ML20011F613
| ML20011F613 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 02/27/1990 |
| From: | Carr K NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| To: | Bevill T HOUSE OF REP., APPROPRIATIONS |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9003070037 | |
| Download: ML20011F613 (13) | |
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February 27, 1990 f
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i The Honorable Tom Bevill, Chairman Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development l
Committee on Appropriations l
United States House of Representatives Washington, D.C.
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Dear Mr. Chairman:
In accordance with the direction provided by House Appropriations Committee Report 99-195, I am enclosing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's report for Calendar Year 1989 on changes to operating nuclear power plants that were imposed by the Commission or its staff.
The report covers changes to systems, components, structures, procedures, organization, or design of operating plants.
i Sincerely,
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Kenneth M. Carr I
Enclosure:
As Stated cc:
Rep. John Myers 6ase,eoD>o+(is,,,
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Report on Changes to Systems. Components. Structures.
Procedures. Organization or Design of Operating Nuclear Power Plants imposed by The Nuclear Regulatory Commissien I
1.
Purpose l
i This report advises Congress of changes to operating nuclear power plants l
that were imposed by the Nuclear Regulatory Comission (NRC) during calendaryear(CY)1989.
===2.
Background===
i The NRC staff reviewed bulletins, generic letters, final rules, regulatory guides, policy statements, the plant-specific backfit tracking system and
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orders to identify changes to operating nuclear power plants that were imposed by the NRC in CY 1989. The changes discussed in this report were o
to systems, components, structures, design, procedures, or organization.
The term " imposed" as used in this report is defined broadly to refer to those documents that include requirements that a licensee is to follow as well as those documents that contain recommendations (bulletini, regulatory I
guides, generic letters, and policy statements) that a licensee generally chooses to follow. The recommendations would require further NRC action, j
however, to establish them as requirements imposed on the licensee by the NRC.
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l 3.
Bulletins The staff issued three bulletins in CY 1989.
In addition to these bulle-l
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tins, the staff issued two supplements to bulletins that were initially issued in previous years. All of the bulletins and supplements were issued pursuant to 10 CFR 50.54(f), which implements the provisions of 1
Section 182a of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. A summary of the three bulletins issued in CY 1989 and the two supplements to bulletins issued in previous years follows.
" Failure of Westinghouse Steam Generator Tube Mechani-cal Plugs " requested that selected licensees determine whether certain mechanical plugs supplied by Westinghouse were installed in their steam generators and, if so, that the licensees implement an action plan to ensure that these plugs would continue to provide adequate assurance of reactor coolant system pressure boundary integrity under normal operating,
. transient, and postulated accident conditions. Because licensees would l
otherwise eventually find it necessary to take remedial actions on these g
plugs, the staff concluded that the action the bulletin requested would not result in a net cost over the long term greater than the cost licensees would incur in the absence of the bulletin.
NRC Bulletin 89-02, " Stress Corrosion Cracking of High-Hardness Type 410 Stainless Steel Internal Preloaded Bolting in Anchor Darling Model S350W Swing Check Valves and Valves of Similar Design," requested that licensees
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(1) identify, disassemble, and inspect certain types of swing check valves
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c that may contain Type 410 stainless steel bolting material; (2) take l
appropriate corrective actions if the bolting material was of sufficiently high hardness that it was susceptible to stress corrosion crackingt and (3) report their findings and completion of their activities. Each license to operate a nuclear power plant requires that safety-related equipment perfonn its intended function when required.
Failure of Type 410 stainless steel bolting material in Anchor Darling Model S350W swing check valves or valves of similar design could impact their safe opera-
. tion. Because the actions requested in this bulletin were already incumbent on each licensee, the staff did not estimate the cost to the nuclear industry of the actions requested in this bulletin.
NRC Bulletin 89-03, " Potential toss of Required Shutdown Margin During Refueling Operations," alerted licensees to the potential loss of required shutdown margin during movement and placement of highly reactive fuel during refueling operations.
It also requested that licensees ensure that an adequate shutdown margin is maintained during all refueling opera-tions at their facilities and report completion of their activities.
Since the guidance in the bulletin identified a possible deficiency in refueling procedures that could have adversely affected the health and safety of the public, the staff did not estimate the cost to the industry of the actions requested in this bulletin.
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4 NRC Bulletin 88-08, Supplement 3. " Thermal Stresses in Piping Connected to Reactor Coolant Systems," provided infomation to licensees about an event at a foreign reactor relating to thermal stratification of unisolable piping connected to the! reactcr coolant system similar to the December 9,1987 Farley Unit 2 event. The bulletin emphasized the need for sufficient review of reactor coolant systems to identify any con-nected, unisolable piping that could be subjected to unacceptable themal stratification, and stressed the importance of taking action, if such piping is identified, to ensure that the piping would not be subjected to unacceptable thermal stresses. The action statements and reporting requirements did not change those contained in the original bulletin.
Therefore, the staff estimated that the industry would incur no additional cost.
