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SECY-00-0209

October 23, 2000

Contact:  A. McMurtray, OEDO

WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING OCTOBER 13, 2000

The Weekly Information Report is compiled by the Office of the EDO and includes highlights of Headquarters and Regional Office activities.

Contact: A. McMurtray, OEDO by E-mail: ACM2@nrc.gov.

ENCLOSURE A

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Indian Point Unit 2

On October 10, 2000, Consolidated Edison Company of New York (Con Edison) removed steam generator no. 24 from containment and transported it to an onsite interim storage facility. Steam generator no. 21 and no. 22 were previously transported to interim storage. The Steam Generator Replacement Group has decided to install the new steam generator no. 21 prior to removing no. 23. Con Edison made this change in order to gain time in the schedule and to try to fit-up the first new SG prior to doing any more weld buildup on the others. The old steam generators will be placed in the new onsite storage building following its completion. Core reload is currently scheduled to start after installation of the new steam generators.

On October 25, 2000, Con Edison is scheduled to meet with NRC staff in the Regional Office to further discuss the implementation of the station improvement plan. The focus of the meeting will be in the areas of engineering support and safety system readiness.

Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant

On September 28, 2000, NRC staff members participated in a plant tour at the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant in support of the discovery phase of the ongoing Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) hearing.

The ongoing hearing is related to an environmental contention filed by the Board of Commissioners of Orange County, NC (BCOC) on January 31, 2000, and admitted by the ASLB on August 7, 2000. The contention relates to the probability of occurrence a postulated accident scenario and challenges the adequacy of the staff's December 21, 1999, Environmental Assessment (EA). The EA was performed in support of Carolina Power & Light Company's (CP&L's), December 23, 1998, license amendment application. This application proposed to increase the spent fuel storage capacity at the Harris plant by adding rack modules to spent fuel pools C and D and placing these pools in service.

The discovery phase of the hearing began on August 21, 2000, and is scheduled to end on October 20, 2000. NRC staff members will be deposed and will participate in the depositions of both BCOC's and CP&L's experts on this contention. Written summaries from all parties are due in November and the oral argument is scheduled for December 7, 2000, in Raleigh, NC.

ComEd, PECO, and AmerGen Indirect License Transfers

On October 5, 2000, the staff issued Orders approving indirect license transfers for the following plants: Braidwood, Byron, Dresden, LaSalle, Quad Cities, Zion, Peach Bottom, Limerick, Salem, Clinton, TMI-1, and Oyster Creek. These orders grant NRC approval to the proposed merger of Unicom (the parent company of Commonwealth Edison (ComEd)) and Philadelphia Electric Company (PECO) (which is co-owner of AmerGen). The merger will form a new company, Exelon corporation, which will become the parent company of ComEd and PECO. The new company will be the nation's largest electric utility, based on the number of customers, and the largest generator of nuclear power. The merger is expected to occur as soon as the licensees receive final SEC approval which is projected for mid to late October.

Nuclear Management Company

On August 7, 2000, Northern States Power Company (Monticello, Prairie Island, and Prairie Island ISFSI), Wisconsin Electric Power Company (Point Beach), Wisconsin Public Service Company (Kewaunee), and IES Utilities, Inc. (Duane Arnold) transferred operating authority under their licenses to Nuclear Management Company, LLC (NMC). The staff issued conforming amendments to the licenses on the same day. The transfers were previously approved by NRC orders dated May 15, 2000. NMC is now the licensed operator of the plants, while the utilities retain ownership of the facilities. Mike Sellman, former Chief Nuclear Officer for Wisconsin Electric Power Company, will be the President of NMC.

International Exchange - Steam Generator and Materials Issues

Staff from the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES) and the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR), met with representatives of the Institute of Protection and Nuclear Safety (IPSN) at their offices in Fontenay - Aux - Roses, France on October 3, 2000. The meeting was held to exchange information issues of mutual interest. A primary focus of the NRC representatives during this meeting was to ascertain the level of interest in and an understanding of projected or ongoing research related to steam generator severe accident response and testing of steam generator tubes during severe accident conditions. IPSN presented their planned multi-year program of research on this issue which started this year and parallels the program proposed by RES. Further discussions with IPSN will include attempting to form a joint cooperative international program that holds the promise of substantial savings in costs and schedule.

