ML20205H726
| ML20205H726 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 04/01/1999 |
| From: | Blaha J NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | |
| References | |
| SECY-99-102, SECY-99-102-R, WIR-990326, NUDOCS 9904090046 | |
| Download: ML20205H726 (25) | |
Text
April 1.1999 fg_QY 99-102 Fqr:
The Commissioners From:
James L. Blaha, Assistant for Operations, Office of the EDO i
Subiect:
WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING MARCH 26,1999 Contents Enclosure Nuclear Reactor Regulation A
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards B
4 Nuclear Regulatory Research C
incident Response Operations D
General Counsel E*
Administration F
Chief information Officer G'
Chief Financial Officer H*
Human Resources l
Small Business & Civil Rights J'
Enforcement K*
State Program L*
Public Affairs M
International Program N
Office of the Secretary O
Region i P
Region il P
Region lli P
Region IV P
- Executive Director for Operations O*
Congressional Affairs R
@ W by f
"No input this week.
James L. Blaha l
James L. Blaha Assistant for Operations, OEDO
Contact:
D. Lange, OEDO s'e!"lise "
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UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D. C. 20665 j
April 1.1999 SECY 99-102 for:
The Commissioners From:
James L. Blaha, Assistant for Operations, Office of the EDO Subiect:
WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING MARCH 26,1999 Contents Enclosure Nuclear Reactor Regulation A
Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards B
Nuclear Regulatory Research C
Incident Response Operations D
General Counsel E*
Administration F
Chief Information Officer G
Chief Financial Officer H*
Human Resources i
Small Business & Civil Rights J'
Enforcement K*
State Program L*
Public Affairs M
International Program N
Office of the Secretary O
Region i P
Region ll P
Region ll1 P
Region IV P
Executive Director for Operations Q*
Congressional Affairs R
- No input this week.
,(, )
Q f &,
ames.$laha ssistant for Operations, OEDO
Contact:
D. Lange, OEDO NM%
l l s.
l Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 UNICOM Sells All of its Fossil Plants On March 23,1999, Unicom Corp., parent of Commonwealth Edison, announced that it had agreed to sell all of its fossil power plants in Illinois to Edison Mission Energy, for $4.8 billion in cash.
The 16 properties sold include six coal plants (5,645 Mw), one station which runs on natural gas or oil (2,698 MW) and 9 peaking units (1,429 Mw).
Edison Mission Energy is a unit of Edison International Co. of Rosemont California which builds and operates power plants worldwide. Edison International has been buying plants after the deregulation of utilities in southern California.
This deal is subject to approval by the Illinois Commerce Commission. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will also review the terms of the power purchase agreement.
Eraidwood Units 1 and 2 From January 25 to 28,1999, NRR conducted an audit of the Year 2000 (Y2K) readiness program at Braidwood Station. The staff found that 1) the licensee's Y2K Project Plan was comprehensive and incorporated the major elements of the nuclear power industry Y2K problem guidance; 2) the program was receiving appropriate management support, and its sponsorship was aggressive, proactive and effective; and 3) the licensee has started contingency planning. The licensee's schedule is to ensure Y2K readiness of all systems by June 30,1999, and this schedule appears achievable. It was noted that when the licensee tested items that were not certified by the manufacturer to be Y2K compliant, the licensee assumed that all items with the same manufacturer's nameplate were similar and, therefore, only tested a single item. This assumption may not be valid in all cases - the licensee is reviewing this issue to determine whether additional testing is required.
National Fire Protection Association Technical Committee Meetino During the week of March 14,1999, the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation and the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research staff attended a working meeting of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Technical Committee (TC) on Fire Protection for Nuclear Facilities. This TC is developing the NFPA Standard 805," Performance-Based Standard for Fire Protection for Light Water Reactor Electric Generating Plants." At this meeting the committee decided to delay the completion of NFPA 805 from May 2000 to November 2000 (6 months). The reason for the delay is the time needed (1) to resolve the large number of public comments received on the November 1998 draft (413), (2) to address and resolve comments made by the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards in its letter to Chairman Jackson dated February 18,1999, (3) to incorporate industry feedback on the application of NFPA 805 to existing plants, and (4) to allow a pilot plant effort being sponsored by the Nuclear Energy Institute to exercise portions of NFPA 805 during the Summer of 1999.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE A
y O.
