ML20033G475
| ML20033G475 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 04/04/1990 |
| From: | Blaha J NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | |
| References | |
| WIR-900330, NUDOCS 9004100045 | |
| Download: ML20033G475 (44) | |
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April 4, 1990 For:
The Commissioners From:
James L. Blaha, Assistant for Operations, Office of the EDO
Subject:
WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING MARCH 30, 1990 A sumary of key events is included as a convenience to those Commissioners who may prefer a condensed version of this report.
Contents Enclosure Nuclear Reactor Regulation A
Nuchar Material Safety and Safeguards B
Nuclear Regulatory Research C
Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data D
Governmental & Public Affairs E
General Counsel F*
Administration G
Information Resources Management H*
Controller I*
Personnel J
Small & Disadvantaged Business Utilization & Civil Rights K*
Enforcement L
Consolidation M
Regional Offices N
Executia Director for Operations 0*
Items Aelressed by the Commission P
Meeting Notices Q
Proprietary or Other Sensitive Information (Not for R
externaldistribution)
- No input this week.
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ames L. Blaha, Assistant for Operations
.WEEKLYINFOREPT pdc Office of the Executive Director for Operations q
James L. Blaha, OEDO 492-1703 g
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l HIGHLIGHTS OF WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT WEEK ENDING MARCH 30, 1990 Vogtle Unit 1 Because of the safety significance and potential regulatory questions raised as a result of the March 20, 1990 loss of all vital AC power event at Vogtle Unit 1, the Executive Director for Operations requested ACOD (on to upgrade the AIT to a seven member NRC Incident Investigation March 23,)1990)The team leader is Al Chaffee (Region Y) and includes (in addition Team (!!T.
to seven NRC members) three non NRC team members. The!!Tisto(a)factfind astowhathappened;(b)identifytheprobablecauseastowhyithappened; and (c) make appropriate findings and conclusions which form the basis for any necessary follow-on actions. Georgia Power Company has agreed to cooperate with the !!T 1er the Confirmatory Action Letter of March 23, 1990. Additionally, the licensee las agreed not to take Vogtle Unit 1 critical until concurrence is received f rom NRC. The 11T team report is expected in 45 days.
Entry of Onmarked end Mis-Documented Materials at Arizona / Mexico Border On March 29, GPA/IP staff advised the Mexican CNSNS, pursuant to our informa-tion exchange arrangement, that we had learned from Region V that on March 22, a Mexican citizen entered the U.S. by truck through the Nogales, Arizona border en route to the Joffroy warehouse, located in Nogales. The citizen presented ship?ing papers that indicated he was transporting radioactive sources. A check of the vehicle showed that it was carryirg an unmarked 10 gallon drum with a radiation reading well in excess of background. The shipping papers were not for this cargo but for a previous shipment of radiographic sources from the Amersham Corporation in Burlington, Massachusetts to Mexico. We understand that Amersham is sending the proper documentation and radioactive markings to the shipping agent in Nogales and that the shipment will then be cleared to continue to Amersham Corporation.
First Gemstone Import License Issued On March 28, 1990, thefirstNRClicense(No. 12-23768-01E) for exempt distribu-tion of imported topaz was issued to the Ainor Instrument Company located in A1nor Instrument is part of a division of Studsvik AB Springfield, Illinois.
Sweden, which will be irradiating topaz with neutrons and gasma rays at the R2 and R2-0 reactors at Studsvik, Sweden. The license was issued to Alnor Instru-ment and Studsvik Nuclear, as sole agents for World Gems USA Ltd., a large gem In addition to the quality assurance and counting procedures in wholesaler.
Sweden, the Alnor facility in Illinois will re-count the neutron-irradiated topaz before release to persons exempt from licensing.
Revised Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) j A revision of the 1979 NRC/ FBI draft MOV has been completed by the two agencies and is under review. The MOV has been revised to reflect new legal authorities and to clarify each agency's role and responsibilities based on ten years of operational experience.
Accident Management Program The Accident Management Program completed a major milestone with the issuance I
on March 30, 1990, of Supplement 3 to Generic Letter 88-20, entitled " Accident Management Strategies for Consideration in the Individual Plant Examination Process."
j Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 l
Browns Ferry, Units 1, 2 and 3 Sequoyah, Units 1 and 2 Watts Bar, Units I and 2 Bellefonte, Units 1 and 2 On March 27, 1990, TVA announced that Dwight Nunn has been appointed Vice 1990. Mr. Nunn replaces President, Nuclear Engineering, effective April 16 FredMoreadithwhohasannouncedhisresignationeffectiveMarch 28, 1990.
l Mr. Nunn has been with Southern California Edison for 18 years, most recently as Manager of Nuclear Engineering and Construction. Mr. Nunn served in the j
U. S. Navy, Division of Naval Reactors.
He received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of New Mexico, and an MBA from Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
He is a registered professional engineer. Until Mr. Nunn is oriented with TVA, the site engineering organizations will report to the site management and Knoxville engineering will report to the Manager of Nuclear Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
Indian Point Unit 2 During a meeting on March 14, 1990 to discuss the findir.gs of the mid-cycle SG girth weld inspection, the licensee also reported crack indications in the support brackets for the feedwater nozzle inlet of SG #22 and SG #23 and l
in the inner radius of the SG #23 inlet nozzle. Therefore, the staff requested the licensee to expand its inspection to include an examination of all feedwater ring support brackets and inlet nozzles.
In telephone calls on March 20 and 23, 1990, the licensee provided initial results of these examinations. Crack indications have been detected in the nozzle bores of SG #23 and #24. Crack indications have also been detected on the inner radii and on all support brackets in SG #21 SG #23, and SG #24.
Further examinations are planned. These findings have caused the licensee to extend the duration of the current outage until at least the end of April.
The bracket crack indications are predominantly in the toe of the weld and oriented parallel to the bracket.
In some locations, the crack indications extend essentially around the entire support bracket. The licensee is grinding out all of the crack indications.
The depth of the grinding has extended at least 0.5 inches into the SG shells. The licensee and its contractor (Westinghouse) are evaluating the need for weld repairs. The l
bracket cracks appear to be caused by a different mechanism than that observed in the girth welds in that little or no pitting has been noted on the brackets.
Vogtle Unit 1 Because of the safety significance and potential regulatory questions raised as a result of the March 20, 1990 loss of all vital AC power event at MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE A
i 2
Vogtle Unit 1, the Executive Director for Operations requested AEOD (on to upgrade the AIT to a seven member NRC Incident Investigation March 23,)1990)The team leader is Al Chaffee (Region V) and includes (in addition Team (llT.
to seven NRC members) three non-NRC team members. The llT is to (a) fact find as to what happened; (b) identify the probable cause as to why it happened; and (c) make appropriate findings and conclusions which form the basis for any necessary follow-on actions. Georgia Power Company has agreed to cooperate with the IIT 'er the Confirmatory Action Letter of March 23, 1990. Additionally, s
the licensee las agreed not to take Vogtle Unit I critical until concurrence is received from NRC. The IIT team report is expected in 45 days, l
1 1
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE A
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i NTOL AND RESTART SCHEOULE 3/30/90 I
1.
Schedule for NT0L plants:
INITIAL FULL PLANT LOW POWER CRITI-COMMISSION POWER AUTHORZTN CALITY BRIEFING AUTHORZTN COMANCHE PEAK 1 2/8/900 4/3/90E 4/90E 4/90E i
II. Schedule for RESTART plants:
COMMISSION i
STATUS l
PLANT SHUTDOWN BRIEFING PLANT RESTART BROWNS FERRY 2 9/15/84C 8/90E 9/90E*
NINE MILE POINT 1 12/19/87C 4/90E 5/90E l
l
- Commission decision prior to restart authorization.
l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE A
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1 Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 SAFEGUARDS AND TRANSPORTATION i
Domestic Revised Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
A revision of the 1979 NRC/ FBI draft MOU has been completed by the two agencies and is under review. The MOV has been revised to reflect new legal authorities and to clarify each agency's role and responsibilities based on ten years of operational experience.
Transportation Department of Energy (DOE) Transportation Roundtable l
On March 22, 1990, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff attended a DOE Transportation Roundtable in Washington, D.C.
