ML20236L426
| ML20236L426 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 10/07/1987 |
| From: | Chilk S NRC OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY (SECY) |
| To: | |
| References | |
| FRN-52FR8075, RULE-PR-50 NUDOCS 8711100333 | |
| Download: ML20236L426 (16) | |
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1 NUCLEAR REGULATO.RY COMMISSION crr:n m n e,,..-
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' i-10 CFR Part 50 q
COMMISSION. POLICY STATEMENT.ON DEFERRED PLANTS i
AGENCY:
Nuclear Regulatory Connission.
ACTION:
Final policy statement.
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SUMMARY
- This statement presents the. policy.of the Nuclear Regulatory-Commission (NRC) with regard to the procedures that apply to nuclear power plants while in a deferred status and when they are being reactivated.
The regulations and guidance applicable to' deferred and terminated plants;'
maintenance, preservation, and documentation requirements; and the-applicability of new regulatory requirements and other general administra-
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tive considerations are addressed.
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EFFECTIVE DATE:
November 13, 1987 L
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theodore S. Michaels, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C.
20555, Telephone (301)492-8251.
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SUPPLEMENTAL.Y INFORMATION:
8711100333 871007 PDR PR 50 52FRGO75 PDR f$ /Nhob Qr l
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l 7590-01>
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BACKGROUND' d
On March 16, 1987, the Commission published a' proposed policy statement on.
deferred plants in the Federal Register for_ a 30-day corment. period (52 FR
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8075).
Five comenters offered a total of nine coments on the proposed policy
-statement. The Commission lhas modified the policy statement in Section III of this notice in response to Coment B(1) in Section II' below. 'In a'ddition, some minor editorial chances were made.
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1 II. RESPONSE TO PUBLIC COMMENTS'0N THE PROPOSED POLICY STATEMENT l
A.
kNC, Inc.
Sumrrary of Comment. KMC, Inc. and the Utility' Safety Classification Group l
L recommended that the term ' safety-related" be substituted for. the term "important to safety" in Sections III.B.2.a and III.B.2.b because there is not yet a clear definition of the 1stter term.
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Commission Response. The Commission rejects this suggestion. The term I
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" safety-related" is a subset of the term "important to safety." Safety-related is more precisely defined at this time because licensees provide l
a list of structures, systems, and components that come within its scope.
However, there is sufficient Commission guidance regarding the term "important to safety" to warrant its use without causing confusion.
For example, the Commission has indicated that while there is not "a predefined i
J class of equipment at every plant whose functions-have been. determined by rule l
to be 'important to safety,'... whether any piece of equipment has:a function
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. 7590-01
'important to safety' is to be determined on the basis-of a particularized.
showing of clearly identified safety: concerns..., ana the requirements of
...GDC 1 must be tailored to the identified safety concerns." Long Island i
LjghtingCompany(ShorehamNuclear. Power! Station, Unit 1),CLI-84-9,'19NRC 1S23, 1325 (1984);- seealsoShoreham,ALAB-788,20NRC1102,-1115-1119(1984).
- l In the context of this policy statement, it is expected that a utility, planning to maintain its reactivation option or transfer of ownership to-others,willidentifyanystructures, systems,andcomponents(SSC)which l
l are important to safety and establish appropriate maintenance, preservation, and documentation (MPD) for these SSC.
If a utility determines, based.on an analysis of cost-effectiveness, to develop MPD only for safety-related SSC, it must recognize the possibility that SSC for which adequate MPD were l
not developed may have to be replaced if and when reactivation or transfer of ownership takes place.
The NRC does not want to limit its application of MPD requirements to safety-related SSC because that could allow other SSC, which are important to safety, to be placed into service without proper MPD.
B.
Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS) j i
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q Sumniary of Comments. WPPSS submitted the following three comments:
(1) The commenter recommended that the requirement in Section III.A.6.e (incorrectly referred to by the consnenter as 6.c) be amended. This item i
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. 7590-01 requires that a lis uig of any new applicable regulatory requirements that are made effective during the deferral period be submitted with a descrip-tion of the licensee's proposed plans for compliance with these requirements.
i The concenter suggests that this presumes a sufficient level of engineering activity during the deferral period to develop such plans.
Since this might not be the case, the commenter asks that the requirement be changed to permit.a commitment to submit this information at a specific later date.
