ML20134E533
| ML20134E533 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Maine Yankee |
| Issue date: | 12/26/1996 |
| From: | Burt A, Shadis R AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED |
| To: | Shirley Ann Jackson, The Chairman NRC COMMISSION (OCM) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20134E522 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9702060329 | |
| Download: ML20134E533 (6) | |
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o l-FRIENDS of the COAST OPPOSING N(' CLEAR POLLITION i
lYWTOFFlm BOA 9h, ElXiELO.110.1111.\\T 01556 207 882-6000 FM 207 56.1 4.102 j
December 26,1996 j
US Nuclear Regulatory Commission i
Chairman Shirley A. Jackson Mail Stop O-16 GIS l
One White Flint North 11555 Rockville Pike Rockville, MD 20852-2738 i
(
Dear Chairman Jackson,
j We received notice fr6m NRC by copy-letter dated, December 12,1996 that Maine Yankee Atomic l
Power Company has been scheduled to participate in a Commission meeting scheduled at headquarters for January 9,1997. The purpose of this participation, according to the letter, signed by James M. Taylor, is to j
brief the Commission on the licensee's response to the recently completed NRC I=%-:=ient Safety j
Assessment (ISA).
We ask that Friends of the Coast - Opposing Nuclear Pellation also be allowed time to make a trief presentation, of approximately thirty minutes, to the Commission at this meeting. Our purpose would be to provide an informed citizen response to the ISA process and report. Friends of the Coast is a non-profit etxation and advocacy organization incorporated in the State of Maine. The large majority of our four hundred-plus members reside within a ten-mile radius of Maine Yankee Atomic Power Station ( MYAPS) and, therefore, have a vested interest and standing in matters regarding nuclear safety at this facility.
We are proud to say that many of our members have educated themselves regarding MYAPS and have taken acti -
es on questions of regulatory interest. In mid-1995, Friends of the Coast had, based on public documems, plant history, and the collected anecdotal accounts of plant workers, publicly identified basic problems at MYAPS as resulting from an unwillingness on the part of owners to commit sufficient funds to stay ahead of safety-related issues. These observations were later echoed by the " root-cause" analysis of MY's Cultural Assessment Team report, and more directly, a year later, by the ISA.
At an October 18 Commission briefing, ISA team members correctly charactertzed public comments at the ISA Exit meeting, held in Wiscasset, Maine on October 10, as largely rhetorical and broadly eclectic.
We believe a shortage of informed dialogue was the result of a faulted process; one in which the interested public had little or no access to the ISAT Report notiljust a few hours before the inesting and therefore no time to prepare substantive questions.
We were also deeply concerned that the ISA resuhs had become politicized by bombastic statements from our Governor's office regarding the depth, senpe, and conclusions of the ISA Report before the public and the media had an opportunity to assey its contents. There were no corrective or qualifying statements from the ISA team orNRC.
9702060329 970203 i
PDR ADOCK 05000309 p
FRIENDS ofthe COAST /SHIRIRYA. JACKSON December 26,1996 De Governor's select citizen's panel made no public statemut, published no findings and in no way engaged the raedia or their fellow Maine citizens to inform them on any aspects of the ISA.* Friends of the Coast, therefore, immediately announced a citizen's review of the ISA to be publicly discussed on November 19th and invited input from all interested parties.
Confirming NRC's stated policy of Respor.siveness :o the Public, we made it a point to invite representation at the November 19 meeting from NRC Commissioners and Staff. De staff did send an observer from Region I who was, however, uninformed on ISA issues and declined to actually participate.
We were gratified to have present staff representatives of each member of Maine's Congressional l
delegation. His gesture of Congressional interest has stimulated ongoing and productive dialogue between our organization and our Congressional offices which we believe will ultimately lead to our participation in relevant oversight hearings.
However we remain concerned with what appears to be a hasty and lockstep ISA process, response, (y
and resolution. We believe a key elements are missing in assessing and responding to safety questions at MYAPS; among them, significant and meaningful public input. We believe that given but a brief window on
' the commission's January 9 agenda, Friends of the Coast can make that constructive contribution.
His letter is forwarded by electronic facsirWie and by mail. De mailed copy is accompanied by an attached copy of," Written Comments - A Citizen Review of the 1996 Independent Safety Assessment of Maine Yankee Atomic Power Station", a compilation by Friends of the Coast which we hope you will find stimulating and informative.
Dank you for your kind attention.
4
%A4 Anne D. Burt Corresponding Secretary 2q7-882 - 6g48
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'.c d.A.
