ML20154M834
| ML20154M834 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Grand Gulf  |
| Issue date: | 09/20/1988 |
| From: | Kintner L Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| To: | Kingsley O SYSTEM ENERGY RESOURCES, INC. |
| References | |
| 2.206, NUDOCS 8809290106 | |
| Download: ML20154M834 (2) | |
Text
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l DISTRIBUTION Dechet F He l NRC PDR September 20, 1988 Local PDR PD21 r/f S.Varga(14E4)
G. Laint.s Docket No. 50-416 E. Adensam t
P. Anderson L. Kintner Mr. Oliver D. Kingsley, Jr.
OGC Vice President, Nuclear Operations E. Jordan (MNBB3302)
System Energy Resources, Inc.
B. Grimes (9A2)
P. O. Box 23054 ACRS(10)
Jackson, Mississippi 39205
Dear Mr. Kingsley:
SUBJECT:
PETITION FILED BY Oll10 CITIZENS FOR RESPONSIBLE ENERGY -
GRAND GULF flVCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 Enclosed for your information is a copy of a letter dated August 26, 1988 from the Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation to the Representative of the Ohio Citizens for Responsible Energy (0CRE). The letter (1) acknowledges receipt of a Petition filed by OCRE under 10 CFR 2.206 of the Commission's regulations, (2) responds in the neaative to the Petitioner's request for irrcediate action with respect to all Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs), and (3) states that the Petition is being treated under 10 CFR 2.206 of the Commission's regulations.
Please contact me if you have questions on this issue.
Sincerely.
(
Lester L. Kintner, Senior Project Manager Project Directorate 11 1 Division of Reactor Projects 1/11
Enclosure:
As stated cc w/ enclosure:
See next page 8G0929o106 eso920 i
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DATE : 9Md88
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- 9/1P/88 QF0 l 0FFICIAL RECORD COPY 51 i
Mr. Oliver D. Kingsley, Jr.
System Energy Rescurces, Inc.
Grand Gulf Nuclear Station (GGNS)
CC:
Mr. Ted H. Cloninger Mr. C.
P.. Hutchinson Vice President, Nuclear Engineering GGHS General Manager and Support System Energy Resources, Inc.
4 System Energy Resources, Inc.
Post Office Box 756 Post Office Box 23054 Port Gibson, Mississippi 39150 Jackson, Mississippi 39205 Rcbert B. McGehee, Esquire The Honorable William J. Guste, Jr.
Wise, Carter, Child, Steen and Caraway Attorney General P.O. Box 651 Department of Justice Jackson, Mississippi 39205 State of Louisiana Nicholas S. Reynolds, Esquire f
bishop, Liberman, Cook, Purcell Office of the Governor and Reynolds State of Mississippi 1400 L Street, N.W.
Jackson, Mississippi 39201 Washington, D. C.
20005-3502 Attorney General Mr. Ralph T. Lally Gartin Building 4
Manager of Quality Assurance Jackson, Mississippi 39205 Middle South Utilities System Services, Inc.
639 Loyola Avenue, 3rd Floor Mr. Jack McMillan, Director New Orleans, Louisiana 70113 Division of Solid Waste Management Mississippi Department of Natural i
Mr. John G. Cesare Resources Director, huclear Licensing Post Office Box 10385 System Energy Resources, Inc.
Jackson, Mississippi 39209 i
P.O. Box 23054 Jackson, Mississippi 39205 Alton B. Cobb, M.D.
State Health Officer Mr. C7 B. Hogg, Project Manager State Board of Health Bechtel Power Corporation P.O. Box 1700 P. O. Box 2166 Jackson, Mississippi 39205 Houston, Texas 77252-2166 President Mr. Ross C. Butcher Claiborne County Board of Supervisors Seniur Resident Inspector Port Gibson, Mississippi 39150 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Route 2, Box 399 Regional Administrator, Region II Port Gibson, Mississippi 39150 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Comission 101 Marietta Street Mr. William T. Cottle Suite 2900 l
GGNS Site Director Atlanta, Georgia 30323 Systen Energy Resources, Inc.
i P.O. Box 756 Port Gibson, Mississippi 39150 l
' Enclosare p ueu o,,
UNITED STATES
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION t.
wAsmworoN. o. c. roess t,
August 26, 1988 Ms. Susan L. Hiatt Representative of Ohio Citizens for Responsible Energy, Inc.
