ML20006E996
| ML20006E996 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 02/20/1990 |
| From: | Kammerer C NRC OFFICE OF GOVERNMENTAL & PUBLIC AFFAIRS (GPA) |
| To: | Scott H RHODE ISLAND, STATE OF |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9002270055 | |
| Download: ML20006E996 (6) | |
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W NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
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February 20, 1990 1
1 H.-Denman Scott, M.D.
Director of Health Rhode Island Department of Health
. Cannon. Building, Davis Street Providence, RI 02908 r
Dear Dr. Scott:
This-letter confirms the discussion between John McGrath, NRC State Agreements Officer, and John T. Tierney, Associate Director of the Department of Health, on October 27, 1989 following our review and evaluation of the State's radiation control program..
As a result of our review of the State's program and the routine exchange 0
.of information between the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the State, the staff determined that the State's program for the regulation of agreement materials is adequate to and compatible with the Commission' protect public health and safety
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s program.: The finding of.
compatibility is based upon the State's actions to implement'certain
. requirements through the licensing process on an interim basis while
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completing the process of adopting-them as regulations.
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requirements, which pertain to radiography safety, were adopted by NRC in j
July 1986 and must be adopted by Agreement States to' maintain..
E compatibility. A three-year interval is allowed by NRC guidelines for l
such adoption by the Agreement States. We recommend the State initiate
.rulemaking to adopt-other NRC rules that are needed to maintain-compatibility.
For example, three NRC rules must be adopted in 1990 to
-meet this objective and are listed in Enclosure 2.
l An explanation of our policies and practices for reviewing Agreement
. State programs is attached as Enclosure 1. contains comments regarding the State's program which were discussed with Associate Director Tierney and Charles McMahon during our exit meeting with them. As indicated during our exit meeting, we request a response'from the State on the issues discussed in Enclosure 2.
We are enclosing'a second copy of this letter for placement in the State's public document room or otherwise to be made available for public view.
We.would like to take this opportunity to compliment the State on the excellent manner in which-the State's overall radiation control program l
continues to be conducted. Rhode Island became an Agreement State in 1980. Program reviews conducted by NRC since that time have never resulted in any significant adverse comment concerning the program. We congratulate you on this achievement and on the State's efforts to bR C
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q H. Denman Scott 2
2 0 1990-protect public health and safety. We appreciate the continued cooperation with the NRC and the courtesy extended by your staff to Mr. McGrath during the review.
i Sincerely, briginal tigned by Carlton Kammerer Carlton Kamerer, Director State Programs Office of Governmental and Public Affairs
Enclosures:
As stated cc w/encls:
J. M. Taylor, Executive Director for Operations W. Russell, Regional Administrator, Region I M. Knapp,. Director, DRSS, Region I State Liaison Officer NRC Public Document Room State Public Document Room bec w/encis:
Chairman Carr Comissioner Roberts Comissioner Rogers Commissioner Curtiss Comissioner Remick Distribution 5A RF SP RF HR0 RF L
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APPLICATION OF " GUIDELINES FOR NRC REVIEW OF AGREEMENT-STATE RADIATION CONTROL PROGRAMS" The " Guidelines for NRC Review of Agreement State Radiation Control Programs" were published in the Federal Register on June 4, 1987, as an NRC Policy Statement. The Guide provides 29 indicators for evaluating Agreement State program areas. Guidance as to their relative importance to an Agreement State program is provided by categorizing the indicators into two categories.
Category I indicators address program functions which directly relate to the State's ability to protect the public health and safety.
If significant problems exist in one or more Category I indicator areas, then the need for improvements may be critical.
Category II irdicators address program functions which provide essential technical a.c cd nistrative support for the primary program functions.
Good performance in meeting the guidelines for these indicators is essential in order to avoid the development of problems in one or more of the principal program areas, i.e., those that fall under Category I indicators.
Category II indicators frequently can be used to identify underlying problems that are causing or contributing to difficulties in Category I indicators.
It is the NRC's intention to use these categories in the following manner.
In reporting findings to State management, the NRC will indicate the category of each comment made.
If no significant Category I comments are provided, this will indicate that the program is adequate to protect the public health and safety and is compatible with the NRC's program.
If one or more significant Category I comments are provided, the State will be notified that the program deficiencies may seriously affect the State's ability to protect the public health and safety and that the need for improvement in particular program areas is critical.
If, following receipt
-and evaluation, the State's response appears satisfactory in addressing the significant Category I comments, the staff may offer findings of adequacy and compatibility as appro)riate or defer such offering until the State's actions are examined and t1eir effectiveness confirmed in a subsequent review. If additional information is needed to evaluate the State's actions, the staff may request the information through follow-up correspondence or perform a special limited review. NRC staff may hold a special meeting with appropriate State representatives. No significant items will be left unresolved over a prolonged period. The Comission will be informed and copies of the review correspondence to the States will be placed in the NRC Public Document Room.
If the State program does not improve or if additional significant Category I deficiencies have developed, a staff finding that the program is not adequate will be considered and the NRC may institute proceedings to suspend or revoke all or part of the Agreement in accordance with Section 274j of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended.