CC. List Attached:
ymond Shadis Information Coordinator 207-882 - 7801
- nis statement rernains true as of the date of this letter. As of the begianing of December, at least one panel member admitted not having read the ISAT report. Inclusion of a ' dummy' panel and exclusion of informed and interested citizens is damaging, we believe, to the credibility of the State of Maine and the NRC. His may be, in part, remedied by the inclusion of Friends of the Coast and other interested voices in the January 9 Commission meeting.
2
FRIENDSsfthe COAST /SHIRLEYA. JACKSON December 26,1996 COPIES:
NRC Commissioners Kenneth C. Rogers, Greta J. Dicus, Nils J. Diaz, Edward McGaffigan, Jr.
I Cliff Garvey, Office of Senator-elect Susan Collins Mark Sullivan, Office of Representative-elect Tom Allen Darrell Fort, Office of Representative John Baldacci John Cummings, Office of Senator Olympia Snowe Jeff'Duncan, Office of Representative Edward J. Markey Stephen Ward, Maine Public Advocate's Office Jeffrey Pidot, Maine Attorney General's Office David Stellfox,Inside NRC, Nucleonics Week, McGraw-Hill Scott Allen, Boston Globe Ross Kerber, WallStreetJournal Agis Salpukes, New York Times Michael Remez, HartfordCourant Susan Rayfield, PortlandPress Herald, Maine Sunday Telegram Maine LocalandBroadcast Media
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- 'rHE LINCOL N COUNTY NEW5, DAMARISCOTTA, MAINE
///2.0 Maine Ya>1kee, NRC criticized by citizen,s review panel By Dan Bustard The Nuclear
' Regulatory an (independent assessment) is to 0:mmissionis deceivirg the public see if Maine Yankee is in about thesafety of Maine Yankee,a compliance. If you look at the report, citizen s review panel concluded in a report released at a public meeting the answer is obviously no."
Tuesday mght.
The report points out problems I
with two safety systems used for Some at the meeting called for a congressional oversight hearing on
. cooling purposes in the case of an emergency. Blanch noted the ISA Maine Yankee, while others urged team pomted out those two systems m: reinvolvement at thelocallevel.
could not be proven reliable at full R:gardless, a panel of nuclear power (MaineYankeeisoperating at (ngmeers and others experiencedin 90 percent) but does not address dealing with NRC concluded the l their operation at the current power Wiscasset nuclear power plantis not
- g,yeg; hat the NRC is saying is we in conformance with federal ug regulations.
don't know if the emergency core "The only difference between Millstone and Maine Yankeeis that ! cooling system will work. That is incredible," said Blanch, comparing Millstone was on the cover of Time it to allowing a car to be used not and Maine Yankee was not," said knowing if the brakes, air bags and Union of Concerned Scientists senior seat belts wou.
nuclear safety engineer David According to an executive Lochbaum, referring to shutdowns summary of the critique, " citizen at Connecticut nuclearpower plants reviewers are almost unanimously over safety-related problems disturbed with the repeated The panelwas put together by the occurrences, through the ISAT Friends of the Coast Opposing report, of the inspection tcam raising Nuclear Pollution, with support from issues which are of saiety the Vermont based New England significance or demonstrate the Coalition on Nuclear Pollution, to safety regulations are being violated review the Independent Safety and then dismissing the issues with Assessment performed at Maine
- casual set asides and vague Yankee by NRC.
8 language."
The public meeting, held in the t
Several speakers said if Maine cafeteria of Wiseasset Middle I Yankee's emergency systems had khvol. vas well attended, and
. been tested over the past 17 years, people uhospoke or asked questions
! since NRC allowed the plant to raised their concerns about the plant,, operate above 2440 megawatts and a feeling of helplessness about ',
thermal, they probably would have changing the situation.
,. failed.
State nuclear safety advisor Uldis Pointing criticism directly at Vanags, who attended the meeting,, NRC, Blanch said Maine Yankee maid the state will look at the full, management is not the current area report prepared by the panel. "It's for blame. " Management is like good to be questioning," Vanags children. 'Ihey will get away with said. "It keeps everyone on their everything they can get away with.
toes.But laiready havesome of the The route cause of the problem is answers to their concerns because1 NRC," he said.
crs a member of the ISA team and have the background."
