ML20065B752

Updated RO 50-321/1979-021 Rev 5:tritium Levels Discovered in Groundwater Samples.Cause Attributed to Slight Shift of Main Body of Tritiated Groundwater.Gamma Scans of 3,000 Will Be Taken Each Time Samples Collected

ML20065B752
Person / Time
Site:	Hatch
Issue date:	02/15/1983
From:	Nix H GEORGIA POWER CO.
To:	James O'Reilly NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II)
References
GM-83-141, RO-50-321-1979, NUDOCS 8302230308
Download: ML20065B752 (5)

Text

e h Georgia Power C;mp:ny Post Office Ox 439 D:xt:y, Gargl] 31513 Telephone 912 367-7781 912 537-9444 m

.:J F q l8 a10 : 2 ' GeorgiaPower Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant Februaryl5, 1983 GM-83-141 PLANT E. I. HATCH Licensee Event Report Docket No. 50-321 i

United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission Office of Inspection and Enforcement Region II Suite 3100 101 Marietta Street Atlanta, Georgia 30303 ATTENTION: Mr. James P. O'Reilly Pursuant to Section 6.9.1.9.d of Plant Hatch Unit I Technical Specifications ano Sections 3.2 and 5.7.2 of the Hatch Unit 1 Environmental Technical Specifications, please find the attached Supplemental Narrative Summary to Reportable Occurrenc; Report No.

50-321/1979-021, Rev. 5. The attached report provides supplemental information to the previous submittal of this LER.

41-Cy l' H. C. Nix GeneralMa/ nager .

I HCN/jph Xc: R. J. Kelly G. F. Head J. T. Beckham, Jr.

R. D. Baker H. L. Sumner S. B. Tipps Control R',om File k

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8302230308 830215 PDRADOCK05000g m

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• January 31, 1983 SUPPLEMENTAL NARRATIVE

SUMMARY

TO LER 50-321/1979-021, REV. 5 EDWIN I. HATCH NUCLEAR PLANT - HATCH l NONROUTINE RADIOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENTAL OPERATING ANOMALOUS MEASUREMENT REPORT This report which -supplements' the previous submittals_ _on LER 50-321/1979-021 provides. updated data on tritium levels.in groundwater

' samples taken from locations where the average value during the fourth ,

quarter. of 1982 exceeded 3.0 E4 pCi/l which is the report _ level for tritium in environmental water samples according to Table 3.2-3 of the ETS. There continues to be no significant impact on the public health tand safety due-to these readings which exceeded the report level. As reported previously, any releases to unrestricted areas are through the outfalls of the drainage system, such releases continue to be small and result in nonsignificant doses to the public.

The high tritium levels are.found in two separate areas of the plant yard -

the CST-1 area and the area near the NE corner of the Unit 1 turbine building. These areas appear to be essentially unrelated to

• each other in that the causes of_the high tritium. levels are different

and there appears not to be a good hydraulic connection between the two areas. The tritium levels found in all samples gathered at the report.sle locations during the fourth quarter along with a complete -

listing of the .past average quarterly levels for these locations-are presented in Tables 1 and 2.

The reportable locations .(Test Holes P16, T12 and T18) for the CST-1 area are presented in Table I. Test Hole P16 was actually dry for the entire quarter. The levels at Test Hole T12 have again become reportable after b3!ng a little below the report level for two quarters. The levels at T18 show a slight increase.

The reportable locations (Test Holes N9B, T3 and T4, and the steam  !

pipe chase .for the auxiliary boiler) for the area in the vicinity of the NB corner of the Unit 1 turbine building are given in Table 2.

The average levels at N9B and T4 continued to show slight declines.

'The levels at T4 and the steam pipe chase have again become reportable after being below the report level for 9 and 1 quarters respectively.

j .

'The high tritium levels in the area north of the Unit I turbine l- building was initially attributed to process water releases from an

- open-ended line near Pl7B. This source was eliminated at the time of i its discovery in March 1979. Judging by the rise and subsequent i l- decline of readings in succession at Pl7B, T4 and N9B and by the

, results of dye tests, the main body of this tritiated water appeared ,

j to have migrated to the vicinity of the NE corner of the Unit 1

! turbine building. Test Hole N9B is located at this corner. The

resurgence of the level at T4 might be attributed to a slight shift of l the main body of this tritiated groundwater.

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Supplement l January 31, 1983 l

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- - - . -. - - -- -- - .. - -- - - - -. .. .-- - ~ . ~ - -

p.  :.

l lAs reported in the. update for the second- quarter of 1982, an j

- explanation of the sudden increases _in the. levels at N9B and T3 which j had occurred in the first quarter was provided by the discovery of a 1 new source of . tritium. ;The Unit 1 precoat tank of the condensate polisher system located near the north wall of the turbine building on l the 130 foot -level had overflowed;- the spillage flowed across the '

. floor to the north wall of the building, under the wall panel to the outside of the building, collecting in the steam pipe chase for the ,

auxiliary boiler. Open joints between the pipe. chase and the turbine .

building basement wall would likely ' provide .an . easy path to the area i of N9B and T3.

