IR 05000030/1997201
| ML20217B160 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Plum Brook |
| Issue date: | 09/10/1997 |
| From: | NRC (Affiliation Not Assigned) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20217B140 | List: |
| References | |
| 50-030-97-201, 50-185-97-201, 50-30-97-201, NUDOCS 9709230248 | |
| Download: ML20217B160 (9) | |
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U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION l
Dockets Nos.: 50 30; 50-185 Licenses Nos.: TR 3; R 93 -
Licensee: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
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Facility Name: Plum Brook Reactor Facility Location: Plum Brook Station, Sandusky, Ohio-Dates: August 26 27, 1997 Inspector: T.M. Burdick Approved By: Seymour H. Weiss, Director, Non-Power Reactor and Decommissioning Project Directorate
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9709230248 970910
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i Executive Summary Plum Brook Reactor Facility Report No. 50 30/97201, 50-185/97201(DRPM) i
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This routine announced inspection included aspects of organization, audits and records,
. radiation controls, surveillance, and review of periodic and special reports (40755)
Organization (40755)
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w The current PBRF Safety Committee (PSC) Chair was certified and appointed in 1995
- as the first alternate to the Reactor Manager (RM). The inspector noted a strong sense of ownership by the individual. The Chair said that he was concerned that his
- dual role as both first alternate RM and Chair were potential conflicts. This issue should be reconsidered by the licensee (Section 2.0)
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Audits and Records (40755)
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o The selected samples of required records were complete. The annualinternal audit reports provided a clear perspective of issues affecting the f acilit o Additional procedural guidance for eryloyees may improve documentation of corrective action. (Section 3.0)
Radiation Contrnis (40755)
e The licensee had proceduralized their program although observation of actual implementation was limited. Samples of surveys, swipes, dose records, and Safety Work Permits (SWPs) the inspector reviewed were detailed and indicated low levels of radiatior, and cont. mination. (Section 4.0)
Surveillance (40755)
e Selected surveillance records reviewed by the inspector were complete and timel (Section 5.0)
Periodic and Special Reports (40755)
e The last three Annual reports to the NRC were timely and met requirement (Section 6.0)
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DETAILS Plant Summary LThe P8RF licensee submitted a timely license renewal application late in 1996. This year the licensee began maintenance or replacement of plant structures and systems that they consider essential to sustain an additional period of safe storage. Replacement of building and enclosure roof coatings, footing drain tile sump pumps,' telecommunications wiring, and a new 7200 volt service installation were all being accomplished. The licenses also entered .I the Primary Pump House in July 1997 for the first time since 1985 to evaluate the condition Staffing with qualified people presents a challenge as most knowledgeable senior employees either approach or enter retiremen .0 Gened l inspection Scope (40755) ;
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The inspector toured the facility and viewed video tape of the Primary Pump House (PPH) to evaluate the licensee's implementation of the requirements to contain contamination and reduce radiation, Observations and Findings The reactor facility remained in an inactive state with evidence of long term materiel degradation. Some inactive cold (sanitary waste) sumps contained water but did not appear to have affected nearby inactive contaminated sumps. Ingress of ground water is the only likely source since all piping systems within the security fence have been out of service ever since the facility was placed in safe storage. -There have been occasional water line ruptures outside the security fence that were identified and repaired promptly by the licensee. The licensee intends to remove the water accumulatio Minor amounts of standing water were noted by the inspector on some areas of
- the ground floor. .The licensee attributed that to the roofing contractor sealing sta..ui..g water under the new foam installation. The licensee has notified the contractor to remove those affected areas of roofing sealant and to bliminate all water prior to resealin One room in the Fan House basement, which contains no contamination, had a small water accumulation on the floor. The licensee attributed the problem to ground water but had not identified the ingress point as of the inspectio The licensee had identified and was still evaluating a contaminated waste handling building resin pit sump that contained some wate The inspector did not identify any concerns with the generalintegrity of the areas containing radioactive material .__
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. Conclusions j
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. The condition of the facility was basically sound and was sufficient to contain the
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residual radioactive materialif ground water intrusion can continue to be
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controlled. Ongoing improvements may sustain continued viable storage condition .0 Organization i Inspection Scope (40755)
The inspector interviewed personnel and reviewed records to determine the licensee's compliance with staffing requirements.
5 Observations and Findings i
. The PSC Chair appeared to the inspector, to be substantially involved in daily PBRF
! matters based on discussion with him. The individual has also been serving a; the
! first alternate RM and confirmed that he also had concern that his normal duties
} could conflict with the objectives of the committee Chair as si safety oversight role, j The Technical Specifications were not specific regarding the assignment of the
< Chair. However, the inspector brought the concern to the attention of the Chief,
{; Plum Brook Management Office (PBMO) and the RM.
