IR 05000302/1988007

Insp Rept 50-302/88-07 on 880307-11.No Violations or Deviations Noted.Major Areas Inspected:Liquid & Gaseous Radwaste Sys,Effluent Monitoring Sys & Environ Monitoring

ML20151C071
Person / Time
Site:	Crystal River
Issue date:	03/31/1988
From:	Kahle J, Stoddart P NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II)
To:
Shared Package
ML20151C058	List: IR 05000302/1988007 ML20151C056
References
50-302-88-07, 50-302-88-7, NUDOCS 8804120131
Download: ML20151C071 (8)

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>2 Flog UNITED STATES

., g/o NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

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y' Y 'n REGION ll g j 101 MARIETTA STREET. * ,e ATL ANTA, GEORGI A 30323

't.,...../ APR 0 51988 Report No.: 50-302/88-07 Licensee: Florida Power Corporation 3201 34th Street, South St. Petersburg, FL 33733 Docket No.: 50-302 License No.: DPR-72 Facility Name: Crystal River Inspection Conducte - Mare (7-11,1988 Inspector: s /

P. GT StocTdart~ ~ Date Signed Approved by: >rW<2 h k dbc J. B. Kahle, Section Chief in 3/3/88 Date S'igned

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Division of Radiation Safety and) Safeguards SUMMARY Scope: This routine, unannounced inspection was conducted in the areas of liquid and gaseous radwaste systems, effluent monitoring systems, and environmental monitorin Results: No violations or deviations were identified, hhk $DO Q

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REPORT DETAILS Persons Contacted Licensee Employees

• J, Alberdi, Assistant Director, Nuclear Plant Systems

• P. Breedlove, Ret.ords Management Supervisor

• G. Clymer, Nuclear Waste Manager

• J. Colby, Manager, Nuclear Engineering Services

• Collins, Superintendent, Nuclear Safety and Reliability P. Ezzell, Radiochemistry and Environmental Specialist

• E. Ford, Licensing Specialist

• R. Fuller, Senior Nuclear Licensing Engineer

• V. Hernandez, Senior Nuclear QA Specialist

• S. Johnson, Manager, Site Nuclear Services

• A. Kazemfar, Supervisor, Radiological Support Services

• H. Koon, Assistant Nuclear Maintenance Superintendent D. Kurtz, Manager, Quality Audits (Corporate)

• G. Longhouser, Security Superintendent

• W. Marshall, Operations Superintendent

• P. McKee, Director, Nuclear Plant Operations

• S. Robinson, Chemistry / Radiation Superintendent

• V. Roppel, Manager, Nuclear Operations Maintenance and Outages

• Williams, Nuclear Regulatory Specialist Other licensee employees contacted included engineers, technicians, security office members, and office personne NRC Resident Inspector

"J. Tedrow

• Attended exit interview Exit Interview The inspection scope and findings were summarized on March 11, 1988, with those persons indicated in Paragraph 1 above. The inspector described the areas inspected and discussed in detail the inspection findings listed below. No dissenting comments were received from the licensee. Corporate QA audit reports covering Environmental Tech Specs and Chemistry / Radiation Protection functions were adequat It was noted that the high range noble gas effluent monitor (NUREG-0737) had not been calibrated over the required energy spectru Semiannual radiological effluent release reports for January-June 1987 and July-December 1987 were reviewed and found adequat Operation of the liquid and gaseous radwaste systems appeared adequate. The plant boron recovery and recycle program appeared to be functioning adequately. Plant housekeeping was much improved. The

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licensee did not identify as proprietary any of the material provided to

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or reviewed by the inspector during this inspectio . Licensee Action on Previous Enforcement Matters This subject was not addressed in the inspectio . Semi-Annual Radioactive Effluent Release Reports (84723, 84724)

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The inspector reviewed the Semi-Annual Radioactive Effluent Release Reports for January-June 1987 and for July-December 1987. These reports were submitted in accordance with Technical Specification 6.9.1. In

, the July-December 1987 report, the licensee reported a number of changes in the calculations listed in the January-June 1987 repor The calculations had _ been redone on the basis of recovery of additional meteorological data and on the results of a population census update completed in late 1987. The meteorological and population data impacted the gaseous effluent dose results while the population data affected both the gaseous and liquid dose calculation The differences between the dose calculated for the original version of the January-June 1987 report, and for the revised report were smal The changes appeared to be