DOE arranged the Round-table to focus attention on the transportation aspect of radioactive waste management. The Roundtable was attended by representatives of the Department of Transportation, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, the transportation industry, congressional staff and the media. The agenda included panels on " Lessons Learned from the 1980's" and
" Transportation Challenges in the 1990's." Discussion groups focused on transportation technology development, regulatory trends, risk perception, and emergency preparedness. DOE has indicated that additional Roundtables nay be held.
Nuclear Assurance Corporation (NAC) Inspection Meeting On March 27, 1990, NMSS staff met with officials of Nuclear Assurance Corpor-ation (NAC) to discuss the interpretation of spent fuel cask weld radiographs.
An NRC inspection conducted in December 1989, identified indications on the radiographs for NAC's legal weight truck cask as lack of fusion. NAC disputes this interpretation, and HMSS staff has the matter under consideration. The March meeting attendees included two radiography examiners (Level III) and an engineer from Idaho National Engineering Laboratory and two radiography examiners (Level III) and a welding engineer representing NAC. The radiographs were re-viewed at the meeting and the discussion focussed on the welding technology used in the fabrication of the casks, the mechanisms for lack of fusion and slag inclusions, and the ASME welding code requirements.
Meeting on GA-4 And GA-9 Spent Fuel Cask On March 21, 1990, Transportation Branch staff met with General Atomics Company (GA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) to discuss the GA-4 and GA-9 spent fuel shipping casks.
These casks are being designed for DOE for transport of spent fuel by truck under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. The discussion centered on the structural analyses used to evaluate the ability of the fuel basket and MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE B
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cask cavity liner plate to function during normal conditions of transport and under hypothetical accident conditions. A half-scale model test plan also was discussed. Applications for NRC certification are expected near the end of 1991.
Meeting on BR-100 Spent Fuel Cask i
On March 22, 1990, the Transportation Branch staff met with the Babcock and Wilcox (B&W) Fuel Company concerning the Model No. BR-100 spent fuel cask.
l The cask is being designed for the Department of Energy to ship spent fuel under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act. Topics discussed included plans to r
request credit for fuel burnup in the criticality analysis and thermal testing of the shielding design. An application for NRC certification is I
expected in November 1991.
1 INDUSTRIAL AND MEDICAL NUCLEAR SAFETY Fuel Cycle Safety Nuclear Fuel Services. Inc.
On March 20, 1990, NMSS and Region II staff met with Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (NFS) representatives to review the status of the plutonium decomissioning l
project.
State of Tennessee radiation health officials also were in attendance.
A tour of the facility was provided, including a-volume reduction demonstration.
Initial operations are scheduled to comence in the near future.
NMSS and Region 11 staff also discusssed the status of the ponds decomissioning I
project with NFS representatives.
State of Tennessee health and environmental officials attended the discussions because of the solid waste and water contam-ination issues involved.
Construction of the sludge dewatering facility is
)
underway. Residual chemical and radioactive contamination after decommissioning l
1s an unresolved issue.
NMSS and Region 11 representatives reviewed the status of the new uranium re-covery facility and discussed the safety criteria. The NMSS representatives toured the facilities on March 20-21, in conjunction with the license renewal review.
Allied-Signal, Inc.
On March 19-22, 1990, NMSS and Region III staff were dispatched to the Allied-Signal, Inc. ( A-S) f acility in Metropolis, Illinois, to monitor the licensee's recovery activities and plant restart following a February 18, 1990, incident in which a suspected reaction between an ethylene glyco 1/ water coolant mixture and UF may have occurred within a cold trap.
In March, A-S was implementing g
corrective actions (both administrative and engineering controls) and was in the process of performing plant engineering checks prior to restart.
The engineering checks were completed and the plant was restarted on March 25, 1990. On March 27, 1990, A-S comenced filling UF, cylinders and, during a site visit, Region III representative confirmed that thU implementation of engineering controls had been completed.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE B
1 3-Material Safety First Gemstone import License issued On March 28, 1990, the first NRC license (No. 12-23768-01E) for exempt distribu-tion of imported topaz was issued to the Alnor Instrument Company located in Springfield, Illinois.
A1nor Instrument is part of a division of Studsvik AB Sweden, which will be irradiating topaz with neutrons and gamma rays at the R2 and R2-0 reactors at Studsvik, Sweden. The license was issued to Alnor Instru-ment and Studsvik Nuclear, as sole agents for World Gems USA Ltd., a large gem wholesaler.
In addition to the quality assurance and counting procedures in Sweden, the A1nor facility in Illinois will re-count the neutron-irradiated topaz before release to persons exempt from licensing.
LOW-LEVEL WASTE MANAGEMENT Department of Energy Announces Surcharge Rebates On March 15, 1990, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced disbursement of approximately $10 million in escrowed funds to states and interstate compacts, in accordance with provisions of the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1985.
The following list indicates those compacts and unaffiliated states that received surcharge payments for meeting the requirement of the January 1,1990, milestone, together with the amounts received.
Appalachian Compact - $1,914,249 District of Columbia - $9,850 i
Central Compact - $848,366 Maine - $109,479 Central Midwest Compact - $1,397,077 Massachusetts - $578,543 Midwest Compact - $1,356,453 New York - $912,025 Northeast Compact - $1,032,121 Rhode Island - $13,655 l
Southwestern Compact - $1,345,256 Texas - $183,318 Review of DOE's Remedial Action Plan l
On March 22, 1990, LowLevelWasteManagementandDecommissioning(LLWM) staff completed it's review of the DOE final Remedial Action Plan and Site Final l
Design for Stabilization (RAP) for the Green River, Utah uranium mill tailings site and transmitted the results of the review to DOE. Based on the review, NRC conditionally concurred in the RAP and transmitted the signed original l
signature pages to DOE. Our concurrence is conditional because DOE has chosen to defer consideration of groundwater cleanup until after promulgation of final i
l EPA groundwater protection standards. Our review and conclusions are documented in the final Technical Evaluation Report (TER), which was enclosed with the letter to DOE.
The remedial action work at Green River and NRC concurrence with DOE's proposals had generated previous inquiries from the State of Utah and Senator Garn s office.
Copies of the TER were transmitted to Larry Anderson, Director, Bureau of Radiation Control, Utah and to Senator Garn's office. A copy is also being transmitted to EPA.
I MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE B
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j HIGH-LEVEL WASTE MANAGEMENT i
DOE /NWTRB Interaction on Repository Design Requirements On March 19-20, 1990 Division of High-Level Waste Management staff attended a meeting between the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB) on repository design requirements. The NWTRB expressed concern about DOE's plans to use high thermal load resulting from the emplacement of spent nuclear fuel as a design basis for the repository. The NWTRB suggested that DOE investigate measures that can be taken to reduce the heat load in the repository. For example, the spent fuel could be allowed to cool prior to disposal; less fuel could be put in each canister, or the spacing among waste canisters could be increased.
Site Visit Apache Leap. AZ Commission (NRC) staff members of the Nuclear Regulatory (DOE) Prototype Drilling On March 19-20, 1990, participated as observers of the Department of Energy Operation conducted at Apache Leap, Arizona.
On March 21, 1990, the NRC staff further observed how the transported prototype core samples from the Apache Leap location were processed at the Nevada Test Site Sample Management Facility. The overall purpose of the Prototype Drilling program is to gain sufficient experience in determining whether the prototype air drilling and coring equipment, specially-designed and built for the Yucca Mountain Project, can satisfactorily retrieve core from the required depths and provide the necessary scientific information i
for site characterization of the high-level radioactive waste geological repository.
I The NRC observation team consisted of quality assurance (QA) and technical staff who observed both the QA and technical aspects of the drilling operation and core processing.
It does not appear at this time that the device will be capable of slant hole coring, which the NRC staff believes will be necessary to investigate the near-vertical jointing and fractures expected at Yucca Mountain, nor does it appear possible to orient (north-south orientation) the cores obtained with this device.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE B
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I Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research l
l Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 l
Division of Engineering Use of Nuclear Power Plant Aging Research Program Results in Inspectior, l
Activities TheNuclearPlantAgingResearch(NPAR)Programisahardwareoriented research program, which has produced, from an aging perspective, a large data base of equipment and systems operating and maintenance information. The type of information generated by NPAR which are found relevant to inspection needs include the following: functional indicators; failure modes, causes; effects; l
stresses which cause degradation; and maintenance recommendations.