Update on Revised Reactor Oversiaht Process The Transition Task Force (TTF) completed a commission paper providing an update to SECY-l 99-007. The paper provided a report on public comment received and the staff's response to i
these comments, a proposed new enforcement policy for Pilot Program implementation, the l
' proposed Significance Determination Process for risk characterization of inspection findings, l
the results of the Feasibility Review, a description of noteworthy changes to the Assessment l-Matrix, the Performance Indicators and the Baseline Inspection Program, and the Communications Plan, including a " plain English" description of the overall program developed jointly by OPA and the TTF. Commissioner technical assistants were briefed on Monday, March 22 and the Commission was briefed on Friday, March 26.
Other accomplishments include:
Numerous draft Baseline inspection procedures were distributed to the regional offices for review.
Planning for the Performance Indicator public workshop to be held the week of April 12 was completed and a Federal Register notice was issued.
A line-by-line review of the NEl Performance Indicator reporting manual was accomplished.
Sam Collins, Bill Dean, Cornelius Holden, Alan Madison and Gareth Parry provided Rlli staff and supervisors an overview of proposed reactor oversight improvements and responded to detailed questions on March 24 and 25.
In addition numerous public meetings were held with NEl and industry representatives to discuss various aspects of the proposed performance indicator program and the Significance Determination Process.
Safety Evaluation Report For Calvert Cliffs On March 21,1999, the NRC staff completed the safety evaluation report (SER) for the Calvert
~ Cliffs license renewal application. This report presents the results of the staff's safety review of the aging management programs for passive, long-lived structures and components and time-limited aging analyses, under 10 CFR Part 54.
This is the first SER for a license renewal application. It was completed in accordance with the milestones for Task IV.A in the NRC 1990 initiatives. Forty three staff members contributed to the content of the SEP, and hiy hve staff members participated in the resolution of comments, editing and production of the report. The report identifies 28 open items that must be resolved for the staff to complete the evaluation. The open items generally involve the basis for excluding specific structures, components and device types from an aging management review; applicability of certain aging effects to, and aging susceptibility analyses for, specific structures, components and device types; applicability of certain aging management programs to specific structures, components and device types, need for additional periodic inspections; l
designation of specific design analyses as time-limited aging analyses; and final content of the 1
- March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE A
FSAR update. The report also identifies 20 confirmatory items that involve documentation of certain information or commitments, and matters that may be reflected as license conditions.
A copy of the SER was delivered to Baltimore Gas & Electric on March 22,1999, so they could begin reviewing the report for accuracy, prepare comments and respond to the open and confirmatory items. That process will be discussed during the management meeting on March 30,1999. Copies of the report are currently being distributed to the public document rooms, Calvert Cliffs service list, and NRC staff.
1 l
l March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE /.
E Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards i
items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Intearated Materials Performance Evaluation Proaram Review at Reaion lli 1
i On March 15-19,1999, a review team comprised of members from the Office of Nuclear i
Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS), Office of State Programs, Region I, and the state of i
Georgia conducted an Integrated Materials Performance Evaluation Program review of Region ill. NMSS led the team, which used a set of common and non-common performance indicators l
to evaluate the adequacy of Region lil's materials, fuel cycle, and waste programs. A draft report will be sent to Region 111 in April 1999, and a Management Review Board meeting will be held later this spring to review the preliminary findings, and make final determinations on the
. adequacy of the Region 111 program.-
Meetina with the Deoartment of Enerav and the New York State Enerav Research and Develooment Authority on West Vallev,
' On March 16,1999, staff from the Division of Waste Management met with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to discuss the erosion modeling that has been done to support the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the completion of the West Valley Demonstration Project, and the closure or long-term management of the West Valley site. The modelis being used to help DOE and NYSERDA determine what the possible impact of erosion would be on the site facilities if any of them were left in place over the long term. This information will be factored into the decision process for the preferred alternative in the EIS. The purpose of the discussion was to determine the adequacy of the model for its intended purpose. The details of the erosion modeling that has been performed were presented by the Science Applications international Corporation. The conclusions were that the model provides a reasonable representation of long-term erosion impacts, that unmitigated erosion occurs slowly, but that, over long periods of time, unmitigated erosion will affect site facilities. The management implications' of the erosion modeling were that erosion will have to be managed if waste remains on site. Also in attendance or by phone were members of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, West Valley Nuclear Services, New York State Office of the Attorney General, West Valley Citizen Task Force, Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses, Nuclear Information and Resource Service, and a member of the public.