NRC Bulletin 88-10, Supplement 1, "Nonconfoming Molded-Case Circuit Breakers," informed licensees that, on the basis of a prelimincry review of responses to the original bulletin, the NRC staff had determined that many of the responses did not adequately satisfy the provisions of the bulletin and that some licensees may need to take additional actions. Thee supplement also identified specific exan.ples of comon deficiencies in the original responses. Because the supplement did not change the actions requestea in the original bulletin, the staff estimated that the industry would incur no additional cost.
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5 4.
Generic Letters i
The NRC issued 23 generic letters in CY 1989. Additional infomation was distributed in a supplement to one of these letters. Two of the generic letters encouraged the licensees tv submit voluntary changes to their technical specifications, eight transmitted information to the licensees, one requested voluntary participation in a pilot testing program for operators, two requested the licensees to submit information that is readily available, and one did not apply to operating power reactor licensees. A summary of the remaining nine generic letters issued in CY 1989 and the one supplement to a generic letter issued in a previous year I
follows.
NRC Generic Letter 89-04, " Guidance on Developing Acceptable Inservice Testing Programs," provided selected licensees the NRC staff's position on inservice testing of valves and pumps and requested that they review their inservice testing program and confim that their programs met i
the staff's position. Licensees who had already received a safety evalua-l tion report (SER) on their programs and those for whom an SER had been prepared but not yet issued did not have to perform the review or submit the confirmation unless they modified their program. However, these licensees were informed that NRC may need to verify proper implementation of their programs. The staff estimated 700 person-hours per owner to l
l respond to the Generic Letter. The cost of implementing any inspection i
and testing changes that might be necessary as a result of the owner assessments was not estimated but was considered to be small over the entire industry and justifiable.
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6 NRC Generic Letter 89-06, " Task Action Plan Item I.D.2 - Safety Parameter DisplaySystem-10CFR50.54(f),"providedlicenseeswithacopyof NUREG-1342, "A Status Report Regarding Industry Implementation of Safety Parameter Display System," and requested that the licensees either (1) certify that their safety parameter display system fully meets the requirements of NUREG-0737, Supplement 1, " Clarification of TMI Action Plan Requirements," taking into account the information provided in NUREG-1342; or (2) certify that their safety parameter display system would be modified to meet the requirements of NUREG-0737, Supplement 1, taking into account the information provided in NUREG-1342. The letter also requested an explanation if neither certification could be made and a discussion of the compensatory action the licensee intended to take or had taken.
Licensees of facilities that had recently been verified as having a fully satisfactory safety parameter display system did not have to submit the confirmation. However, these licensees were informed that the NRC may need to verify that their systems have not been changed.
The staff estimated that the cost to the industry to prepare and submit the requested certifications was $216,000.
NRC Generic Letter 89-07, " Power Reactor Safeguards Contingency Planning for Surface Vehicle Bombs." alerted all licensees to new criteria for safe-guards contingency planning for surface vehicle bombs and requested that the licensees (1) modify their safeguards contingency plans to reflect these new criteria and (2) report completion of their activities. Supple-ment I to this generic letter clarified the original request by providing responses to questions received from the licensees. The staff estimated that the cost to the industry was 350 to 500 person hours per site.
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i 11 NRC Generic Letter 89-08, " Erosion / Corrosion-Induced Pipe Wall Thinning,"
requested that all licensees provide information on whether they had implemented or intended to implement a long term erosion / corrosion monitoring program that provides assurance that the Nuclear Management and ResourcesCouncil(NUMARC)programoranotherequallyeffectiveprogram was implemented and that the structural integrity of all high-energy (two-phase as well as single-phase) carbon steel systems was maintained.
If this program was not yet implemented, the NRC requested that licensees include the scheduled implementation date. The staff did not estimate the cost to the industry because the monitoring program would ensure that plants continue to meet their licensing basis, i
NRC Generic Letter 89-10. " Safety-Related Motor-Operated Valve Testing and Surveillance," alerted all licensees to problems concerning the opera-bility of safety-related motor-operated valves. Licensees were requested to (1) establish programs to demonstrate the operability of these valves andtoensurecontinuedoperabilityoverthelifeoftheplant,(2) provide a comitment to establish such a program and to complete the demonstration of operability within the timeframe specified in the generic letter, and (3) report completion of the demonstration phase of their program. The staff estimated that the cost to the industry was $418 million.
NRC Generic Letter 89-13 " Service Water System Problems Affecting Safety-Related Equipment," alerted all licensees to NRC's concerns about compliance with the general design criteria and quality assurance
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8 requirements associated with service water system. Licensees were requestedto(1)takefivespecifiedcorrectiveactions.(2) provide a commitment to meet these specific corrective actions or equally
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1 effectivealternativecoursesofaction,(3)provideaschedulefor
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implementation of these actions, and (4) provide a Mtification of completion of these actions. The staff estimated that the cost to the
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industry was $223,000 per reactor year.
1 NRC Generic Letter 89-16 " Installation of a Hardened Wetwell Vent,"
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encouraged selected licensees to voluntarily incorporate a hardened
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wetwellventattheirfacilitiesandprovideeither(1)theschedulefor l
completion of the installation, should they elect to voluntarily perform themodification,or(2)thecostofsuchaninstallation,shouldtheynot elect to voluntarily perfonn the modification.