8275 Hunson Road Mentor, OH 44060
Dear Ms. Hiatt:
This is in response to your Petition of July 22, 1988, requesting that the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (Director), take immediate action with respect to Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) to relieve what you allege to be undue risks to the public health and safety posed by the thermal-hydraulic instability of boiling water reactors, as revealed by an event at LaSalle County Station Unit 2 on March 9, 1988.
The specific relief requested is to order all BWR licensees to (1) place their reactors in cold shtdown, (2) develop and implement specified procedures relating to the thereal-hydraulic instability issues, (3) demonstrate that certairs specified training has been provided relating to these procedures, (4) demonstrate the capability of instrumentation related to power oscil-lations, (5) develop simulators capable of rodeling power oscillations similar to those occurring at LaSalle and out-of-phase power oscillations, (6) report to the NRC regardir.g all past incidents in which recirculation purps have tripped off, (7) submit to the NRC ju3tification for continued operation of BWRs and (8) submit a report to the NRC within one year demonstrating compliancewithGDC12.
You also request that the Cocynission reopen Generic Issues B-19, B-59, the ATWS rulemaking and reconsider the use of End-of-Cycle Recirculation Fump Trip on BWRs.
Your request for imediate relief is denied because the allegations which form the basis for your Petition do not reveal any new operational safety issues which pose an imediate safety concern for continued BWR operation. The staff has determined that continued operation of BWRs is justified for the following reasons:
(1) Current BWR Technical Specifications place restrictions on power operation of the reactor under conditions of natural circulation or single recirculation loop cooling such that operation in regions of low thermal-hydiaulic stability is limited to infrequent, short-term transient conditions following anticipated operational occurrences.
(2) Neutron flux oscillations are detectable with proper monitoring and can be easily suppressed by inserting control rods.
If large oscillations should occur, and a manual scram is not initiated, it is expected that the high power level, Average Power Range Monitor (APRM) scram protection, which terminated the LaSalle event, would provide backup protection as was the case during the LaSalle event.
p
9 Susan L. Hiatt (3) The magnitude of neutron flux oscillations induced by thermal-hydraulic instability is considerably higher than the oscillations in the average cladding heat flux because of inherent delay in the transfer of heat through the fuel rods.
The NRC Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) for the March 9, 1988 LaSalle event reported that the amplitude of the heat flux oscillations during the event were estimated to be less than 10% of the value for the neutron flux oscillations and that because of the smaller changes in heat flux, thermal limits for the fuel were not exceeded.
(4) General Electric Company has provided BWR licensees with guidance on the proper methods to monitor for thermal-hydraulic instabilities and on the actions that should be taken to suppress such oscillations if they should occur. Most ShRs have implemented such methods in response to NRC Generic Letter 86-02 which provided for the technical resolution of Generic Issue B-19.
The operating limita-tions which ensure compliance with GDC 12 are enforced by plant technical specifications.
(5) Compliance with the recomendations in NRC Bulletin No. 88-07 will ensure that any licensed reactor operator or shift technical advisor performing shift duties at a BWR will have been thoroughly briefed regarding the LaSalle event; and that all BWR licensees will have adequate procedures and operator training prograns in place to adcress power oscillations, regardless of the results of any previous thermal-hydraulic stability analysis.
The NRC will perform inspections and take any necessary follow-up action to ensure that procedures and training programs acceptable to the technical staff have been put in place.
Your Petition is being treated under 10 CFR 2.206 of the Com.ission's regulations. Appropriate action will be taken within a reasonable time. A copy of the notice that is being filed for publication with the Office of the Federal Register is enclosed for your information.
Copies of this letter are being sent to those named on the service lists for facilities listed in.
Sincerely.
- f_
qg Thomas E. Murley, Director Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Enclosures:
1.
Federal Register Notice 2.