While in Germany to attend an MPA Seminar on October 5-6, 2000, NRC representatives contacted Dr. H. H. Over of the European Commission Joint Research Center at Petten. The MPA is the material research center at the University of Stuttgart, and Dr. Over is the developer and custodian of the HTM (High Temperature Materials) Data Bank which contains materials property data for pressurized-water reactors (PWRs) at severe accident condition temperatures. The NRC intends to pursue access to this data base.

Meeting with the Mixed Oxide (MOX) Fuel Consortium to Discuss MOX Fuel Design and Licensing Issues

On October 12, 2000, staff from the Reactor Systems Branch, Division of Systems Safety and Analysis (DSSA) and the lead NRR project manager for MOX licensing met with Duke Power Corp. (the licensee) and representatives from the MOX fuel consortium in the NRC offices in Rockville, Maryland, to discuss issues regarding the design and licensing of weapons grade MOX fuel for use in commercial nuclear power plants. The staff provided a number of questions and issues in advance of the meeting to the consortium for discussion based on the continuing review of the fuel design topical report. Of primary interest to the staff is the plan by the licensee to fabricate and burn MOX lead test assemblies (LTAs) in order to gather data to demonstrate that fuel performance is consistent with the analysis assumptions in the licensing basis. There continue to be a number of uncertainties regarding the LTAs and plans for data collection on fuel performance during plant operation. The staff plans to have further interactions with the MOX fuel consortium prior to issuance of the safety evaluation on the fuel design topical report.

Event Response Discussion at ANS/R-III Workshop

On October 4, 2000, a member of the Events Assessment, Generic Communications and Non-Power Reactors Branch (REXB) of NRR participated in the Events Response breakout session at the ANS Region III Workshop in Lisle, Illinois. Participants at this breakout session also included NRC regional staff and utility licensing/regulatory affairs managers. The REXB staff member discussed how the agency uses Management Directive (MD) 8.2, "Incident Response Program," during response to emergencies and the risk-informed revisions being made to MD 8.3, "Incident Investigation Program." Following the presentation, the staff member responded to a number of questions regarding expectations of communication, both internal and external to the NRC and the utilities, during and shortly after the occurrence of a significant operational event. There was considerable interest in the communications that take place after the occurrence of a significant operational event and further discussions on the incident response process are expected once the revision to MD 8.3 is issued.

Reactor Oversight Process

During the week of October 3-4, 2000, the Inspection Program Branch (IIPB) staff attended the ANS Region III Workshop and supported three breakout sessions to discuss aspects of the Revised Reactor Oversight Program (RROP) and collect feedback from industry regarding initial implementation. The breakout sessions covered the baseline inspection program, communication, the significance determination process (SDP) (including specific focus on the fire protection and safeguards SDPs), and the subject of cross-cutting issues.

Inspector Training Working Group

The Working Group tasked with revising Manual Chapter 1245, "Inspector Qualifications for the NRR Inspection Program," met in Region II on October 3-4, 2000. The group obtained comments from the Deputy Regional Administrator and the Director of the Division of Reactor Safety. Thirteen competency areas were identified within the inspector function. The group identified knowledge and skills supporting 55 of the 75 inspector tasks. The next meeting of the group is scheduled for October 25-26, 2000, in the Region III office and will focus on identifying the knowledge and skills needed to successfully perform significant determination tasks.

ENCLOSURE B

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Publication of Direct Final Rule on HI-STAR 100 Spent Fuel Storage Cask, Amendment No. 1

On October 11, 2000, the NRC published a direct final rule to amend Certificate of Compliance (CoC) No. 1008 for the HI-STAR 100 spent fuel storage system (see 65 FR  60339). The direct final rule is scheduled to become effective on December 26, 2000. The amendment principally involves seven changes to the CoC and associated technical specifications. Comments are due to the NRC by November 13, 2000.

