ML20063K270

Response to Secretary .Deferral of Emergency Response & Planning Issues Shows Commission Intention of Not Letting Facts Interfere W/Outcome of Proceeding. Certificate of Svc Encl

ML20063K270
Person / Time
Site:	Indian Point
Issue date:	08/30/1982
From:	Scheiner C WEST BRANCH CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION
To:
References
ISSUANCES-SP, NUDOCS 8209030306
Download: ML20063K270 (7)

Text

. _ - _ _ _ - _ _

r i

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 00CKETED

, USHRC Before the Commissioners:

Nunzio J. Palladino, Chairman - " ~~

Victor Gilinsky 12 SEP -2 P3:3g John F. Ahearne Jam .kses e ONET ERV In the Matter of  !

Consolidated Edison Company of  ! Docket Numbers50-247SP New York (Indian Point Unit 2)  !50-286SP Power Authority of the State'of  ! August 30,1982 New York (Indian Point Unit 3)  !

WESPAC'S RESPONSE TO AUGUST 23, 1982 LETTER TO A.S.L.B. FROM SAMUEL J. CHILK, SECRETARY On July 27, 1982, the Commission issued. Memorandum and Order CLI-82-15 in the above-captioned proceeding which, among other things, directed the Atomic Safety and Licensing Board to reconsider and reformulate the contentions which it had framed for consideration in this investigation. The Board, not being able to follow the Commission's Order without creating a situation where "the testimony, perforce, will consist almost entirely of that offered by the Licensees and the NRC Staff" (8/9/82 Memorandum and Certification page 4), requested further guidance from the Commission on August 9, 1982. On August 23, Comission Secretary Samuel J.

Chilk replied for the Comission, which had been unable to produce c quorum before this week.

The Secretary replied that the board should defer hearing evidence on Comission questions 3 and 4, dealing with emergency response and planning, until the record on the other five questions, particularly those dealing with accident probability and risk assessment, had been heard. He noted that the NRC Staff had started its "120-day clock" on emergency planning at the beginning of August and posulated that "to hear testimony regarding what is likely to be a rapidly changing situation would be wasteful of the time and resources of the Board and the Parties ... " (letter at page 2).

8209030306 820030 DR ADOCK 05000 bQ

. WESPAC to NRC 8/30/82 Page 2

,/. ,

, WESPAC strongly objects to the meaning, th'e method, and the motivation of the July 27 order and the August 23 letter. We . urge the Comission to allow the licensing Board to complete the proceeding with contentions framed as the Board originally framed them. We urge that the Board, which is primarily an investigatory body, be permitted to complete its investigation and to recomend its findings to. the Commission. With all the evidence before them, the learned Board.and Comissioners should be able to reach the best decision -- a decision in the interests of the people of the New York Metropolitan area.

Former NRC Comissioner Peter Bradford once said: ,

(The NRC) s'iould deal with its critics more or less the way the tar baby dealt with Br'er Rabbit. It should have an almost infinite capacity for repressive tolerance, the extending of exquisite procedural courtesy to particip. ants who are never, in fact, allowed to get their hands on anything vital. This can be expected to frustrate critics to the point where they become obsessed or shrill or demagogic or a little crazy. Then, of course, their arguments are more easily dismissed as obsessed, shrill, demagogic, or crazy..."

\

Perhaps the intervenors' case in this proceeding was getting too close to something vital, and hence the " courtesies" extended by the Licensing Board had to be ccmmuted to the repression of the Comission.

As 'an intervenor with very limited resources, WESPAC should, perhaps.

be grateful for the Commission's and the Secretary's interference. Since the Comission will have the ultimate determination (short of Congress) on the outcome of this proceeding, we should appreciate the Comission's honesty in admitting now, before more of our scarce supply of peoplepower and money is expended, that it has no intention of objectively looking at the facts in this case. By waiting until intervenors painstakingly prepared and filed extensive, detailed, and damning testimony on emergency planning, and by then excluding it from the record of the proceeding, the Comission once again ensures that the Emperor himself believes he is not naked. We children are not to be heard -- in pointing out that the Emperor is only wearing earplugs and a blindfold.  ;

-%--w-m-,,w -,--v- - + wr-- + < ,aw

t I WESPAC to NRC 8/30/82 Page 3 s e 1 The starting of the 120-day clock, may be an encouraging sign that some of the grossest deficiencies in the Indian Point Emergency Plans will be attended to. But the use of the starting of that clock as an excuse to close the Commission's eyes to clear identification of the deficiencies in the plan, as presented by the intervenors in this case, points up once again the Comission's (or at least the Secretary's) intention not to let the facts interfere with the outcome of either this proceeding or the determination, at the end of the 120 days, about continued operation of Indian Point.

