ML20211N724

Responds to 861113 Request for Info Re Safety at Facility. Aggressive Schedule for Startup Test Phase Not Safety Concern.Reversed Sensing Lines Identified on 860822 Subj of Insp Rept 50-354/86-41.NRC Places Priority on Plant Safety

ML20211N724
Person / Time
Site:	Hope Creek
Issue date:	12/11/1986
From:	Stello V NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO)
To:	Lautenberg F SENATE
Shared Package
ML20211N729	List: ML20211N724 ML20211N755
References
NUDOCS 8612180297
Download: ML20211N724 (5)

See also: IR 05000354/1986041

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DEC 111986

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The Honorable Frank R. Lautenberg

United States Senate

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Lautenberg:

Thank you for your inquiry of November 13, 1986, addressed to the NRC Office of

Congressional Affairs which requested information relative to the safety of

the Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station in Salem County, New Jersey.

Before discussing the specific concerns at Hope Creek, it is important to say

that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission always places plant safety first in

considering actions responsive to plant events or conditions. While the NRC may

ultimately assess civil monetary penalties or take other enforcement action

against a licensee when safety problems are identified at a nuclear facility,

our immediate concern is whether the nuclear facility should continue to operate

with a particular identified safety problem.

In this regard, the NRC has frequently applied its authority under law to

constrain plant operation until identified safety problems are resolved. This

may take the form of an order modifying the license to require some specified

corrective action prior to further nuclear plant operation. In other cases, the

Regional Administrator may obtain a commitment from licensee management to

refrain from operation until a specified series of corrective actions is

completed. The effect of these actions is to obtain technically adequate

resolution of safety concerns prior to further plant operation.

Enforcement

actions, such as civil monetary penalties, are applied well after the safety

concerns are put to rest.

Ms. Yashinsky's letter, which was attached to your correspondence, highlights

three issues at Hope Creek:

the quality of startup testing, the reversed

sensing lines, and the Bailey logic modules. To assure the quality and

completeness of testing, the NRC Region I office has supplemented the two

full-time resident inspectors on site with additional inspectors from the

Regional office to continually monitor the preoperational and startup test

programs at the Hope Creek site.

This intensive review resulted in an NRC

concern that the preoperational test program may not have been complete, due

partly to a large number of test exceptions. As a result of this concern,

the licensee agreed to complete an additional series of tests prior to initial

plant startup.

Our inspectors agree that the licensee maintains an aggressive schedule to

complete the startup test phase; however, we have not found this to be a plant

8612180297 861211

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safety concern. It should also be noted that one purpose of this test program

is to identify construction and operational problems such as the reversed

sensing lines.

With respect to the specific hardware problems noted in your letter, the

licensee, Public Service Electric ard Gas Company, identified the reversed

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sensing lines on August 8, 1986, and immediately shut the plant down to repair

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the lines and assess the significance of the design error. As discussed with

the NRC at a meeting held in Region I on August 22, 1986, several reviews and

evaluations were conducted, which confirmed that no similar design errors

existed in the plant. This meeting is documented in the attached NRC Inspection

Report 50-354/86-41.

The Bailey logic modules, utilized at Hope Creek for plant control functions,

present another set of concerns which the NRC has dealt with on several

occasions over the last year. The Bailey solid-state logic modules represent a

unique situation in that they are not used at any other nuclear power plant

licensed by the NRC. As a result, considerable effort has gone into reviews of

their application and inspection of their failures. The plant operating license

was issued with a condition that the licensee establish a reliability program

for these devices and report the results to the NRC prior to the end of the

first refueling outage.

In addition, a special NRC team inspection following

the September 11, 1986 loss of off-site power test identified additional

concerns regarding Bailey logic module design and testability. As a result,

two meetings were held with the licensee, three additional loss of off-site

power tests were conducted, and the plant remained shut down for over a month

while evaluations were completed. The plant shutdown, pending completion of

evaluations and review by the NRC inspection team, was agreed to by the licensee

and confirmed in a letter from the Region I Regional Administrator.

In addition,

significant improvements in reliability analysis and on-site testing capability

for the Bailey modules, were developed and agreed to by the licensee. The

special team Inspection Report, 50-354/86-50, is attached for your review.

On a broader perspective, the NRC will not hesitate to limit nuclear facility

operation in order to assure the health and safety of the public. Recent

examples of power reactors which were shutdown for NPC/ licensee agreed upon

analysis or modifications include: Pilgrim, Davis Besse, Sequoyah, Browns

Ferry, Palisades, and Rancho Seco.

In sumary. the NRC will continue to place priority on reactor safety, and,

as illustrated above, will take appropriate actions to ensure that technical

concerns are deal + with thoroughly before plant operation is allowed to

continue or resume.

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Should you have additional questions in this matter, please contact us again.

As you requested, a copy of your correspondence is attached.

Sincerely,

&L&&

ictor Stello, Jr.

. Executive Director for Operations-

. Attachments:

As stated

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EDO PRINCIPAL CORRESPONDENCE CONTROL

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FROM:

DUE: 12/04/86

EDO CONTROL: 002325

DOC DT: 11/13/86

SEN. FRANK R. LAUTENBERG

FINA'. REPLY:

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FOR SIGNATURE OF:

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SECY NO: 861216

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

DESC:

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ENCLOSES LETTER FROM KATHY YASHINSKY RE Ep

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ON QUALITY TESTING AT NUCLEAR POWER PL 4TS

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OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

CORRESPONDENCE CONTROL TICKET

PAPER NUMBER:

CRC-86-1216

LOGGING DATE: Nov 17 86

ACTION OFFICE:

EDO

AUTHOR:

F.R.

Lautenberg--Const Ref

AFFILIATION:

U.S. SENATE

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LETTE;t CATE:

Nov 13 86

FILE CODE: ID&R5 Hope Creek

SUBJECT:

Places emphasis on quality testing at nuc plants

ACTION:

Direct Reply

DISTRIBUTION:

OCA to Ack

SPECIAL HANDLING: None

NOTES:

Kathy Yaskinsky

DATE DUS:

Dec

1 86

SIGNATURE:

DATE SIGNED:

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AFFILIATION:

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