Threat Briefing for the Midwest Nuclear Security Association

On October 4-5, 2000, a member of the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards (FCSS) participated in the annual Midwest Nuclear Security Association (MNSA) meeting. The MNSA is composed of nuclear site and corporate security managers from NRC Region III licensees. The NRC presented an assessment of the threat environment during the last year, followed by a question and answer period. The briefing was well received. The NRC may present similar threat briefings to other regional associations in the future, including the biannual National Nuclear Security Association conference scheduled for June 18-19, 2001, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Bilateral Physical Protection Visit to Greece

From October 3-5, 2000, FCSS members participated in a U.S. bilateral physical protection visit to Greece. The visit focused on physical protection of U.S. origin nuclear material in Greece. The team visited the Demokritos National Scientific Centre for Scientific Research and met with site officials as well as members from the Greek Atomic Energy Commission. The U.S. team provided the Greek officials with their observations on physical protection and offered recommendations. At the conclusion of the visit, the team briefed staff from the economic and political offices of the U.S. Embassy in Greece.

Public Workshop in Grand Junction, Colorado

On October 3-4, 2000, the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS) staff conducted a public workshop in Grand Junction, Colorado, to discuss current issues associated with the design and placement of erosion protection. The workshop was an expansion of a previous workshop that was held for the benefit of Agreement States in 1999. The workshop included presentations by NRC staff, consultants, and licensees; Department of Energy (DOE) representatives; and licensee consultants and contractors. Presentations included case histories of the design and placement of erosion protection, with specific emphasis on problems encountered and the successful resolution of those problems. The workshop included field trips to several completed uranium mill tailings sites in the Title I and Title II programs, where the NRC staff had approved the design, selection, production, and placement of erosion protection.

Department of Energy Announces Plans for Gas Centrifuge Investments and Maintaining Portsmouth in a Standby Status

On October 6, 2000, the DOE announced that an advanced enrichment technology pilot plant would be built at Piketon, Ohio, to demonstrate the use of gas centrifuges for enrichment and to allow Portsmouth and Paducah to compete in the energy markets of the 21st century. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) will manage the five-year project with the initial development utilizing the existing centrifuge facilities at ORNL followed by refurbishment of the existing centrifuge facilities at Portsmouth for the demonstration project. Additionally, DOE stated that the gaseous diffusion plant at Portsmouth would be placed in a cold standby condition for five years with possible restart, if needed, to supply enriched uranium. The plant's standby operation and the new centrifuge demonstration plant project along with site environmental clean-up activities will employ many of the workers who would have been laid-off with the previously announced plant closing.

According to an article in the October 10, 2000, edition of The Energy Daily, DOE apparently plans to use $725 million transferred from the U.S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC) prior to its privatization. That article also implied that DOE may take over maintenance of the Portsmouth facility and pursue advanced enrichment technology on its own.

High-Level Waste Disposal Criticality Meeting

On October 5, 2000, staff from the Division of Waste Management (DWM) met with representatives from the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program (NNPP) and their contractors at NNPP Headquarters in Crystal City, Virginia. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss two issues raised by the staff in its Request for Additional Information (RAI) on the "Addendum to the Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology Topical Report for Naval Spent Nuclear Fuel," submitted by NNPP in November 1999. The two issues discussed were the biases and uncertainties associated with isotopic inventory and the verification of axial burnup profiles. The NNPP presented the measurement data and analyses on both items. These data will be used by the staff in formulating regulatory positions on isotopic inventory and burnup profile verification measurement requirements for disposal of Navy fuel at the future High Level Waste repository.

Meeting of the Waste Safety Standards Committee of the International Atomic Energy Agency

During October 2-5, 2000, a senior manager from the DWM attended the 10^th meeting of the Waste Safety Standards Committee of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The meeting was held at IAEA Headquarters in Vienna, Austria. Approximately 30 individuals, representing 17 Member States and the IAEA, attended the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to present comments and exchange perspectives among Member States regarding the issuance of certain IAEA documents related to programs which help ensure the safety of radioactive waste management practices. Actions taken by the Committee included approval of submission of documents to IAEA's Committee on Safety Standards (CSS) and reviews of proposed documents. Four Safety Guides before the Committee were approved for submission to the CSS following discussion and comment. The Safety Guides included: Organization Facilities; Review and Assessment by the Regulatory Body for Nuclear Facilities; Regulatory Inspection of Nuclear Facilities and Enforcement by the Regulatory Body; and Documentation Produced and Required in Regulating Nuclear Facilities. Two other guides were approved for submission to IAEA member states: Storage of Radioactive Waste and Management of Radioactive Waste from Mining and Milling of U/Th Ores.

