ML051540277

License Amendment No. 168, Revise Containment Air Lock Leak Rate Test Acceptance Criteria

ML051540277
Person / Time
Site:	Grand Gulf
Issue date:	07/12/2005
From:	Bhalchandra Vaidya NRC/NRR/DLPM/LPD4
To:	Gerald Williams Entergy Operations
vaidya B, NRR/DLPM, 415-3308
Shared Package
ML051960574	List: ML051540277 ML051940154
References
TAC MC5539
Download: ML051540277 (10)

Text

July 12, 2005 Mr. George A. Williams Site Vice President Grand Gulf Nuclear Station Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 756 Port Gibson, MS 39150

SUBJECT:

GRAND GULF NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENT RE: CONTAINMENT AIR LOCK LEAK RATE TEST ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA (TAC NO. MC5539)

Dear Mr. Williams:

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 168 to Facility Operating License No. NPF-29 for the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, Unit 1. This amendment consists of changes to the Technical Specifications in response to your application dated December 17, 2004.

The amendment revises the air lock surveillance test acceptance criteria to be consistent with the NRC approved Industry Technical Specification Task Force (TSTF) change to the Standard Technical Specifications, TSTF-52, entitled, Implement 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix J, Option B.

By letter dated April 6, 1998, the NRC Staff issued amendment number 135 to the GGNS license permitting the implementation of the containment leak rate testing provisions of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix J, Option B.

A copy of our related Safety Evaluation is also enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commission's next biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Bhalchandra Vaidya, Project Manager, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-416

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No.168 to NPF-29

2. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: See next page

July 12, 2005 Mr. George A. Williams Site Vice President Grand Gulf Nuclear Station Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 756 Port Gibson, MS 39150

SUBJECT:

GRAND GULF NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENT RE: CONTAINMENT AIR LOCK LEAK RATE TEST ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA (TAC NO. MC5539)

Dear Mr. Williams:

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued the enclosed Amendment No.168 to Facility Operating License No. NPF-29 for the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, Unit 1. This amendment consists of changes to the Technical Specifications in response to your application dated December 17, 2004.

The amendment revises the air lock surveillance test acceptance criteria to be consistent with the NRC approved Industry Technical Specification Task Force (TSTF) change to the Standard Technical Specifications, TSTF-52, entitled, Implement 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix J, Option B.

By letter dated April 6, 1998, the NRC Staff issued amendment number 135 to the GGNS license permitting the implementation of the containment leak rate testing provisions of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix J, Option B.

A copy of our related Safety Evaluation is also enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commission's next biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Bhalchandra Vaidya, Project Manager, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-416 DISTRIBUTION:

PUBLIC J. Pulsipher

Enclosures:

PDIV-1 Reading RidsRgn4MailCenter (KKennedy)

1. Amendment No. 168 to NPF-29 RidsNrrDlpmPdiv (HBerkow) RidsNrrDlpmDpr (SWall)

2. Safety Evaluation RidsNrrDlpmPdivLpdiv1 (DTerao)

RidsNrrPMBVaidya RidsNrrLALFeizollahi cc w/encls: See next page RidsOgcRp RidsAcrsAcnwMailCenter GHill (2)

RidsNrrDssaSpsb (RDennig)

TS: ML051940154 NRR-100 RidsNrrDipmIrob (TBoyce)

Accession No.:ML051540277(Ltr., Amd, & SE) PKG.: ML051960574 NRR-058 OFFICE PDIV-1/PM PDIV-2/LA SPSB-C/SC IROB-A/SC OGC PDIV-1/SC NAME BVaidya LFeizollahi RDennig TBoyce NWilderman w/comments DTerao

DATE 6/20/2005 6/20/2005 6/22/2005 6/29/2005 7/7/2005

/ /2005 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

ENTERGY OPERATIONS, INC.

SYSTEM ENERGY RESOURCES, INC.

SOUTH MISSISSIPPI ELECTRIC POWER ASSOCIATION ENTERGY MISSISSIPPI, INC.