On March 27, 1990, the RES staff (Electrical & Mechanical Branch) met with the i
NRR staff (Inspection and Licensing Program Branch), to discuss the options for making these pertinent research results available to regional and resident inspectors.
It was concluded that NPAR " report summaries" and " aging inspection guides" for each safety-related equipment and system would be the best vehicle for providing pertinent information to inspectors in a concise manner. Each summary will include identification of aging related problems, highlights of the operating experience, potential solutions to aging problems, and list of references. The " aging inspection guide" will provide visual ins >ection techniques which may be useful in detecting equipment degradation.
- turther, consideration will be given to revising the NRC Inspection Manual to reflect aging concerns.
The process described above is separate from planned inspection associated with license renewal, which will be covered by specific inspection procedures.
Division of Regulatory Applications RES to Publish Report on Chemical Toxicity of Uranium Hexafluoride RES has completed and sent to printing a report, " Chemical Toxicity of Uranium Hexafluoride Related to Radiation Doses," NUREG-1391. The report is being published for public comment.
The work was requested by NMSS in support of a rulemaking for uranium hexafluoride plants. While the rulemaking is not currently being pursued, the work is still needed to evaluate an application for an enrichment plant expected in 1990.
The report selected values for uranium and hydrogen fluoride, which are formed when uranium hexafluoride escapes into air, that have a chemical toxicity equivalent to the radiation dose values used in 10 CFR Part 100 for reactor siting criteria. The values in the report would be used in evaluating the consequences of potential accidents at an enrichment plant.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE C
-2 Division of Systems Research Status of the Probability of Containment Shell Failure on Mark I Containment i
We have issued a draft report, NUREG/CR-5423, for peer review. The report
)repared by Professor Theofanous of the University of California Santa 3arbara, estimated the conditional (assuming a reactor vessel meltthrough accident)containmentshglimeltthroughprobabilityforafloodeddrywellto be approximately 1 x 10".
(If the drywell is dry, this probability signifi.
cantly larger and is consistent with the NUREG-1150 results).
It is our assessment that the method in the NUREG/CR report captures the essential quantitative aspects of the problem, and if it withstands the scrutiny of the broad peer review, that has just been completed, we can conclude that the Mark I containment shell meltthrough failure is physically unreasonable for a flooded drywell case.
It is also expected that as part of the accident management program and the IPE process, reliable sources of adding water to the drywell will be identified.
We expect to complete our evaluation of the peer review comments by June 1990, and issue the final report by July 1990. Our views on the Mark I meltthrough issue will be presented to the Commission shortly thereafter.
Accident Management Program The Accident Management Program completed a major milestone with the issuance on March 30, 1990, of Supplement 3 to Generic Letter 88-20, entitled " Accident Management Strategies for Consideration in the Individual Plant Examination Process."
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l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE C
Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data Items of Interest 1
Week Ending March 30, 1990 l
Division of Operational Assessment (DOA)
(
i Lee Spessard, Director, Division of Operational Assessment has been detailed to the Office of the EDO for special assignment relating to Seabrook allegations.
Gary Zech will be Acting Division Director during the month of April, Eric Weiss will be Acting Chief, Incident Response Branch.
On March 26-28, 1990, the IRB Branch Chief represented the U.S. at a Technical Committee meeting sponsored by the ITET/ NET in Vienna, Austria during which the details of a trial period were discussed for the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES). The INES will be made available to member countries within the next month to be used to numerically classify events at power reactors during l
the fiscal period starting this fall. The U.S. again indicated that it does not i
intend to adopt the scale because our system for reporting and classifying events has and continues to work well.
l An Incident Investigation Team (IIT) of technical experts was identified and 23, 1990 dispatched to Vogtle Nuclear Power Plant,)Waynesboro, Georgia on Marchidentify t to: (a) fact find as to what happened; (b why it happened; and (c) make appropriate findings and conclusions which would form the basis of any necessary follow-on actions. During the period from March 24 to 30 the team was debriefed by the Augmented Inspection Team which had been at the site since March 22, 1990, held an entrance briefing with utility management and conducted a press briefing on March 26, 1990, and gathered information, examined equipment, and conducted interviews of licensee staff.
During field investigation activities, administrative and IIT procedural support was provided to the IIT by an AEOD member and the Director, AE0D respectively.
The team was due to return from the field and continue its work at the AEOD offices in Bethesda, Maryland on April 3,1990.
On liarch 28-30, 1990, the Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) Diagnostic Evaluation Team (DET) member coordinating AEOD's review of the AP&L resoonse to the ANO DET, participated in meetings with licensee, Region IV and N1R representatives to discuss the licensee's response to team's report.
11 enters of the TTC staff conducted a National News Media Seminar at the TTC facility on March 29-30, 1990. The seminar material is titled Nuclear Power and Radiation and is given in coordination with the public affairs function of GPA.
In addition to reactor technology
>resentations and discussions, the i
participants were able to observe a few lours of BWR and PWR reactor simulator demonstrations and receive the benefit of a health physics question and answer session. The seminar was attended by news media personnel from the states of Tennessee, Texas, Florida, and Georgia and was well received by the attendees.
NRC Public Affairs Officers from Region II, III, and IV wer,e also present to assist in and observe the discussions throughout the seminar.
1 MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE D
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Preliminary Notification The following Preliminary Notifications were issued during the past week.
l PNO-!!T-90-02, Georgia Power Company, incident Investigation Team arrives a.
at Vogtle site.
b.
PNO-!!T-90-02A, Georgia Power Company, Status report from NRC Incident Investigation Team, MisadministrationwithIridium-192(update)pital, Therapeutic PNO-I-90-23A, John F. Kennedy Memorial Hos c.
l l
d.
PNO-!!-90-17, Turkey Point Nuclear Plant, Contractor HP Strike, e.
PNO-V-00-13, Lousisana Power & Light Co. (Waterford 3), Reactor trip due to fault on power grid, f.
PNO-V-90-13A, InternationalDeEnergiaNuclear,S.A.DEC.V.(Tepejino.
49), Attempted entry of radiation materials into U.S. at Nogales, Arizona border (update),
g.
PNO-V-90-14, State of Alaska, DOT, Theft of runway lights containing approximately 1800 curies of tritium, h.
PNO-V-90-15, Arizona Public Service Company Palo Verde Units 1, 2, and 3, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (Diablo Canyon), Portland General l
Electric Company (Trojan), Contract radiological services technicians establish picket lines at Region V plants.
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MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE D
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Office of Governmental and Public Affairs Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 State Programs Bills to Restrict Disposal of BRC Waste The Iowa House of Representatives passed legislation in mid-March which would bar landfills from accepting radioactive wastes classified as below regulatory concern (BRC)undertheNRC'sproposedexemptionpolicy. The bill focuses primarily on the siting of sanitary landfills, but was amended to include this restriction.
In related State action, the Pennsylvania House Conservation Committee reported a bill which authorizes the Department of Environmental Resources to assess fees on generators to fund phase one of LLW site development in Pennsylvania.
Passage of this legislation would enable the Department to execute a contract with Chem-Nuclear Systems, Inc., which has been chosen as site developer /
operator for the Compact. The bill also contains a provision prohibiting the disposal of BRC waste in landfills within the Commonwealth.
A number of local governments in Massachusetts have passed or are considering ordinances prohibiting the disposal in landfills of radioactive waste newly l
classified as BRC. The bill would freeze the State's definition of LLW as of l
January 1,1990 and prohibit the disposal of wastes covered by this definition in anything other than a licensed disposal facility.
Texas Radiation Control Program Review Robert Doda, Region IV State Agreements Officer, lead a team in the review of the Texas Radiation Control Program on March 26-30, 1990 in Austin, Texas.
The team consisted of representatives from NMSS and Regions II, IV, and V.
The review will continue on April 16-20, 1990.
Meeting with Comanche Peak Local Officials On March 27, Region IV staff met with public officials from around the Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant to discuss the NRC regulatory program.
1990 in Glen Rose. The purpose of the meeting was to meet with local Items discussed at the meeting were the NRC organization, the resident inspector program and the status of Comanche Peak. A representative from the Texas Department of Emer-gency Management also attended the meeting.
