ML20059M574

NRC Staff Corrections to Transcript of Hearing in Atlanta,Ga on 900919 in Above Captioned Proceeding.* W/Certificate of Svc

ML20059M574
Person / Time
Site:	Vogtle
Issue date:	09/28/1990
From:	Barth C NRC OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL (OGC)
To:
References
CON-#489-10866 90-617-03-OLA, 90-617-3-OLA, OLA, NUDOCS 9010050064
Download: ML20059M574 (13)

Text

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UNITED STATES OF AhiERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COhihilSSION cg DU q pif:08 i

BEFORE THE ATOhflC SAFETY AND LICENSING BOARD In the hiatter of

)

)

Docket Nos. 50 424 - Ogg GEORGIA POWER COhiPANY

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50-425

)

(Vogtle Electric Generating Plant,

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ASLBP No. 90 617 03-OLA Units 1 and 2)

)

)

Facility Operating License No. NPF-68

)

Amendment No. 31 July 10,1990

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and

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Facility Operating License No NPF 81

)

Amendment No.11, July 10,1990

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NRC STAFF CORRECTIONS TO THE TRANSCRIPT OF THE HEARING IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA ON SEPTEhiBER 19,1990 i

IN THE ABOVE CAPTIONED PROCEEDING P6 L9 delete "since" substitute "the sense of" f

L11 delete the ", t, substitute ".T'[her's)

P19 L8' add "that" before the last word L16 delete "in" substitute ", and the "

L17 delete the line and substitute " materia. all together as an integrated whole. We cannot" P20 L13 pluralize the first word " events" P21 L2 should begin "... a chain or sequence of actions..."

i L3 should begin

• Fred Points could be harmed."

P22-L7 delete " plant" substitute " plant's" L15 the line should end ", their [GANE) claim is that there" DESIGNATED GRIGINAD 9010050064 900920 PDR ADOCK 05 g4 '

n9 Certified By. 6 -0 h (42 f

1 -

P24 L13 delete the two hyphens L14 should begin " standing. They..."

P27 L25 delete "Because" substitute "Besides" P29 L22 delete *Barth" substitute " Carpenter" P32 L3 delete "platits" substitute " diesels" P34 L13 the end of the line should read "information. They" l

P45 L10 should begin " pleading. We..."

L12 should begin " modification. This..."

PS2 LS delete the hyphen substitute " response" PSS L1 delete "None" substitute "Some" L4 delete "Simpson" substitute "Seaton" L22 should begin " mere suspicion."

P56 L11 should read " applicants' evaluation (with its May 25 letter to the NRC) does not explain" L13 should end " application. They have not read the safety" P73 Ls 21&22 should read " basis really does not, in my view of the dictionary meaning, mean a basis, Your Honor. I think we have to look" L24 should begin " regulations. Do..."

P99 LS should begin " discussed the name. From the point" P100 L8 should end "that significant hazard is or may be" P101 L9 should end " 'we believe', 'we expect', 'we contend', 'we wonder', 'ae

' contend' "

i 3

t P113 If the middle should read " thing runs. It doesn't"

.L10 should end "some kind of contention. You have 'o assure that [L11] the Staff was wrong."

P114 L5 should begin "than having it trip off" L6 should end " question. It is a very, very narrow" P115. L24 delete " half" substitute "have" P126 L8 delete " restart" substitute "recire".

P139 L19 should begin " written. They do" P158 L18 should end and line 19 should begin "have rnade good cause for [L19) amending the petition" L20 should begin CLI in Catawba finding for the Appeal Boara's" P160 L11 delete " repertoire" substitute " repartee" s

Charles A. Barth Counsel for NRC Staff I

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_ :-. ':. 'fi U U!..: CUN!:i0:4 September 18,1990 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION l

BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING BOARD In the Matter of

)

1

)

l:

GEORGIA POWER COMPANY

)

Docket Nos. 50-424 L

)

50 425 j

(Vogtle E!ectric Generating Plant,

)

Units 1 and 2)

)

ASLBP No. 90 617 03 OLA i

Facility Operatin Amendment No.g Ucense No. NPF.68 i

31, July 10,1990

)

and

)

Facility Operatin

)

Amendment No.g License No. NPF 81 11, July 10,1990

)

{

AFFIDAVIT OF DAVID B. MATTHEWS IN SUPPORT OF NRC STAFF RESPONSE IN OPPOSITION TO GEOROIANS AGAINST NUCLJAR ENERGY'S AMENDED PETIDON FOR f JAVE TO INTERVENE I, David B. Matthews, having Srst been duly sworn, hereby deposes and states as 1

follows.