10 CFR Part 40 Jurisdictional Working Group Meeting

On October 5, 2000, the second meeting of the 10 CFR Part 40 Jurisdictional Working Group was held, via teleconference. The best approach for delineating the responsibilities of the NRC and other regulatory agencies, regarding source materials with low concentrations of uranium and thorium, were explored at this meeting. Interagency participants included:  the state of Colorado (representing the Organization of Agreement States and the Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors), the Environmental Protection Agency, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Army Corps of Engineers. Additionally, members of the public listened to the discussion by telephone. The participants discussed a method for proceeding and the schedule for reporting the results of the working group to the NRC. The participants also developed an annotated outline for the status report due to the NRC in March 2001.

2000 Decommissioning Conference

On October 8, 2000, a staff member from the Division of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety made a presentation at a Decommissioning Conference, sponsored by TLG Services, Inc., in Captiva, Florida. The presentation addressed the NRC's actions regarding development of a rulemaking plan and Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the Entombment Option for Decommissioning Power Reactors. The purpose of this conference was to promote the exchange of information and experience among industry, government professionals, engineers, and financial planners. Other discussion topics at the meeting included Regulatory and Policy Aspects of Decommissioning Planning, Entombment, License Termination and Site Release, International Decommissioning, Spent Fuel Storage, Remediation and Re-use, and Utility Decommissioning Experiences.

ENCLOSURE C

Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Reliability and Availability Data System

The Operating Experience Risk Analysis Branch of RES has completed the initial software development of the Reliability and Availability Data System (RADS) Version 1.0. RADS is a database and analysis code designed to estimate industry and plant-specific reliability and availability parameters for selected components for use in risk-informed applications. The software contains modules to import data from the Equipment Performance and Information Exchange (EPIX) System (maintained by the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO)) and other data sources.

RADS contains reliability information (failures, demands, and operating hours) for more than 11,000 risk-important components in risk-important systems. RADS can be used to estimate the probability of failure on demand and the failure rate during operation for these components.

RADS was designed for two levels of users--those interested in results of analyses and those who want to estimate reliability parameters. A set of standard analysis reports and graphs of general interest (such as industry generic values for reliability parameters of key components and their trends) will be available on the NRC internal web. These reports and graphs will allow users to access this data without being required to exercise the analysis code. Individual analysts who want to estimate reliability parameters will have access to the analysis software on their own workstations and access to the RADS data, which will reside on a NRC LAN server. The software will be installed on NRC staff workstations by Office of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) staff in October 2000. Examples of the reports will be available on the web in December 2000.

Meeting on Creep Testing of Dry-Stored Spent Nuclear Fuel

A meeting to discuss creep testing of dry-stored commercial spent nuclear fuel rods with burnup less than 45 GWd/t was held at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) on October 2, 2000. Such testing is essential to determine the remaining creep life of spent fuel rods, and the results of the creep testing will be used for approving dry cask license extension under 10 CFR Part 72.

The current license for dry cask storage of PWR rods from the Surry power plant will expire in approximately five years, and an application for license renewal for continued storage is expected in the near future. Under a cooperative program, NRC, DOE, and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) plan to conduct creep testing on Surry fuel rods that have been in dry cask storage for 15 years. The creep testing procedure and the test matrix proposed by the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) were discussed in detail at the review meeting. The review meeting included experts from domestic (NRC, DOE, EPRI, ANL, PNNL, and industry) and international (Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique (CEA) and Electricite de France (EdF)) organizations. Experts offered recommendations to revise the test matrix so that data can be generated to meet the needs of all participating sponsors. Creep testing of Surry rods is scheduled to begin in early 2001, and creep data should be available in late 2001 to early 2002.

Creep testing of high burnup fuel rods (> 45 GWd/t) is planned as a future activity to provide a technical basis for addressing the high burnup spent fuel storage issue.