Pennsylvania LLW Advisory Site Selection Subcommittee Meeting Marlene Taylor, Acting Region I State Liaison Officer, attended a meeting of the Pennsylvania LLW Advisory Site Selection Subcommittee on March 30, 1990 in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. The purpose of the meeting was to review a draft report on the selection of sites in Pennsylvania, the host State for the Appalachian LLW Compact.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE E
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2-Evaluation of Agreement State Radiation Control Programs The NRC published proposed revisions to its " Guidelines for NRC Review of Agreement State Radiation Control Programs" in the Federal Register on March 23, 1990. The proposed revisions relate to the regulation of low-level radio-active waste disposal in permanent disposal facilities. Comments are due by May 22, 1990.
International programs Entry of Unmarked and Mis-Documented Materials at Arizona / Mexico Border On March 29 GPA/IP staff informed the Mexican CNSNS, that on March 22, a Mexican citizen entered the U.S. by truck through the ';ogales, Arizona border en route to the Joffroy warehouse, located in Nogales. The citizen presented shipping papers that indicated he was transporting radhactive sources. A check of the vehicle showed that it was carrying an unmarked 10-gallon drum with a radiation reading well in excess of background. The ship)ing papers were not for this cargo but for a previous shipment of radiograp11c sources from the Amersham Corporation in Burlington, Massachusetts to Mexico. We understand that Amersham is sending the proper documentation and radioactive markings to the shipping agent in Nogales and that the shipment will then be cleared to continue to Amersham Corporation.
International Shipment of Teletherapy Machine to Mexico On March 28. Region V advised GPA/IP that a teletherapy machine destined for Mexico had been unloaded at an open lot at the San Ysidro/ Mexico border after the drive from the ship)ing firm, Casas International, had refused, for unknown reasons, to transport t1e equipment into Mexico.
Customs at San Ysidro indi-l I
cated that the machine was destined for Mexican Seguro Social Hospital located ta Tijuana, about a mile from where it had been left. According to the Comision Nacional de Seguridad Nuclear y Salvaguardias (CNSNS), the machine had been licensed by the organization and a representative from Seguro Social had become concerned since the equipment did not arrive as scheduled on March 29. Mr.
Miguel Medina, Director General of the CNSNS, confirmed that the machine had been licensed and that he would arrange for the machine to be inspected for radiation integrity.
Region V also confirmed on that day that it had arranged to have the equipment inspected by State officials and expected the machine to be cleared for export to Tijuana.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE E
Office of Administration Items of Interest l
Week Ending March 30, 1990 Occupant Emergency Plan Federal Property Management Regulations require every Federal facility to develop an Occupant Emergency Plan. This plan entails procedures and personnel assignments in anticipation of a number of threatening events which may occur and estaolishes lines of responsibility for action. Semiannual training on the NRC Emergency Protection Plan was conducted March 28 though 30. Participants included all Bethesda and District of Columbia building floor coordinators and monitors. The sessions covered existing building evaluation procedures and any changes to the original NRC Emergency Protection Plan.
i New Bethesda Area Card Key and Alarm System The Division of Security has requested that GSA provide information which will facilitate replacing the Bethesda area card key and alarm systems with a newer system similar to the one at the 0WFN. The new system will provide more reliability than the current system, as well as eliminate the necessity for Bethesda based employees to carry an NRC badge plus a separate key card.
Significant FOIA Requests Received by the NRC for 5-day Period March 23 - 29. 1990 Request for records relating to all reports by INP0 on the Seabrook nuclear power plant. (Robert Cushing, Employees Legal Project, F01A-90-132)
Request for records between the NRC and the White House / Presidential staff concerning the Seabrook nucle 6r power plant from November 1988 to the present.
(RobertCushing,EmployeesLegalProject,F0!A-90-133)
Request for records between the NRC and New Hampshire Governor Judd Gregg and/or his staff relating to the Seabrook nuclear power plant from January 1989.
(Robert Cushing, Employees Legai Project, F01A-90-134) 1989 event at Bridgeport Request for a copy of the report on the June 30,(Kenneth Lipow, Connecticut Hospital, Connecticut, license No. 06-01060-01.
Neurological Surgeons, P.C., FOIA-90-135)
Request for all agreements and related records between AEC, NRC, and the State of Nebraska regarding regulatory authority over LLW, including two specified 1966 records. '(Mick Karmazin, Nuckolls County Nuclear and Hazardous Waste MonitoringCommittee,FOIA-90-136)
Request for records regarding drug and/or alcohol use by employees at the Seabrook nuclear power plant from January 1989 to the present. (James Riccio.
Nuclear Information and Resource Service, F01A-90-137)
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE G
2-Request for records regarding the falsification of records at the Seabrook nuclear power plant from January 1989 to the present. (James Riccio, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, FOIA-90-138)
Request for reports on the scaffolding collapse of April 27, 1978 at the Pleasants Power Station on Willow Island, West Virginia. (David DeKok, FOIA-90-140)
Request for three categories of records related to an event occurring at the Comanche Peak nuclear power plant on or about March 12,1990. (Jack Taylor, Dallas Times Herald, FOIA-90-141)
Request for records related to the March 13, 1990 meeting between NRC personnel and Terry Lash, State of Illinois. (Michael O'Mealia, F01A-90-144)
Request for records regarding the following(firms located in the 1960s and1) Hazardous Resear Nuclear Engineering Co., (3)y, New Jersey:RadiationTechnology,Inc.(RonaldPattersonof 1970s in Denville or Rockawa Archer & Greiner, F01A-90-145) i Request for records related to (1) the proposed uranium enrichment facility in Homer, Louisiana, and (2) Louisiana Energy Services. (James Riccio, Nuclear InformationandResourceService,F01A-90-146)
Request for records relating to Confirmatory Action Letter 86-10 on the Pilgrim nuclear power plant. (Jane Fleming, F01A-90-147)
Request for records providing eight categories of information regarding any current NRC leases of real property in the United States, Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands. (Elliott Levitas of Kilpatrick & Cody, F01A-90-148)
Request for a list of possessors of licensed radioactive isotopes located in Pennsylvania. (Jim Wagner, Sensor Services, Inc., F01A-90-149)
Request for copies of (1) a list of current contracts, containing five categories of information, and (2) the most recent publication of acquisition forecasts for FY90-92. (Laurie Zadd, Automated Sciences Group, Inc.,
Request for copies of eight categories of records related to the Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant and recirculation pumps (Shigeki Okutsu, F01A-90-151)
Request for records regarding a named veterinarian and a list of all veterinarians in New Jersey currently licensed by the NRC. (Linda Iannone, FOIA-90-153)
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE G l
l
Office of Personnel Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 i
Special Achievement Recoanized Banks Mitchum, Occupational health and Safety Officer, received a Special Achievement Award from the Office of Administration on March 22, 1990, for implementing the Safety and Health Programs for the One White Flint Building.
The program was commended by the General Services Administration during their building delegation evaluation.
Recruitment Efforts Continue The Office of Personnel continued its recruitment efforts to hire new talent for NRC.
Frank Elizondo, Recruitment Officer, traveled to Arizona State University to attend the American Nuclear society Western Student Regional Conference on March 29 April 1.
l Arrivals Aimee Brown, Secretary (PFT), AE00 Retirements Elizabeth Corley, Copy Editor (PFT), ADM Jerry Harbour, Admin Judge (Technical) (PFT), ASt.BP Don Lasher, Electrical Engineer (PFT), NRR James Patterson, Emergency Prep Analyst (PFT), RIII Denartt!rn Tania Strong, Secretary (PFT), NRR.
David Wallace, Operations Engineer (PFT), RI Arthur Szczepaniec, Reactor Engineer (PFT), Ril l
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l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE J
Office of Enforcement items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 Significant Enforcement Actions An Order imposing Civil Penalty was issued on March 27, 1990 in the amount of
$50,000 to New York Power Authority (Indian Point 3).. The action was based on several security violations related to access control, personnel and package search, compensatory measures for degraded assessment aids, and illumination in the Protected Area.
(EN89-86A)
An Order Imposing Civil Penalty was issued on March 27, 1990 in the amount Grand Junction, Colorado. The action was based of $3,750 to Atlas Corporation, leases of radon-222 concentrations to an on a violation involving the re unrestricted area in excess of 220% of the maximum permissible concentrations permitted by 10 CFR 20.106.