Public Workshoo to Sucoort the Develooment of a Standard Review Plan for Decommissionina On March 18-19,1999, staff from the Division of Waste Management conducted the third in a
. series of public workshops to assist Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff in developing guidance for implementing 10 CFR Part 20, Subpart E. The workshop was held at NRC Headquarters in Rockville, Maryland. The workshop was attended by 60-75 individuals representing the nuclear industry, states, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy, and the public. The first day of the workshop focused on dose modeling issues. NRC i
staff and industry presentations focused on several dose modeling areas, such as: sources of input parameters for dose modeling; partial site release; conservatism in resuspension factors; l
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE B
results of dose modeling of embedded pipe and former burials; problems with measuring alpha l
emitters; and calculating indoor area factors. Thef second day focused on the issues associated with complying with the "as low as reasonably achievable" (ALARA) provisions of Subpart E. This session began with an overview of the ALARA requirements of Subpart E.
1 The overview was followed by a " tabletop exercise" on how to perform the ALARA evaluations required under Subpart E, followed by a discussion of the issues associated with ALARA demonstrations. Industry and regulatory agency representatives stated that they appreciated the opportunity to present their views and concerns during the development of the guidance and found the workshops to be beneficial. They also encouraged the staff to continue and enhance its interactions with industry during the development of the guidance. The staff will hold additional workshops on: June 23-24,1999, to discuss groundwater modeling; August 18-19,1999, to discuss comments on DandD Screen, Draft Regulatory Guide DG-4006 and Draft SRP Modules, and to allow Agreement States to present issues they feel are important in decommissioning; and October 20-21,1999, to discuss surveys to support decommissioning, issuance of Preliminarv Certificate of Comoliance and Safetv Evaluation Reoort for the TN-32 On March 19,1999, the Spent Fuel Project Office finalized for rulemaking the preliminary Certificate of Compliance and Safety Evaluation Report for the TN-32 Dry Storage Cask system. This action was completed ahead of the published schedule date of March 22,1999.
The TN 32 is designed to hold 32 intact pressurized water reat tor fuel assemblies. There are 3 TN-32 cask designs: the TN-32 standard; the TN-32A which has a longer cavity; and the TN 32B which has single failure proof trunnions. The TN-32 cad,is to be used under the general license at the Point Beach and McGuire Power Stations, and under a site specific license at the North Anna and Surry Power Stations.
License issued to the Deoartment of Enerav for an Indeoendent Soent Fuel Storaae Installation On March 19,1999, the Spent Fuel Project Office issued a license for an independent Spent Fuel Storage installation to the Department of Energy (DOE). This license is a significant milestone for both the DOE and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The facility is located at the DOE Idaho National Technology and Engineering Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho. The facility was built to house the fuel debris resulting from the TMI-2 accident which has been in the possession of DOE for study and safekeeping.
Meetina with Sacramento Municioal Utility District on Rancho Seco Indeoendent Soent Fuel Storaae Installation On March 23,1999, members of the Spent Fuel Project Office met with Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) representatives to discuss the current status and schedules for the Rancho Seco independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI). SMUD discussed their projected schedule and milestones for obtaining a 10 CFR Part 72 license, emphasizing their goal to commence placement of the Rancho Seco spent fuelin the ISFSI in December 1999.
The staff discussed the results of its acceptance review of the revised safety analysis report (SAR), indicating that sufficient information had been provided by SMUD for the license review to continue. However, the staff identified several items requiring additional technical justification, as well as a number of errors or omissions in the revised SAR submittal. The staff March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE B l
anJ SMUD agreed to hold frequent communications to address these issues, and others that may be brought up during the staff's continuing review of the application.
_10 CFR Part 70 Rulemakina On March 23,1999, a public meeting was conducted to discuss the draft proposed 10 CFR Part 70 rule and associated Standard Review Plan (SRP). The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) and industry representatives participated. The staff described the draft nroposed rule language and associated SRP, as posted on the Part 70 Website, and reasons for accepting and rejecting industry comments that were received on both the rule and SRP. NEl then presented the industry view of the rule and SRP. Although the NEl and industry representatives indicated that significant progress has been made in the rule language, they identified a number of matters that are still of concern. They will be providing written comments concerning s:Jggested changes to the ruie langu age. NEl also provided comments on the SRP, but indicated that they needed more time to fully digest the SRP material.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE B
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Draft Reautatory Guide on Qualification and Trainina of Personnel DG-1084, " Qualification and Training of Personnel for Nuclear Power Plants," has been issued f
for public comment. DG-1084 is the Second Proposed Revision 3 of Regulatory Guide 1.8.