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appropriate and were acceptabl Doses calculated for the January-June 1987 (revised) and July-December 1987 reports were a small fraction of Technical Specification limits, 10 CFR Part 20 dose limits and 40 CFR 190 dose limit The following is a summary of plant releases, by calendar quarte Gases - 1987 - Curies

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! Fission and Activation 240 408 410 39 1,097 Products Radiciodine 1.41E-4 1.28E-4 2.61E-3 5.47E-5 2.0E-3 Particulates 7.15E-8 1.49E-7 5.30E-4 3.09E-5 5.6E-4 Tritium 1.53 1.22 5.10 6.84 14.7

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Liquids - 1987 - Curies i

Fission and Activation 0.0682 0.046 0.682 0.159 0.96 Products

Tritium 9 .5 175 2 i Dissolved Gases 3.86 1 .7 0.0693 25.3

Gross Alpha Activity <6.6E-5 1.5E-5 1.46E-5 0 <9E-5 In the reports, the licensee also reported making 24 waste shipments to an offsite disposal facility. Two of the 24 shipments were Type B, with the

balance classed as LSA. For January-June 1987, the shipments totalled

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141.6 cubic meters and 20.2 C1, while the July-December shirments totalled 148.3 cubic meters and 474.4 C *

No violations or deviations were identifie '

5. Radiological Environmental Monitoring (80721)

The inspector reviewed the licensee's environmental TLD dose results for 1985, 1986, and the first three quarters of 1987 and obtained data for the collocated TLD stations as requested under TI 2500/22, dated February 9, 1987. The information obtained during this inspection was forwarded to the Region I Dosimetry Specialis No violations or deviations were identifie . Liquid Radioactive Waste Processing Systems (84723)

The inspector discussed operation of the liquid radwaste systems with  !

licensee staff members and reviewed system operating record Prima ry coolant letdown was processed, in series, through a 3 micron filter, a 50 cubic foot capacity mixed bed demineralizer, e second 3 micron filter, and then to the makeup tank; control of the process was maintained based on chemistry parameters measured both upstream and downstream of the demineralizer unit. For boron control purposes, three 75,000 gallon bleed tanks were available. Tank "C," the letdown tank, was used to feed the boron recovery evaporator, with the distillate going to Tank "A," the deborated water tank. The evaporator bottoms, consisting of concentrated boric acid, were mixed with letdown water from Tank "C," and sent to Tank

"B," the borated water tank, at a concentration of about 2,000 ppm, which was higher than the normal reactor coolant system concentratio The licensee's boron recovery program was indicated to have resulted in substantial cost savings over the usual practice of disposing of boron evaporator bottoms as solid radioactive waste and using new boric acid to maintain the required boron inventor A licensee representative stated that in one year 10,400 gallons of boric acid (18% solution) was recovered  ;

at a saving of almost 54,000, based only on the cost of replacement i granular boric acid; the cost of solidifying and disposing of the used boric acid was estimated at an additional $18,00 Miscellaneous liquid radwastes were processed through a six-component series-connected tank system. Each of the six tanks could be loaded with specific media for optimum processing efficiency. Typically, one tank was used with a filtration media, one with charcoal, two with cation resin, and two with anion resin. Conductivity measurements were continuously made at the system input and output and between each tank. This was augmented with periodic sampling and analysis at the same point Analysis of samples, coupled with conductivity measurements permitted I control of the process through replacement of depleted beds or changing the loading of one or more beds for more efficient operation. At the time

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of the inspection, the licensee was no longer using mixed resin beds because separate beds were found to be more economical. In addition to the use of separate cation and anion demineralizer resin loadings, the licensee was considering the use of zeolites, a relatively new development which many nuclear plants have found to be effective for "problem" nuclide Plant liquid radioactive effluents for 1987 were within Technical Specification limits and calculated doses in the environment from effluent releases were a small fraction of 10 CFR 20 limit No violations or deviations were identifie . Gaseous Radioactive Waste Processing Systems (84724)

