ML19323B513

Responds to Encl to President Carter Re Licensing Nuclear Plants.Delays Caused by post-TMI Efforts to Upgrade Safety Requirements.Certain Facilities Under Review for License to Load Fuel & to Operate at Low Power for Testing

ML19323B513
Person / Time
Site:	Crane
Issue date:	04/11/1980
From:	Harold Denton Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Savage M AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
References
NUDOCS 8005120502
Download: ML19323B513 (3)

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UNITED STATES S

i NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 5. Y" $ *e (.

C WASHINGTON, D. C. 20555 N

% 'Q/,l ApR 1 1 1980 Mrs. M. Savage 9474 E. Lake Road Otisville, Michigan 48463

Dear Mrs. Savage:

This is in reply to your letter of January 30, 1980, to President Car *.er about licensing nuclear power plants.

A statement by President Carter on December 7,1979, about the Report of the President's Commission on the Accident at Three Mile Island (the Kemeny Commission) included the following:

" Finally, I would like to discuss how we manage the transition period during which the Kemeny recommendations are being imple-mented. There are a number of new nuclear plants now awaiting operating licenses or construction pennits.

" Licensing decisions rest with the NRC and, as the Kemeny Commission noted, it has the authority to proceed with licensing these plants on a case-by-case basis, which may be used as circumstances surrounding a plant dictate. The tiRC has in-dicated, however, that it will pause in issuing new licenses and construction permits in order to devote its full attention to putting its house in order.

I endorse the approach the NRC has adopted, but I urge the NRC to complete its work as quickly as possible, and in any event no later than six months from today.

"Once we have instituted the necessary reforms to assure safety, we must resume the licensing process promptly so that tne new plants which we need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil can be built and operated."

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is committed to protect the public health and safety. The Three Mile Island accident resulted in a need for changes in the approach to safety. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has found that actions recommended by its own staff and by the President's Commission on the Accident at Three Mile Island in the areas of human factors, operational safety, emergency planning, nuclear power plant design and siting, health effects, and public information are necessary and feasible.

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NI I98I Mrs. M. Savage At this time we are preparing for review and approval by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission an Action Plan that will specify the precise actions to be taken.

It will include new or improved safety ob-jectives, detailed criteria for their implementation, and various implementation deadlines. As soon as the Action Plan is completed and approved, the resulting regulatory requirements will be trans-mitted to all utilities concerned.

It is recognized that there will be a significant effect on the availability of power generating capacity if those plants now in the final stages of construction do not receive operating licenses by the dates previously anticipated, and every effort is being made to avoid unnecessary delays. With this obiective, the Commissioners approved on February 28, 1980, the issuance of an NRC license to the Tennessee Valley Authority for the Sequoyoa Nuclear Plant Unit 1 to load fuel and, under specified conditions, to operate at low power levels for testing. Several other similar cases are under consid-eration.

Sincerely, f/G j

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'larold R. Denton, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation e

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