J This proposed revision is being developed to provide current guidance acceptable to the NRC j
staff regarding qualifications and training for nuclear power plant personnel. This regulatory guide proposes to endorse an American Nuclear Society standard, ANSI /ANS-3.1-1993,
" Selection, Qualification, and Training of Personnel for Nuclear Power Plants," with certain clarificaticns, additions, and exceptions.
Russian Core Conversion Project The NRC-GAN Arrangement that describes the process for GAN to request NRC assistance and additional direct assistance may be signed this week. In anticipation, NRC's McPher< q and GAN Deputy Chairman Dmitriev discussed GAN's most urgent needs and NRC's coordination of efforts to formally request GAN's full set of needs. GAN's most urgent needs include:
Assistance in preparation of and review of the PRAs that will soon be submitted to GAN; funds for a GAN PRA specialist to accompany the Russian PRA team on plant visits to gather plant-specific data, Assistance in the certification of RELAPS, MELCOR, and KAFKA codes for application to e
the converted ADE reactor design.
l Assistance in applying leak before-break criteria to piping that has been in service for 35 e
years.
Concerning GAN's formal request, we are now proceeding with a review and update of the program of assistance that was drawn up a year ago. The objective is for GAN to present this list to the MINATOM-DOD Executive Agents of the project when they meet April 19 23.
NRC would participate in this event. Since this request is expected to include assistance from NRC in several aread of expertise, a team of NRC specialists is planning to visit PNNL, which is coordinating the U.S. technical participants and managing the contracts with the Russians, for a detailed briefing on the project on May 10 and 11.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE C
I O
Incident Response Operations l
ltems of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 PRELIMINARY NOTIFICATIONS:
1.
PNO-il-99-010, University of Alabama, MISSING MEDICAL THERAPY SEEDS 2.
PNO-ll 99-011, J&M Testing, Inc., MISSING PORTABLE GAUGES 3.
PNO lll-99-013, Flower Hospital, MEDICAL MISADMINISTRATION DUE TO DISLODGED SOURCE
-i i
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE D
I l.-
l Office of Administration Items of interest l
Week Ending March 26,1999 Electronic Commerce On March 27,1999, the Office of Federal Procurement Policy published NRC's proposed
" Electronic Streamlining" innovation in the Federal Register for public comment. Following resolution of public comment, NRC will be authorized to test a focused source selection process using the internet. The test entails a phased process beginning with a streamlined procedure for identifying the most competitive sources, followed by a proposal development and evaluation effort involving the three most promising sources. Contracts awarded under this test will not exceed $5M in total value. DCPM will begin testing this process an December 17,1999.
Acouisition Trainino Or. March 25,1999, the Division of Contracts and Property Management conducted two Acquisition for Project Managers training modules. The " Overview of the Acquisition Process" is a primer for other workshops in the acquisition training pro 0 ram. The workshop familiarizes participants with the entire NRC acquisition process including FAR applicability, commercial contracts and DOE laboratory interagency agreements. " Contract Administration" focuses on monitoring contractor performance, spending controls, modifying contracts and agreements and remedying contractual problems.
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March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE F i
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1 Chief Information Officer items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Freedom of information and Privacy Act Reauests received durina the 5-Dav Period of March 19.1999 throuah March 25.1999 MLTS database, general licensees of sealed sources. (FOINPA 99-154)
Publicly available documents, fiche location for 3 accession numbers specifically identified.
(FOINPA 99-155)
Budget, Information Technology submissions, FY 1999 Exhibit 43 with descriptive summaries and FY 2000 Exhibit 42. (FOIA/PA 99-156)
Waste Control Specialists (WCS), Pasadena, TX, all correspondence 1/1/98 through 3/22/99.
(FOINPA 99-157)
Millstone, ASLBP review report on NRC's investigation of 1996 laycffs at Millstone.
