ML20151U790

Discusses 980615 Request for Exemption from Requirement of 10CFR73.55(e)(1) & (f)(1) to Provide Continuous Staffing of Plant CAS During Contingency Events.Request Denied

ML20151U790
Person / Time
Site:	Vogtle
Issue date:	09/09/1998
From:	Jaffe D NRC (Affiliation Not Assigned)
To:	Beasley J SOUTHERN NUCLEAR OPERATING CO.
References
TAC-MA2143, TAC-MA2144, NUDOCS 9809110167
Download: ML20151U790 (4)

Text

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1 UNITED STATES

g j NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION g g WASHINGTON, D.c. 20066 4 001 1

1 g % *** /g September 9, 1998 Mr. J. B. Beasley, Jr.

l Vice President l Southem Nuclear Operating

! Company, Inc.

Post Office Box 1295 Birmingham, Alabama 35201-1295

SUBJECT:

EVALUATION OF THE SOUTHERN NUCLEAR OPERATING COMPANY'S 73 5 e) 1) AND f)( ) FO A DEF NED DEPLOYMENT TE Y - VOGTLE

ELECTRIC GENERATING PLANT, UNITS 1 AND 2 (TAC NOS. MA2143 AND MA2144) i l-

Dear Mr. Beasley:

By letter dated June 15,1998, Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc. (SNC), requested an i exemption in accordance with 10 CFR 73.5, " Specific Exemptions," for the Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2 (VEGP). Specifically, SNC requested an exemption from the i

• requirement in 10 CFR 73.55(e)(1) and (f)(1) to provide continuous staffing of the VEGP Central Alarm Station (CAS) during certain contingency events. The NRC staff notes that this request for exemption closely resembled an amendment submitted by SNC, pursuant to j 10 CFR 50.90, on November 25,1996, to modify VEGP's security and contingency plans to

'.. accomplish the same objective.

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!. The staff reviewed the information provided in the November 1996 amendment request, and

determinod that the functions provided by the CAS were critical to a successful response to

! safeguards contingencies and that the CAS must be continuously staffed to ensure continuity of l those functions. Among the functions the staff determined to be critical was the redundancy I

! - that the CAS provided to the Secondary Alarm Station (SAS) in responding to contingencies to l b

ensure that a single act could not remove the licensee's ability to respond to the threat. By a l l letter dated April 30,1997, the NRC denied SNC's request to modify its security and 4 contingency plans under 10 CFR 50.90. l 2

The staff has reviewed the June 15,1998, request for exemption relative to the general 4 performance objectives of 10 CFR Part 73, and the specific requirements in 10 CFR

Section 73.55. SNC's exemption request and justification provides information very similar to 1

the amendment submitted for the VEGP security and contingency plan in November 1996 I except for the cost benefit information. The staff's position on the critical nature of the CAS and q redundancy that it provides to the functions accomplished by the SAS in responding to contingencies, has not changed since the review of the amendment request. Furthermore, according to 10 CFR 73.5, the Commission may not grant an exemption from security requirements if the requested change would endanger life or propsrty or the common oefense and security and is not otherwise in the public interest. For the reasons given in the NRC's  !

denial of amendment request filed in November 1996 and reiterated above, granting of this s exemption would leave VEGP vulnerable to a specific mode of attack which would remove its MM ;C capability to summon support from offsite locallaw enforcement authorities and thereby endanger life or property or the common defense and security rtnd is not otherwise in the public ,

interest. Therefore, the request is denied.

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J. B. Beasley, Jr. -

2- September 9, 1998 Since the enclosure to your June 15,1998, letter contains information that has been determined to be exempt from public disclosure in accordance with 10 CFR 73.21, it will not be placed in the NRC's Public Document Room and will receive limited distribution.

Sincerely, ORIGINAL SIGNED BY:

David H. Jaffe, Senior Project Manager Project Directorate 11-2 Division of Reactor Project 1/11 Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-424 and 50-425 cc:~ See next page DISTRIBUTION: JZwolinski

. Docket File HBerkow R. - Manili, NRR DJaffe R.- Rosano, NRR LBerry PUBLIC LPlisco, Ril ACRS OGC PD 11-2 Rdg. PSkinner, Rll l

. ,i DOCUMENT FLAME: G:\VOGTLE\7355.WP 5 Ta receive a copy of this document, Indicate in the box: "C" = Copy without enclosures "E" = Copy with enclosures "N" ='biqlcopy OFFICE PM:(Cy/ LA:PDllgpcid PM:NRF3/ s BC:PSGB t) O G C # P/ WB:Ppil\$ h NAME DJa6 /)(j LBerry \/[) RNhyq(i RRosanoTf &' f HBerkoW l

DATE- 7 4093 "- %l'V98 iM4. Y)c/98N N /2:/98 1/ k/98 C(/ 7 /t)8 i OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

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1 J. B.'Beasley, Jr. Since the enclosure to your June 15,1998, letter contains information that has been determined to be exempt from public disclosure in accordance with 10 CFR 73.21, it will not be placed in the NRC's Public Document Room and will receive limited distribution.

l sincerely,

\

David H. Ja e, Senior Project Manager 1 Project Directorate ll-2 i Division of Reactor Project 1/II Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket Nos. 50-424 and 50-425 cc: See next page 1

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I Vogtle Electric Generating Plant l l

l cc: Harold Rebels, Director l Mr. J. A. Bailey Department of Natural Resources Manager, Licensing 205 Butler Street, SE. Suite 1252 3 Southern Nuclear Operating Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Company, Inc. -

P. O. Box 1295 Attorney General Birmingham, Alabama 35201-1295 Law Department 132 Judicial Building

. Mr. J. Gasser . Atlanta, Georgia 30334 General Manager, Vogtle Electric Generating Plant Mr. R. D. Barker Southern Nuclear Operating Program Manager Company, Inc. Fossil & Nuclear Operations .

P. O. Box 1600 Oglethorpe Power Corporation

- Waynesboro, Georgia 30830 2100 East Exchange Place P. O. Box 1349 Regional Administrator, Region II- Tucker, Georgia 30085-1349 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory.

Commission Charles A. Patrizia, Esquire Atlanta Federal Center Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Suite 23T85 10th Floor

j. . Atlanta, Georgia 30303 1299 Pennsylvania Avenue

Washington, DC 20004-9500 Office of Planning and Budget -

Room 615B _

Arthur H. Domby, Esquire 270 Washington Street, SW. Troutman Sanders Atlanta, Georgia 30334 NationsBank Plaza 600 Peachtree Street, NE.

Mr. J. D. Woodard Suite 5200  ;

Executive Vice President Atlanta, Georgia 30308-2216 Southern Nuclear Operating Company, Inc. Resident inspector P. O. Box 1295 Vogtle Plant Birmingham, Alabama 35201-1295 8>305 River Road Waynesboro, Georgia 30830 Steven M. Jackson Senior Engineer - Power Supply Office of the County Commissioner Municipal Electric Authority Burke County Commission of Georgia Waynesboro, Georgia 30830 ,

1470 Riveredge Parkway, NW. 1

- Atlanta, Georgia 30328-4684

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