[Federal Register: August 8, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 153)]
[Notices]
[Page 41631]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08au01-97]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Circumferential Cracking of Reactor Pressure Vessel Head
Penetration Nozzles; Issue
AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of issuance.
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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued Bulletin
(BL) 2001-01 to all holders of operating licenses for pressurized-water
nuclear power reactors, except those who have permanently ceased
operations and have certified that fuel has been permanently removed
from the reactor vessel. BL 2001-01 addresses the recent discoveries of
cracked and leaking reactor pressure vessel head (VHP) nozzles at
several pressurized water reactors (PWRs) and the concerns raised about
the structural integrity of VHP nozzles throughout the PWR industry.
The purpose of the bulletin is to (1) request PWR licensees to provide
information related to the structural integrity of the VHP nozzles for
their respective facilities, including the extent of VHP nozzle leakage
and cracking that has been found to date, the inspections and repairs
that have been undertaken to satisfy applicable regulatory
requirements, and the basis for concluding that their plans for future
inspections will ensure compliance with applicable regulatory
requirements, and (2) require PWR licensees to provide to the NRC a
written response in accordance with the provisions of 10 CFR 50.54(f).
This information request is necessary to permit the assessment of
plant-specific compliance with NRC regulations. The information will
also be used by the NRC staff to determine the need for and to guide
the development of additional regulatory actions to address cracking in
VHP nozzles.
DATES: The bulletin was issued on August 3, 2001.
ADDRESSEES: Not applicable.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Allen L. Hiser, Jr., at 301-415-1034
or by e-mail to alh@nrc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Bulletin 2001-01 may be examined and/or
copied for a fee at the NRC's Public Document Room, located at One
White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), Rockville,
Maryland, and is accessible electronically from the Agencywide
Documents Access and Management Systems (ADAMS) Public Electronic
Reading Room on the Internet at the NRC web site, http://www.nrc.gov/
NRC/ADAMS/index.html. The ADAMS Accession No. for the bulletin is
ML012080284.
If you do not have access to ADAMS or if there are problems in
accessing documents located in ADAMS, contact the NRC Public Document
Room (PDR) Reference staff at 301-415-4737 or 1-800-397-4209, or by e-
mail to pdr@nrc.gov.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of August 2001.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
David B. Matthews,
Director, Division of Regulatory Improvement Programs, Office of
Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 01-19891 Filed 8-7-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P