ML20009E438

Supplemental Mgt Findings on Shift Staffing.No Objection to Including Any or All Commitments Set Forth in License Exemption 59 as License Conditions for Restart.Certificate of Svc Encl

ML20009E438
Person / Time
Site:	Three Mile Island
Issue date:	07/23/1981
From:	Blake E METROPOLITAN EDISON CO., SHAW, PITTMAN, POTTS & TROWBRIDGE
To:
References
ISSUANCES-SP, NUDOCS 8107280209
Download: ML20009E438 (8)

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Y UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR P2GULATORY COMMISSION BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING BOARD In the Matter of )

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METROPOLITAN EDISON COMPANY ) Docket No. 50-289 SP

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(Three Mile Island Nuclear )

Station, Unit No. 1) )

s sq LICENSEE'S SUPPLEMENTAL MANAGEMENT A' . B FINDINGS ON SHIFT STAFFING .

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I. Introduction Wh N N \

As indicated in " Licensee's Reply to Commonwealth o Pennsylvania and Aamodt Findings on Panagement Issues,'" dated June 29, 1981, subsequent to Licensee's receipt of the Commonwealth's initial findings on management issues, Licensee and Commonwealth representatives met for the purpose of resolving various differences in position. One outcome from these meetings, the additional commitments reflected in Lic.

Ex. 56, already has been reported to the Board. See Licensee Reply PF 5-7. Included within the discussions between Licensee and the Commonwealth was the matter of shift staff and opera-tional resources. Here too Licensee and the Commonwealth have resolved their differences, but this was accomplished after the filing of Licensee's June 29th Reply Findings and therefore is os 8107280209 810723 PDR ADOCK 05000289 M f 8'I G PDR

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I not covered therein. In accordance with the Board's ruling (Tr. at 23112) and confirmatory order of July 13, 1981, Licensee submits these supplemental proposed findings on the shift manning issue.

II. Proposed Findings of Fact

1. The outcome of additional discussions between Licensee and the Commonwealth on the subjects of shift staffing and operational personnel are reported in a letter dated July 7, 1981, from Licensee's counsel to counsel for the Commonwealth.

Lic. Ex. 59. This letter indicates that, on the basis of the further discussion between the parties, and certain additional commitments by Licensee, the shift manning concerns identified by the Commonw'ealth have been alleviated and the Commonwealth is withdrawing its proposed findings in this area. For its part, Licensee agreed not to object to the inclusion of any or all of its commitments, as set forth in Lic. Ex. 59, as license conditions for the restart of TMI-1.

2. The Board has reviewed the commitments of Licensee detailed in Lic. Ex. 59 and finds them acceptable. The Board also accepts withdrawal of the Commonwealth's proposed and reply findings on shift staffing and operational personnel.

3. One area of concern initially raised by the Commonwealth and not yet reviewed by the Board relates to the adequacy of operational shift manning during emergency situ-ations. PA PF 127-30. While we understand that the

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Commonwealth's concerns in this area have now been resolved, the Board briefly summarizes below the evidence of record since this issue was litigated by the parties. More general concerns as to the overall adequacy of Licensee's staffing for emergency situations is addressed in Section , infra, of this Recommended Decision. Here we treat Licensee's ability to respond during an emergency with shift manning as set forth in Lic. Ex. 59.

4. At our request, see Tr. at 20763-64, the NRC Staff was asked to report whether the possibility that there might only be one SRO-licensed operator on shift when an emergency starts had been considered in the Staff's evaluation of Licensee's onsite emergency response. A May 29, 1981 affidavit from Stephen Chesnut, the NRC reviewer responsible for evaluation of the TMI Emergency Plan, was submitted in response to this request. Staff Ex. 17, at 11 2, 4-9. Mr. Chesnut was made available for cross-examination on his affidavit, and was questioned extensively on the adequacy of Licensee's opera-tional shift manning for emergency conditions. See generally Tr. at 22237-66, 22272-98, 22314-18, 22330-43.

5. The NRC Staff position is succinctly stated in Mr.

Chesnut's affidavit (Staff Ex. 17, at 1 5):

I looked at the key functions to be performed by the emergency organizations and compared the Licensee's plan to determine whether an adequate assignment of personnel resources had been made. In so doing, I reached the conclusion that the Licensee's plan had properly identified the key emergency func-tions and properly staffed the emergency

organization to perform the functions. My conclusion in this regard was not dependent upon there being a second licensed SRO on-shift.

In explaining the basis for this conclusion, Mr. Chesnut observed that, for emergency planning purposes, it was neces-sary to consider the on-shift operational staffing in the context of Licensee's entire on-shift emergency response organization. Licensee's Emergency Plan calls for 20 people l

on-shift at all times. By comparison, the NRC Staff recommends i

a minimum shift staffing of 10. Tr. at 22290 (Chesnut). This excess of personnel allows this Licensee to immediately remove from the person designated as Emergency Director (i.e., the shift supervisor) some functions that other licensees place on the Emergency' Director. These include radiological concerns, including dose projections and in-plant controls, as well as initial notifications. Thus, under Licensee's Emergency Plan the Emergency Director can better concentrate on operational matters; this is not necessarily the case at other plants. Tr.

at 22291, 22316 (Chesnut). The Board gives considerable weight to this distinction in concluding that one on-shift SRO-licen-sed operator is adequate during emergency situations.