ENCLOSURE 1
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i SUMARY OF ASSESSMENTS AND COMENTS RHODE ISLAND RADIATION CONTROL PROGRAM FOR THE PERIOD
-NOVEMBER 5, 1987 TO OCTOBER 27, 1989 Scope of Review This program review was conducted in accordance with the Connission's Policy Statement for reviewing Agreement State Programs published in the Federal Register on June 4,1987, and the internal procedures established -
by the. 0ffice of Governmental and Public Affairs, State Programs, State Agreements Program. The State's program was reviewed against the 29 program indicators provided in the Guidelines. The review included discussions with program staff, technical evaluation of selected license and compliance files, the evaluation.of the State's responses to an NRC questionnaire that was sent to the State in preparation for the review, and a field accompaniment of a State inspector.
The seventh regulatory program review meeting with the State was held during the period October 23-27, 1989 in Providence, Rhode Island.
The State was represented by Charles McMahon, Supervising Radiation Control Specialist. A review of selected license, compliance and incident files was conducted by John McGrath, Region I, during the period October 25-26, 1989. A field accompaniment of a State inspector at an institutional medical facility was conducted on October 24, 1989 by John McGrath. A closeout meeting was held with the Associate Director of the Department of Health, John T. Tierney, on October 27, 1989.
Conclusion The Rhode Island program for the control of agreement materials was found to be adequate to protect public health and safety and compatible with the Commission's program.
Status of Program Related to Previous NRC Findings The results of.NRC's previous review were reported to the State in a letter dated December 1,1987. No specific comments or recommendations for program improvements were made.
Current Review Comments and Recommendations All 29 )rogram indicators were reviewed and the State fully satisfies 27'of t1ese indicators. Specific comments and recommendations for the remaining two indicators are as follows:
ENCLOSURE 2
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LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS Status and Compatibility of Regulations is a Category I indicator.
The following comment and recommendation concern an issue which, while not considered of major significance at this time, may become so in the near future.
Comment For regulations deemed to be a matter of compatibility by NRC, State regulations should be amended as soon as practicable, but no later than three years. On July 16, 1986 the NRC regulations on Industrial Radiography (10 CFR 34) were amended, and this amendment is a matter of compatibility.
It has not yet been adopted by the-State. The State as an interim measure is implementing these requirements through the licensing process.
The State's radiation control regulations were_last amended in October 1984. During an interim visit to Rhode Island in October 1988,' we recommended that the State consider initiating action to update the regulations. As a result of this recommendation, your staff prepared a draft revision to the State regulations which has been reviewed by our Region I office.
However, at the current time it is being reviewed by the Department's legal staff and has been tied up for some period of time.
Recommendation We recommend that the Department revitalize its internal review process and complete the revision of the regulations as soon as possible.
We also recommend the State begin now the process for maintaining the regulations current and compatible. The following NRC regulations have been issued within the three-year guideline, and need to be adopted by the State to maintain compatibility:
Bankruptcy Notification NRC Rule Effective 2/11/87 Medical Misadministration Reporting NRC Rule Effective 4/1/87 Well Logging Requirements NRC Rule Effective 7/14/87 Certification of Dosimetry Processors NRC Rule Effective 2/12/88 Decommission Rule NRC Rule Effective 7/12/88 II. MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION Quality of Emergency Planning is a Category I indicator. The following coment and recommendation concerns an issue which is not of major significance.
3 l
Comment The Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency (RIEMA) has the responsibility for coordinating emergency response in the State.
The State emergency plan, Annex G, states that RIEMA will direct and control all response activities. Although the State Department of Health is listed in the plan as a part of the emergency response organization, its specific role is not spelled out in the plan.
Also, the Department staff could not determine when RIEMA's L
emergency call list was last revised.
It currently needs minor L
revisions to reflect recent changes in Department of Health staff and the NRC Region I address. According to the radiation control t
program staff, RIEMA has, in the past, not followed any standard i:
I protocol for informing the Department of Health of reported radiation incidents. The Department's licensees have been reporting 1
incidents directly to the Department, in compliance with the Department's regulations and the Department's responses have been timely.
For other incidents, such as transportation incidents, it is not clear that the Department would be informed by RIEMA of the event.
Recommendation The Rhode Island Department of Health has regulatory responsibility for radiation safety in the State and further possesses technical expertise on radiation matters. The. State emergency plan should-explicitly: address the inclusion of Department personnel in all aspects of emergency response. We understand t1at Departmental staff has initiated discussions with RIEMA to address this issue.
We support this initiative and' urge prompt resolution of these concerns. The discussions should include consideration of amendments to Annex G to reflect the role of the Department as a regulating Agency for radiation safety. The RIEMA emergency call list should be reviewed periodically to assure that it contains appropriate, current entries for the Department and others who are listed.
Summary Discussion with State Representatives -
A sumary meeting to present the results of the regulatory program review was held with Mr.- John T. Tierney, Associate Director, Department of Health, on October 27, 1989. Mr. Charles McMahon, Supervising Radiation
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Control Specialist, was also present. The NRC representative, f
John McGrath, indicated that the Rhode Island program continues to be conducted in an excellent manner.
In addition to the comments discussed above, it was noted that with the retirement of Jim Hickey, the program is currently without a senior manager. Although this has not as yet resulted in any programmatic problems, the position should be filled as soon as possible. Mr. Tierney stated that they are actively seeking a candidate for the position and it is a high priority item with the Department.
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