The licensee responded to the Notice in a letter dated November 3, 1989, and in a letter dated January 12, 1990, responded to NRC's letter dated December 7, 1989, which requested clarification of certain points. Atlas denied t. hat the violation of 10 CFR 20.106 occurred and disputed the issuance of the proposed civil penalty for various reasons. After careful consideration of the licensee's responses the staff concluded that the violation occurred and that the licensee provided sufficient justification for the staff to reconsider the prior notice escalation factor and reduce the civil penalty by $2,500 to $3,750.
(EN 89-94A)
A Notice of Violation and Proposed Imposition of Civil Penalty in the amount of $750 was issued on March 28, 1990, to San Juan Cement Company, Inc. San Juan, Puerto Rico. The action was based on the failures to:
supervise activities involving licensed material, secure licensed material from unauthorized removal, maintain radiation levels in unrestricted areas below regulatory limits, conduct
~,
surveys to evaluate the extent of radiation hazards present, and post NRC regulations. The violations are of concern, as in the aggregate, they indicate a lack of communications between staff and management and lack of management involvement in the radiation safety program and knowledge of NRC's requirements.
(EN90-39)
An Order Imposing Civil Penalty in the amount of $450,000 was issued on March 30, 1990 to Carolina Power and Light Company (Robinson). The action was based on violations of the equipment qualification requirements of 10 CFR 50.49.
The licensee responded to the Notice in a letter dated September'1, 1988. After careful consideration of the licensee's response, the staff has concluded that the violations did occur as set forth in the Notice of Violation and Proposed Imposition of Civil Penalty.
However, because of the complex nature of the requirements to ensure the accuracy of instrumentation required to function during and following a design basis accident one of the violations was with-drawn as a part of the enforcement action.
Withdrawal of the violation did not affect the categorization of the civil penalty under the " Modified Enforce-ment Policy Relating to 10 CFR 50.49."
The case was discussed in SECY 90-083.
(EN 88-56A)
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE L
Civil Penalties Paid Stamford Hospital, Stamford Connecticut, paid the civil penalty in the amount of $2,500. The action was based on, but not limited to licensee's failure to:
secure or maintain surveillance over radioactive materials stored in an l
unrestricted area, perform or adequately perform certain dose calibrator tests, perform leak tests on sealed reference sources, perform surveys in restricted and unrestricted areas contiguous to rooms containing brachytherapy implant patients, and retain records of daily surveys and properly complete daily and weekly survey records.
(EA89-250) l Consumers Power Company (Palisades) paid the civil penalty in the amount of
$75,000. The action was based on multiple examples of inadequate design l
control, failure to follow procedures and inadequate corrective actions with respecttothedesignofpipingandpIpesupports.
(EA89-251)
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE L
s Office of Consolidation Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 Second Building Status TheTowerCompaniesindicatedtotheDirector,OfficeofConsolidation(CONS),
on Wednesday, March 28 that the previous target date for forwarding a draft 1 ease addendum to GSA during the week of March 26 would not be met.
It now appears that the developer does not plan to send forward a draft lease addendum until clarifications are obtained from the Planning Board about the number of parking spaces that will be required at the site which, in turn, will determine l
whether or not the developer is required to build a separate parking structure on the site. The developer's planners expect to obtain the clarification by the week of April 16.
0WFN Cafeteria On March 28, CONS met with GSA, Tower, Sigal and Sigal's electrical and mechanical systems sub-contractors, B&W and Shefferman-Bigelson, to discuss GSA's concerns r
about the kitchen exhaust design and price. At the meeting, Tower agreed to conduct some tests of the kitchen exhaust duct to verify its structural integrity and compliance with fire safety requirements. The Director, CONS, I
requested that GSA specify the criteria for the tests in writing to Tower, acceat the results as definitive, and proceed immediately with construction, if t1e tests are successful. Tower and Sigal also agreed to modify the design drawings to incorporate changes to the design directed by GSA.
l l
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l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE M
l.
l Region !
Items of Interest i
Week Ending March 30, 1990
/
1.
Pesses Contaminated Site Activities The Pesses Company (also known as Metcoa) near Pulaski, PA, was a metal reclaiming and ferro-columbium producing facility which was found by
]
Region I to have been abandoned after the company declared bankruptcy in 1983. Materials handled at the site under the NRC license included magnesium and nickel alloyed with thorium and various ores containing uranium and thorium.
In addition, the company handled a wide variety of 4
nonradioactive metals including cadmium, chromium, lead, and copper.
Since the bankruptcy Ief t no viable organization and few assets, NRC and i
EPA conducted various surveys and evaluations of the materials and soils on the site.
Based on these surveys, which indicated i e site was contaminated with uranium and thorium in excess of NRC standards and a variety of heavy metals in excess of EPA standards, the site was stabilized by EPA in 1987.
This resulted in generation of about 2500, 55-gallon drums of waste, some of which contain mixed hazardous and radioactive waste, and a number of piles of stabilized contaminated soil.
After this initial stabilization. EPA began the process of identifying Potentially Responsible Parties (PRP's) so that remediation or removal could begin under Superfund. The site was restabilized by the identified PRP's in late 1989. Meetings and discussions between NRC Region I staff and EPA staff during March 1990 indicate that EPA plans to initiate enforcement action in the near future to motivate the PRP's to begin l
removing contaminated materials and waste from the site.
If the I
I enforcement action fails to motivate action on the part of the PRP's EPA plans to begin the removal using government funds.
RegionIwillmaIntain clase contact with EPA and will review the safety procedures for handling radioactive material during any activities on the site.
2.
Artificial Island Commissioner Rogers toured the Salem Nuclear Generating Station on Monday, March 26.
M. Hodges of the Region I staff accompanied the Commissioner.
Following the tour, Commissioner Rogers interviewed various utility and NRC personnel. On Tuesday, March 27, he visited j
the adjacent Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station.
3.
Susquehanna Stea'n Electric Station Chairman'Carr visited the Susquehanna Steam Electric Station in Berwick, PA, on March 27, 1990. Messrs. B. Boger from NRR and P. Swetland from Region I accompanied the Chairman. The visit included a site tour and discussions with utility and NRC staff members, i
4 Seabrook l
Turbine torsional testing has been delayed by indication of larger than expected axial shaft expansion during shell warming. The shaft expansion 4
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
2 detector has been verified to be properly installed; its calibration is being reviewed.
NHY and the turbine vendor (GE) are analyzing the problem. The plant is at 9% power, with the main turbine on the jacking gear and a 121our shell warming period in progress. No other testing is r
- ongoing, i
1 P
i 1
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
i i
Region II Items of Interest
)
Week Ending March 30, 1990 1.
Virginia Electric and Power Company On March 26-27, the Regional Administrator, accompanied by a DRP Section Chief, were at the Surry Nuclear Power Station to meet with the Resident inspectors, site management, and for site familiarization purposes.
2.
Carolina Power and Light Company On March 29, the Deputy Regional Administrator, and other selected members of the Regional and NRR staffs, attended a Management Meeting at the Brunswick site to discuss the Brunswick Integrated Action Plan status.
On March 30, the Regional Administrator, accompanied by selected Region II and NRR staffs, was at the Robinson site in Hartsville, South Carolina, to present the results of the SALP assessment to representatives of the Carolina Power and Light Company.
3.
Tennessee Valley Authority l
Representatives of the Tennessee Valley Authority were in the Region II l
Office on March 29, 1990, to meet with members of the Division of Radia-tion Safety and Safeguards regard their radcon programs at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant.
4.
Malfunction of Gamma Knife at the University of Virginia i
On March 27, 1990 University of Virginia (UVA) experienced a malfunction of their gamma knife teletherapy unit involving apparent malfunction of components in the device timer circuits.
UVA personnel noted the mal-function and promptly removed the' patient from the unit. The UVA physicist has reported to Region 11 that neither the patient or any workers received unplanned exposures. The device distribution was notified by the licensee and has called and sent a service representative to each of the six in the U.S. using the gamma-knife.
Region II will continue to follow corrective actions taken by the gamma-knife distributor.
5.