Commission Response. This change has been made. However, it should be noted that this information should be submitted at the time of reactivation notification, or as soon thereafter as possible, since the lack of this information could impact the review schedule.
(2) The commenter recommended that the requirement in Section III.A.6 to notify the NRC at least 120 days before construction resumes be changed to "at least 120 days before construction is expected to resume or as soon as possible after a reactivation decision has been reached." This would permit some construction activities to get under way earlier.
Commission Response. The 120-day advance notification is the minimum period required te evaluate the licensee's submittal to determine the acceptability of reactivation. Any request by the licersee to resume selected non-safety-related activities sooner than 120 days will be con-sidered at the time of the reouest.
(3) This comment refers to Section III.A.6.1, which requires an amendment to the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), as applicab7e and necessary.
. 7590-01 discussing the bases for all substantive site and design changes made since the last amendment. The commenter states that, in its specific case, such an amendment would not be available at the time of initial notification.
The commenter believes that since no substantive site and design changes will be made during deferral, an FSAR amendment would not be needed at that time.
l Commission Response. The amendment is required only if there are substantive changes. If there are none, no amendment is necessary. Therefore, the commenter's concern is satisfied by the text in the proposed policy state-ment.
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The State of Washinaton Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council i
l Summary of Comments. The following three comments were made:
l (1) The commenter suggested that the policy clearly state, early on, that it applies only to facilities deferred or terminated during construction.
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Commission Response. The intent of the policy statement is made clear I
throughout the document.
Deferral and termination refer to construction, 1
not operation. No further clarification is needed.
l (2) The commenter expressed concern that the definition of a terminated plant
-l might cause confusion because it requires a valid construction pennit, whereas the only authorized activity is site restoration.
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17590-01L
_3 Comission' Response. _ The' reference to a valid construction permitLin.; thei definition for a terminated plant is not a requirement; it merely identifies:
the-status of a plant that fits the definition. A-plant'is considered to be-in terminated status only from the time:the ' licensee'has announced.that construction has;been permanently-stopped until'the construction permit lis formally withdrawn'by the NRC. The licensee of a deferred plant, on the other hand, retains.the construction' permit because construction has only been ' eferred, not terminated.
d (3) The commenter suggested that the Commission migh't wish to address circum-stances of abandonment and cessation of operation, which the commenter had recently adopted in its rules.
Commission Response. These areas go beyond the intended scope and purpose of the subject policy statement. These matters are being aodressed in the Commission's decommissioning rulemaking.
D.
Marvin Lewis Summary of Comment. The commenter suggested that deferral or cancellation often provid?s a cover for inadequate quality or other very dangerous conditions and that the NRC must handle resumption of construction " sternly" '
and with " extreme prejudice," requiring that all the latest safety require-ments be met.
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- Commission-Response. tThe proposed policy statement stresses clearly and repeatedly that deferrol, termination, and reactivation' will. he subject to.all'
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applicable current. regulations, standards, policies, and guidance. fkt further.
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- clarification is needed.
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Atomic Industrial Forum l
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Summary of Comment. Thelcommenter supportedLthe proposed > policy; statement and l
did not suggest changes to.its text.
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l Commissio'n Response.
None required.
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i III. POLICY STATEMENT :
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l This policy guidance outlines (1) the NRC's regulatory provisions for 1
deferring and preserving a deferred nuclear powe'r plant until such time as it j
may be reactivated and' (2) the' applicability of new regulatory staff posi-tions to a. deferred plant when it is reactivated. Moreover, because of.
i the possibility that-the plant and/or its equipment may be sold.to another j
utility, some general guidance with regard to terminated plants is presented.
The following definitions apply to this eclicy guidance:
" Deferred plant" means a nuclear power plant at which the' licensee has ceased cebstruction or reduced activity to a maintenance level, maintains the construction permit (CP) in effect, and has not announced termination of the plant.
"Tenninated plant" means a nuclear power plant at which the licensee has announced that construction has been permanently stopped, but which still has a valid CP.
A.
Deferred Plant The following areas should be addressed by the licensee and the NRC:when a plant is deferred:
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' Notification of Plant Deferral' The licensee should inform the Director.of Nuclear Rea,ctor Regul'ation (NRR) when a plant'is to be deferred within-30 days of the decision to' defer.