The inspector discussed operation of the gaseous waste processing systems with licensee staff members and reviewed system operating record I Primary coolant offgases and gases from cover gas systems for reactor coolant system tanks were stored in three waste gas decay tanks for decay prior to release. One of the three tanks was used for storage and decay of primary coolant offgas removed during plant shutdowns, while the other tanks served the RCS-related tank cover gas syste The highest radioactivity content gases were from the p-imary coolant offgas and I typically received 30 to 60 days decay time t ,re being discharged. The I

decay tanks serving the relatively low concen.,ation gases from the tank cover gas systems were alternately processed into one of the remaining two i tanks. One tank was being released approximately on a weekly basis, with

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decay represented by one week of fill time and one week of decay prior to releas NRC records of fission and activation product gases from Crystal River, Unit 3, since 1977 show that releases decreased significantly since i reaching a peak in 1979, and for calendar year 1987 were lower, by a

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factor of approximately six (6), than 1979 releases. These values were

noted for information purposes only; in each year since Crystal River

, Unit 3 began operation, radioactive gaseous releases have been a small

> fraction of Technical Specification limits and 10 CFR Part 20 limit . Audits (80721, 84723, 84724, 84725)

i j The inspector reviewed two audits performed by the licensee's corporate

Quality Assurance group and discussed audit procedures and findings with l the audit team leader and other Quality Audits supervisory staf The I audits reviewed were: "Environmental Technical Specification Audit, i File 87-12-ETS," June 7-23, 1987, issued January 22, 1988, and "Chem-Rad j' Audit, File 87-06-CRAD," June 8-26, 1987, issued July 24, 1987.

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Both audits appeared to be extensive in scope and covered their subject i areas in adequate depth and detail. Between the two audits, nine findings and ten concerns were identified. Corrective actions appeared to be both l

timely and technically acceptable; due to the short time between the is+.ue

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i of 87-12-ETS and the date of this inspection, not all of the findings and  :

concerns had been closed-cut but progress toward resolution appeared to be adequat ;

No violations or deviations were identifie ' Post-Accident Sampling System (PASS) (84723)

In reviewing the Semi-annual Effluent Release Reports for 1987 (See Section 4 of this report), it was noted that several (six) unplanned gaseous releases had resulted from routine testing of the PASS. The inspector was informed that the source of these releases had been leakage of primary coolant from various valves in the PAS The licensee undertook corrective action promptly upon discovery of these leaks but full corrective action took longer than anticipated when testing following '

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the initial correction of identified leaks led to the discovery of other leaks. As of the date of this inspection, the licensee had not completed final testing to closeout the corrective action It was noted that the  !

last detectable leak with an associated gas release occurred September 15, 1987, and that five consecutive monthly periodic checks had been run  !

without detection of additional gas releases.

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No violations or deviations were identifie ;

o 10. Gaseous Effluents (84724)

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In discussions between licensee representatives and the inspector, it was noted that the licensee had experienced problems with the Reactor Building

purge valves in that these valves could not be re-seated properly by ,

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remote actuation and thus were unable to perform their safety-related function of closing by actuation of the Engineered Safety Features Actuation System (ESFAS). Procedure OP-417, "Containment Operating Procedure," Paragraph 4.10, was revised tc read, ".. . Reactor Building ,

purge isolation valves must remain closed during Modes 1, 2, 3, and 4,

unless special permission is granted by NRC."

During shutdown operations, these valves will be opened to permit ventilation of the Reactor Building. When preparations are made to return

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the plant to power operation, the valves will be manually closed and must l

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be manually "coaxed" to a fully seated position. When fully closed the actuators will be disabled, the valves will be tested for leakage, and will not be opened again during power operation. To purge the Reactor

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Building during Modes 1, 2, 3, and 4, the smaller hydrogen purge lines i

must be use l An unplanned release in the third quarter of 1987 resulted from an .

l inadvertent discharge of secondary steam generator water through a main i steem relief valve (MSRV). The MSRV header is connected to valves leading  !

from the pressurizer steam line, the pressurizer liquid line, and the RCS  !

letdown line. When 350 ppm of boron was found in the line between the header and the pressurizer steam valve, an investigation of the source ,

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identified leaks in the valves to .the pressurizer liquid system and the RCS letdown line. Correction of the leaks resolved the problem.