IBEW Strike IBEW members and sympathizers continue to strike and picket several Region 11 power stations; however, the utilities have provided radcon technician coverage with supervision and replacement workers.
Inspectors at Hatch, one of the more severely impacted sites, found that replacement workers are qualified for the tasks being performed and that radiological controls are being appropriately implemented.
l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N l
Region !!!
Items of Interest Week Ending March 30,1990 1.
Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing (3M)_
On March 29, 1990, A. Bert Davis, Regional Administrator, R. Bernero, Director, NMSS, J. Lieberman, Director, Office of Enforcement, and selected regional and headquarters staffs conducted an Enforcement Conference with licensee management to discuss the NRC findings regarding problems related to distribution of general licensed static eliminators, the licensee's corrective action, and NRC enforcement options.
2.
Advanced Medical Systems On March 27, 1990, A. Bert Davis, Regional Administrator, G. Sjoblom, Deputy Director, IMNS/NMSS, J. Lieberman, Director Office of Enforcement, and selected regional staff conducted an Enforcement Conference with licensee management to discuss the findings of a recent inspection, the licensee's corrective actions and NRC enforcement options. NRC staff also toured the f acility prior to the meeting. There has been considerable improvement in the facility as a result of decontamination efforts; however, some regulatory concerns remain.
3.
Kerr McGee i
On March 29, 1990, A. Bert Davis, Regional Administrator, R. Bernero, Director, NMSS and selected regional and headquarters staffs toured the Kerr McGee facility in West Chicago, Illinois. The tour included discussions with licensee representatives regarding the proposed source material burial site.
4.
Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant A meeting was held at Headquarters between representatives of NRR and the licensee to discuss the ramifications of recent steam generator tube inspections at Kewaunee. As a result of tube indications the licensee will reduce its administrative limit for tube leakage to 200 gpd, will pull 3 tubes and submit an evaluation with respect to the Westinghouse safety analysis.
5.
Zion Nuclear Power Station The Regional Administrator, the Director, AE00, the DET Team Leader and members of the Region III staff met with representatives of Commonwealth Edison Company on March 30, 1990, to discuss the licensee's Performance Improvement Plan for the Zion station. The licensee will also make a presentation on Zion's recent diesel generator performance problems and corrective actions, i
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
6.
Termi 2 Nuclear Power Plant The Deputy Regional Administrator; Director, Division of Reactor Projects and members of the Region !!! and Headquarters staffs met with Detroit Edison Company on March 27, 1990, to discuss the Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP) for the Fermi 2 plant.
i 7.
Duane Arnold Energy Center On March 29, 1990, the Deputy Regional Administrator; Deputy Director.
Division of Reactor Projects, and members of the Region III and l
Headquarters staff to discuss the Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP)reportfortheDuaneArnoldplantwithIowaElectric 1
Light and Power Company representatives.
8.
Davis Besse Nuclear Plant On March 28, 1990, a meeting was held in the Region III office between Toledo Edison Company and Region III personnel, as well as representatives of NRR, to discuss the findings identified in an Interf acing System LOCA inspection conducted in October-November 1989.
Toledo Edison provided additional information regarding the issues identified in the report and also discussed the actions taken regarding other issues addressed in the report.
(
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
Region IV Items of Interest Week Ending March 30, 1990 1.
Meeting with ARCO Coal Company The Deputy Director and selected staff of the Uranium Recovery Field office met with representatives of ARCO Coal Company's Bluewater Mill on March 23, 1990.
The meeting was requested by ARCO to discuss a revised i
site reclamation plan which will be submitted for NRC review. The re-vision was in response to concerns raised by URF0 staff regarding the plan previously proposed by ARCO.
2.
Meeting Concerning Dawn Mining Company met with representatives of the On March 23, 1990, the Director, URF0,ls by Dawn Mining Company relative State of Washington to discurs proposa to reclamation of their uranium mill site near Ford, Washington. The meeting was held on the Spokane Indian Reservation and included represen-tatives from the Spokane Indian Tribe, Technical Advisory Committee (a group of local citizens commissioned by the State), and consultants involved in Ground Water monitoring and restoration.
3.
Comanche Peak Representatives of NRC Region IV and NRR, Comanche Peak Project Division metwithpublicofficialsfromHoodandSomervellCounty(thevicinityof the Comanche Peak plant) on March 27, 1990, at 1 p.m. in Glen Rose, Texas.
The purpose of the meeting was to provide an opportunity for representatives of local governments in the vicinity of reactor plants to become acquainted with key NRC representatives associated with the plant.
In addition, the meeting provided the opportunity for NRC to inform the local officials of l
the NRC mission and organization, discuss lines of communication, and discuss the status of the Comanche Peak facility and related matters with local officials.
4.
Arkansas Power and Light Company Meeting Arkansas Power and Light Company management personnel met on March 28, 1990, with Region IV and HQ personnel to discuss the licensee's response to the AEOD Diagnostic Evaluation Team Inspection Report.
S.
Gulf States Utilities SALP Review Meeting On Thursday, March 29, 1990, J. M. Montgomery, Deputy Regional Adminis-trator, and other members of the regional staff met at the River Bend Station near St. Francisville, Louisiana, to present the results of the 4
most recent SALP review to Gulf States Utilities' management and members of the public.
J MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
2-i 6.
South Texas Project. Unit 2 I
l At approximately 7:23 a.m. on March 26,1990, South Texas Project, Unit 2, tripped on Steam Generator (SG) EC low-low level. Just prior to the automatic reactor trip a main control board alarm actuated indicating a mismatch between main Ieedwater and steam flow. SG 2C level was noted by plant operators to be decreasing. Attempts to increase feedwater flow to and the unit supervisor ordered the restoreSG2Clevelwereunsuccessful(Aposttripreviewindicatedtheunit operator to manually trip the unit.
actually tripped automatically on SG 2C low-low level a few milliseconds beforethemanualtripsignal.)
All control rods fully inserted into the reactor core. All plant systems responded as expected. Auxiliary feedwater actuated on low SG 1evel and l
main feedwater isolated on reactor trip / low average temperature. Main steam was manually isolated. The unit is currently stable in Mode 3 (hot standby).
The licensee has icentified the connection between the valve stem and valve disk in the feedwater regulating valve as having failed. The licensee will assess generic aspects of this failure. The feedwater regulating valve is a Copes-Yulcan Model D-100-160.
It is a 900 pound class valve, 16 inches in diameter, with a carbon steel body and is air operated.
l MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE N
f o
b i
l 4
i l
Region V i
items of Interest i
)
Week Ending March 30, 1990 l
l 1.
Rancho seco Nuclear Generating Station j
i On March 22 1990, with all fuel assemblies in the spent fuel pool, the l
licensee initiated repairs to stop a small leak through the liner of the spent fuel pool. The leak has fluctuated, but was evaluated to be approximately six gallons per day. The repair consisted of underwater i
application of an epoxy sealant around the suspect areas where embedded i
studs and nuts for the cask catcher beam were seal welded to the pool i
)
liner. This sealant had been previously used in a similar application at i
j the SONGS facility. The epoxy was placed around the suspect nut and stud l
areas using a nut / cup arrangement which was threaded onto the stud by a I
diver.
l While initial indications seemed to show that the leakage was eliminated, the leakage rate increased and is approximately 2 quarts per day as of March 28, 1990. This is substantially less than before and the leakage rate is being closely monitored by the licensee to determine whether further corrective actions are necessary.
l l
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MARCH 30, hJO ENCLOSURE N
l
]
ITEMS ADDRESSED BY THE COMMIS$10N - WEEK ENDING MARCH 30. 1990 e
5 A.
STAFF RU'11REMENTS - BRIEFING BY ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON NUCLEAR WA$TE i
IACNW l 00 P.M.._WEDNE5 DAY. FEBRUARY 21, 1990. COMMI55L0hER5'
[03
' ICE ROOM, ONE WHITE FLINT NORTH._ ROCKYlLLE MARYLAND (OPEN TO j
PUELIC ATTENDANCE) - 5ECY to D. W. Moeller. Chairman ACNW dated J,/28/90 The Commission
- met with the Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste (ACitW) to discuss nuclear waste related issues before the commission.