DOCKET NO. 50-416 GRAND GULF NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 AMENDMENT TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No.168 License No. NPF-29 1.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A.

The application for amendment by Entergy Operations, Inc. (the licensee) dated December 17, 2004, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commission's rules and regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B.

The facility will operate in conformity with the application, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C.

There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations; D.

The issuance of this amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and E.

The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

2.

Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications, as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment; and paragraph 2.C.(2) of Facility Operating License No. NPF-29 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2)

Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A and the Environmental Protection Plan contained in Appendix B, as revised through Amendment No.168, are hereby incorporated into this license.

Entergy Operations, Inc. shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications and the Environmental Protection Plan.

3.

This license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance and shall be implemented within 60 days from the date of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

David Terao, Chief, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: July 12, 2005

ATTACHMENT TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO.168 FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-29 DOCKET NO. 50-416 Replace the following page of the Appendix A Technical Specifications with the attached revised page. The revised page is identified by amendment number and contains marginal lines indicating the areas of change.

Remove Insert 3.6-7 3.6-7

SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION RELATED TO AMENDMENT NO.168 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-29 ENTERGY OPERATIONS, INC., ET AL.

GRAND GULF NUCLEAR STATION, UNIT 1 DOCKET NO. 50-416

1.0 INTRODUCTION

By application dated December 17, 2004, (Agencywide Documents and Access Management System (ADAMS) Accession No. ML043570214), Entergy Operations, Inc., et al. (EOI, the licensee), requested changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) for Grand Gulf Nuclear Station, Unit 1 (GGNS).

The proposed changes would revise the air lock surveillance test acceptance criteria to be consistent with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved Industry Technical Specification Task Force (TSTF) change to the Standard Technical Specifications, TSTF-52, entitled, Implement 10 CFR [Part] 50, Appendix J, Option B. By letter dated April 6, 1998, the NRC Staff issued amendment number 135 to the GGNS license permitting the implementation of the containment leak rate testing provisions of Part 50 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Appendix J, Option B.

Specifically, the licensee proposes to change the acceptance criteria of:

1. the overall air lock leakage rate from # 2 scfh specified in Surveillance Requirement (SR) 3.6.1.2.1.a to # 0.05 La (currently equivalent to # 23.7 scfh) and

2. the leakage rate for each containment air lock door specified in SR 3.6.1.2.1.b from # 2 scfh to # 0.01 La (currently equivalent to # 4.74 scfh) as is currently approved in the Improved Standard TSs.

No changes are proposed to the maximum allowable primary containment leakage rate, La, assumed in the GGNS radiological analyses.

In summary, the licensee is proposing to adopt the containment air lock leakage rate specified as a percentage of the maximum allowable primary containment leakage rate, La, in the Improved Standard TSs rather than the absolute leakage rate currently specified in the GGNS TSs.

2.0 REGULATORY EVALUATION

By letter dated August 13, 1993, as supplemented by letters dated April 15, May 11, June 24, July 20, 1994, and April 18, 1995, EOI applied for an exemption to the requirements of 10 CFR 50, Appendix J. The NRC staff agreed to review the GGNS proposal in support of a proposed rulemaking that would revise Appendix J to allow licensees the option of a performance-based approach to containment leak rate testing. The NRC granted GGNS an exemption on April 26, 1995, to permit the selection of containment leakage rate testing intervals for components on the basis of performance.

The NRC subsequently (September 26, 1995) issued a revised 10 CFR 50, Appendix J, to allow licensees to adopt Option B (performance-based testing requirements) by submitting an implementation plan and requesting a revision to the TS. By letter dated April 6, 1998, the NRC issued Amendment 135 to the GGNS Operating License to permit implementation of the containment leak rate testing provisions of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix J, Option B in accordance with the April 26, 1995, exemption and the associated NRC Staff Safety Evaluation Report.

TSTF 52 moved the acceptance criteria to the Administrative section of the TS, whereas for GGNS the criteria remains in the TS SR.