List of Facilities for cc
[7590-01]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[00CXET NO. 50-374)
COMM0tiWEALTH EDISON COMPANY (LaSalle County Station, Unit 2)
RECE!PT OF PETITION FOR DIRECTOR'S DECISION Uf; DER 10 CFR 2.206 Notice is hereby given that by Petition dated July 22, 1988, Ohio Citizens for Responsible Energy, Inc. requested the Director of Nuclear Reactor Regulation to take imediate action with respect to Boiling Water Reactors to relieve what Petitioner alleged to be undue risks to the public health and safety posed by an event at LaSalle County Station, Unit 2, in Illinois on March 9, 1988.
Petitioner's request for imediate relief was denied because the allegations which form the basis of the Petition did not reveal any new operational safety issues which pose an imediate safety concern i
for continued BWR operation.
The Petition is being treated pursuant to 10 CFR 2.206 of the Ccmmission's regulations.
As provided by i 2.206, appropriate action will be taken on the Petition within a reasonable time.
A copy of the Petition is available for inspection in the Comission's Public Document Room, 1717 H Street, NW., Washington, D.C.
20555 and in the local public document room for LaSalle County Station Unit 2 at Jacobs Memorial Library, Illinois Valley Cossnunity College, Rural Route One, Oglesby, Illinois 61348.
/-
FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION CNN
}fg Thomas E. Murley, Director r
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regula 1
Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 26 day of August,1988 l
Susan L. Hiatt List of Facilities for cc BOSTON EDISON CO.
(Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, Docket No. 50-293)
CAROLINA POWER & LIGHT CO. (Brunswick Station, Units 1 & 2, Docket Nos. 50-324 & 50-325)
CLEVELAND ELECTRIC ILLUMINATING CO., ET AL (Perry Nuclear Power Plant, Unit 1 Docket No. 50-440)
COMMONWEALTH EDISION CO. (Dresden Nuclear Power Plant, Units 2 & 3 Docket Nos. 50-237&50-249);(QuadCitiesNuclearPowerPlant, Units 1&2 Docket Nos. 50-254 & 50-265 ; (LaSalle County Station, Units 1 & 2, Docket Nos. 50-373 & $0-374 CONSUMERS POWER CO. (Big Rock Point, Docket No. 50-155)
DETROIT EDISON CO (Fermi Unit 2, Docket No. 50-341)
GEORGIA POWER CO. (Hatch Nuclear Power Plant, Units 1 & 2 Docket No. 50-321&50-366)
GULF STATES UTILITIES CO. (River Bend Station, Docket No. 50-458)
ILLINOIS POWER CO. (Clinton Nuclear Plant, Docket No. 50-461)
IOWA ELECTRIC LIGHT & POWER CO. (Duane Arnold Nuclear Power Plant, Docket 50-331)
GENERAL PUBLIC UTILITIES (Oyster Creek Station, Docket No. 50-219)
LOhG ISLAND LIGHTING CO. (Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant, Docket No. 50-322)
MISSIS $1PPI POWER & LIGHT CO (Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, Docket No. 50-416)
NEBRASKA PUBLIC POWER DISTRICT (Cooper Station, Docket No. 50-298)
N!AGARA-N0 HAWK POWER CORP. (Nine Mile Point, Units 1 & 2. Docket Nos. 50220450-410)
NORTHEAST UTILITIES (Millstone, Unit 1 Docket No. 50-245)
NORTHERNSTATESPOWERCO.(MonticelloNuclearPowerPlant,DocketNo.50-263)
PENNSYLVANIA POWER & LIGHT CO. (Susquehanna Steam Electric Station, Units 1 & 2, Docket No. 50 387 8 50-388)
PHILADELPHIA ELECTRIC CO.1 Peach Bottom Nuclear Station, Units 2 & 3 Docket No.
50-277 & 50-278); (Limerick Nuclear Power Plant, Unit 1. Docket No. 50-352)
POWERAUTHORITYOFTHESTATEOFNEWYORK(JamesA.FitzpatrickStation, Docket No. 50-333)
PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC & GAS CO. (Hope Creek Generating Station, Docket No. 50 354)
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY (Browns Ferry Nuclear Station, Units 1, 2, & 3 Docket Nos 50-259, 50 260, and 50-296)
YERMONT YANKEE NUCLEAR POWER CORP. (Vermont Yankee Nuclear Plant, Docket No. 50-271)
WASHINGTON PUBLIC POWER SUPPLY SYSTEM (WNP Unit 2. Docket No. 50-397)