The Commission expressed its appreciation for the l
valuable contributions made by Dr. Clifford Smith who recently J
resigned from the Committee because of other commitments.
l During discussion of issues concerning implementation of EPA's high-level waste standards and NRC's high-level waste regu-i lations, the Committee committed to provide the Commission with f
specific recommendations for possible revision of the standards t
j and implementing regulations.
The timing of this effort should j
i be coordinated with staff so that the Commission has the i
)
benefit of those recommendations when considering proposed I
staff comments on Revision 2 of EPA's high level waste i
1 standard.
The Committee also noted it would consider a joint meeting with DOE's Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board.
5 l
t During discussion of exemptions from regulatory control, the committee said it would be reviewing in greater detail the commission's draft policy statement on BRC.
Chairman Carr urged the ACHW to specifically focus attention on i
the technicM issues of particular interest to the Commission I
outlined in the Chairman's 11/6/89 letter to Dr. Moeller.
He l
also urged the ACNW to kork with the NRC staff in formulating the quarterly program plan to optimize the timing of ACNW's reviewc.
In addition, he encouraged the Committee to continue i
the practice of attending major meetings arranW d by the staff on key technical issues to optimize the use of resources and to i
continue efforts to keep the Commission informed of the i
Committee's offorts through the Commissioners' assistants.
I B.
STAFF REQUIREMENTS - BRIEFING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF LLW D!$POSAL CAPA-I i
BILITY BY THE SOUTHWESTERN COMPACT, 2:00 P.M.. MONDAY. MARCH 12. 1990 COMMISSIONER 5' CONFERENCE ROOM. ONE WHITE FLINT NORTH. ROCKVILLE.
I MARYLAND (OPEN TO PUBLIC ATTENDANCE) - SECY to H. R. Denton Director.
GPA and J. M. Taylor. EDO dated 3/28/90 The Commission **Vas briefed by representatives from the State of California Department of Health Services, U.S. Ecology, t
Inc., and Roy F. Weston, Inc. on the status and progress toward the development of a low-level radioactive vaste disposal l
1 P
i
- Commissioner Remick was not present.
l
- Commissioner Roberts was not present.
W.RCH 30,1990 ENCLOSURE P
l 2
j i
facility in southern California, which will be used by the Southwestern l
Compact.
Representatives included:
- Don J. Womeldorf Department of Health Services
- Reuben Junkert Department of Health Services j
]
- Ron Gaynor U.S.
Ecology, Inc.
- David Siefken Roy F. Weston, Inc.
Chairman carr encouragad the NRC staff to consider the experience of California in evaluating the NRC's regulatory i
program.
He also encouraged the NRC staff to work with the State of California and other states in resolving concerns about regulatory uncertainties and in responding to requests for technical assistance.
Chairman Carr thanked the participants for the briefing and indicated that their experiences in public communications and the pre-licensing consultation process will be helpful to the NRC and other agreement states in licensing new LLW disposal facilities.
i C,
STAFF REQUIREMENTS - ANNUAL MEETING ON MEDICAL USE OF BYPRODUCT MATERIALS.
l TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20. 1990. COMMISSIONERS' CONFERENCE ROOM. ONE WHITE FLINT NORTH, ROCKVILLE. MARYLAND (OPEN TO PUBLIC ATTENDANCE) - SECY to J. M. Taylor. EDO and W. C. Parler. GC dated 3/29/90 l
The Commission
- was briefed by the staff on current issues i
associated with medical use of byproduct material.
Chairman 2
Carr commended staff for their efforts over the last year to improve NRC's regulation of such uses to ensure adequate protection of the public from unnecessary radiation exposure.
The Commission agreed that the staff should proceed with implementation of the visiting fellows program and inform the i
Commission when the action has been taken.
With regard to the pending petition for rulemaking from the American College of Nuclear physicians and the Society of Nuclear Medicine about the practice of medicine and pharmacy, the Commission requested early resolution on whether a generic exemption or an interim rule is the most appropriate action to be taken.
t
- Commissioner Remick was not present.
MARCH 30, 1990 ENCLOSURE P
3 The Commission also requested early recommendations on whether the membership of the Advisory Committee on the Medical Uses of Isotopes (ACMUI) needs to be expanded as previously requested in the SRM dated 10/5/89 (SECY-89-263).
The Commission urged the staff:
1.
to seek opportunities to conduct extended facility visits to develop first-hand understanding of the safety needs and implementation difficulties associated with medical uses of byproduct materiali 2.
to solicit constructive comments from licensees, States, professional organizations, and other federal agencies on NRC's regulatory program in the medical use areat 3.
to continue conducting workshops to inform licensees of NRC activities, sensitize licensees to NRC's concerns, and provide opportunity for feedback in the medical use area; and 4.
to request sufficient resources in the next Five Year Plan to ensure adequate regulatory oversight of the medical uses of byproduct material in light of projected trends in the work force, health care reimbursement, and emerging technologies.
Chairman Carr requested that the distribution list for the NMSS newsletter include the members of the ACMUI and leaders of appropriate professional organizations.
Commissioner Curtiss suggested that charts used to indicate the number of medical misadministrations should have an added column which lists the number of medical events which are included in NRC's abnormal occurrence reports as a measure of the number of "significant" misadministrations.
D.
STAFF REQUIREMENTS - AFFIRMATION / DISCUSSION AND VOTE, 3:30 P.M., THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 1990 COMMISSIONER 5' CONFERENCE ROOM, ONE WHITE FLINT NORTH, ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND (OPEN TO PUBLIC ATTENDANCE) - SECY to W. C. Parler, GC dated 3/29/90 1.
SECY-90-069 - Fitness for Duty Rule Stav Recuest Filed by Several Diablo Canyon Emolovaes The Commission, by a 5-0 vote,* approved an order responding to a February 2, 1990 motion requesting a partial stay of the
- Section 201 of the Energy Reorganization Act, 42 U.S.C.
Section 5841, provides that action of the commission shall be determined by a " majority vote of the members present."
commissioner Remick was not present when this item was affirned.
Accordingly, the formal vote of the commission was 4-0 in favor of the decision.
Commissioner Remick, however, had previously indicated that he would approve this paper and had he been present he would have affirmed his prior vote.
1C_ __..
h---------.--
Ium u t
4 Commission's Final Rule and Statement of Policy Concerning ritness-for-Duty Programs as applied to certain employees at the Pacific Gas and Electric Company's Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant.
The order denies the action as essentially noot since the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has already denied a stay pending appeal.
\\
RCH 30, M 0 Eh' CLOSURE P
M NRR MEETING NOTICES 1
,8 March 30, 1990 m8 APPLICANT /
DATE/ TIME NUMBER
' LOCATION PURPOSE ATTENDEES NRR CONTACT 4/3/90 50-321 White Flint Bldg.
To discuss the results of Unit 1 NRC/GPC/GE/SCS L. Crocker 1:00-4:00 Room 168-11 ISI inspection and plans for SIA crack repair. An agenda for the meeting is enclosed.
4/3-5/90 50-275/
Nicholson Lane South Discuss the staff evaluation of NRC/BNL/SNL H. Rood 8:30-4:00 323 5650 Nicholson Lane the electrical power systems and Room 014 fire analysis of the Diablo Canyon Rockville, MD 20852 PRA, and the results of the plant quantification and sensitivity analyses performed by the staff and its contractors.
4/4/90 50-295/
White Flint Bldg.
Discuss the issue related to on NRC/ CECO C. Patel 9:00-1:00 304 Room 10B-11 site AC power, implematation of the station blackout rule, and confirmatory order issued for Zion in February 1980.
4/4/90 50-338/
White Flint Bldg.
To discuss NA-1&2 Appendix R NRR/VEPC0 L. Engle 10:00-11:30 339 Room 148-13 Evaluation (reentry time).
4/9/90 White Flint Bldg.
To discuss the status of the NRC/NUMARC E. Isbro 10:30-12:30 Room 14B-13 NUMARC effort on the development of an ITAAC submittal.
mg b
o Copies of susuaries of these meetings will be made publicly available and k
placed in the respective docket file (s) in the NRC and local public document rooms.
A listing of these meeting notices can be obtained by calling 492-7424.
~
I h
NRR MEETING NOTICES March 30,1990
! g E
APPLICANT /
l DATE/ TIME NUMBER LOCATION PURPOSE ATTEIGEES NRR CONTACT 4/9-11/90 50-250/
White Flint Bldg.