OECD/NEA Sorption Project (Phase II)

Current regulatory analyses of environmental transport of radioactive materials generally apply very simple approaches to account for the effects of chemical processes on transport. Research has been used by the NRC and others to establish a technical basis for a more rigorous approach to evaluating the effects of these processes. The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently completed Phase I of the OECD/NEA Sorption Project. This phase concluded that it is possible to develop an international consensus on the types of modeling approaches that are most appropriate for describing adsorption in complex systems. Toward that goal, the first meeting of the OECD/NEA Sorption Project (Phase II) took place at NEA Headquarters, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Paris, France, on September 28 and 29, 2000. A staff member from RES represented the NRC at this initial meeting of the projects management board.

The objectives of Phase II of the Sorption Project will be to demonstrate the applicability of different chemical thermodynamic modeling approaches to support the selection of sorption parameters. Teams from participating international organizations will model several test cases to test a range of models. Test cases will include sorption of radionuclides on complex materials such as soils and fracture minerals, clays, cement, and single minerals. The NRC plans to provide at least one modeling team in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey. This exercise is viewed as an important opportunity to compare the strengths and weaknesses of our sorption modeling strategies against those from other countries. Other participants in this exercise are from Australia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

ENCLOSURE D

Incident Response Operations
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Emergency Telecommunications System Test at Millstone

On Friday, October 6, 2000, IRO staff conducted a satisfactory test of Millstone's new Emergency Telecommunications System (ETS). This test represents the first transition of ETS functions to a licensee's corporate communication systems under the voluntary initiative in Regulatory Issue Summary 2000-11.

Preliminary Notifications

1. PNO-II-00-040A, Tennessee Valley Authority (Sequoyah 1), UNIT 1 REACTOR TRIP FOLLOWING LOSS OF A MAIN FEEDWATER PUMP - UPDATE.
   
   
2. PNO-IV-00-021B, Transalta Centralia Mining LLC, UPDATE ON THE MECHANICAL FAILURE OF A RONAN GAUGING DEVICE.
   
   
3. PNO-IV-00-027, Siemens Power Corporation, REPORT OF LOSS OF CRITICALITY SAFETY CONTROLS (BULLETIN 91-01 REPORT).
   
   
4. PNO-IV-00-028, Omaha Public Power District (Fort Calhoun Station), REACTOR SHUTDOWN TO REPLACE DEGRADED REACTOR COOLANT PUMP SEAL PACKAGE.

ENCLOSURE F

Office of Administration
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Contract Award

On September 26, 2000, the Division of Contracts and Property Management awarded Contract No. NRC-03-00-003 to Information Systems Laboratories, Inc. This contract is for a project entitled, "Technical Assistance in Support of NRC's Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation's Programs and Activities Pertaining to Systems Safety and Analysis." The Contractor will provide expert technical assistance to DSSA of NRR in a wide range of technical and scientific disciplines. The Contractor will also assist DSSA in accomplishing its work-related activities aimed at ensuring the overall safety and adequacy of nuclear power plant design, construction, operations, maintenance, and inspection. The base period of performance is three years with two one-year option periods. The total estimated cost of this cost-plus-fixed-fee, task ordering contract, inclusive of option years, is $2,136,205.00. The following streamlining initiatives were applied for this contract: set deadline for proposer's questions; simplified evaluation criteria/past performance; allowed oral presentations; and awarded contract without discussions.

Revision of HI-STAR 100 Cask System Listing

A direct final rule (Part 72) that revised the HI-STAR 100 cask system listing within the list of approved spent fuel storage casks was published in the Federal Register on October 11, 2000 (65 FR 60339). Amendment No. 1 revised the cask system in seven areas and included changes to the Certificate of Compliance and the Technical Specifications. The direct final rule is scheduled to become effective December 26, 2000.

The companion proposed rule to this direct final rule was published in the Federal Register on October 11, 2000 (65 FR 60384). The comment period closes November 13, 2000.

ENCLOSURE G

Chief Information Officer
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Freedom of Information and Privacy Act Requests received during the 4-Day Period of October 6, 2000 through October 12, 2000:

ENCLOSURE I

Office of Human Resources
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Combined Federal Campaign Kickoff Held

On October 12, 2000, NRC held its 2000 Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) Kickoff in the Commissioners' Conference Room. The kickoff included remarks by NRC Chairman Richard Meserve, the Executive Director of Operations (EDO), the Director, Office of Human Resources, the NRC's National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) President, and Ed Kiess, CFC Senior Campaign Manager. Mr. Kiess presented Chairman Meserve with the CFC Pacesetter Award. The keynote speaker was an NRR Project Manager who represented the International Rett Syndrome Association. Offices that made significant contributions to last years campaign were recognized and their office representatives received CFC award plaques during this kickoff.

