ML20128E721

Requests That Public Meeting Be Held Re Newspaper Story Re Internal NRC Document Warning Against Increased Dangers of Core Meltdown at Trojan Nuclear Reactor,As Result of Plants Current Problem W/Degraded Steam Generator Tubes

ML20128E721
Person / Time
Site:	Trojan File:Portland General Electric icon.png
Issue date:	11/24/1992
From:	Joshua Wilson DO IT YOURSELF COMMITTEE
To:	Selin I, The Chairman NRC COMMISSION (OCM)
References
NUDOCS 9212080164
Download: ML20128E721 (2)

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tCV 24 '9217:24 53RD ST. ADVERTISItG P.a

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MUSCLE 41ACHINES 1

November 24,1992 Ivan Selin, Chairman United States Nuclear ReEulatory Commission

g. GQ Washington, D.C, 20555

Dear Chairman Selin,

Along with the facsimile transmission of this letter (which is being followed up by a

'hard copy" mailing) is a fax of a newspaper story 'from today's edition of The Orrgonha newspaper. The story reveals that an internal NRC document has wuned aEainst greatly

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increased dangers of a core meltdown at the Trojan nuclear reactor in Oregon, as a result cf that plant's current problems with degraded steam generator tubes.

I am sure that you and the other NRC commissioners are aware of Trojan's problems, since your organization relned its rules to allow the plant to continue operating with an above-standards percentage ofits steam generator tubes in disrepair. I believe that the waiver of the rules is up for review in March of 1993, The intemal NRC document alluded to in the Oreconian reflects some of your own staff's objections to that waiver of rules.

We at the Do It Yourself Committee have been tracking the situation at Trojan for several years. This year, we were the chief sponsors of ballot Measure 6 to close the Trojan plant by voter initiative. Earlier this month, our measure received hundreds of thousands of votes, and was endorsed by the largest environmental groups in Oregon and many politicians and business people.

In light of the serious steam generator problems at Trojan and the alarming disser4ing opinions within the NRC as to the safety of the plant, we ask that a public hearing be held in Portland, Oregon -- attended by NRC staff from Washington, D.C. -- before you make any decisions that would allow Trojan to restart. Such public meetings were granted for citizens concerned about the Yankee Rowe nuclear reactor last year. We would like similar public hearings, so the people of Oregon can dir. cuss vital Trojan safety issues with NRC staff, Please share our request with your fellow commissioners Rogers, Curtiss, Remick and de Planque and have someone from NRC staff get back to us about our request. Currently, the operators of Trojan, Portland General Electric Company, hupe to restan the plant within the next two weeks. We are requesting a public meeting as early as next week, before the plant is reopened. This is a matter of grave concern to thousands of Oregonians, as it is to the Nuclear Regul tory Commission.

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P.3 hDAY NOVEMBER 24,1992'

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NRC. dissent challenges rules waiver given Trojan.

By JWES LONG elrM Ckagon.on stas The U.S. Nucler Regulatory Com; An NRC rulew of the dissent -

'Because the reactot< ore water is '

n4ission's relaxation of rules on the document that Pouard passed rahactMy contammated, a pritne flawed steara tubes at Wesdnghouse.

Along to the meds> - Ad not find corwern of plant operators and the,.

I designed nucleu pcwer plants such the scenado farfstched.

NRC is makjng sure the water la e.

kept seakd in Se mbes. Ns la as T An greatly increases the risk of a. t ictor core meltdown, an inter.

. CJ Heltames Dr., deputv di ector why. Pollard said, the d!ssenting l; 4

of the of' ice of Wuclear Regulatory, i

na) NnC document says.

Research. passed the report dirtetly NRC staK members protested the Such an occurrence would be cat.

to Frank P. Gillespie director of pro, walvers allowing Trqjan and other s astrophic, teleasing radioactive grain management for the Office of, plants 2 have tubes with caws *.

materials to the endronment, the Nuetear Reactor Regulation.

reaching more than 40 percent of the.,

Mport sad

The preumban poortry naking way through the steel.

i The Union of Concerned Scien.

is High," Heltames said in a cover.,

"The safety systems... an only :

tists, a Washington. D C.. puobe in.

ing memo to GIHespie.

des!gned to prevent a meltdou of the reactor core if only one tube in terest group, obtained the document Pouard said it wasinusualfor the :

and released it Monday.

head of NRC's research ofnee to one steam genentor ruptures. Pol. ',

" Trojan has been plagued with pass such a document direc0y to the.

lard Sa d U me plarit is maning.

(tube eraeks) for 10 yean "sajd Rob.

chiefregulator.

hhc an ak ne se en.

ert D. Ponard, d former NRC nucle.

Gregory N. Cock.anNRCregional -

sam 3

.ar engineer now with the Union of spokesman in San Francisco, said.

P P' u

use several of me,,

4 Concerned Scientists. "NRC's re.

hosever.that the agency considend :

meakmd mbes to mptun. Nas tew sponse has been to keep relaxing the Trojan safe and that the"Diffennee as 2 mbes mpmre, ndmaem wa.,,

rules Now it's gone so far that even of Professional Opblon" document r will be discharged darvetly into,

the NRC staffis ohjecting."

contained no informatka to change,

%n no

, i Without nam'ng Trojan specifical<

that stance, ly the doeurnent said a waher that, Cock said the NRC's walven for cooling system will escape the tvac. ! f NRC granted last February to aDow Trojan were ta!1ormade for the - tor containment throuah the teken i

Trojan to continue operating despite plant and were g antad only after. tubes and win not be cyckt beck '

numerous Dawed tubes in its steam.

meheulous study of the exact Daws ' con.t.o annue cooHng k M ;i generaton had increased the chance-in intvidual tubes and how theyi kan has Wn Aut down ab a of a serious accident from 1 per mil. were to be fixed' lion per year - or virtuaDy nos StiU. he said, the NRC would fol.. Nov. 9 because of a botc!)ed effon to 8 chance - to a plausible 1in 3.000.

Iow up carefuHy on the dissent and Weld a tube crack

• NationaDy. there are $2 pressuri.i take any seton deemed necessary ged water reactors similar to Trojan.

David W. Heintunan, a PGE '.

j or about half of all the naton's nu-spokesman said the utibty also con-clear plants.

sidered Trojan safe. "If we didn't.".

But Pollard said it was the waiver.

he sald. *we wouldn't operate it."

for Trojar, that had touched off the.

Trojan and simnar plants gener.. ~

intemal NRC fight about steam sie electricity by beating water to,

tubes.

more than 600 degrees Fahrenheit la a The NRC decided to let Trojan op '. their nuclear reactor cotes pump-erate despite microscopie defacts ing it under intense pressure.

discovered in 428 of about 13.000' through stainless. steel tubes that :

heat. exchange tubes connecting the loop out of the core like even el.;

reactor with four steam generators.

ements.

According to the papers that Pol.-

T ojan has 13.552 such tubes that

• lard obtatned, at least three uniden ' pit,alde into four separate cham-tified NRC staff members disagreed, ters, where they cause other water with the waiver snd filed a formal' to flash to steam and spin genera.

dissent within the agency kncwn as tors to make electricity.

a " Differing ProfessionalOpinion."

• Ora of the staff members argued' that "a main steam line break oute side containment could trigger mul-tiple steam generator tube failures which would then result in core melt because of depleuen of cool-ant."

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