ML20195F901

Ack Receipt of Informing NRC of Steps Taken to Correct Violations Noted in Insp 50-213/98-06 on 990226. Util Did Not Agree with Disposition of Issue Cited as Severity Level IV Violation.Violation Will Be Noncited

ML20195F901
Person / Time
Site:	Haddam Neck File:Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Co icon.png
Issue date:	06/09/1999
From:	Pangburn G NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I)
To:	Mellor R CONNECTICUT YANKEE ATOMIC POWER CO.
References
50-213-98-06, 50-213-98-6, EA-99-139, NUDOCS 9906150129
Download: ML20195F901 (3)

See also: IR 05000213/1998006

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UNITED STATES

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KING oF PRUsslA, PENNSYLVANIA 194061415

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June 9,1999

EA No.99-139

Mr. R. A. Mellor

Vice President - Operations and Decommissioning

Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Company

362 injun Hollow Road

East Hampton, CT 06424-3099

SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO NRC INTEGRATED INSPECTION REPORT 50-213/98-06 AND

NOTICE OF VIOLATION

Dear Mr. Mellor-

This letter refers to your correspondence dated March 29,1999, in reply to our February 26,

1999, letter and Notice of Violation (NOV). In your response to the NOV, although you agree

with the facts of the violation, you do not agree with the disposition of the issue as a cited

Severity Level IV violation and conclude that it is inconsistent with the enforcement policy

guidance in Enforcement Guidance Memorandum (EGM) 98-006, dated July 27,1998. Further,

you provide your position regarding the relationship between this violation and the effectiveness

of radiation protection program improvements implemented after the December 1996 transfer

canal incident and in conjunction with the NRC Confirmatory Action Letter in 1997.

We agree with your position that the two events, which are the subject of this violation, were

self-identified, placed into a corrective action program to address recurrence, and did not directly

involve Connecticut Yankee Atomic Power Company (CYAPCO) management. We also agree

that CYAPCO restored compliance immediately after the violation was identified and that

appropriate remedial action was taken.

As you also stated, the NRC Enforcement Policy (NUREG-1600) and EGM 98-006 encourage

licensees to identify and correct violations of NRC requirements. However, the guidance in

effect at the time this violation was cited states that enforcement discretion should be granted for

non-repetitive (emphasis added), non-willful Severity Level IV violations. In this case, the NRC

staff believes that discretion is not warranted because the violation should have been prevented

by corrective actions for a violation that occurred during an unplanned exposure event in the fuel

transfer canal (en area posted as a locked high radiation area) in December 1996. We are

concemed regarding the effectiveness of your corrective actions and management oversight of C

radiation workers, especially for new decommissioning workers.

Although the events that were the subject of the NOV did not result in personnelinjury or

overexposure to radiation, they had the potential for unplanned radiation exposures to workers. -g

You stated in your reply letter that the root cause from the recent events and the root causes i

from the transfer canal event appear to be different. We do not agree and believe that the root d

causes were similar, because, although the circumstances were different, both cases involved /

the failure of personnel to properly implement radiation protection procedures.

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Mr. R. A. Mellor 2

Specifically, you stated in your reply letter that the root cause of the recent events was

personnel error. In your letter to the NRC dated May 30,1997, you stated that a root cause for

the transfer canal event was inadequate training of personnel on procedures and programs, it

appears that the training provided to the new personnel involved in the recent events was not

effective in establishing sufficient individual accountability to ensure that the radiation protection

procedures were followed. The training given to new personnel should have provided adequate

kec;if-;+ regsrding the controls for locked High Radiation Area doors and prevented the

recent events from occurring.

Based on the repetitive nature of the violation, a Notice of Velation was issued consistent with

the pohcy in effect at the time. Under the existing policy, effective March 11,1999, such

violations in the future would not be issued a Notice of Volation, but would be described in the

inspection report as a non-cited violation even if repetitive, since you identdied the violation.

As detailed in your letter, we note that you have implemented broader corrective actions to

emphasize the controls for locked High Radiation Area doors in response to the two recent

events. You have posted a person at the entrance to the locked high radiation areas and have

improved the doors / locks to these areas. Therefore, no additional response to this NOV is

required.

Sincerely,

, -

Geo e Pa um, Director

Division of clear Materials Safety

Docket No. 50-213

License No. DPR-61

cc:

D. Davis, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer

T. Bennet, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

K. Heider, Decommissioning Director

G. Bouchard, Unit Director

J. Haseltine, Strategic Planning Director

G. van Noordennen, Regulatory Affairs Manager

J. Ritsher, CYAPCO Counsel

R. Bassilakis, Citizens Awareness Network (CAN) ~

J. Block, Attomey for CAN

J. Brooks, CT Attomey General Office

K. Ainsworth, Town of Haddam

T. Concannon, NEAC

State of Connecticut SLO

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Distribution:

Region i Docket Room (with concurrences)

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Nuclear Safety information Center (NSIC)

NRC Resident inspector

D. Holody, ORA

D. Screnci, PAO

J. White, DRS

J. Nici; DNMS

M. Miller, DNMS -

R. Bellamy, DNMS

Distribution (VIA E-MAIL):

K. Kennedy, OEDO

J. Lieberman, OE

T. Combs, OCA

M. T. Masnik, NRR

T. Fredrichs, PM, NRR

R. Correia, NRR

F. Talbot, NRR

D. Screnci, PAO, ORA

DOCDESK

inspection Program Branch, NRR (IPAS)

To receive e copy of this document, indicate in the box: *C" = Copy without attachment / enclosure

"E" = Copy with attachment / enclosure "N" = No copy

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