L I am employed as Director, Project Directorate II 3, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, U.S. NRC, Washington, D.C.

t I attended the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, and received a B.S.

degree in Electrical Engineering in 1970. I then attended Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and received an M.S. degree with a major in Electrical Engineering in 1972.

In my present position I direct and supervise personnel responsible for the regulatory overstght and licensing reviews for eleven nuclear units operated by Duke Power Co. and Georgia Power Company.

These responsibilities include review and MN ff

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2-l approval of safuy evaluations of licenses submittals involving plant modl5 cation and related changes to the technical specifications issued with each operating license.

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Prior to assuming my present usignment in 1988, I supervised personnel responsible for review of appilcant and licensee plans prepared in response to those portions of 10 C.F.R. Part 50 related to emergency preparedness at nuclear facilities. I

!l-was also responsible for managing and directing the onsite review of emeyancy preparedness programs to assure cornpliance with Commission requirements both a they applied to operating reactors and as they are required to be implemented prior to 1

issuance of an operating license.

Prior to 1981, I served as Chlaf, Reactor Security Section, Division of Safeguards, U.S. NRC. In this capacity I was responsible for supervising the review of resetor security programs developed in response to the requirements contained in 10 C.F.R. Part 73.55.

These requirements include provisions for physical ucurity hardware and programs, contingency plans, and guard training and qualification programs. My previous assignments within the NRC, prior to May of 1980, included duties of increasing responsibility in the area of nuclear power plant and fuel facility security, safeguards and

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i contingency planning. These duties began with my initial assignment as an NRC plant protection analyst in August 1975.

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- Between 1972 and 1975 I was employed as an electncal engineer with 1

Westinghouse Electric Corporation in Hunt Valley, MD.

My final position with Westinghouse was with the Nuclear Instrumentation and Control Department.

j I have been requested to review the Georgians Against Nuclear Energy (GANE)

I petition to intervene dated Julv 23, 1990 and its undated Amendment To Petition For j

i 1.4 ave To Intervens. I and other members of the NRR staff have particularly. reviewed

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3-l the proffered contentions as they may relate to the amendments to revise tech:.hsl I

specification 4.8.1.1.2h(6)(c) requested by the licenses on May 25,1990 and granted by the NRC on.aly 10, 1990, 55 Fed. Reg. 32337 (Aug. 8,1990). That request was for i

permission to bypass the hiah Jacket water temperature (HJWT) trip switches on the diesel generators.

The following is the Staffs technical analysis of GANE's spee!5c concern with j

Georgia Power Company's " request to bypass the high jacket water temperature switch -

on the backup generator that caused the March 20,1990 accident at Plant Vogtle* and the contentions proffered by GANE.

The following should be recogrdzed:

1 1.

For each Vogtle Unit there are two emergency diesel generators (EDG)

(four on the site) that provide power to the plant in the event that nonnal 1

offsite power (the preferred source of power) is lost to the plant site.

2.

Each Vogtle EDO is aligned to its own electrical power train (i.e. an independent and separate set of electrical equipment capable of supplying power to the equipment necessary to safely shut down the Unit).

3, This design of two EDOs aligned to separate and independent trains ensures that in the event a failure occurs in either an EDG or its associated train, the other EDG and its associated train remain available to supply L

emergency po':<er to the facility. In addition to the two EDOs, each Vogtle

- Unit can be supplied power from offsite through either of two redundant

'resers e auxiliary transformers." As a result, there are four different means of supplying power to the plant equipment necessary to safely shut down the Unit.