Information to be taade available should include the reason for deferral,theexpected'plantreectivationdate(ifkn'own),whetheraCP' extension request will be submitted, and.the plans for fulfilling the.
requirements of the CP, including the maintenance,: preservation,.and 1
documentation requirements as outlined in Section III.A.3..of this policy-i i
statement.
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1 2.
Extension of Construction Permit l
The licensee must ensure that its CP does not expire. Title 10 of the l
Code of Federal Regulations, Section 2.109 (10 CFR 2.109),:"Effect of-Timely Renewal Application," provides that, if a request-for renewal of a license is made 30 days before the expiration date, the license will not'be deemed to have expired until the application-bas been finally processed.
Extension of the completion date for a CP.will be considered in accordance j
with 10 CFR 50.55(b).
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I 3.
Maintenance, Preservation, and Documentation cf Equipment 1
The NRC requirements for verification of construction status, retention
'l and protection of records, and maintenance and preservation of equipment and materials are applied through:
10CFR50.54(a),"Cenditionsof Licenses," and 10 CFR 50.55(f), " Conditions of Construction Permits,"
which require that a quality assurance program be implemented;-10 CFR q
Part 50, Appendix B, which requires that all activities performed to establish, maintain, and verify the quality of plant construction be I
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addressed in'the licensee's quality assurance program; du CFR Part 50,.
Appendices' A and B, which require that certain quality l records be retained for the life of the plant; 10 CFR 50.55(e), which. requires -
reporting of deficiencies in design, construction, quality assurance,,
. etc.; 10 CFR 50.71, which applies to the maintenance of records; and 10..
j CFR Part 21, which applies to reportina.of defects and noncompliance.
I Those NRC regulatory guides.that endorse the ANSI N45.2 series of.
l standards, " Quality Assurance Requirements for Nuclear Power Plants,"
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also are applicable and include Regulatory Guides 1.28,.1.37,~1.38, 1.58, l
1.88, and 1.116. Of particular importance is the guidance on packaging, shipping, receiving, storing, and handling of equipment as well as on j
collecting, storing, and maintaining quality control documentation.
The
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maintenance, preservation, and documentation requirements outlined above apply to plants under construction.
j The licensee riay choose to modify existing commitme'nts during extended
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construction' delays by developing a quality assurance plan that is commensurate with the expected activities and' expected (or potential) length of delay. The licensee should discuss with the FRC the expected j
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construction delay period and the quality assurance program to be imple-l mented during the deferral.- The program should include a description of a
the planned activities; organizational responsibilities and procedural controls that apply to the verification of construction status, mainte-nance, and preservation of equipment and materialf; and retention and protection of ouality assurance records. The prcgram will be reviewed and approved by the NRC.in accordance with 10 CFR 50.54(a)(3), 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix B, and inspection procedures, as appropriate.
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Implementation'of-the program will be examined periodically to determine
. licensee compliance with commitments and overall program effectiveness.
4.
' Conduct of Review During Deferral 1
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When a' plant.is deferred, the staff will normally bring all ongoing-post-CP and. operating -license (0L). reviews and associated documentation
- to an appropriate termination point. Normally, new reviews will not be' 1
initiated.
If the review has progressed.sufficiently, a safety evalua-j i.
tion report (SER) will be issued, which assembles and discusses the. status of the completed work and lists all outstanding open items. Subject
.l to availability of resources, the staff might perform specific technical i
reviews or complete SER supplements.
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5.
Applicability of New Regulatory Requiremer,ts During. Deferral H
Deferred plants of custom or standard design will be considered in the -
same manner as plants still under construction with respect to applica-bility of new regulations, guidance, and policies.
Proposed plant-specific backfits of rew regulatory staff positions promulgated while a j
plant is deferred will be considered in accordance with the Commission backfit criteria. Other modifications to previously accepted staff l
positions will be implemented either through rulemaking or generic issue i
resolution, which themselves are subject to the backfit rule. Regula-tions that have integral update provisions built into them will be applied to deferred plants, as they are to other plants under cc.. truction, without the use of the backfit rule.
