ML20236W906

Responds to Re Bmi Need for NRC Current Ltr Approving Decommissioning Plan Referred in Trust Agreement. DOE Accepted Responsibility for Cleanup of Contamination at Bmi & DOE Will Provide Majority of Funds

ML20236W906
Person / Time
Site:	07000008
Issue date:	09/23/1987
From:	Rouse L NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS)
To:	Bahlmann J Battelle Memorial Institute, COLUMBUS LABORATORIES
Shared Package
ML20236W880	List: ML20236W878 ML20236W906
References
NUDOCS 8712080307
Download: ML20236W906 (2)

Text

- -.. - -

y a

4 Docket No. 70-8 Mr. ~ Jerome R. Bahlmann General Counsel and Vice President Battelle Columbus Division 505 King Avenue Columbus, Ohio 43201-2693

Dear Mr. Bahlmann:

In your letter of. August 25, 1987, you stated that the Trustee who holds funds for expenses associated with decontamination and, decommissioning Battelle's Columbus Laboratories would like to have a current letter from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) noting approval o.f the decommissioning plan referred to in the Trust Agreements.

You requested that we reconfirm NRC approval of the decommissioning plan l

' in a letter that you-will then forward to the Trustee.

l We originally hpproved your conceptual decommissioning plan with its cost estimate for the Hot Cell L'aboratory by letter dated June 29, l

1979. Your commitments to provide. funds for decommissioning were later made a condition of License No. SNM-7 when the license was renewed on April 29. 1983. We. understand that approximately has been accumulated in the Trust Funds to date. This

$1,200,000 represents a small fraction of the total cost you have estimated for decontamination and decommissioning the facilities used by Battelle for work with radioactive materials. However, since the Department of Energy (DOE) has accepted responsibility for cleanup of the contamination of the Battelle facilities which resulted from DOE-sponsored work, DOE will provide the majority of the funds for Battelle to decommission the facilities Although these funds may not begin to become available until at least FY1989, we have no objection to disbursements from Battelle's Trust Funds for expenses associated with decommissioning in accordance with the approved conceptual decommissioning plan prior to DOE making available the bulk of the funds at later times.

We hereby reconfirm NRC approval of the conceptual decommissioning plan.

As we have discussed with you previously, final amendments to NRC regulations on decommissioning are being prepared. When the amendments become effective, licensees will be required to submit detailed decommissioning plans to the NRC for review and approval. This will surely occur before or during the time you are decommissioning your facilities. Therefore if there are funds remaining in the Trust Funds at the time detailed decommissioning plans are required, we B712080307 871203 ADOCK0700gG DR i

+

!Y /

,j n.G sk.

W'

~

y SEP 2 3 1987 -

Mr. Jerome R. Bahlmann 2

would expect that further disbursements from the Funds from that a

time forward would require NRC approval of a detailed decommissioning j

plan. We understand that such a plan will be developed in connection with the DOE contract modification for decommissioning, and we do not anticipate that the plan would be inconsistent with NRC requirements.

Please let me know if you have any questions concerning NRC actions involving the Trust Agreenents.

Sincerely, Origina1 Signed by Leland C. Rouse, Chief Fuel Cycle Safety Branch fr Division of Industrial and

}L Medical Nuclear Safety 1

cc: Mr. Harley L. Toy ii