The proposed changes to move the acceptance criteria, as described in Section 1.0, do not require any exemptions or relief from regulatory requirements, other than those in the current TS, and do not affect conformance with any General Design Criterion differently than described in the Updated Final Safety Analysis Report.

3.0 TECHNICAL EVALUATION

TS LCO 3.6.1.2, Primary Containment Air Locks, governs the operability requirements for the two primary containment air locks. The air locks are required to be operable in plant Modes 1 (Run Mode), 2 (Startup Mode), and 3 (Hot Shutdown Mode). Currently the air locks are required to be leak rate tested by TS 3.6.1.2 SRs in accordance with the 10 CFR 50, Appendix J, Testing Program. The proposed changes will modify the air lock testing acceptance criteria.

No changes are proposed to the maximum allowable primary containment leakage rate, La, assumed in the GGNS radiological analyses.

Part 50 of 10 CFR, Appendix J, allows licensees to adopt Option B (performance-based testing requirements). The GGNS Option B program was developed prior to the issuance of industry guidance provided in TSTF 52. As discussed in Section 2.0 above, in finalizing the wording of the TSTF, one item was incorporated that is not reflected in the GGNS TS. This pertains to the change in acceptable leakage rate for the primary containment air lock. The proposed change is to incorporate the acceptance criteria presentation of Standard TS (a fraction of La) in place of the current presentation, which is based on the original containment testing over 15 years ago.

The proposed change is to adopt a containment air lock leakage rate specified as a fraction of the maximum allowable primary containment leakage rate, La. The performance criterion of the Appendix J program will be maintained, since the air lock leakage rates at accident pressure will be combined with other containment leakages to produce a total of leakage that must be demonstrated to be less than La.

Based on the above discussion, the NRC staff finds that the proposed changes to the GGNS TS are acceptable.

4.0 STATE CONSULTATION

In accordance with the Commission's regulations, the Mississippi State official was notified of the proposed issuance of the amendment. The State official had no comments.

5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATION

The amendment changes a requirement with respect to installation or use of a facility component located within the restricted area as defined in 10 CFR Part 20 and changes the SRs. The NRC staff has determined that the amendment involves no significant increase in the amounts, and no significant change in the types, of any effluents that may be released offsite, and that there is no significant increase in individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure. The Commission has previously issued a proposed finding that the amendment involves no significant hazards consideration, and there has been no public comment on such finding published February 1, 2005 (70 FR 5242). Accordingly, the amendment meets the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b) no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the issuance of the amendment.

6.0 CONCLUSION

The Commission has concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that: (1) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, (2) such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations, and (3) the issuance of the amendments will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.

Principal Contributors: Bhalchandra Vaidya James Pulsipher Date: July 12, 2005

May 2005 Grand Gulf Nuclear Station cc:

Executive Vice President

& Chief Operating Officer Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 31995 Jackson, MS 39286-1995 Wise, Carter, Child & Caraway P. O. Box 651 Jackson, MS 39205 Winston & Strawn 1700 K Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20006-3817 Chief Energy and Transportation Branch Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Division Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality P. O. Box 10385 Jackson, MS 39289-0385 President Claiborne County Board of Supervisors P. O. Box 339 Port Gibson, MS 39150 Regional Administrator, Region IV U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 400 Arlington, TX 76011-8064 Senior Resident Inspector U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission P. O. Box 399 Port Gibson, MS 39150 General Manager, GGNS Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 756 Port Gibson, MS 39150 Attorney General Department of Justice State of Louisiana P. O. Box 94005 Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9005 State Health Officer State Board of Health P. O. Box 1700 Jackson, MS 39205 Office of the Governor State of Mississippi Jackson, MS 39201 Attorney General Asst. Attorney General State of Mississippi P. O. Box 22947 Jackson, MS 39225-2947 Vice President, Operations Support Entergy Operations, Inc.

P.O. Box 31995 Jackson, MS 39286-1995 Director Nuclear Safety Assurance Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 756 Port Gibson, MS 39150 Director Nuclear Safety & Licensing Entergy Operations, Inc.

1340 Echelon Parkway Jackson, MS 39213-8298