Vermont attorneyJonathan Block, KrisChristineof Alnaasked"how who represents both groups who can we protect ourselves?" after worked to form the panel, urged numerous letters to federal, state citizen involvement at (M iocal level.
and elected officials failed to create Hehry Myers, a former staff the stronger scrutiny of Maire member of the congressional Yankee she and others seek.
in reviewing the ISA report, committee that oversees ~ NRC, former Northeast Utilities engineer called for congressional oversight P2ulBlanch said"the mam pointof hearings as the only way for compliance and safety concerns to 8
be addressed out in the open J
A closer look at citizen panel
' critique of Maine Yankee report Bs Den Butard i
I
! anessm:, enlt of Mfede a m nt safet) After his review of the report, Whe tA e Yrnkec was IAchbaum wrote"not oncein this 75 1M601, wrote "in my opinion, the
' completed b3 the Nuclear page report does the ISA team
~
Regu absence of a certification of l
( year,latory Commission earlier this discuss the safety implications of enenptiance means that thelevel of a report produced by the Maine Yankee ting above the safety at Maine Yankee is l
f cssessment tcam became the center 2,440mapawatt lpowerlevel
'"hinate; i.e. Se risk W a j
, of ongoing events surrounding the which me team specmes as the severe accident may or may not be i
I
, Wiseasset nuclear power plant.
maximum justifiable design The ISA team descriled Maine condition, even though the facility significantlyisas than themaximan that would mist were the plan tobe j
.I Yankee as being adequately routinely operate at power levels in substantial com cperated,whilepointm' goutareasof '
between 2,440 and 1,700 Mwt for 17 anfety regulations." pliance with 1
{ eddressed. Plant officials have j
concern that will have to be 1%2 years between Jae 1978 and Others who submitted written j
a January 1996. The NRC must comments en the ISA r> port were j
pledged $10 million to addressing address the safety implications of Friends of the Coast member Ray those concerns, with their response 4
Shadis of Edgecomb, Mike to the report due on Dec.10.
Maine Yankee operating between McConnell of Boothbay, Eric The report spurred Friends of the June 1M8 and January 1906at power Hartmann of Edgecomb,DevidHall Coast Opposing NuclearPollution to levels in excess of 2,440 Mwt."
af Batn, H.G.Brack of the Center for fcrm a citizen review panel of Blanch, Lochbaum, nuclear BiologicalMonitoringinNulls Cove nuclear engineers and others heavily systems engineer Robert Fitzgerald l ond Kris and Peter Christne W Alna' involved in the nuclear industry.
of Appleton, former ional Their own assessment of the ISA staffer Henry Myers and of team report was far more criticalof the Coast attorney Jonathan Block
. MaineiankeeandNRC,asreported each provided written comments,as
- here last week.
did area residents.
g The panel featured a pair of Blanch described the ISA review
. whistleblowers, former Northeast as a "taken audit."He believes since i
' Utilities engineer Paul Blanch and the assessment " uncovered many e David Lochbaum, senior nuclear 8F888 d 80n compliance, Maine safety engineer with the Union of Yankee should ah operating Ws Concerned Scientists (UCS).
nt until they complete a review...
t.Nc.ot.43 co0uTy la EW$
Northeast Utilities owrs 20 percent I88 N, law and he cf Maine Yankee, while UCS I"
I@b received the now famous anonymous h '"
Qd e
me a ne at k m ~kC y
want to ask the difficult questions alleged falsified computer data was because they knew the correct DymMLa.c.tTA /Ntw C ASTLE used to justify 1989 NRCapprovalof answer would result in a plant MAtOE,
shutdown for not being in a power upgrade from 2,630 to 2,700 compliance with regulations."
limited Maine Yankee to 2440 Fitzgerald,who workedon nuelear P A G F o s.1 C E TLFTcTa negawatts thermal. NRC has power plants in Seabrook, N.H. and megawatts thermalor 90 percentin light of the allegations but is allowing Point Lepreau, New Brunswick, the plant to operate.
wrote in his comments "there is Imhbaum said the ISA team did a Alnt doubt in my mind if the NRC has, in this instance given a chat they were sent to do, as they review which addresses p,roblems 8
have no ranking below adequate, withregard tosafetyissuesinfavor UCSis pushing for Maine Yankee to of the citizen at
- e. 'Ibey beve be shut down and fined for operating given a utility margin to since IM8 above 2,440 megawatts correct problems after the fact
- thermal, without penalty.
Strong words "I would like to see the fwhhaum's review of the ISA enforcement branch of the NRC reportis harsh.Both he and Blanch respond to the irregularities brought noted the teamlooked at four of the ey by this inspection If (Maine up to 40 systems within the plant.