For those licensees who do
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not voluntarily commit to installing a hardened wetwell vent at their facilities, the cost information would be used in the plant-specific backfit analysis to evaluate the efficacy of requiring this installation.
The staff estimated that the cost to the industry was $48 million. This j
estimate assumes that the 24 boiling water reactors to which the generic 1
letter applies install a hardened wetwell vent.
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NRC Generic Letter 89-19, " Request for Action Related to Resolution of Unresolved Safety Issue A-47, ' Safety Implication of Control Systems in LWR Nuclear Power Plants,' Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.54(f)," provided all licensees with the staff's position on resolution of Unresolved Safety 1
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Issue A-47 and requested that the licensees provide a comitment to meet the staff position for their facilities. The staff estimated that the cost to the industry was $1.6 million.
NRC Generic Letter 89-21 " Request for Information Concerning Status of Implementation of Unresolved Safety Issue (USI) Requirements," requested l
that all licensees provide information with respect to the status of their implementation of resolutions for all unresolved safety issues for which final technical resolution has been achieved. The staff estimated that the cost to the industry was 80 person hours per facility.
NRC Generic Letter 88-20, Supplement 1, " Individual Plant Examination for Severe Accident Vulnerabilities - 10 CFR 50.54(f)," announced the avail-ability of NUREG-1335, " Individual Plant Examination: Submittal Guidance,"
and the initiation of the individual plant examination process. The action statements and reporting requirements did not change those in the l
original ' generic letter. Therefore, the staff estimated that the industry I
would incur no additional cost.
i 5.
Final Rules l
One amendment to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations that imposed changes on operating nuclear power plants was published in final fonn in CY 1989.
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The Commission's final rule, " Fitness for Duty Programs" (54 FR 24468),
i required that licensees authorized to operate nuclear power reactors implement a fitness-for-duty program by January 3, 1990, that would provide reasonable assurance that activities associated with nuclear power I
J plant operations are carried out in an environment that is free from the effects of alcohol and drug abuse. The staff estimated that the cost to the industry to implement the rule would be $326.8 million to $494.5 l
million.
6.
Regulatory Guides The NRC issued six final regulatory guides in CY 1989 that were applicable to commercial nuclear power plants.
Four of the six endorsed, with limitations, industry standards. The remaining two, Regulatory Guide 1.114. " Guidance to Operators at the Controls and to Senior Operators in t
the Control Room of a Nuclear Power Unit," and Regulatory Guide 1.157, t
"Best Estimate Calculations of Emergency Core Cooling System Performance," provided clarifications to previously published rules and did not require changes to systems, components.. structures, or design of operating nuclear power plants, or the procedures and organization required to operate them.
7.
Policy Statements The Connission issued eight policy statements in CY 1989. Of these eight, one policy statement on fitness-for-duty was also issued as a rule and is
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4 discussed under the section onirules. Three of the r'emaining seven policy encouraged licensees to make changes to systems, components, statementsj structures, or design of operating nuclear power plants, or the A description of procedures and organization required to operato them.
these three is provided.
The " Final Policy Statement on the Conduct of Nuclear Power Plant Operations"(54FR3424)describedtheCommission'sexpectationof utility management and licensed operators with respect to the conduct of nuclear power plant operations.
It encouraged utility management to establish and maintain a professional working environment with a' focus.on safety in the control room and throughout the plant.
The " Final Policy Statement on Education for Senior Peactor Operators and Shift Supervisors at Nuclear Power Plants" (54 FR 33639) encouraged licensees to have on each shift a team of licensed professionals that combine technical and academic knowledge with plant-specific training and substantial hands-on operating experience.
The " Final Policy Statement on Maintenance of Nuclear Power Plants" (54FR50611)encouragedlicenseestofurtherimprovemaintenance, especially with regard to effective implementation of maintenance programs.
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8.
Plant-Specific Backfit Tracking System L
The NRC imposed one plant-specific backfit in CY 1989. Plant-specific backfits are defined as the NRC-required modification of or addition to t
systems, structures, components, or design of a specific single facility, or the procedures or organization required to design, construct, or operate that specific facility.
The staff required improvements in the secondary side decay heat removal function at Arkansas Nuclear One, Unit 2, as the resolution of Generic Issue 124. " Auxiliary Feedwater System Reliability." Specifically, the staff performed a backfit analysis for installation of a non-safety related startup feedwater pump or an additional auxiliary feedwater pump
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as an additional means to deliver water to the steam generators following 4
transient or accident conditions. The staff estimated that the cost of the proposed modification would be approximately $2 million for installa-r tion of a startup feedwater pump or comparable modification, and that l
continuingcosts(e.g.,periodictesting, maintenance)wouldbe$1million 3
over the plant life. The staff concluded that the modification would be L
justified based on a cost / benefit analysis.
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Orders l'
In CY 1989, the NRC issued no orders that imposed changes to systems, components, structures, procedures, organization, or design on operating nuclear power plant licensees.
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