ML19209B557

Response in Opposition to Jf Doherty 790810 late-filed Addl Contention 41.Alleged Inadequacy of Decisions Re Water Level Instruments Has No Basis in Fact;Comparisons W/Tmi or Oyster Creek Cannot Be Made.Certificate of Svc Encl

ML19209B557
Person / Time
Site:	Allens Creek File:Houston Lighting and Power Company icon.png
Issue date:	08/16/1979
From:	Biddle C, Newman J BAKER & BOTTS, HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER CO., LOWENSTEIN, NEWMAN, REIS, AXELRAD & TOLL
To:
References
NUDOCS 7910100119
Download: ML19209B557 (5)

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA j ;'

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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION j g\h..,4.Y 6Mj

'h7 BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING LOARD ' ' ' ' g N s s In the Matter of S /W\

S HOUSTON LIGHTING & S POWER COMPANY S Docket No. 50-466 5

(Allens Creek Nuclear S Generating Station, '

S Unit 1) S APPLICANT'S RESPONSE TO JOHN F. DOHERTY'S LATE-FILED ADDITIONAL CONTENTION 41 Houston Lighting & Power Company (Applicant) hereby submits the following response to the additional Ccntention 41 filed by John F. Doherty (Intervenor).

This contention, filed August 10, 1979, is well past the thirty-day period allowed by the Scard's Order of April 11, 1979, for submitting additional contentions. Intervenor justifies his late filing by saying: "This Intervenor was rel'Ictant to rely on newspaper accounts of the event, until now. That is, it was conceived of as ideal to sub-mit the contention relying on Nuclear Safety, in order to avoid inaccuracy, and have an official version. The earliest this could have been submitted with a basis in Oyster Creek was May 2, 1979. This is the reason the con-tention was not filed sooner." Intervenor's " reason" for 1134 ^74 e

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late filing, however, does not stand scrutiny in light of the fact that Intervenor TexPIRG filed an identical conten-tion (numbered 49) on May 16, 1979, while Mr. Dcherty was serving as Acting Executive Director of TexPIRG.-1/ Apparent-ly, there was enough information on May 16 to file the TexPIRG contention without waiting for an account to be published in Nuclear Safety. Mr. Doherty evidently tired d

of waiting for an official version" since Nuclear Safety has yet to publish an account of the accident. -2/

Without regard to the timeliness of this conten-tion, Intervenor's conclusions cuffer the same f ailing as TexPIRG Contention 49. That is, Intervanor simply concludes that ACNGS water level indicators are unreliable based on events at Oyster Creek and Three Mile Island. There is no showing whatsoever that the alleged failures at these two 3/

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plants of significantly different design indicate that the 1/ " Response of TexPIRG to Applicant's Motion for Further Proccdures Relating to TexPIRG Intervention to Compel Further Answers," July 5, 1979. .

-2/ Inter 7enor does not reference any particular article; however, Applicant has determined that there was no report of the incident in the May-June or July-August issues of Nuclear Safety.

3/ Three Mile Island Unit-2 is a PWR and the Oyster Creek plant is a BWR-3. ACN3S is, of course, a BWR-6.

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water level instruments designed for Allens Creek are inadequate. The contention has nc basis and should be dismissed.

Respectfully submitted,

0. &MES Y '

OF COUNSEL: J. Gregory Copelcnd Charles G. Thrash BAKER & BOTTS C, Thomas Biddle, Jr.

3000 One Shell Plaza 3000 One Shell Plaza Houston, Texas 77002 Houston, Texas 77002 LOWENSTEIN, NEWMAN, REIS, J. R. Newman AXELRAD & TOLL Harold F. Reis 1025 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Robert H. Culp .

Washington, D.C. 20036 1025 Connecticut Ave., N.W. .

Washington, D.C. 20036 ATTORNEYS FOR APPLICANT HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER COMPANY

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l j 7 f,,J9 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION BEFORE THE ATOMIC SAFETY AND LICENSING BOARD In the Matter of S S

HOUSTON LIG" TING & POWER COMPANY S Docket No. 50466 S

(Allens Creek Nuclear Generating S Station, Unit 1) S CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that copies of the foregoing Applicant's Response to John F. Doherty's Late-Filed Additional Contention 41 in the above captioned proceeding were served on the following by deposit in the United States mail, postage prepaid, or by hand delivery this //f fL day of A> s .J W r 1979.

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Shcidon J. Wolfe, Esq., Chairman Richard Lowerre, Esq.

Atomic Safety and Licensing Assistant Attorney General Board Panel for the State of Texas U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission P. O. Box 12548 Washington, D. C. 20555 Capitol Station Austin, Texas 78711 Dr. E. Leonard Cheatum Route 3, Box 350A Hon. Charles J. Dusek Watkinsville, Georgia 30677 Mayor, City of Wallis P. O. Box 312 Mr. Gustave A. Linenberger Wallis, Texas 77485 Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel Hon. Leroy H. Grebe U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission County Judge, Austin County Washington, D. C. 20555 P. O. Box 99 Bellville, Texas 77418 Chase R. Stephens Docketing and Service Section Atomic Safety and Licensing Office of the Secretary of the Appeal Board Commission U.S. Nuclear Regulatory U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Commission Washington, D. C. 20555 Washington, D. C. 20555 R. Gordon Gooch, Esq. Atomic Safety and Licensing Baker & Botts Board Panel 1701 Pennsylvania Avenue, N. W. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Washington, D. C. 20006 Commission Washington, D. C. 20555 11 H ^77

Steve Schinki, Esq.

Staff Counsel U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D. C. 20555 John F. Doherty 4438 1/2 Leeland Houston, Texas 77023 Madeline Bass Framson 4822 Waynesboro Drive Houston, Texas 77035 Robert S. Framson 4822 Waynesboro Drive Houston, Texas 77035 Carro Hinderstein 8739 Link Terrace Houston, Texas 77025 D. Marrack 420 Mulberry Lane Bellaire, Texas 77401 -

Brenda McCorkle 6140 Darnell Houston, Texas 77074 F. H. Potthoff, III 1814 Pine Village Houston, Texas 77080 Wayne E. Rentfro P. O. Box 1335 Rosenberg, Texas 77471 James M. Scott, Jr.

8302 Albacore Houston, Texas 77074 0- 26 d1 .h.

C. Thomas Biddle, Jr. y 7A llJv ^ 7, 9

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