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4.

The EDGs have an elaborate array of " protective trips

• which are designed y

to protect the EDG and its constituent components from damage. One of 4

i these protective trips is the high jacket water temperature trip. nis EDO trip consists of three temperature senses that sense EDO jacket water

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temperature and " trip"if the water temperature rises to 2007 247. If two out of three of these sensors trip, the EDG is shut down. On March 20, 1990, the root cause for the Unit 1 'A' EDO trip is believed (not conclusive) to be intermittent actuation (failure) of two oui of the three i

sennts. The actual water temperature is not believed to have been 2007.

It s'sould also be noted that these switches do not control the flow of Jacket i

waier to the EDG as GANE alleged in its earlier Petition.

GANE's concern also states that "if this switch is bypassed the potential-for generator engine to overheat is increased." 'If the generator engine were damaged no power would be available for the plant site." With regard to this portion of GAhTs

)

concern it should be recognized that:

1.

The OPC request to manually bypass (i.e., installing valves which are closed and prevent the unsors from tripping the EDG) the high jacket water i

temperature sensors is likely to increase the potential that the EDC could be damaged due to overheating. This is because if there is a failure within H

the EDO jacket water cooling systen; the EDG would no lenger be j

automatically tripped and shut down. Instead, operator action would be relied upon in response to the EDG high Jacket water temperature alarm located both locally (EDG room) and in the main control room. As mentioned above, the Vogtle design incorporates two redundant and

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i separate EDGs which provide power to two separate electrical power trains.

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If an EDO problem occurred in which operator action failed to prevent EDG damage, the redundant EDG and its associated power train are

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daigned and capable of providing sufficient power to plant equipment to safely shut down the plant.

2.

Contrary to what GANE seems to allege, by manually bypassing the high i

Jacket water temperature EDG trip and thus preventing spurious trips of the EDG due to sensor failures, overall EDG reliability is increased.

1 3.

However, it is recognized that bypassing the high jacket water temperature trip does prevent automatic EDG trips that result from valid fauures in the L

EDG cooling system. This, therefore, does represent a finite increase in the possibility of EDO damage and fauure. The probability of a valid EDO failure (in the cooling water system) occurring coincident with an emergency 1

start of the EDG is considered to be small. The risk of potential EDO j

damage in an emergency is acceptable given the avaDability of a redundant L

EDO and given the increased reliability of the EDG (pravention of spurious-EDG failures stemming from jacket water temperature sensor failures) with the resultant enhancement to plant safety.

4.

Although there may be an increased potential for diesel generator damge due to lou of engine cooling (real failure) during emergency starta, the l

operating experience to date at Vogtle indicates that this potentiality is outweighed by the increased EDO reliability achieved and the commensurate benefit to overall plant safety.

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i 6-l I have attached the Licensee's Request of May 25, 1990 To Revise Technical l

Specification 4.8.1.1.2h(6)(c), the Staffs SE and Reg Guide 1.9 Rev. 2 to my affidavit l

for additionalinformation. It is the Staffs view that undoing or reversing the associated amendments to the technical speelfications for the two Vogtle facilities would degrade the I

reliability of the EDGs and would not be in the Interest of the public health and safety.

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/a4 & 4 DAVID B. N AIIMEWS Subscribed and sworn to before me this /FAday of September,1990 i

efM I

Notary Public i

CAROL L. Avou:st: Iso NOTARY N6LIC sIAit CF MAlYLAND My Commmien lappu Jonwary 17,1994 i

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t UNITaDeTATI8 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMisslON I

i n ASMINGTON, D. C. 30004 September ll,1990

....+

Charles Bechhoefer, Chairman Emeth A. Luebke Administrative Judge Administrative Judge Atomic Safety and Licensing 5500 Friendshio Boulevard Board Panel Apartment 1923R U.S. Nuclear Regulatory C1evy Chase, MD 20415 Commission Washington, D.C.