(FOINPA 99-158)
Named individual, employment certification records. (FolNPA 99-159)
Self, all records, and general information about the NRC. (FOINPA 99-160)
. FOlA requests and responses for FOINPA 99-144 and 99-148. (FOINPA 99-161)
Atlas Corp.,7/96 repor' of Harding-Lawson Assoc., sampling at the Scott Matheson Wetlands.
(FOIA/PA 99-162)
Industrial Excess Landfill (IEL), Uniontown, OH, memos by D. Wiedeman, RGN lil-DNMS,1/94 io present. (FOIA/PA99-163)
MLTS database. (FOIA/PA 99-164)
Nuclear power plants, address listing of U.S. licensed plants including address and contact name. (FOIA/PA 99-165)
FOIA request, copy of FOINPA 99-085 incoming. (FOIA/PA 99-166)
Mining operations of the Atlas Corp. and/or the Uranium Reduction Co., publicly available records. (FOIA/PA 99-167)
' March 26 1999 ENCLOSURE G
(
Office of Human Resources Items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Arrivals LONG, Karen BUDGET ANALYST OCFO Retirements CHAFFEE, Alfred CHIEF, SAFEGUARDS BRANCH NRR COMIEZ, Allene MANAGEMENT ANALYST ASLBP HOBBES, Nancy TELECOMMUNICATION SPECIALIST OCIO Departures MCCLAM, Lewis SR CRIMINAL INVESTIGATOR OlG SALUS, Amy INTELLIGENCE ASSISTANT NMSS SKINNER, Chris RESIDENT INSPECTOR RIV WILSON, Cheryl OFFICE AUTOMATION ASSISTANT NRR i
Associate Director for Training and Development Student Data, March 1999 Number of Attendees Location Course Total Region HQ Other Week of 3/1/99 Westinghouse Sim. Ref. (R-704P)
TTC 6
6 0
0 Applied Health Physics (H-109)
Oak Ridge 24 0
6 18 Hunt Valley, llT Training (G-600)
MD 24 16 5
3 Week of 3/8/99 GE BWR/4 Simulator (R-704B)
TTC 6
6 0
0 Westinghouse Simulator Refresher.
(R-704P)
TTC 5
3 2
0 Fundamentals Of Inspection (G-101)
HQ 30 10 19 1
March 26,1999 ENCLOSUREI
r i
?
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l
)
1-Week of 3/15/99 PRA Basics for Regulatory Applications (P-105)
HQ 23 1
22 0
Teletherapy & Brachytherapy (H-313)
Houston,TX 16 1
2 13 Week of 3/22/99 GE BWR/4 Technology Review (R-9048)
TTC 3
2 1
0 l
Diagnostic and Therapeutic Medicine (H-304)
Houston,TX 17 3
1 13 Perspectives on Reactor Safety (R-800)
Lisle, IL 13 13 0
0 PRA Technology and Regulatory Perspectives (P-111)
Region 11 28 27 1
0 l
4 March 26,1999 ENCLOSUREI
p I
l 1
o Office of Public Affairs Items of interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Media Interest
- Frank Congel, incident Response Operations, was interviewed by Fox News for a report on the Three Mile Island anniversary.
Hub Miller, Region I, was interviewed by Swedish Television on the TMI anniversary.
Bill Travers attended an anniversary event in Harrisburg, PA, to commemorate the TMI accident. The panel was featured live on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.
The Bergen County (NJ) Record plans a mul'l-part series on lost rau, we sources.
The Green Bay (WI) Gazette plans to publish a story on the TMl accident.
Press Releases Headquarters:
j 99-57 NRC to Review Y2K Programs at all 103 Operating Nuclear Plants and Conduct Special Contingency Plan Audits at Six Plants 99-58 NRC Amends Regulations to Expand Opportunities for Participation by Indian Tribal Governments in NRC Hearings 99 NRC Amends B&W License for Parks Township Disposal Area 99-60 NRC Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards to Meet in Rockville, Maryland i
Reglops:
l-99-20 NRC Commissioner Merrifield to Hold Press Briefing at TMI 1-99-21 GPU to Update NRC on Oyster Creek Decommissioning Planning 111-9 9 - 9 '
NRC Staff to Meet With lilinois Power Co. Officials on Restart i
Activities at Clinton Nuclear Plant j
IV-95 6 John Hanna Assigned Resident inspector for NRC at Callaway IV-99 7 Wolf Creek Performance Remains Acceptable in NRC's Latest Plant Review IV-99-8 South Texas Project Performance Remains Acceptable in NRC's Latest Plant Review l
l March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE M i
IV 99-9 NRC Finds Performance 'Acceptsble' at Comanche Peak in Latest Review IV-99-10 NRC Finds Performance ' Acceptable' at Cooper Nuclear Station in Latest Review March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE M
Office of International Programs IterN, of Interest l
Week Ending March 26,1999
' House of Lords Report on the Manaaemar of Nuclear Waste in the U.K.
