ML20040F963

Ack Receipt of to Chairman Palladino Re Concerns About Unit Restart.Operators Have Been Retested & 820107 Court Order to Delay Restart Until Psychological Health of Residents Has Been Assessed & Is Being Addressed by NRC

ML20040F963
Person / Time
Site:	Crane
Issue date:	01/26/1982
From:	Novak T Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Gekas G PENNSYLVANIA, COMMONWEALTH OF
References
NUDOCS 8202100529
Download: ML20040F963 (2)

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The Honorable George W. Gekas DEisenhut BSnyder Green Ticket file w/inc.

Pennsylvania Senate Ucrrisburg, Pennsylvania 17120 Cornell AE00

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Dear Mr. Gekas:

Shapar JStolz in ycur letter to Chair r.an PallaM5 feed Hovenber 30, 1931, you raised conarns about the restart of Three Mile Island Unit ilo.1 (TMI-1).

Since it would be inappropriate for the Comission to cowent on mtters pending hefore it in the TMI-l restart proceeding, I am responding to your concerns on behalf of the staff.

You addressed tuo concerns. The issues on operator cheating and on the public sense of safety and security as well as psychological stress.

With regard to your first concern, as you may be aware, the TMI-l restart proceedin:; uas reopeneo to inquire into allecations of cheating offenses on operator licensing exass. A number of parties, includinj the Cor.nonucalth, participated in the reopened hearing, had opportunities to review GPU and staff eu..ination related docuaentation, to exanine witnesses and to prepare finlinjs on these issues. The record is nou closed on this matter and the vo.ird decision is expected in March or April 1932. Even before the hearing record was reopened, however, the !!RC Office of Inspection and Enforcercent anJ thu Office of Inspector and Auditor conducted thorough independent investigations into the cneating matter.

The tuo operators who cheated on the April exam have since lef t GPU.

In addition, all THI-l operators have been reexamined by the NRC.

In our via, the actions taken to date conc.erning the cheating incident should eliminate any real concern about the capability of TN1-1 plant operators.

With rejard to your second concern regarding the public sense of safety and security including psychological stress, I think we all share your concern that the public sense of safety and security is extrenely icourtant.

Tnis,

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of course, was one of the reasons why the Com:issioners in August 1979 y

mandated that a public hearing be held to litigate in public forua shether oo the ccasures taken by the licensee and the MRC vere necessary and suf ficient j

to per.iit safe operation of TMI-1.

The Comission will not authorize the

,C) restart of fnl-1 until it is satisfied that it is safe to do so.

n:c oo Un the specific issue of psychological stress, there has been auch disa9reewnt OJ on whether this issue should be included in the THI-l restart proceeding.

The N

Atomic Safety anJ Licensing Board certified this question to the Co:.uissica O$

in February 1930 and the Coauissioners were evenly divided on this issue C

when they voted in Dece..ber 1930. Each Co missioner filed separate extensive vicus which evidenced the iiportance they attached to this issue.

The

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Comission vote of 2-2 on this question constituted an effective denial of requests to ad:ait contentions on psychological stress in the restart p roceedi nj. Upon appointi.cnt of the fifth Coamissioner, this question was again raised and in Septeaber 1981, the Comission sustained its previous vote.

On January 7 of this year, the U.S. Court of Appeals ordered the flRC to not a l lo.4 restart of TMI-l until the !!RC conducts an environcental assessnent of the effects of restart on the psychological health of the neighboring residents of T.l.

Following that assesshent, the NRC uust decide whether an environcental inpact statement is required which would include pu'lic u

hea ri ngs. The staff is now crganizin'; the effort needed to address the Court's order while concurrently preparing alternative options for Co uission consideration.

Sincerely.

Originni nigred by:

Themas!.f. Uc. cc Thones M. flovak, Assistant Director for Operating Reactors Division of Licensing Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

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GEORGE W. GEKAS 1 ( t. u...N Y

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Nunzio Palladino, Chairman.

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Washington, D. C. 20555

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IS TM OISTRICT CO M M ITTE ES GEORGE W. GEKAS THE STATE CAPITOL JuplclARY. CHAIPMAN H ARRISBURG. PA. 17120 LAW e JUSTICE. VICE CHAiRM AN AGING e YOUTH SulTE 51. UNION DEPOSIT M ALL STATE aoVERN M ENT H ARRISBURG. PA.17119 uRsAN AFFAIRS e HOUSING

1. cuate of pennsghmuia November 30, 1981 Nunzio Palladino, Chairman U. S. "uclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D. C. 20555

Dear Mr. Chairman:

I am writing to you regarding the possible restart of the Three Mile Island Unit 1 reactor.

As the state senator representing the area surrounding Three Mile Island, I am very concerned that the issue of restart gets a full public hearing be-fore any decison is made by the NRC.

My concerns are two-fold. First, I feel that the incident of operator cheating on the " lessons learned' portion of the operator exam must be thoroughly resolved and its effect on the overall safety of the plant noted before any final hearings on restart are held.

Second, and just as important, the public sense of safety and security, as well as the issue of psychological stress, must be completely evaluated and undco stood for the hearings to have any semblance of credibility.

It is with the utmost sincerity that I address these remarks to you and to the entire commission.

Thank you for your consideration.

Very truly yours,

1. 6 G, George W. Gekas Senator, 15th District GWG:acae

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