20555 James H. Carpenter Administrative Judge Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C.

20555 In The Matter of l

GEORGIA POWER COMPANY (Vogtle Electric Generating Plant, Units 1 and 2)

Docket Nos. 50-424. 50-425 Dear Administrative Judges On September 14, 1990, the Staff filed the 'NRC Staff Response in L

Opposition to Georgians Against Nuclear Energy's Amended Petition for Leave to l

Intervene' and appended an unexecuted affidavit by David B. Matthews. Enclosed is Mr. Matthews' affidavit. It is noted that Mr. Matthews, upon his final review of the affidavit, amended the last rentence of the affidavit to make his conclusion clearer.

1 Sincerely, em W Edwin J.

eis o

L Deputy ssistant General Counsel for Reactor Licensing i

Enclosure:

As stated cc:

Service List w/ enclosure

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L Pl U i; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA t

NUCLEAP REGULATORY COMMISSION t

% DCT -1 Pl2:08 i

BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING BOARD

,, 3, c0C4 ?,+mg s u. m,,,

r Anew In the Matter of

)

)

Docket Nos. 50-424 GEORGIA POWER COMPANY

)

50-425

)

(Vogtle Electric Generating Plant,

)

ASLBP No.90-617 03 OLA i"

Units 1 and 2)

)

)

i Facility Operating License No. NPF 68

)

Amendment No. 31, July 10,1990

)

and

)

Facility Operating License No. NPF 81

)

Amendment No.11, July 10,1990

)

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 1 hereby certify that copies of the executed AFFIDAVIT OF DAVID B. MATIMEWS IN SUPPORT OF "NRC STAFF RESPONSE IN OPPOSITION TO GEORGIANS AGAINST NUCLEAR ENERGY AMENDED PETITION FOR LEAVE TO INTERVENE", NRC STAFF CORRECTIONS TO THE TRANSCRIIT OF THE HEARING HELD IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA on SEPTEMBER 19,1990 in the above-captioned proceeding and LETTER FROM EDWIN J. REIS, NRC DATED SEPTEMBER 18, 1990 TO THE LICENSING BOARD have been served on the following by deposit in the United States mail, first class, or as indicated by an asterisk through deposit in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's internal mail system, or as indicated by a double asterisk by use of express mail service, this 28th day of September, 1990.

Charles Bechhoefer, Chairman

• Emmeth A. Luebke Administrative Judge Administrative Judge i

Atomic Safety and Licensing 5500 Friendship Boulevard Board Panel Apartment 1923N j

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commissio'.

Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815 Washington, D.C. 205Li Arthur H. Domby, Esq."

James H. Carpenter

• Trautman, Sanders, Lockerman i

Administrative Judge and Ashmore Atomic Safety and Licensing Chandler Building, Sch 1400 Board Panel 127 Peachtree Sucet, N.E.

)

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atlanta, Georgia 30306 1

L Washington, D.C. 20555 l

l t

l l

L 2

Ernest L Blake, Jr.

Adjudicatory File * (2)

Shaw, Pittman, Potts, and Trowbridge Atomic Safety and Ucensing Board 2300 N Street, N.W.

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C. 20037 Washington, D.C. 20555

Director, Office of the Secretary' (2)

Emironmental Protection Division U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Department of Natural Resources Washington, D.C. 20555 l

205 Butler Street, S.E.

Attn: Docketing and Service Section I

Suite 1252 L

Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Georgians Against Nuclear Energy" l

P.O. Box 8574 Atomic Safety and Ucensing Atlanta, Georgia 30306 Board Panel * (1)

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory his. Glenn Carroll Commission 139 Kings Highway Washington, D.C. 20555 Decatur, Georgia 30307 Atomic Safety and Ucensing hir. James A. Bailey" Appeal Panel' (6) hianager Ucensing U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Georgia Power Company l

Commission Post Office Box 1295 l

Washington, D.C. 20555 Birmingham, Alabama 35201

\\

i Stewart D. Ebneter, Esq.'

Regional Administrator USNRC, Region II l

101 hiarietta St., N.W., Suite 2900 l

Atlanta, Georgia 30303 1

Y /bd Ch'arles A. Barth Counsel for NRC Staff i

i

.