On March 24,1999, the British House of Lords published its report," Management of Nuclear Waste," (HL Paper No. 41; www.oarliament.ukl. The report supports underground disposal and y
finds that a new integrated approach is required to solve U.K. radioactive waste problems. The report also notes there is a need for public consultation and that the Parliament should provide 4
oversight and approval.
The report was ordered after the U.K. nuclear industry radioactive waste management executive NIREX feiled in its role to establish a disposal site, in January 1998, a House of Lords Select Committee initiated an inquiry into the matter, which included 19 public hearings, and determined it would be beneficial to look at how other countries manage nuclear waste, including the U.S., Canada, Sweden, and France. On May 15,1998, four members of Subcommittee 11 participated in a round table discussion of waste issues with NRC Commissioners and staff. While in the U.S., the four Subcommittee Members also met with DOE officials and toured the WIPP and Yucca Mountain facilities.
{
Aareement for Cooperation with Ukraine j
Ukraine's parliament, the Rada, ratified the Agreement for Cooperation in the Field of Nuclear Energy (Section 123 Agreement) on March 19. The Secretary of State proposed such an i
agreement in March 1998 as part of a general economic strategy for persuading Ukraine to terminate its contract with Russia to construct turbines for the Bushehr reactor in Iran. The Agreement permits the U.S. to export civilian nuclear technology, equipment and materials to Ukraine. The Nuclear Regulatory Administration of Ukraine has asked the NRC to assist with licensing fresh nuclear fuel which now could be exported to Ukraine.
Core Conversion Proiect-Several years ago, the United States and the Russian Federation concluded an agreement by which the Russian Federation committed to halt production of weapons-grade plutonium by the year 2000. A significant part of this effort involves converting the cores of the three currently i
operating Russian plutonium production reactors to a design that does not produce weapons-grade plutonium (commonly referred to as core conversion).
NRC and Gosatomnadzor (GAN) of Russia have been working to conclude an arrangement to cooperate on regulatory oversight of core conversion-related activities. NRC and GAN intended for this arrangement to be concluded in time for signature at the March 24-25 meetings of the U.S/ Russian Joint Commission on Economic and Technological Cooperation, which is co-chaired by Vice President Gore and Russian Prime Minister Primakov. Prime Minister Primakov canceled his trip to Washington to participate in the Joint Commission meetings, however, some of the other Russian Federation officials attended supporting meetings in
. Washington.
March 26,1999 -
ENCLOSURE N
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NRC and GAN were not able to conclude the core conversion arrangement due to questions on l
the legal status of the proposed arrangement. There is disagreement on whether the l
arrangement would be legally binding. NRC and GAN hope to resolve this issue in the near future.
OECD/NEA International Review of MINATOM Nuclear Safety Research Strateaic Plan The OECD/NEA recently released a report by an international review group providing an independent expert assessment of the Russian Nuclear Safety Research Strategic Plan. The review was conducted at the request of the Russian International Nuclear Safety Center (RINSC) and the U.S. International Nuclear Safety Center (USINSC).
The group of experts was chaired by G. Frescura, Head of the NEA Nuclear Safety Division, and included representatives from Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, as well as from the USINSC and RINSC. Thomas King, NRC Director Division of Systems Technology /RES, was the U.S. representative.
The report concludes that the Russian plan represents major progress toward a comprehensive and coherent nuclear safety research program for Russian nuclear power plants. It contains elements which, if implemented, will lead to an improvement in the safety levels of Russian designed reactors. However, the Plan, as reviewed, was found to still lack an overall strategy, identifying individual objectives and priorities as well as an implementation process.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE N
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1 Office of the Secretary r
items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Documents Released Date Subject to Public Decision Documents 1.
SECY-99-007A 3/22/99 Recommendations for Reactor Oversight Process improvements (Follow-Up to SECY-99-007) 2.