6. Nor was Mr. Chesnut able to id(ntify any factors unique to TMI-1, either with respect to the plant or the site-specific emergency plan, that would require two SRO-

! licensed individuals to implement the emergency plan, while all l

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other operating plants are presently required to have only one SRO-licensed individual. Tr. at 22315-16 (Chesnut). To the contrary, Mr. Chesnut was of the view that Licensee's overall on-shift manning of the emergency organization was the "best I have seen. T have not seen any plan which has the level of expertise that the Licensee is planning on using." Tr. at 22291-92 (Chesnut). Mr. Chesnut's views were based on a minimum shift manning of one SRO and two RO's when the plant is operating. Tr. at 22238, 22250-52 (Chesnut). With Licensee's commitments reflected in Lic. Ex. 59, Licensee will have four licensed operators on shift when the plant is operating and the licensed SRO will be in, or within five minutes of reaching, the control room. From an emergency planning standpoint, the Board therefore does not regard as necessary that the restart of TMI-l be conditioned with a requirement that Licensee have two SRO-licensed individuals on-shift at all times.

Respectfully submitted, SHAW, PITTMAN, POTTS & TROWBRIDGE By: I b/4 M(

George F. Trowbr'idge Ernest L. Blake, Jr.

I Deborah B. Bauser Counsel for Licensee Dated: July 23, 1981.

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Lic 7/23/81 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i

l Before the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board In the Matter of )

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I METROPOLITAN EDISON COMPANY ) Docket No. 50-289 SP

) (Restart) j (Three Mile Island Nuclear )

Station, Unit No. 1) )

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE l

The undersigned hereby certifies that four copies of the foregoing Licensee's Supplemental Management Findings on Shift

Staf fing were hand delivered to Administrative Judge Ivan W.

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{ Smith, and copies were served by United States mail cn the other l persons on the attached Service List, this 23rd day of July, 1981.

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W/ A /464,/s.

Ernest L. Blake, Jr.

Counsel for Licensee Dated: July 23, 1981.

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. .o UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION BEFORE THE COMMISSION In the Matter of )

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METROPOLITAN EDISON COMPANY ) Docket No. 50-289 SP (Restart)

)

(Three Mile Island Nuclear )

Station, Unit No. 1) )

SERVICE LIST Administrative Judge Ivan W. Smith Walter W. Cohen, Esquire U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Consumer Advocate Atomic Safety & Licensing Board Panel Office of Consumer Advocate Washington, D.C. 20555 1425 Strawberry Square Harrisburg, PA 17127 Administrative Judge Walter H. Jordan Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Jordan D. Cunningham, Esquire 881 West Outer Drive Fox, Farr & Cunningham Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830 2320 North Second Street Harrisburg, PA 17110 Administrative Judge Linda W. Little Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Ms. Louise Bradford 5000 Hermitage Drive TMI ALERT Raleigh, North Carolina 27612 315 Peffer Street Harrisburg, PA 17102 James R. Tourtellotte, Esquire (4)

Office of Executive Legal Director Ellyn R. Weiss, Esquire U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Harmon & Weiss Washington, D.C. 20555 1725 Eye Street, N.W. , Suite 506 Washington, D.C. 20006 Docketing and Service Section (3)

Office of the Secretary Steven C. Sholly U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ' Union of Concerned Scientists Washington, D.C. 20555 1725 Eye Street, N.W., Suite 6 01 Washington, D.C. 20006 John A. Levin, Esquire Assistant Counsel Gail Bradford Pennsylvania Public Utility ANGRY Commission 245 West Philadelphia Street P. O. Box 3265 York, PA 17404 Harrisburg, PA 17120 William S. Jordan, III, Esquire Robert Q. Pollard Harmon & Weiss 609 Montpelier Street 1725 Eye Street, N.W., Suite 506 Faltimore, MD 21218 Washington, D.C. 20006

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-Karin W. Carter, Esquire Chauncey Kepford Assistant Attorney General Judith H. Johnsrud 505 Executive House Environmental Coalition on P. O. Box 2357 Nuclear Power Harrisburg, PA 17120 433 Orlando Avenue State College, PA 16801 John E. Minnich Chairman, Dauphin County Board Marvin I.. Lewis-of Commissioners 6504 Bradford Terrace Dauphin County Courthouse Philadelphia, PA 19149

. Front and Market Streets Harrisburg, PA 17101 Attorney General of New Jersey Attn: Thomas J. Germine, Esquire Marjorie M. Aamodt Deputy Attorney General R. D. 5 Division of Law - Room 316 Coatesville, PA 19320 1100 Raymond Boulevard Newark, New Jersey 07102 We