Provisions in other policy statements that are applicable to plants under construction also will have to be implemented. Any resulting backfit recommendations will have to be supported in accordance with
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10 CFR 50.109. Appeals procedures. applicable to plant-specific backfits would be applicable to deferred plants'. Appeals filed by a licensee during plant deferral will be considered and processed by.the NRC while a plant is in a deferred status.
6.
Information'to be Submitted by_ Licensee When Reactivating
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The licensee should submit a' letter.to the Director of NRR at least 120 l
days before plant c' construction is expected to resume. The letter should include the following information, tthe extent that the information o
has not been submitted to the staff.during the deferral-period:
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The proposed date for resuming const'ruction, a schedule for completion i
of the construction, and a schedule.for submittal of.an operating l
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license application, including a final safety analysis report (FSAR),.
if one has not already been submitted.
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The current status of the plant site and equipment.
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A description of how any conditions established by the flRC during l
the deferral have been fulfilled, d.
A list of licensing issues that were outstanding at the time of the deferral and a description of the resolution or proposed resolution l
of these issues.
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A listing of any new regulatory requirements applicable to the plant j
that have beccme effective since plant construction was deferred, l
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' together.with a' description of the licensee's proposed plans for
. compliance with these requirements or._a commitment to; submit'such plans by a~s'pecified'date.
f.
A description of the management and organization responsible for.
construction of the plant.
g.
A description of.all substan_tive changes made to.the plant design or site since the CP was issued (for those plants-for. which!an OL 1
application has not been submitted).
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Identification of any addithnal required information that-is rot available at the time of reactivation and'a commitment to submit' this information at a specific later date.-
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-As necessary, an amendment to the OL application (revised FSAR) and a discussion of the. bases for all substantive site'and-design.
i changes that have been made since the last FSAR revision was submitted (for those plants which were already under OL review at the time of deferral),
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Staff Actions When Notified of Reactivation The acceptability of structures, systems, and components important to safety (10 CFR Part 50, Appendix A, General. Design Criter_ ion 1) upon I
reactivation from deferred. status will be determined by the NRC on the' following bases:
a.
Reviews of the approved preservation and maintenance program, as implemented, in order to determine whether or not any structures, j
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Verification that design changes, modifications, and required corrective actions have been implemented and documented in accordance with established. quality' control requirements.
c.-
The results of any licensee-or NRC-baseline inspections that indi-cate quality and performance' requirements have not been significantly reduced below those originally specified-.in the FSAR.. Structures, systems, and components that fail to meet the acceptability criteria -
I or will not meet current NRC requirements will-be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
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Terminated Plant 1
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Plant Termination A licensee should inform the Director of NRR when a plant is placed in a terminated status.
In the event that withdrawal of a CP is sought, the permit holder should provide notice to the NRC staff sufficiently far in advance of the expiration of the CP.to permit the staff to determine appropriate terrrs and conditions.
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necessary, a brief extension of the CP may be ordered by the staff to accommodate these determinations. Until withdrawal of the CP is-authorized, a permit holder must adhere to the Coninission's regulations and the terms of the CP and should submit suitable plans for the.
termination of site activities, including redress, as provided for under 10 CFR 51.41, for staff approval. ~Moreover, if the plant has
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, been completed to a point that it can. function as a utilization facility, the licensee must take all necessary actions to ensure that the facility is no longer a facility for which an NRC license I
is requ. ired.
2.
Measures that Sho'uld be Considered.for Reactivation or Transfer.of' l
Ownership of Terminated Plants I
i The licensee of a terminated nuclear plant, if planning'to maintain the option of plant reactivation or transfer of ownership to otners -- either totally I
or in part -- should consider the following actions:
i a.
For the removal and transfer of' ownership of plant components and systems important to safety, make necessary provisions to maintain, collect, and transfer to the new owner appropriate performance and material documentation attesting to the quality of the components and systems that will be required of the new owner if intended for
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use in NRC-licensed facilities..
b.
Develop and implement a preservation ano maintenance program for structures, systems, and components important to safety, as well as 1
L documentation substantially in accordance'with Section III.A.3 of this policy statement.
If these provisions are implemented throuchout the period of termination, a terminated plant may be reactivated under the same provirions as a deferred plant.
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DatedatWashington,D.C.this7 day of b
l987.
I the Nuclea Regulatory Comission.
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Ou w C Samu'el J. Chilk F l Secretary of the Comission.
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