9 The aging work force at the PBRF will neeo to be replaced eventually and qualified 1- personnel may be hard to find. Two senior contract employees assigned to the i Plum Brook Station (PBS) maintenance organization were employed at the reactor
. facility during facility operations. They have supervised required reactor facility maintenance and have carried out the radiation monitoring requirements for the i facility. The RM, also approaching retirement, currently has two alternates. The
- - first was discussed above and the second acts as the Radiation Safety Officer i (RSO) and a PSC member as well. The RSO is located at the Lewis Research Center in Clevelan Furioughs that occurred during federal budget negotiations last winter affected the l facility staffing but the licensee arranged to allow sufficient contract worker support to complete required surveillance and maintenance, i Conclusions The current organization meets requirements however the two roles of the PSC Chair may be less than optimum and should be reconsidered by the license Aging experienced workers were nearing retiremen _ --- __ ______________ _ _ _ _
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3.0 Audits and Records inspection Scope (40755)
The inspector reviewed audits and various required records and interviewed personnel to determine the licensee's compliance with requirements, Observations and Findings The inspectur identified a maintenance work order originated by the security force to repair the containment entry alarm that had gone into continuous elarm due to i f aulty wiring. The license required the alarm to be operable at all times except it may be out of service for maintenance for a period not exceeding 24 hours2.777778e-4 days <br />0.00667 hours <br />3.968254e-5 weeks <br />9.132e-6 months <br />. The work order was initiated on June 22,1997 and the worker signed tho job as complete on June 25,1997. By interviewing the maintenance worker the inspector learned that the work was completed within the prescribed limit although the documentation was delayed. New telecomrnunications wiring being installed should prevent recurring problem The inspector reviewed the procedure for alarm response and noted that the guidance for spurious alarms did not include time limits imposed by the licens The addition of this guidance would aid employees' understanding of license requirements, timely corrective action, and documentatio NASA personnel unassociated with the reactor facility conducted annual audit Their findings, conclusiens, and recommendations were substantive and relevant to safety, Conclusions The licensee met requirements for maintaining records and completing timely audit .0 Radiation Controls Inspection Scope (40755)
The inspector reviewed requirements and records, observed employees' actions, and interviewed personnel to determine that the licensee had set up appropriate controls to protect employees and the publi Observations and Findings During the facility tour the inspector observed that barriers and postings were in place to keep personnel out of potentially harmful radiation and contamination areas; make them aware of radiation hazards; and to inform them of their right to exposure information. Surveillance records suggest that direct radiation in general areas of the plant were in the microrem rang _ _ _
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The employees who had access to the facility radiation areas had dosimetry issued although the inspector noted that they did not wear them during the tour. The tour group did not enter plant areas requiring dosimetry. Portable instruments were calibrated and available in the security gate house along with the dosimetr The licensee has established an on-line Tritium monitoring program for the reactor vessei Nitrogen purge effluent. Effluent levels were within expected concentrations and below limits. They discovered a significant accumulation of naturally occurring Radon in the Primary Pump House (PPH) that they purged before entry in July. It was the first PPH entry in 12 years.
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The employees who performed and counted the radiation surveys, swipes, and air and water sample collections were contractors who documented and reported the
- results to the RSO in Cleveland. They indicated that were retrained annually.
! The RM stated that some newer employees received initial radiation protection training this year in anticipation of the older personnel eventually retirin c. Conclusions
, The licensee implemented a radiation protection program as required.
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5 5.0 Surveillance Inspection Scope (40755)
The inspector reviewed records to verify that required surveillance were complete I Observations and Findinas During furioughs last winter the licensee made arrangements for the contract employees to enter the facility and conduct the required surveillance. Record samples reviewed by the inspector indicated they were done on time, Conclusions
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The licensee met surveillance requirements for the period reviewe .0 Review of Periodic and Special Reports Inspection Scope (40755)
The inspector reviewed reports for accuracy, timeliness, and compliance with requirement Observations and Findinas
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( Annual reports for 1994,1995, and 1996 were timely and essentially unchanged J from year to-year, c. - Conclusions The annual reports contained the minimum required information and were submitted on tim .0 Persons Contacted National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- R. Kozar, Chief, PBMO
'H. Pfanner, Plum Brook Reactor Facility Manager K. Peecook, Chair, PSC
- D. Young, Field Supervisor N. Casper, Supervisor, Plant Protection
' Denotes those attending the exit meetin The inspector alsc interviewed other personnel during the course of the inspectio . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - _ - - - _ _
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j 8.0 Exit Interview (30703)
The inspoctor met with the licensee representative denoted in Paragraph 7.0 at the conclusion of the inspection on August 27,1997. The inspector summarized the scope and result 6 of the inspection and discussed the likely content of this inspection repor The licensee acknowledged the information and did not indicate that any of the information disclosed during the inspection could be considered proprietary in natur Procedures Used Inspection
- D40755 Class lil Non Power Reactors items Opened and Closed Nons l l List of Documents Reviewed i
Reactor License Technic.31 Specifications PSC minutes Annual audits Administrative Procedures Alarm Response Procedures Maintenance and Surveillance Records Dosimetry Records Various Reports List of Acronyms Used NRC Nuclear Regulatory Coinmission PBMO Plum Brook Management Of fice PBRF Plum Brook Reactor Facility PBS Plum Brook Station PPH Primary Pump House PSC PBRF Safety Committee RSO Radiation Safety Officer RM Reactor Manager y ,s
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U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission INSPECTOR FOLLOWUP SYSTEM (IFS)
POWEH REACTOR DATA ENTRY FORM ,
OPEN NEW ITEMS ONLY -(non escalated, including Eels)
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I il l SITE NAME: PLUM BROOK REACTOR FACILITY {
E AND MOCKUP REACTOR ) '
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SUBMITVID BY: T. BURDICK DATE: 8/29/97 REPORT NO.: UNIT DOCKET NO.: [
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,', 0 REVIEWED BY: S. WEISS DATE:
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I Report Transmittai Lead Responsible Inspector Responsible Org. I Event Date (LER Only):
Date: Last Name: RITS Code: i Initials:
9/ /97 T. BURDICK l T 1 B l
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! tem Seq ltem Severity Supplement EA N No.: Type: Level: No.: i
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ITEM Unit 1: Unit 2: Unit l (Fill in the EA NO. if opening an * eel * item. The EA N STATU 3: can be obtained from EICS - Brent Clayton)
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