Yankee) cannot police theu sves, "There were only four systems thenmaybeweneedtoconduct these looked at. We don't know what else reviews on a regular schedule. 'Iben, b out there,"14chbaum said atlast the pubbe should be findings in clear 1s presented the week's public meeting.
e."
Myers, a staff of the congressional committee with primary oversight of NRC from
)
j e.
i THE TMES RECORD WEDNESDAY. NOVEMBER 2o.1996 4
)
Paul Blanch, a former nuclear engineer with Northern Utilities e
who became an outspoken critic myiew that was one of the most
{} hog ef of his company and the NRC's thorough evaluations ever done safety practices, cited nine quo-of a nuclear power pir.nt.
g 9
' tations from the NRC's report Lochbaum said the NRC e
4 alllre that pointed to areas in which looked at four out of the plant's the plant was not in confor-40 systems and found problems mance with the agency's rules.
with each of them. But instead 0
M1 ee Quoting from the report, of probing fitrther, *he ISA team Blanch said,"' Maine Yankee was decland the plant tobe adequate in general compliance with its and stopped its wod, Lochbaum Overseers uc=sini-ti=ush sieniri-said.
cant items of non conformance A third nuclear engineer, were iCentified,' Translated, this Robert Fitzgerald of Appleton, means thelicenseeis notin com-who is a veteran of both the WISCASSET-Maine Yankee pliance with the requinments....
Navy's nuclear program and pri-is not in compliance with federal They are breaking the law and vate industry, also said in his
~
the NRC is helping them,"
rwiew of the nport he found a regulations, and has the same Blanche said.
slaninemnt number of instances types of safety problems that have led to plant shutdowns in David Lochbaum, the cenior w'here the plant was operating nuclearexpertonthestaff of the outside the NRC's regulations.
other states,according to a panel of nuclear experts who critiqued Union of Concerned Scientists, Fitzgerald said there were pmb-said there were three critical lems in the equipment that is a recent report on the plant s
'"D safety problems which were
, used to pmvide air and coolant The panel was assenbled for a identified in the NRC's report to the reactor during an acci-which an stillunresolved.
dent, the emergency power public meeting Tuesda night by Friends of the Coast Opposing Lochbaum said the ISA team sources needed to run safery sys-i Nuclear Pollution, an antiMaine found that normal power sup.
tems during plant shutdowns, Yankee organization. It included plies are unreliable, emergency and 30 reactorcontainment com-three nuclear engineers who are power systems could be oe
,ponent problems v'hich were critical of the way the Nuclear loaded and cooling water for identified in 1980 and still have Regulatory Commission goes safety equipment is insufficient.
not been fixed.
about protecting the public safe-lan n
b en The panelists saved most of ty their harshest criticism for the Last month, a 75 page report able to respond to an emerget.cy NRC and not the operators of by the NRC's Independent Safety and might have had a core melt.
Maine Yankee. " Management is Assessment Team said there down.
Just like your children," Blanch were significant weaknesses Iochbaum compared the ISA's said. "They will do anything the j
with Maine Yankee's safety sys-finding to the much more publi-pannts let them get away with-tems', but c,verall the plant was cized investigations of the thne The root cause of the problem is adequate. Two days after the Millstone reactors in Connecti.
the failure of the NRCto enfome report was released, the team cut, which were shut down for its own ngulatims."
held a public meeting in Wiscas-investigation thip year. " Time Lochbaum said, "It is pure set to present its findings and Magazine is partly to blame. If luck that there have been no collectpubic comment.
they had done a cover story on serious accidents at the plant, Ray Shadis, of Friends of the Maine Yankee instead of Mill-and it is unconscionable for the Coast, said opponents were not stone, then we would have had NRC to rely upon luck as a sub-given enough time to digest the the kind if investigation they stitute for compliance with fed-Bndings and prwide a &ni"*-
had at Millstone," Lochbaum erally mandated safety regula-ful nsponse and that's why the said. *The nuclear industry is tiens."
gmup organized Tuesday's meet-not taking safety regulations No representative of Maine ing. In addition to a tape ncord-seriously enough, and neither is Yankee attended the meeting.
ing of the meeting, the smup is the NRC."
The plant has until Dec.10 to forwarding a 50 page compila-Lochbaum also called into nspond tothelSA nport.
tiorrof written nsponses to the question Gov. Angus King's ISA avport to the NRC.
characterization of the ISA as a
" top to bottom, nuts and bolts"