ML20210E822
| ML20210E822 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 03/13/1999 |
| From: | Vito D NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I) |
| To: | NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20210E685 | List: |
| References | |
| FOIA-99-279 NUDOCS 9907290042 | |
| Download: ML20210E822 (4) | |
Text
I- . . .
7 + UNITED STATES
[ g NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION l
5 j REGloN i 0 4 475 ALLEN 3 ALE ROAD 4 ,8 g KING oF PRusslA, PENNSYLVANIA 1940M415 lfAR 131993 MEMORANDUM FOR: Allegation File RI-99-A-0015 FROM: David J. Vito, Senior Allegation Coordinator
SUBJECT:
Closure of Allegation RI-99-A-0015 Regarding the interstate Nuclear Services (INS) Facility in Springfield, Massachusetts On February 6,1999, the NRC received an anonymous allegation regarding operations at the interstate Nuclear Services (INS) Facility in Springfield, Massachusetts. The allegation contained four issues specifically related to operations at the INS Springfield industrial laundry facility and one assertion that an issue related to sludge solubility may be generic to all INS facilities.
An allegation panel was convened on February 17,1999. The panel concluded that the site specific issues should be referred to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, since Massachusetts is an Agreement State. The panel also concluded that a previous NRC assessment of the solubility issue at a local INS facility (in Royersford, Pennsylvania) would indicate that this issue is not of significant concern and that the information provided by the anonymous alleger is of insufficient detail to warrant referral to NMSS as a potential generic issue. Enclosure 1 to this letter lists the concerns and describes the staff's review and conclusions regarding each concern.
Based on the anonymous nature of the allegation, no response to an alleger is appropriate.
This allegation is closed.
Enclosure:
As stated 1
9907290042 990723 9 PDR FOIA l ROBERTS99-279 PDR l //
9 9o 7 2.9 ov y7____ -> M
Y ENCLOSURE i
Concerns 1, 2, 3, and 4:
' Issues related to the operation of the INS indus' trial laundry facility in Springfield, Massachusetts:
i
[1]. The pit that contains the broken pipes and useless tanks was not designed or intended to be used as a tank itself. It can, and has, overflowed to adjacent
. j abandoned' pits and building materials. It is almost certain that slow leakage occurs '
and allows contaminated water into the ground below. No attempt has ever been m'ade to identify or quantify this leakage. in summary, INS has not repaired major damage to its waste water system that may allow leakage into ground water. i i
12] Due to the uncontained location of the shaking screen, any failure or leakage could ,
result in rapid flooding and release of the most highly contaminated water to the )
environment and adjacent buildings. In addition, INS routinely discharges radioactive ,
sludge to the City of Springfield sanitary sewer system. J
[3] Inadequate and improper sampling of the facility discharge does not insure I compliance with 10 CFR 20.2003(a) (1). INS has written its own definition of "readily soluble" but does not sample each tank to insure compliance with its own definition. In addition, it samples the waste stream at the wrong location. There is reproducible evidence M show that the inadequate and improper sampling conceals the discharge of insolude sludge to the Springfield sewer system.
[4] INS management is aware that they generate radioactive sludge, and has frequently ordered plant personnel to enter and clean out the sample tanks to avoid its discovery by regulators in addition, the location of the routine sample point and the Holding Tank Mixers are designed features of the wastewater system that function
- _ to conceal and facilitate the discharge of this sludge._ INS management has taken action to conceal the presence of the sludge and to continue to discharge it.
! Response:
l- Concerns 1-4 were referred to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts on February 23, l 1999. Since the alleger is anonymous, no response from the Commonwealth of L Massachusetts was requested.
Concern 5.
Solubility concern (Concern 3 above) may apply to all INS facilities (includes Agreement and non Agreement States);
i
e
Response
During an inspection of INS's Royersford facility (L,icense No. 37-23341-01) on July 13 and 14,1995, NRC Region I inspectors reviewed the licensee's compliance with the solubility requirements in 10 CFR 20.2003(a)(1). The inspectors reviewed the licensee's procedure for evaluating solubility and the licensee's evaluation of their waste water. INS used Method 2 in NRC Information Notice 94-07 " Solubility Criteria for Liquid Effluent Releases to Sanitary Sewerage under Revised 10 CFR Part 20" to evaluate their waste water. The inspectors reviewed the licensee's results and concluded that licensed materialin the waste water tested by the licensee was readily soluble. In addition to the inspection of the Royersford facility, one of the inspectors was performing the license renewal of the same facility. Part of the reviewer's evaluation of the licensee's renewal application was a determination that the licensee's effluent discharge was in compliance with 10 CFR 20.2003(a)(1). The license was reviewed a second time and signed in August 1995 by a senior NRC reviewer. Based on the above, we feel that INS has adequately addressed the issue of the solubility of licensed materialin the waste water. The information provided by the anonymous alleger does not provide sufficient detail to warrant its referral to NMSS as a potential generic issue.
._ - .. b mm.
e a
f
_ w. f
,. ^
2
=_
.,5
~
Al/ At f
p f
i
~ -
2 g g
r '
g g,
p' g 7-g
[
J, l,
l
- l. .
- l,.
,v e ..
l l
i i
n l _
o ," _
, is "
s g
-; i g y' ,g s,., .
m g"
g g
C i ,
6 ,
0 g 4 ,, _
9 1, n 1 I
I I,
idA a ,
'oP I R R R a l
a ee n alei r t s s
u r
cm u e i
r Nc r o 3 S. n
. o f
g n
o .
q _
y UE '
ss D
o1 ;
s hl.e l
i d
s o
El G C -
- E E 3 S i
tR r i F
?
\
_ e hq_D C
s
~)'g, ' L' e