We urge the Commission to take one of two actions:

1. Permit the licensing board to continue along its original course.

Extend the September 18 deadline to spring,1983. Allow the Board to investigate emergency planning first and to prepare a recommendation to the NRC staff be early December as to whether the status of Emergency Planning has been improved to the point where the plants should be allowed to run after the 120-day clock. When the Board presents its findings to the Commission, make a full and objective determination based on all the evidence.

2. Make your determination now that. Indian Point is wonderful and safe and no danger to anyone, regardless of whatever annoying evidence or facts may have already surf aced in this and other proceedings. End the hypocrisy, time, and expense of this case whose outcome has been pre-determined. Allow us, as taxpayers who pay your salaries and the expenses of the Staff and interested States, and as ratepayers who pay the expenses of the Licensees, and as intervenors, who pay in blood, sweat, tears, and money for our own cases, to begin to seek judiciil and other extra-regulatory remedies for your willful ignorance of the evidence already before yourselves, your staff, and the Licensing Board.

,,y , - - . -

T, g

.,f WESPAC to NRC 8/30/82 .. Page 4 Respectfully submitted, 4 __

x Charles A. Scheiner,

_Co-chairperson _

WESPAC Westchester People's Action Coalition, Inc.

255 Grove Street, Box 488 White Plains, New York 10601 xc: Attached service list.

\

l l

i e

e

cm ,-

O UNITED STATES.0F AMERICA NUCLEAR REGULATORY ~COMMISS10N '

- DOCKETED Before the Comissioners: USNRC Nunzio J. Palladino, Chairman Victor Gilinsky John F. Ahearne 5 SEP -2 P356 Thomas M. Roberts James K. Asselstine OFFICE OF SECRETARY 00CKETING & SERVICE BRANCH In the Matter of  !

Consolidated Edison Company of  ! Docket Number 50-247SP

! Docket Number 50-286SP New York (Indian Point Unit 2)

Power Authority of the State of.  ! August 30,1982 New York (Indian Point. Unit 3) '!

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that copies of WESPAC'S RESPONSE TO AUGUST 23, 1982 .

LETTER TO A.S.L.B FROM SAMUEL J. CHILK, SECRETARY, have been served on August 30, 1982 by first class mail, postage prepaid, on the following: .

• Louis J. Carter, Esq., Chairman Paul F. Colarull:., Esq.

Administrative Judge Joseph J. Levin, Jr., Esc. ~

Atcmic Safety and Licensing Board Pamela S. Horowitc, Esc. ~

7300 City Line Avenue Charles Morgan, Jr., Esc.

Philadelphia, PA 19151-2291 Morgan Associates, Chartered

~

1899 L Str.eet, N.W.

.Dr. Oscar E.; Peris Washington, D.C. 20036.

-Ad=inistrative Judge- - -. . .

Atomic Saf ety and Licensing Boar'd Charles M. Pratt, Esc. ~

O.S. Nuclear Regulatory Cc= mission Thomas R. Frev, Esc.~

Washington, D.C. 20555 . Power Authori y of'the State of New York Mr. Frederick J. Shon 10 Colu= bus Circle Administrative Judge New York, NY 10019 Atcmic Safety and Licensing Board U.S. Nuc~ lear Regulatory Cu.uission Ellyn R. Weiss, Esq.

Washington, D.C. 20555 William S . Jordan, AAA, . sc.-

Earmen & Weiss Brent L. Brandenburg, Esq. 1725 I Street, N.W., suite SC Assistant General Counsel Washington D.C. 20006 Censolidated Edison Ccmpany of New York, In c . Joan Eolt, Project Director 4 Irring Place Indian Point Project New York, NY 10003 New York P'iblic Interest Research Group Mavor 9 'm-- av Street Village of Buchanan New York, NY 10007 236 Tate Avenue Buchanan, NY 10511

e D

(o

- ~

John Gilroy, Westchester Coordinator Marc L. Parris, Esq.