Discuss the Emergency Power NRC/FPL/
G. Edison l
8:00-4:00 251 Roon 88-11 System Enhancement Project.
EBASCO Bar prestart test program.
4/10/90 50-266/
White Flint Bldg.
Point Beach Simulator NRC/WEPC0 W. Swenson 1:00-3:30 301 Room 138-9 Presentation.
4/17/90 50-416 Grand Gulf Nuclear Review building settlement data NRC/SERI L. Kin *e l
9:00 Station Port Gibson, Mississippi 4/17-20/90 50-275 One California Street Discuss Geology, Geophysics and NRC/PG&E M. Rood 8:30-5:00 323 San Francisco, CA 94106 Source Characterization for the Room 250 Diablo Canyon Long Tern Seismic Program 4/18/90 50-280/
Surry Facility Discuss control room habitability. NRC/VEPCo B. Buckley 1:00 281 Surry County, VA 4/19/90 50-269/
Vogtle Nuclear Plant Discuss the status of various NRC/ Duke &
L. Wiens 8:30-4:00 270/287 licensing activities and safety Georgia Power initiatives at Duke Power Co.
and Georgia Power Company's nuclear stations included in h
PDII-3 area of responsibility.
E 4/30-5/1/90 50-275 One California Street Discuss Ground Motion for the NRC/PGEE H. Road
=
k 8:30-5:00 323 San Francisco, CA 941% Diablo Canyon Long Tern Seismic Room 250 Program 4
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March 30, 1990 x
E NMSS Meeting Notices 4-E Division of Low-level Waste Management and Decosmissioning Docket Attendees /
Date/ Time Nusber Location Purpose Applicant NRC Contact 4/1-4 California and Nevada Meet with Nevada and IWtSS R. Bengart CA Officials and visit Beatty, NY and Ward Valley,CA 4/2/90 5-B-9 Meeting re: Fusion letSS T. Johnson Wastes D. Doran, PNL 4/8-12 Sacramento, CA To participate in IStSS J. 3affner review visit to CA i
Agreement State Program 4/16-29 Albuquerque, NM To attend DOE Remedial NMSS P. Lohans Action Program Conference 4/18-20 Lansing, MI To present a QA IStSS L. Pittigilo Workshop for the State of Michigan mg E,
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_ _ - _.. - _ _ _ _. _ _.. - - _... _. _ - _ _ _ _ ~ - - _ _.. _. _. _ _.. _, _. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - -
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Division of Safeguards and Transportation U
l1 Docket Attendees /
Date/ Time Number Location Purpose Applicant NRC Contact g
4/9-11 Orlando, FL National Nuclear NRSS J. Higdon Security Symposium
- 1) SG Log Analysis Program Briefing
- 2) Physical Fitness Program
- 3) Day Firing Qualifications
- 4) Tactical Exercises and Evaluation
- 5) Performance Inspections 5/29 71-9229 4B-11 OWFN Pre-application meeting NMSS E. Easton 8:30-11:30 Model Titan Shipping DOE Cask Westinghouse Division of High-level Waste Management Docket Attendees /
Date/ Time Num6er Location Purpose Applicant INtC Contact E
None E
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Division of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety
[
Docket Attendees /
,o Date/ Time Number Location Furpose Applicant NRC Contact 4
4/2-5 Paris, France To attend a Core Task NMSS R. E. Cunningham o
Group for Revision of ICRP Report 26 4/3 70-903 Pawling, NY To visit National Park ISTSS P. Loysen Servict to review National Park Service possible remedial Valley Park Association action by former licensee 4/4 72-06 Southport, NC Environmental review NMSS F. Sturz for Carolina Power and Light's Brunswick Independent Spent Feel Storage Installation 4/9 70-135, OWFN, 6-89 To meet with Babcock &
letSS P. Loysen 1:30 p.m.70-364 Wilcez, Pennsylvania B&W Nuclear Service Operations to review licensed activities 4/9-10 Argonne Laboratories Presentation on Safety MM55 R. E. Cunninge.am Chicago, It and Regulation of Redlation Sources p
S 55 m
C
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1 RES Meeting Notices e
E Docket Attendees /
!; ate / Time Number Location Purpose Applicant NRC Contact Director's Office Nuclear Safety Research Review Committee (NSRRC) Meetings 6-4-5/90 Wash., DC area NSRRC Full Committee Meeting R. Shepard 492-3723 Division of Systems Research 4/30/90-5/4/90 Brookhaven National Semi-Annual Severe Accident R. Meyer Laboratory Research Program Partners 492-3571 Upton, NY Review Meeting
[LimitedAttendance]
Division of Engineering 4/18/90 Hyatt Regency Open Meeting on Review and G.N.Weidenhauer 9:00-5:30 Bethesda, M0 Discussion of MOV Test Results 492-3839 P
8 E
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e zB March 30, 1990 9
Region I Meeting Ilotices w
Docket Attendees /
Date/ Time IIua6er Location rurpose Applicant IWtC Contact 3
o 04/30/90 50-219' RI Office Mana9ement Meeting Licensee and Selected IIernen 1:00 pm GPUII - Oyster Creek RI Staff Mes6ers Q
P S
15 m
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March 30, 1990
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RII MEETING NOTICE U
DOCKET ATTENDEES /
]
DATE/ TIME NUMBER LOCATION PURPOSE APPLICANT NRC CONTACT
,o E
04/03/90 Southport, NC Emergency Exercise Licensee and selected Stohr Brunswick facility RII staff members 04/11/90 Columbia, AL Com. Rogers at Farley Comunissioner and Milhoen facility for site selected RII staff familiarization mem6er 04/18-20/90 Helen, GA Management Retreat RII Principal Staff Ebneter 04/26/90 Region II Management Meeting Licensee, RA and Ebneter 1:00 p.m.
General Electric Co.
selected RII staff members E
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f Region III Meeting Notices Docket Attendees
,8 Date/ Time Number Location Purpose Applicant NRC Contact M
04/03/90 030-00843 University of University of Minnesota-Licensee, Director, Division Morelius 8
2:00 pm 030-13175 Minnesota Enforcement Conference of Radiation Safety and Safeguerds and selected members of RIII Staff 04/03/90 50-266 Point Beach Wisconsin Electric Licensee, Director, Division Greensen 50-30I Power Company, Point of Reactor Projects and Beach - Management selected neu6ers of Meeting RIII Staff 04/03/90 50-305 Kewaunee Wisconsin Public Licensee, Director, Division Greensen Service Corporation, of Reactor Projects and Kewaunee - Management selected members of Meeting RIII Staff 04/04/90 030-20567 Region III American Radiolabeled Licensee, Regional Norelius 1:00 pm Chemicals - Enforcement Administrator, Deputy Conference Regional Administrator and selected mea 6ers of RIII Staff t
04/05/90 50-331 Region III Iowa Electric Light &
Licensee, Deputy Regional Norelius 1:00 pm Power Co., Duane Arnold-Administrator and selected Enforcement Conference mem6ers of RIII Staff 04/12/90 50-461 Clinton Site Illinois Power Company, Licensee, Regional Greensen Clinton - Management Administrator and selected Meeting members of RIII Staff 52 P
04/19/90 50-483 Callaway Site Union Electric Company, Licensee, Regional Greennen S
I:00 p.m.
Callaway - Systematic Administrator and selected 55 Assessment of Licensee members of RIII Staff Performance c
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h REGION IV MEETING NOTICES 5 March 30, 1990 G
E DOCKET APPL.ICANT/
DATE/ TIME NUMBER LOCATION PURPOSE ATTEWEES RIY CONTACT 4/9 URF0 Meeting with B.P. America, D.Jacotry Kennecott and INTERA 4/10 RIV Enforcement conference with
- 8. Beach 1:00 Bass Memorial Hospital 4/16 50-257 RIV Enforcement conference with B. Beach 1:00 Fort St. Vrain E
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March 30,1990 E
Region V Meeting Notice I
w Docket Attendees /
m3 Date/ Time Number Location Purpose Applicant NRC Contact 4/25/90 50-206 San Onofre SALP Ma w.t Meeting in Regional P. Johnson 50-361 San Onofre to discuss
& Division 50-362 SALP Report Management t
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