ML20155J586

Responds to Expressing Concerns Re Georgia Tech Research Reactor Resuming Operations.Request Denied Because of Relatively Narrow,Well Defined Focus of Issues at Hand

ML20155J586
Person / Time
Site:	Neely Research Reactor
Issue date:	10/07/1988
From:	Ernst M NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II)
To:	Carroll G AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
References
NUDOCS 8810260432
Download: ML20155J586 (2)

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COT 07 1983 Mr. Glenn Carroll 139 Kings Highway ,

Decatur, Georgia 3n030 1

Dear Mr. Carroll:

This is in response to your letter to Dr. J. NeNon Grace, dated August 31, '

1988, ir, which yN expressed concerns related to the Georgia Tech Pesearch  !

Reactor rr ag operations and requested a hearing in this regard. Your request ir '- a concern regarding the ability of Georgia Tech to operate their rear.v . .ely. The NRC shares your safety interest, and reasonable assuranco of tafe operation will be obtained by the NRC prior to allowing the <

Georgia Te(t Reactor to restart. It is for this very reason that we issued an j Order on January 20, 1988, to cease irradiation experic'ents and a Confinnatory .

Order on March 17, 1988, to cease reactor operations until a)1 safety questions i had been resolved to the NRC's satisfaction and the NRC approved resumption of l operations.  !

When the NRC issued the Confirmatory Order on March 17, any party adversely ,

i, affected by that Order was afforded an opportunity within twenty days of the  !

1 date of the Order to request a public hearing. As no such request was filed '

i within the required time, no hearing is required to be held. More importantly,  !

l the safety aspects of operating the reactor were all carefully reviewed at the ,

tima of licensing, and none of those considerations have been chenged. The thrust of our efforts over the past few months have been to improve certain managernent and administrative practices thct have deteriorated over time, and these issues will be resolved prior to giving our peryt;sion for restart. 4 Thus, because of the relatively narrow, well-defined focus of the issues at t hand, a hearing would not be useful from a safety standpoint. For the,se two reasons, we are denying your request, i We appreciate your interest and will be pleased to respond to any specific concerns you may have. l

Sincerely, I

Malcolm L. Ernst Acting Regional Administrator j s cc: v$r Ratib A. Karam, Director

. Neely Nuclecr Research Center d

vA. P. Sheppard, Acting Yice i President for Research 1 State of Georgia

) bec: (Seepage 2) 8810260432 881007 PDR ADOCK 05000160 i_

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e Mr. Glenn Carroll 2 OCT 0 71998 bec: Document Control Desk PRS Technical Assistant

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10/4/88 10/4 /88 10/3T 88 10//,/88 1 /h /88 concurrence 10/6/88

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