On May 4, .before the open portion of the turbine - wall was sealed, the

, tritium level' in the pipe chase was 2.80 E5 pCi/1. After. sealing the i- wall the readings were 2 to 3 orders of magnitude lower, until October

, 19 when the reading jumped to-1.97 E5 pCi/1. The tritium level in the

' pipe chase then showed a steady decline to several thousand pCi/l j which might be considered as normal for this location.  !

I The - pipe chase had been pumped out sometime before September 11; it was not pumped out again until December 12. Gamma scans were run on samples from the pipe chase on September 11, October 23, November 2 and 9, . and December 12. Naturally occurring K-40 was the only

radionuclide identified. These scans were for 3000 seconds on the 4

GeLi detector except for the October 23 sample which was for 1000 3

seconds.

l In January the contract lab was requested - to run gamma scans on - the samples taken on October 19 and November 2. These scans were for 1

.30,000 seconds; the results in pCi/l for the dates of collection were 1 as follows:

~Radionuclide 10/19 11/02 I Mn 54 2.31 E2

, Co 58 6.02 E2

l. Co F0 7.07 E2

! Zn o5 3.79 E3 1.76 E2

Cs 134 1.89 E2 Cs 137 3.21 E2 1

It appears that condensate water may be present in these samples. An investigation has not yet determined how condensate water could have gotten into the pipe chase.

To become more vigilant of any sudden increases in the radiological  !

levels in the pipe chase in the future, 3000 second gamma scans will be taken each time samples are collected for tritium analysis.

i l Supplement i January 31, 1983 l

. E lr Table 1 High Tritium Levels in CST-1 Area pCi/l Otr or Date P16 Tlj!, T18 QUARTERLY AVERAGE 4

2-78 1.44 ES 3-78 '

1.54 E5 4-76, 1-79 1.26 E5 2-79 9.60 E4 1.46 E4 6.68 E4 3-79 7.08 E4 7.83 E2 7.61 E4 4-79 6.38 E4 9.33 E4 6.84 E4 1-80 9.18 E4 7.92 E4 8.71 E4 2-80 1.12 E5 1.55 E4 6.36 E4 3-80 dry 1.07 E4 7.61 E4 4-80 dry 5.22 E3 5.91 E4

, 1-81 6.22 E4 7.41 E3 8.29 E4 2-81 5.73 E4 1.14 E3 7.77 E4 3-81 8.55 E4 1.96 E5 1.27 E5 4-81 dry 4.64 E4 1.27 E5 1-82 1.26 E5 1.07 ES 1.29 E5 2-82 dry. 2.71 E4 1.56 E5 3-82 1.64 E5 2.06 E4 9.33 E4 4-82 dry 5.27 E4 1.02 E5 During Fourth Quarter 1982 10/19 dry 4.74 E4 9.59 E4 l 11/02 dry 5.27 E4 1.08 E5 12/03 5.81 E4 12/07' dry dry l

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Table 2 High Tritium Levels Near NE Corner of'the Unit 1 Turbine Building 4

pCi/1 Otr or Date N9B T3 T4 Pipe Chase QUARTERLY AVERAGES 3-78 3.45 E3 4-78 4.49 E3 1-79 3.42 E4 2

2-79 8.50 E4 1.19 E4 9.70 E4 3-79 1.38'E5 1.28 E4 1.64 ES 4-79 1.71 ES 2.01 E4 1.48 E5 1-80 1.73 E5 2.47 E4 9.54 E4 2-80 1.79 ES 3.92 E4 3.03 E4 3-80 1.64 E5 4,60 E4 5.18 E3 4-80 1.13 E5 4.29 E4 1.01 E4 1-81 1.06 ES 4.80 E4 8.91 E3 l

2-81 8.17 E4 5.55 E4 8.41 E3 3-81 8.47 E4 4.74 E4 5.19 E3 4-81 9.77 E4 5.29 E4 9.51 E3 1-82 4.20 E5 1.10 E5 2.82 E3 2-82 4.42 E5 1.13 E5 1.60 E3 4.09 E4 3-82 3.64 E5 4.34 E4 1.01 E3 1.73 E4 4-82 3.12 ES 3.92 E4 3.28 E4 3.06 E4 During Fourth Quarter 1982 10/06 2.86 ES 3.73 E4 10/19 2.68 E5 6.03 E4 1.97 E5 11/02 2.55 ES 2.72 E4 3.13 E4 11/09 1.31 E4 11/16 3.49 ES 3.00 E4 1.25 E4 11/23 1.08 E4 11/30 3.32 E5 3.48 E4 7.01 E3 12/03 3.14 E4 12/07 3.18 E5 1.03 E4 12/14 3.32 ES 4.08 E4 9.03 E3 12/21 3.41 E4 6.46 E3

+

12/28 3.59 E5 4.56 E4 8.19 E3 l

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