 P.SS:cs

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AIR and WATER

, 'f' ollution Patrol BRUED AXE, PA.

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l December 28, 1979 I

L Senator Richard Schweiker

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Senate Office Building Washington, D.C.

Dear Dick:

Enclosed copy is self-ex,-anitory and I hope you can improve o

my chances of a response from the ?mC.

Season's greetings, J~ - < /> C~L..-

Frank R. Romano, Cha.2an FRR/ cap e

AIR and WATER Pollution Patrol BROAD AXE, PA.

December 28, 1979 NEUS RELEASE

Contact:

Carol Palmer 646-1057 Nine months af ter the Montgomery County Air and Water Pollution Patrol asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a new look at the foundation rock upon which the Limerick reactor containment building now overlays, a meeting was held Tuesc y, December 18, at Philadelphia Electric's Information Center at Limerick.

Frank R. Romano, Chairman of the Air and Uater Pollution Patrol, had re-quested that suitable examinations and tests be made to determine whether or not blasting, which has been on-going for the past five years, had an adverse ef fect on cracks already known to be present in the foundation rock, and whe-ther such blasting had affected proper setting of concrete that could ulti--

mately result in cracked walls and pipe supports in the reactor containment building, which now overlays those cracks.

At the group's year-end meeting, Romano pointed to newspaNr reports which indicated the " decision that there was no adverse effect was not made by the NRC, but was " based on data supplied by Philadelphia Electric".

Romano charged that the meeting was improper because, instead of bringLng in a disinterested third-party geology expert, the NRC, which not only regu-lates but promotes reactors, brought in its oun " acting" geologist-consultan :

who, based on data supplied by Philadelphia Elcetric, and without any inspec-tions or tests, decided that " blasting of quarry rock beneath the site of the Limerick nuclear power plant posed no threat to the plant's operation".

"How does he know...what tests did he run to be sure that cracks known to be under the containment building uere not affected by the dynamite blast-ing which not only shakes homes surrounding the reactor site, but also shakes

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the reactor building even more", said Romano.

Romano has written Senator Schweiker and Congressman Coughlin asking that they intercede to have the NRC invalidate any decision based on that December 18 meeting.

Co=menting on EEM!3EIuunusuuuunusty the December 22 NRC announcement, four days after the above meeting, that it had found a significant error in compu-ter calculations used to compute vibratory motion due to ground movement (uhich occurs in rock blasting) that could close plants in operation or under construction for repair, Romano said, "those errors apply to Limerick and the data supplied by Philadelphia Electric.

Nou a real investigation rather than j

a charade will be ordered, and I want a copy of the test nethods they will use."

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whether the plants could withstand'

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there were no'. problems,.and aljj

yere allowed to resume operation 73 y f'Apparently, Lsomebody rpade, a.

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be,'.'said Roger Mattson, director of; r the NRC's div'ston of system safety, "The enfer has gone out to all n

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all g2.co# residents af the county to, govy rament in his homeland. and thn.h4 Pars demonstrations during the lona talks that led to take part in a samtlar 54seeend '". newa l agency la Tehran said gunmen hawe been. at the end of the century.

treahes turning over control of the canat to Panama 1 g3D no 44 foi (Ae stsadard et gallos barrel and sold it e anta%e price of5audi crude e41. traditi Y',

t 9 orde ted to go to Central 4merica to anaumate t.he ahutdows on Friday ""',

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.T. L Bu 8 Hensgen. the U k Embassy press spokesman dwer behsod At President Carter's urging, "Those people who increased the p' rice"to $24 a barrel J

k said IJbysa Otl Minister Essedia Ali)4abruk. "They were willias to give,. flags were flying across theland.

streefs, il poured into adjacentvehletes with government identif The antion's btggest free-flying in I anama, said mahonal guardsmen quickly C

flag, a ebbymfuot vers 6aa et the ' disp raed about 300 students math tear gas. but not e they stoned and broke a window at the abtare a car beloriging to trie Nat 1r I.

t in for free? Qatar bolstered the moderate paaltion by announcing tiist if Saadt ' Stara and Stripes, flew from th*

h]bettemt sessy and hauled does the flag and dragged it sa flydi auhc Resources, wun f(h' ' Arabia woulJ hoed prices l Qatar would freese its own pricca for agar...

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([N Ipproval to all blasting, pending evaluatson of haasts '.p *He culckly added, homeser, that sanh a snove would be g

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PE agreed the blasting of, quarry rock beneath the site of the Limerick ' power plant posed ad' threat to the,planti /,Dpvine and the NRC with sa

' blasts enutd have hail a "dcleterious effcel" on the 6 anti t

.foundatnons, buddinas and pip.ngs

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