SRM 3/23/99 Affirmation Session on 3/23/99 - SECY 080 -Hydro Resources, Inc. - ENDAUM's and SRIC's Petition for Interlocutory Review of Presiding Officer's Order Concerning Technical Qualifications (March 3.1999)
Information Papers 1.
SECY-99-073 3/11/99 Weekly Information Report - Week Ending March 5,1999 2.
SECY-97-234 10/14/97 Quarterly Status for the Probabirstic Risk Assessment implementation Plan Commission Correspondence 1.
Letter to Congress, dated March 18,1999, provides the amount of NRC appropriated funds in fiscal years 1990-1998 expended by and in support of atomic safety and licensing boards.
2.
Letter to Senators Joseph Lieberman and Christopher Dodd and Representative Sam Gejdenson, dated March 18,1999, concerns the IG's Event Inquiry concerning the NRC staff's handling of harassment and intimidation complaints at Millstone (incoming dated January 12,1999 also released).
3.
Letter to Gary L. Walker, Texas House of Representatives, dated March 19,1999, provides views on assured storage (or assured isolation) as an alternative to disposal of low-level radioactive waste (incoming dated March 4,1999 also released).
Federal Reaister Notices issued 1.
State of Ohio: NRC Staff Assessment of a Proposed Agreement Between the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the State of Ohio.
2.
Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards; Meeting Notice for April 7-10,1999.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE O
. i3 Region I ltems of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 License Renewed For CBS (Westinahouse) Bloomfield. NJ Facility On March 26,1999, Region I staff issued the renewed license for the CBS (Westinghouse)
Bloomfield, NJ facility. This facility formerly was operated as a manufacturing and R&D facility for lamp filaments containing thorium metal. One of the buildings also supplied uranium metal for the Manhattan Engineering District (Manhattan Project). A license renewal request was received in December 1993, and the license has been in timely renewal since that time. The facility has been undergoing decommissioning for over five years, but the discovery of additional contamination above NRC cleanup guidelines has postponed release of the facility and license termination. Staff therefore determined that renewal of the license was appropriate.
Incorporated within the renewal was approval of the licensee's request to demolish portions of the buildings that are in poor structural condition, but which NRC confirmatory surveys indicated are clean. This action has been coordinated with state and local governments. Final remediation of the site continues.
1 March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE P L
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,a Region 11 Items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Duke Power Comoany - Oconee On March 24,1999, the Regional Administrator and the NRC's Management Oversight Group (MOG) participated in two management meetings at the Oconee Nuclear Station concerning the licensee's performance improvement initiatives. Based upon improvements in all but one performance area, as evaluated in the recent plant performance review, the NRC staff announced a decision to disestablish the MOG. The one remaining area of Design will continue to be assessed through the use of regionalinitiative inspections. Otherwise, the inspection program will resume by use of the normal plant performance review process. The staff had used a modified Manual Chapter 0350 program to assess Oconee's performance.
1
' During the meetings, the licensee presented the results of an independent assessment of their performance. This assessment was consistent with tne licesee's evaluation of their performance. Additionally, the licensee shared the scope of a new performance improvement program with the staff. The new performance improvement program is centered around using normal business practices to continue progress made through the former Recovery Program.
New Enaineerina and Maintenance Manaaers' Seminar - INPO i
The Regional Administrator was the luncheon speaker at the New Engineering and Maintenance Managers' Seminar held at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations in Atlanta, Georgia on March 25. Topics of discussion included the NRC's new inspection and assessment process, and the NRC's risk-informed performance-based initiatives.
Deoartment of Enerav - Soent Fuel Shioments from Forelan Research Reactors On March 23-24,1999, the Regioncl State Liaison Officer participated in a meeting of the Department of Energy's Cross Country Transportation Working Group (CCTWG) in Chicago, Illinois. Th!s constituted the second meeting of the CCTWG, the first being held in December,1998, in Savannah, Georgia, and its purpose was to continue in the development of an appropriate Transportation Plan, and Security Plan, applicable to the first cross country shipment scheduled for late Summer 1999, which will be conducted in accordance with the applicable NRC regulations.
Th!s first cross country shipment will consist of five casks of TRIGA fuel received from European research reactors with port-of-entry being the Charleston Naval Weapons Station, Charleston (CNWS), South Carolina. These materials will be transported by rail from the CNWS to the Department of Energy's Savannah River Site, off loaded onto trucks (five), and then transported to the Idaho National Engineering Environmental Laboratory.
