ML20064N986

Takes Exception to NRC Suggestion in to ASLB That Aslab Decision in Catawba Case Rejects Commonwealth of Ma Position Taken in 820722 Brief in Support of Contentions. Certificate of Svc Encl

ML20064N986
Person / Time
Site:	Seabrook
Issue date:	09/07/1982
From:	Shotwell J MASSACHUSETTS, COMMONWEALTH OF
To:	Harbour J, Hoyt H, Luebke E Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel
References
ISSUANCES-OL, NUDOCS 8209130064
Download: ML20064N986 (4)

Text

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~ THE COMMONWEALTH OF M ASSACHUSETTS

! d DEPARTMENT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

. .', . JOHN W. Mc CORMACK STATE OFFICE BUILDING (f 7 .. F ONE AGHBURTON PLACE. BOUTON 02108 kgd*'

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i aggycy VICE September 7, 1982 i

Helen Hoyt, Esquire, Chairperson Dr. Emmeth A. Luebke m -,

Dr. Jerry Harbour FT.;D. S 2 , ,~ bd Y

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! Atomic Safety and Licensing Board j U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission b"YY a Washington, D.C. 20555 RE: In the Matter of Public Service Co. of New Hampshire, et al.

(Seabrook Station, Units l'and 2) Docket Nos. 50-443 OL and J 50-444 OL i

Dear Members of the Board:

j I have recently received a copy of a letter from the Staff to the

Board dated August 23, 1982, enclosing a copy of ALAB-687, the Appeal 1 Board's decision in the Catawba matter. In its letter the Staff i suggests that the Appeal Board decision rejects a position taken by j the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in its filing of July 22, 1982,

entitled "Brief of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts In Support of Its Contentions." See Staff's Letter to the Board dated August 23, 1982

["Staf f 's Letter] , fn. 1. This is not so.

Contrary to the Staff's suggestion, the Commonwealth has never taken the position that it is not obliged "to examine the publicly available documentary material pertaining to the facility in question j

with sufficient care to enable it to uncover any information that could j serve as the foundation for a specific contention." See Staff's Letter, j at 2 (quoting Catawba decision) . The Commonwealth has merely explained that adoption of the Staff's position with respect to its second contention, relating to the size and shape of the EPZ's for this site, would (1) require it to file a substantively different contention j '

than that which it has filed; (2) place on the Commonwealth and other intervenors a requirement which the Commission's regulations place on the Applicants; and (3) require the Commonwealth to provide further i

specificity not possible aiven currently available public~information.

See Brief of the commonwealtn of Massachusetts in Support of its Con-tentions, ["Brief"] at 4-11 (July 22, 1982); Response of the Common-wealth of Massachusetts to " Applicants' Reply to Brief of the i

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e a Commonwealth of Massachusetts in Support of its Contentions,"

[" Response"] l-3. In particular, the Commonwealth is unable to provide the specificity requested by the Staff because the Applicants have not conducted a required study of the impact of local factors on EPZ boundaries. See Response, at 2. Further relevant information not currently available to the Commonwealth includes the detailed results of a liquid pathway study and consequence analysis conducted by the Staff for the Seabrook site.

See Brief, at 9. As the Commonwealth has previously noted, there may also be Staff documents (not available in the Public Document j Room) which describe the proper effect to be given local factors in drawing EPZ boundaries. Id., at 8.

In short, in its response to the Commonwealth's secc"d con-

" tention the Staff has attempted to place the Commonwealth and other intervenors in the precise " Catch-22" situation which the

Appeals Board has deplored in the Catawba decision. See Slip Op.

at 17-18. The Staff would require submission of a different contention than that which the Commonwealth has filed and would

! require specificity in the drafting of the new contention which is i not possible given currently available information.

Very truly yours, 1

- >dw Ann Shotwell Assistant Attorney General Environmental Protection Division (617) 727-2265 JAS:ck l cc: Service List i

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c .s CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, Jo Ann Shotwell, Esquire, hereby certify that q copy of the foregoing correspondence has been mailed this ~/ff-day of September, 1982, first class mail, postage prepaid, to:

Helen Hoyt, Chairwoman Dr. Emmeth A. Luebke Administrative Judge Administrative Judge Atomic Safety and Licensing Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel Board Panel U.S. NRC U.S. IIRC Uashington, D.C. 20555 Washington, D.C. 20555 Dr. Jerry Harbour E. Tupper Kinder, Esquire Administrative Judge Assistant Attorney General Atomic Safety and Licensing Office of the Attorney General Board Panel 208 State House Annex

! U.S. HRC Concord, NH 03301 Washington, D.C. 20555 Rep. Nicholas J. Costello Lynn Chong 1st Essex District Bill Corkum Whitehall Road Mary McCool Amesbu ry , 11A 01913 Box 65 Plymouth, NH 03264 Tomlin P. Kendrick 822 Lafayette Road Roy P. Lessy, Jr., Esquire P.O. Box 596 Office of the Executive Legal Hampton, NH 03842 Director, 10205 MHBB U.S. NRC William S. Jordan, II, Esquire Washington, D.C. 20555 Ellyn R. Weiss, Esquire Lynne Bernabei Robert A. Backus, Esquire Diane Curran i

116 Lowell Street Harmon & Weiss P.O. Box 516 1725 I Street, N.W. .

Manchester, NH 03105 Suite 506 Washington, D.C. 20006 Rep. Arnie Hight l State of New Ilampshire Philip Ahrens, Esquire l House of Representatives Assistant Attorney General i Concord, NH 03301 State House, Station #6 l Augusta, ME 04333 Paul A. Fritzche, Esquire Public Advocate Donald L. Herzberger, !!D State House, Station #12 George Margolis, MD l Augusta, tiB 04333 Hitchcock Hospital Hanover, NH 03755 i

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Wilfred L. Sanders, Esquire Edward J. 11cDermott, Esquire Sanders and !!cDermott Sanders and !!cDermott 408 Lafayette Road 408 Lafayette Road Hampton, NH 03842 Hampton, NH 03842 1

Atomic Safety and Licensing Atomic Safety and Licensing Appeal Board Panel Board Panel U.S. IIRC U.S. NRC Uashington, D.C. 20555 Washington, D.C. 20555 Docketing and Service Sec. Robert L. Chiesa, Esquire Office of the Secretary Wadleigh, Starr, Peters, U.S. IIRC Dunn & Kohls Washington, D.C. 20555 95 !!arket Street Manchester, NH 03101 lis . Patti Jacobson 3 Orange Street Pavid A. Repka, Esquire Newburyport, MA 01950 Counsel for NRC Staff U.S. NRC Cooperative tiembers for Washington, D.C. 20555 Responsible Investment Box 65 Thomas G. Dignan, Jr., Esquire Plymouth, NH 03264 Robert K. Gad, III, Esquire Ropes and Gray 225 Franklin Street

'! Senator Robert L. Preston Boston, liA 02110 State of New Hampshire Senate Chambers Beverly Hollingworth Concord, NH 03301 7 A Street Hampton Beach, NH 03842 Robert G. Perlis Office of the Executive Legal Director, 10205 MNBB U.S. URC Washington, D.C. 20555 1

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p ANN SHOTWELL i

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