-Indian Point Pro j ect- Eric Thorsen, Esq.

New York Public Interest County' Attorney, County of Research Group Rockland 2'40 Central Avenue 11 New Hempstead Road White Plains, NY 10606 New City, NY 10956 Jeffse.y M. 31um,_ Es_q,.___._ _ Geoffrey Cobb Ryan New York tnzversity Law-School- Conservation Cmmi ttee - - ~

423 Vanderbilt Hall Chairman, Director 40 Washington Scuare South New York City Audubon Society New York, NY 10012 . 71 West 23rd Street, Suite 18)

New York, NY 10010

_' Charles J. Maikish, Esq.

Li't'igatien Division Greater New York Council en 4- The Port Authority of Energy.

New York and New Jersey c/o Dean R. Corr'e n , Director One World Trade Center New York University New York, NY 10048 26 Stuyvesant Street

.New York, NY 10003 Ezra I. Bialik, Esq.

Steve Leipsiz, Esq. Honorable Richard L. Brodsky Environmental Protection Bureau Member of the County Legis12:1 New York State Attorney Westchester County General's Office > County Office Building Two World Trade Center White Plains, NY 10601 New York, NY 10047 Pat Posner, Spokesperson Alfred'3. Del Bello Parents Conce_'ned About '

Westchester County Executive Indian Point - ..

! 'Westch5 ster County P.O. Box 125

~~~~148 Mart'in' Avenue Croton-on-Hudsen , NY 10 5 20 White Plains, NY 10601 Andrew S. Roffe, Esq.

New York State Assembly - n Albany, NY 12248 Renee Swar :, Esq.

Betein, Hays, Sklar & Her: berg Attorneys for Metropolitan Lorna Sal: man Transperation Authority Mid-Atlantic Representative 200 Park Avenue Friends of the Earth, Inc.

New York, NY 10166 208 West 13th Street New York, NY 10011 Honorable Ruth Messinger Member of the Council of the City of New York Distric #4 City Hall New York, NY 10007

T, b

Ruthanne G. Miller, Esq.

Atomic Safety and Licensing Board Panel U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C. 20555 Zipperah S. Fleisher West 3 ranch Ccnse_7ation Renee Schwart:, Esq.

Association Paul Chessin , Esq.

44 3 Bii'effa .yi,s a Rea.d Laurens R. Schwarte, I.sq.

Margaret Oppel, Esq. '

~~

New City , NY 109 56 3ctein, Eays, Skal & Hertcherg Judith.Ressler, Cecrdinatcr 200 Park Avenue acckland'Cd*4-=as for. Safe Energy' New Ycrk, NY 10166 300 New Eem stead Road New City',.Ni 10756 Janice Mccre, Esq.

n. Counsel,for NRC Stait

~

Da'vid E. Pikus,'Esq. Office of.- the Executive Legal Director Richard I.' Ceaja, Esq. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 330 Madisen Avenue Ccmmisssion

~

New York, NY 10017 Washington, D.C. 205S5 4temic Safety and Licensing Scard- M*- Samuel J* Chilk U*S* Nuciaar Regulatcry Cc==ission Secretary of.the Ccmmission Washing cn, D.C. 20Som- U..S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Atc=ic Safety and Licensing Acceal Scard , ,

Leonard Bickwit, Esq.

U.S. Nuclear Regula: cry Cc==1ssion General Counsel Washine cn, D.C. 20555

~ ~

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

~

Washington, D.C..20555 -

• ^. u dccketi5g. ard Se.r-Iic,e_Section, ,

,Cra1q Kaplan, Esq.

• • ^ e ~c e n a e

~u

. cam- C. ' '

U*S* Nuc1 ear Regu .a ,~.I C _4ssion National Emergencv 3 ' a.1ry -

Civil Committee 175 Fifth Avenue, Suite 712 Washingten, D.C. 20 c o- -

New York, NY 10010 4

?

Jonathan D. Feinberg

(

l i *:.Y. Public Service Commission j -

Empire State Pla2e, Pidg 3.

Altany, f:Y 12224

~

fDfL l

l l

1 l

_