ML20055E134
| ML20055E134 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 06/29/1990 |
| From: | Curtiss J NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| To: | Dircks W INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20055E135 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9007110046 | |
| Download: ML20055E134 (2) | |
Text
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UNITED STATES g
NUCLE AR REGULATORY COMMISSION g -
,/ e e WASHINGTON, D. C. 20555 l lune 29, 1990 CH AIRMAN '
Mr. William ~J. Dircks Deputy Director _ General-Department ~of> Administration
-International Atomic Energy Agency P.O.: Box 100 A-1400 Vienna, Austria
Dear Mr. D eks:
h h Thank you'for'your letter of March International-Nuclear. Safety Advisory Group's (INSAG's30, 1990,. enclosing)the l
report on the IAEA's OSART program.
The Commission finds it a useful, thoughtful review of the program.
We also for-werded a copy'of the Report and a draft of this letter to 4
Conmonwealth Edison Company and Baltimore Gas and Electric, l
two of our licensees who have been.most recently involved in-the 0SART program.
Their comments on the INSAG Report are J
attached'.
Delineating what an OSART mission can and cannot accomplish i
in a short review provides a better understanding of the.
IAEA's--goals for the program and, hopefully, will discourage.
misinterpretation of team findi.ngs by-the press and other organizations'in host countries.
I suggest that.the IAEA spokesperson emphasize this statement at:the press: briefings held'before and-after each mission.
4 g
Regarding the proposal to have a. senior safety expert join the mission at the end of each' plant review, we believe further assessment of:this proposal is needed.
Specifically, the. impact'on the team in the last week _of'an inspection-needs to-be weighed against the advantages that an outside'-
perspective can bring.
I understand that the OSART users meeting participants raised'a similar question at1 their June meeting.
'Another INSAG' suggestion is that the number of. team members with previous-OSART experience should be.. increased.
Although we agree-in principle with this approach, we would also-strongly encourage the IAEA to expand'the pool of individuals who have participated in at least one OSART mission.
This would avoid the situation in which a utility is asked to-make available the same individual for several missions because he or she is the only one experienced in OSART inspections.
S
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l 9007110046 900629 0
PDR COMMS NRCC 4
CORRESPONDENCE PDC
- i
{
Mr. William:J. Dircks' '
{
We believe there may be merit in the idea of. sending the team
-leader back to the plant a year after the OSART mission.
The' principal b'enefit~of this visit, in our view, is that it wouldigive feedback on actions decided upon.by the plant operating. organization and host country in light of the' OSART recommendations.
Care should be taken,-however, that-y incimplementing this, idea, the IAEA does not represent
- itself asia regulatory organization.
The OSART' missions make a contribution to reactor safety'through counterpart exchange -but the findings from the brief OSART mission
.cannot substitute for the technical overview of an effective
. national regulatory body.
\\
I want to assure you that the Neclear Regulatory Commission
- (NRC) will continue to support the 0SART program, consistent with the availability of our limited resources.
We anticipate, however, that our workload will effectively
-limit th6 senior NRC staff to only occasional participation on OSART inspection teams.
Chairman Carr, who-is currently eway on. travel. conveys.his regards.
He is-.looking forward to seeing-you at the General-
. Conference in_ September and hearing about the improvements you decide to incorporate in the program.
4 Sincerely, p h.
1 a
es R. Curtiss A
.ing Chairman-y
Enclosures:
Comments on February 1990'INSAG Report.on IAEA OSART Program a
cc:
Ambassador Newlin U.S. Mission to the United l
Nations System Organizations in Vienna 1
Mr. Christian H. Poindexter Vice Chairman he'timore Gas and E7ectric Company i
Mr. Cordell Reed i
Senior Vice President D
Commonwealth Edisor.
.