No violations or deviations were identifie . Liquid Effluents (84723)

In discussions between licensee representatives and the inspecto ',. concerning the 1987 Semi-Annual Effluent Release Reports, it was noted that an unusually high amount of dissolved noble gases (approximately 25 Ci in 1987) had been released in the plant liquid effluent Concentrations, however, were not in excess of established limits and did ,

not pose an exposure problem. The gases were attributed to the use of demineralizers for radwaste treatment and the fact that all components of the systems were operated above atmospheric pressure. Under these conditions, the noble gases did not have the opportunity to degas and were i carried out with the plant liquid effluents. Upon release.to the plant cooling water discharge, these gases were rapidly dissipated to the atmospher No violations or deviations were identifie ;

12. RCS Chemistry (84723)

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The licensee discussed boron, pH, and Dose Equivalent Iodine (DEI)

measurements with licensee personnel and reviewed graphic trending of  !

sample analysis results. RCS pH was maintained by lithium control at  !

t pH 6.9 to Licensee personnel stated that cobalt deposition was minimized at pH 6.5 but that the system corrosion rate was minimized at approximately pH 7.5. The use of pH 6.9 to 7.0 was adopted as a compromise between the two value DEI was indicated to be running in the low E-02 uCi/g range, with the l

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exception of anticipated short-term transients during power changes. It was also stated that sulfate was running at approximately 20 ppb and that some resin beads had been seen in the RCS. The exact origin of the resin  ;

beads had not been determine i No violations or deviations were identifie . Confirmatory Measurements (84725)

l The licensee's quality assurance (QA) program for radiochemical  ;

measurements was reviewed in the corporate Quality Audits, Audit 87-12-ETS discussed in Paragraph 8 of this repor f l

J In addition to a cross-check program conducted annually with NRC, the ,

i licensee participated in a quarterly "Blind Sample" program with Analytics l 1 (Atlanta, GA). Five liquid samples (mixed gamma nuclides, gross alpha, .

! tritium, gross beta, and iron-55) were received and analyzed quarterl !

Semi-annually, three samples (filter containing beta gamma particulates, a  !

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noble gas vial, and an iodine charcoal cartridge) were received and analyzed. The program appeared to be producing satisfactory result The inspector was informed that the licensee had procured a new Canberra gamma radiation spectroscopy system with a high purity GE detector and was in the process of installing the system in the counting lab. The licensee had not yet (as of the end date of this inspection) proceduralized or calibrated the system and the system had not been declared operationa No violations or deviations were identifie . Inspector Followup Items (IFIs) (92701)

(Closed) IFI T2500/22 - Collection of Collocated TLD measurement result Licensee data for the collocated TLD environmental dosimetry stations was obtained and transmitted to Region . (0 pen) IFI 86-16-01 -

Determine that upper measurements on new meteorological tower are within the thermal boundary layer. The licensee has proposed to do a study of this question under contract. As of the end date of the inspection, the licensee had not issued a contract. Status; awaiting licensee actio (Closed) IFI 86-28-02 - Heat trace containment air sample lines (PASS).

This item was originally identified as part of corrective action in a 1984 evaluation of the PASS. At that time, heat tracing of the containment atmosphere sampling line was required to minimize loss of radiciodine and particulates by deposition. Since that time, the licensee has adopted the PWR Owners Group procedure for evaluation of core fuel damage on the basis of noble gas sample analysis. The current NRR position is that if the licensee adopts the Owners Group procedure, the sampling of iodine and particulates from the containment atmosphere is not require (Closed) IFI 86-37-01 -

Review maintenance and testing of the TSC emergency ventilation syste The inspector reviewed new procedure SP-188, which specifies testing of the system at approximately 18 month intervals (during fuel outages). The system was tested February 13, 1987, by Nuclear Consulting Services (an NRC-approved vendor) and was found to be satisfactory. A notation in an earlier inspection that "duct tape" had been used to seal the system was in error. The tape was used to retain sheets of thermal insulation in place on exposed surfaces of system ducts and housings to minimize or prevent condensation and was not used for sealing purposes.

l (Closed) IFI 86-37-02 - Review licensee analysis of Fe-55. The inspector reviewed the licensee analysis of the supplemental Fe-55 sample sent from l NRC's contract laboratory. The licensee's analysis results were submitted

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by letter of December 15, 198 The licensee's results were within acceptable limits and were satisfactory.

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