ML20238C403
| ML20238C403 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Three Mile Island  |
| Issue date: | 11/05/1987 |
| From: | Stello V NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | |
| References | |
| TASK-AII, TASK-SE SECY-87-275, NUDOCS 8712300255 | |
| Download: ML20238C403 (4) | |
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POLICY ISSUE SECY-87-275 Nove:%r 5, 1987 (InfOrmation)
FOR: The Commissioners FROM:
Victor Stello, Jr.
Executive Director for Operations
SUBJECT:
TNI-2 CLEANUP REORGANIZATION To inform the Commission of staff plans to reorganize agency PURPOSE _:
staffing dedicated to regulatory oversight of the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) cleanup consistent with the approved FY88 budget.
Since shortly.after the Merch 1979 accident at THI-2, the BACKGROUND:
Comission has maintained a dedicated organization to provide Currently the regulatory oversight of the cleanup operations.TMi-2 As Clean Reactor Regulation, is charged with this responsibility.'
noted in the "NRC Plan for the Cleanup at Three Mile Island Unit 2," NUREG-0698, Revision 2, the NRC's cleanup organization was estat1!shed to ensure that the cleanup,is carried out safely and expeditiously. Regulatory objectives include:
('l min:nir.ce of rcacter safety and control of radioactive material; (2) assurance tnat environmental impacts are minimized, and that radiation exposures to workers, the public and the environment are .fithin regulatory limits and are as low as reasonably achievable; (3) assurance of safe interim storage and/or disposal of radioactive wastes from' cleanup operations; and (4) coordination of NRC activit ks with other Federal and State agencies having cleanup responsibilities.
To carry out its responsibility to ensure safe and timely cleanup, the THICPD has been staffed with both NRR licensing engineers and engineering and health physics inspectors from Region I. Most current staff resources (i.e., 10 full-time equivalent (F'E) positions) including the Project Director, are assigned to the TMI site and most licensing actions are Over the processed by site, not headquarters, personnel.
course of the cleanup, staffing has been reduced gradually from approximately 34 FTE positions to the current level of'y 10 FTE positions. These gradual reductions in staffing have
Contact:
W. Travers, NRR FTS 590-1120 .
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' The Commissioners paralleled the progress of continuing cleanup and the accom-plishment of major regulatory goals (e.g., publication of environmental impact statements and review of major cleanup tasks).
On the basis of the current status of the TMI-2 cleanup the DISCUSSION: staff plans to reorganize NRC oversight staffing of the TMI-2the THICP cleanuo. Beginning on or about January 31,Regulatory 1988, oversight be eliminated as an organizational unit.
of the remaining cleanup activities will be carried out using onsite and Region I inspectors as well Thisas headquarterswill
. reorganization project management and engineering support.
provide the staff the resources necessary to ensure that NRC regulatory objectives continue to be met.
Although reorganization of TMI-2 staffing is included in the agency's approved FY88 budget, the staffAhad delayed reduction in implemen-tation to allow for an effective transition.
agency resources responsible for cleanup oversight, January 31, 1988, the' cleanup and on the licensge's continuing mana project.a number of objectives which have greatly reduced the poten public health and safety risk associated with the damaged facility All of the highly radioactive water released into the reactor and auxiliary buildings durino the accident has been The reactor treated coolant systemto(RCS) remove the bulk of the cer:tmination.has been daemr'ac, Facility decontam-the reactor v and active RCS cooling is no longer required.
ination efforts have been successful in returning most areas of the auxiliary and fuel-handling buildie gs to pre-accident radio-logical levels. Additionally, disposal of low- and high-level radioactive of the cleanup. wastes has been actively proceeding ov for comercial disposal are being accepted by the Department of Energy (DOE), in accordance with and NRC/D0E Memorandum of Understanding, for research and development activities.
The most significant cleanup progress, from an overall risk reduction standpoint, has been made in efforts to defuel the The fuel, damaged and partially distributed by the reactor.
accident, represents the largest remaining quantity of radf active material requiring cleanup.
the core has now been removed from the vessel and the experience ,
to date indicates that the licensee's defueling systen is highly 4 effective in minimizing accident potential (e.g., recriticality) f
- androutineworkerdose(i.e.,anaverageofapproximately I It is expected that the entire r. ore cavity will 10 mrem /hr). Additional defueling in the be defueled by mid-November 1987.
lower regions of the vessel and the remainder of the RCS is scheduled to be completed by October 1988, The core debris is being shipped by DOE from the TMI site to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory where it is being examined and stored
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The Commissioners The entire core is scheduled to be removed pending disposal.from TMI by late 1988 to early 1989 and the license A decision place the facility in <torage beginning in 1989.to decom before the facility 1;, placed in storage.
In addition to significant cleanup progress, the licensee has been carrying out cleanup and shutdown operations safely and has generally been in conformance with applicable NRC Licensee management, which is regulatory requirements.
uniquely integrated with utility (GPU Nuclear Corporation) and Bechtel Corporation personnel, has been conducting the cleanup in a technically competent manner with a conservative approach to ensuring safety. As a measure of this, offsite radiological releases throughout the cleahup have been maintained well below 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix I, design objectives for operating power facilities. The licensee's radiological control organization, which has been faced with complex post-accident and radiological hazards, also has been successful in limiting individual and Average individual whole-body worker cumulative worker doses.
dose has been about 0.7 rem per year, and the average collective THI-2 radiation dose over the duration of the cleanup has been about 450 person-rem per year. (This cumulative. dose compares with a U.S. nuclear power industry average of 400 to 800 person-rem per year per reactor). '
To provide for timely and coordinated notification, senior NRC N" " 7 m t ph n to brief anpreoriate Federal and State agencies ization.
before uny gericrai u nouncement of the iMI-c of the Comission's TMI-2 Advisory Panel and notify Thesethe entire notifications panel before implementing the reorganization.
will emphasize the NRC's continuing comitment a,nd plans for ensuring safe and expeditious completion of the cleanup.
CONCLUSION:_
Reorganization of NRC responsibilities'for oversight of the 31, 1988. TheTMI-2 cleanup is scheduled to occur on or about January Remaining change will eliminate the current TMICPO organization.
cleanup oversight will be accomplished by onsite and Region I based inspections as well as project management and engineering The reorganization recognizes support based in headquarters.
effective cleanup management and significant cleanup progress including the soon-to-be-completed defueling of the reactor vessel core cavity. The facility currently poses a relatively small risk to the health and safety of the of fsite population, theTh work-force, and the environment.
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The Commissioners retain an appropriate NRC focus on the safety of the cleanup as well as timely NRC staff reviews and approvals of remaining cleanup activities. Prior to implementation, senior staff management will provide reorganization notification to appro-priate Federal and State agencies and the Commission's TMI-2 Advisory Panel.
Victor Stello, r.
Executive Dir ctor for Operations DISTRIBUTION:
Comn.is sione rs OGC (H Street)
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