NOC-AE-00472, NPDES Noncompliance Notification:On 981002,Cs-137,current Nominal Activity 144.7 Uci,Was Discovered Leaking in Excess of 0.005 Uci.Source Has Been Withdrawn from Use & Tested for Leakage with No Indication of Leakage

NPDES Noncompliance Notification:On 981002,Cs-137,current Nominal Activity 144.7 Uci,Was Discovered Leaking in Excess of 0.005 Uci.Source Has Been Withdrawn from Use & Tested for Leakage with No Indication of Leakage

ML20205B001
Person / Time
Site:	South Texas
Issue date:	03/23/1999
From:	Gerry Powell HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER CO.
To:	NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM)
References
NOC-AE-00472, NOC-AE-472, NUDOCS 9903310122
Download: ML20205B001 (3)

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i March 23, 1999 NOC-AE-00472 File No.: G02.07 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Attention: Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555 i South Texas Project Units 1 and 2 Docket Ncs. STN 50-498; STN 50-499  ;

Sealed Source Leakane Renoit -

The purpose of this submittal is to provide a report of sealed source leakage as required j by South Texas Project Unit I and Unit 2 Technical Specification 4.7.10.3.

On October 2,1998, a cesium source (Cs'37), current nominal activity 144.7 pCi, was -

discovered leaking in excess of 0.005 pCi. The source is a 5 mm " button source" containing CsCl in a ceramic matrix with an epoxy backing and an acrylic cover with manufacturer's serial number 48486. The source was purchased from Isotope Products Laboratories and received at the South Texas Project on October 19,1995. It was used to perform survey instrument response checks.

Technical Specification 3.7.10 ctates: "Each sealed source containing radioactive material either in excess of 100 microCuries of beta and/or gamma emitting material or 5 microCuries of alpha emitting material shall be free of greater than or equal to 0.005 microcurie of removable contamination." Should a source be discovered leaking, the prescribed actions are:

"immediately' withdraw the sealed source from use and either decontaminate ar.J repair the sealed source or dispose of the scaled source in accordance with Commission Regulations." lb.

The subject Cs'37 source exhibited removable contamination level of 0.014 pCi by dry i smear wipe. It has been withdrawn from use and is currently stored double bagged in a shielded container pending disposal.

Technical Specification 4.7.10 requires that in use sources be tested for leakage at least l once per six months with a detection sensitivity of at least 0.005 Ci per test sample. The l subject Cs'37 source has been leak tested in accordance with specification 4.7.10 consistently since receipt with no indication ofleakage. (Last leak test performed July 14,1998.) ,

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The subject source was discovered to be leaking during follow up investigation of the  ;

contamination of an individual's fingertips after using the source on October 2,1998. Although removable contamination was detected, the source displayed no obvious damage or degradation

- upon physical inspection. The area in which the source was used and stored was monitored and found free of contamination.

No other sources were discovered leaking during calendar year 1998.

If you have any questions or require additional information, please contact Mr. Leonard Earls at (361) 972-7759 or me at (361) 972-7566.

M G.T. Powell,

' Manager, Health Physics 1

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l NOC-AE-000472 File No.: G02.07 Page 3 Ellis W. Merschoff Jon C. Wood Regional Administrator, Region IV Matthews & Branscomb

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U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission One Alamo Center '

611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400 106 S. St. Mary's Street, Suite 700 Arlington, TX 76011 8064 San Antonio, TX 78205-3692 Thomas W. Alexion Institute of Nuclear Power Project Manager, Mail Code 13H3 Operations - Records Center )

U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 700 Galleria Parkway Washington, DC 20555-0001 Atlanta, GA 30339-5957 Cornelius F. O'Keefe Richard A. Ratliff  !

Sr. Resident Inspector Bureau of Radiation Control c/o U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Texas Department of Health P. O. Box 910 1100 West 49th Street Bay City, TX 77404-0910 Austin, TX 78756-3139 J. R. Newman, Esquire D. G. Tees /R. L. Balcom Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Houston Lighting & Power Co. I 1800 M. Street, N.W. P. O. Box 1700 Washington, DC 20036 5869 Houston,TX 77251 j i

M. T. Hardt/W. C. Gunst Central Power and Light Company  ;

City Public Service ATTN: G. E. Vaughn/C. A. Johnson i P. O. Box 1771 P. O. Box 289, Mail Code: N5012 San Antonio,TX 78296 Wadsworth,TX 77483 A. Ramirez/C. M. Canady U S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission City of Austin Attention: Document Control Desk Electric Utility Department Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 721 Barton Springs Road Austin,TX 78704