At this meeting, DOE identified the final route selection, which includes ten States (SC, GA, TN, KY, IL, IA. NE, WY, UT, AND ID). Staff surveys and approval will be required for those portions of the final route not previously approved. NAC International will serve as the shipper / broker for DOE, and is expected to formally submit the routing to the NRC in the near term.
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE P
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A third and final meeting of the CCTNG will be conducted in June 1999, at which time the Transportation Plan and Security Plan will be finalized, and a tabletop exercise will be conducted prior to the actual shipment.
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March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE P
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Region 'll items of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Manaaement Meetina with Commonwealth Edison Comoany - LaSalle On March 22,1999, a management meeting was conducted in Mazon, Illinois, between management representatives from Commonwealth Edison Company and members of the NRC staff.- The meeting discussion focused on LaSalle Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1 peiformance and ine status of LaSalle's Unit 2 restart activities. NRC Region til Regional Administrator Jim Dyer participated in the meeting.
Manaaement Meetina with American Electric Power Comoany - D.C. Cook On March 24,1999, a management meeting was conducted in Bridgman. Michigan, between management representatives from American Electric Power Company and members of the NRC staff. The meeting discussion focused on the restart activities for the D.C. Cook Nuclear Power Plant.-
Manaaement Meetina with Memphis Environmental. Center. Inc.
r On March 25,1999, a management meeting was conducted in the Region lli Office, Lisle, Illinois, between management representatives from Memphis Environmental, Center, Inc., and members of the NRC staff. The meeting discussion focused on actions necessary to resolve issues regarding a burial by the former Michigan Chemical Company of Breckenridge, Michigan.
Manaaement Meetina with Illinois Power Comoany - Clinton On March 25,1999, a management meeting was conducted in Clinton, Illinois, between management representatives from Illinois Power Company and members of the NRC staff. The meeting discussion focused on the restart activities of the Clinton Nuclear Power Plant. NRC Director of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Sam Collins and Region til Regional Administrator Jim Dyer participated in the meeting.
Predecisional Enforcement Conference with Wisconsin Electric Comoany - Point Beach On March 26,1999, a predecisional enforcement conference was conducted in the Region lli Office, Lisle, liiinois, between management representatives from Wisconsin Electric Company and members of the NRC staff. The conference discussion focused on the apparent failure by the utility to promptly evaluate operation of a safety system after alarms wamed of the potential for pipe freezing at the Point Beach Nuclear Power Plant. NRC Region ill Regional Administrator Jim Dyer participated in the conference.-
March 26,1999 ENCLOSURE P
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F Region IV ltems of Interest Week Ending March 26,1999 Public Meetino at the Wolf Creek Generatina Station to Present Plant Performance Review Results On March 25,1999, the Chief, Project Branch B, Division of Reactor Projects, and the senior-resident inspector held a public meeting wik, De President and Chief Executive Officer of the Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation and other members of his staff at the Eisenhower Learning Center, Wolf Creek Generating Station. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the results of the Plant Performance Review completed on February 11,1999. Subsequent to this meeting, the Branch Chief met with local government officials. The discussion allowed for exchange on the new assessment process, the current performance review, and upcoming actions being taken in response to Y2K concerns.
Meetina at the San Onofre Nuclear Generatina Station. Reaion IV. Utility Briefina On March 23,1999, the Director, Division of Reactor Projects, and the NRR Project Director for Region IV met with the Licensing Managers of the Region IV Utility Group (RUG) at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. The meeting was part of the ongoing initiative between the NRC and Region IV licensees to improve communications and regulatory understanding. The meeting focused on the current changes within NRR and their impact on the processing on licensing actions, and the changes in the regulatory inspection and assessment process and how this will affect regional activities. Also discussed were the impending Plant Performance Review letters and public meetings, and licensee preparations for Y2K and the NRC reviews that will occur.
Public Meetina at the South Texas Project Electric Generatina Station to Present Plant Performance Review Results On March 25,1999, the Deputy Director, Division of Reactor Projects, Region IV, held a meeting in the Nuclear Support Center Auditorium with the South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company vice presidents and other members of their staff. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the results of the Plant Performance Review completed on February 11,1999.
Subsequent to this meeting, the Deputy Director met with local government officials. The discussion allowed for exchange on the new assessment process, the current performance review, and upcoming actions being taken in response to Y2K concerns.
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