ML20045C950
| ML20045C950 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Vermont Yankee File:NorthStar Vermont Yankee icon.png |
| Issue date: | 06/21/1993 |
| From: | Murley T Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | Daley M NEW ENGLAND COALITION ON NUCLEAR POLLUTION |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20044H043 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9306250145 | |
| Download: ML20045C950 (5) | |
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UNITED STATES I
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i NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION k.'.... /-
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001 Docket No. 50-271 ne 21, 1993 Mr. Michael Daley i
New England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution, Inc.
I Post Office Box 545 Brattleboro, Vermont 05301
Dear Mr. Daley:
By letters dated April 8, 1993, to Thomas T. Martin, Regional Administrator, Region I, and April 11, 1993, to Ivan Selin, Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), on behalf of the New England Coalition on Nuclear Pollution (NECNP), you requested enforcement action regarding the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (VYNPS).
You requested the NRC to take immediate action to require that the Vermont Yankee (VY) reactor remain in cold shutdown until plant management can provide proof that the emergency diesel generators (EDG) at the plant are able to meet their safety function.
You seek relief-based on assertions that (1) diesel generator "A" was damaged by overload conditions suffered during testing in. August through October of 1990; (2) the "B" unit also suffered _ under_ the same testing regime; (3) one of the causes of the repeated failures of the "A" unit in the summer of 1992 was the damage from this testing; (4) the overloading resulted from inappropriate actions taken in response to an NRC-identified violation indicating that the EDG had'
.for 20 years not been tested at loads consistent with the maximum expected accident load; and (5) the foregoing raises a number of' questions that must be answered immediately if VY is going to be allowed to depend on these machines.
to fulfill the regulatory requirements for a6quate onsite emergency backup power systems.
1
-By letter dated April 13, 1993, from Thomas T. Martin, Regional Administrator, Region I, your request for immediate action was denied.
The following I
specifies the bases for the Regional Administrator's denial of your request for immediate action.
Following the overload events of 1990 and the failures of cylinder liners in the "A" emergency diesel generator in 1992, the NRC staff reviewed the licensee's corrective actions and root cause analyses.
The staff found that the licensee's corrective actions for the failures of the "A" diesel adequately addressed the combination of factors that led to those failures.
The staff also found that the "B" emergency diesel generator had been operated -
for significantly less time _than the "A" diesel, thus the contributing factor of fatigue cycles 'is diminished for the "B" diesel.
Therefore, the staff found acceptable the licensee's plan to defer replacement of the cylinder liners in the "B" engine until the next scheduled overhaul' of the engine in September 1993.
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Michael Daley June 21, 1993 Although the licensee overloaded the diesels as a result of an inappropriate determination of maximum expected emergency load in response to an NRC-identified violation, the staff found that the licensee correctly determined j
the maximum expected emergency load after the overload events.
The licensee
.i has been testing the diesels at the appropriate load once every month since October 1990.
Recent test results indicate that the EDGs at VYNPS will reliably perform their safety functions on demand.
Your request provided no new information that the staff had not previously considered in its review.
Therefore, the staff concluded that the immediate action which you requested is not warranted.
The staff will review your Petition in accordance with 10 CFR 2.206.
I will-issue a final decision with regard to your Petition within a reasonable time.
A copy of the notice that is being filed for publication with the Office of the Federal Register is enclosed for your information.
Sincerely,i'Eded @
U WgTnal3 Thocan E.1/urleZ Thomas E. Murley, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Enclosure:
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i Michael Daley June 21, 1993-Although the licensee overloaded the diesels as a result of an inappropriate determination of maximum expected emergency load in response to an NRC-identified violation, the staff found that the licensee correctly determined i
the maximum expected emergency load after the overload events. The licensee 1
has been testing the diesels at the appropriate load once every month since October 1990.
Recent test results indicate that the EDGs at VYNPS will reliably perform their safety functions on demand.
i Your request provided no new information that the staff had not previously considered in'its review. Therefore, the staff concluded that the immediate i
action which you requested is not warranted.
The staff will review your Petition in accordance with 10 CFR 2.206.
I will issue a final decision with regard to your Petition within a' reasonable time-A copy of the notice that is being filed for publication with the Office of the Federal Register is enclosed for your information.
1 Sincerely, n
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Thomas E. Murley, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Enclosure:
Federal Register Notice cc w/ enclosure:
see next page 1
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A Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station
'CC:
Mr. Jay Thayer, Vice President G. Dana Bisbee, Esq.
Yankee Atomic Electric Company Office of the Attorney General 580 Main Street Environmental Protection Bureau Bolton, Massachusetts 01740-1398.
State House Annex 25 Capitol Street.
Regional Administrator, Region I Concord, New Hampshire.03301-6937-U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 475 Allendale Road Resident Inspector King of Prussia, Pennsylvania 19406 Vermont Yankee Nuclear' Power Station ~
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission-2 R. K. Gad, III P. 0. Box 176 Ropes & Gray Vernon, Vermont 05354 One International Place Boston, Massachusetts 02110-2624 Chief,-Safety Unit Office of. the Attorney General Mr. Richard P. Sedano, Commissioner One~ Ashburton Place 19th Floor
-l Vermont Department'of.Public Service Boston, Massachusetts 02108 120 State Street,-3rd Floor
~
Montpelier, Vermont 05602 Mr.. David Rodham, Director a
Massachusetts. Civil Defense Agency.
Public Service Board 400 Worcester Rd.-
-State of Vermont P.O. Box 1496-120-State-Streat Framingham, Massachusetts 01701-0317 Montpelier, Vermont 05602 ATTN:'-James Muckerheide.
Chairman, Board of Selectmen Mr. Raymond N.-McCandless Town of Vernon Vermont Division of Occupational ~
Post Office Box 116
- and Radiological Health-Vernon, Vermont 05354-0116 Administration-Building Montpelier, Vermont 05602 Mr. J. P. Pelletier, Vice President Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Mr. L. A. Tremblay.
Corporation Senior Licensing Engineer Ferry Road Vermont Yankee Nuclear Powers Brattleboro, Vermont 05301 Corporation 580 Main Street Bolton, Massachusetts 01740-1398 Mr. Donald A. Reid, Vice. President Operations Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corporation Ferry Road Brattleboro, Vermont 05301
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Vermont Yankee 2.206 Acknowledgement Letter Date-
' June ~21, 1993 I
DISTRIBUTION:
- Docket: File 50-271 -(w/ incoming letter)
NRC & Local PDRs (w/ incoming letter)
-EDO.#0008938 i
J. Taylor J. Sniezek H. Thompson j
J. Blaha L
T. Martin, RI J. Lieberman, OE H
B. Hayes, OE D. Williams, OIG l
TMurley/FMiraglia J. Partlow i
l S. Varga
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J. Calvo j
W. Butler S. Little
'i D. Dorman
'l OPA I
OCA NRR Mailroom (EDO #0008933) i PDI-3 Reading J. Goldberg, 0GC i
J. Linville,-RI 4
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