ENCLOSURE M

Office of Public Affairs
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Media Interest

Three members of the press attended the reactor oversight meeting at the Clinton plant.

There was some press attendance at the Indian Point-2 reactor oversight meeting.

ENCLOSURE N

Office of International Programs
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Temelin-1 Initial Criticality

Temelin-1, a VVER-1000 PWR located in the Czech Republic, went critical on October 11, 2000. The utility CEZ is planning to gradually increase reactor power to 30% during the first two months of operation, then increase to 100% over the next three months. CEZ expects to begin selling power from Temelin-1 on a commercial basis this December. Construction of Temelin-2 is expected to be completed in a year and a half.

Temelin-1 is one of the first reactors to be completed since the breakup of the Soviet Union that has incorporated safety upgrades into the original Soviet design. For example, the original Soviet-designed analog instrumentation and control system was replaced with a U.S.-designed digital instrumentation and control system.

The startup of Temelin-1 has been controversial. The Austrian government has voiced strenuous objections to startup (Temelin is approximately 30 miles from the Czech/Austrian border). For example, the Austrian Foreign Minister told the Foreign Ministers of the other European Union member states that the reactor posed a danger to Central Europe. In addition, protestors blocked transit points between Austria and the Czech Republic in the weeks leading up to initial criticality. Two days before Unit 1 achieved initial criticality, all 15 border crossings between the two countries were closed for approximately 13 hours.

ENCLOSURE O

Office of the Secretary
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Commission Correspondence

1. Letter to Congress dated October 5, 2000, concerns approval of an Agreement with the State of Oklahoma under which the State will assume certain regulatory authority over byproduct materials as defined in Section 11e.(1) of the Act, source materials (primarily used as shielding for medical and industrial devices), and special nuclear materials in quantities not sufficient to form a critical mass.

Federal Register Notices Issued

1. 10 CFR Part 140 [Docket No. PRM-140-1]; Criteria for an Extraordinary Nuclear Occurrence; Withdrawal of Proposed Rule and Denial of Petition for Rulemaking Submitted by the Public Citizen Litigation Group and Critical Mass Energy Project.
   
   
2. Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards; Procedures for Meetings.
   
   
3. Advisory Committee on Nuclear Waste; Procedures for Meetings.
   
   
4. State of Oklahoma: Discontinuance of Certain Commission Regulatory Authority Within the State; Notice of Agreement Between the NRC and the State of Oklahoma.

ENCLOSURE P

Region I
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Millstone 1 Decommissioning Advisory Committee Meeting

On October 5, 2000, a staff member from the Region I, Decommissioning and Laboratory Branch, attended the Millstone 1 Decommissioning Advisory Committee meeting. This meeting was held in the Waterford, Connecticut Town Hall. The staff member provided the Committee with an update on NRC decommissioning activities at Millstone 1.

ENCLOSURE P

Region II
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Environmental Quality Board, Puerto Rico Visit Region II

On October 12, 2000, the Region II State Liaison Officer held a training session with representatives from the Environmental Quality Board, Puerto Rico. The purpose of the session was to familiarize the members of the Board with the roles of the NRC, State of Georgia, Environmental Protection Agency, and Federal Emergency Management Agency.

On October 13, 2000, the Region II State Liaison Officer accompanied members of the Environmental Quality Board, Puerto Rico to the Barnwell Low-Level Waste Disposal facility in Snelling, SC. The team toured the facility and met with South Carolina State officials.

Project Management Training

On October 10-13, 2000, Region II held a special Project Management Course for regional staff. The purpose of the course was to enhance the abilities of individuals who are performing the role of team leaders in the revised reactor oversight program and in the oversight of projects such as decommissioning in the materials area.

South Carolina Electric and Gas Company - V.C. Summer Facility

On October 7, 2000, the Summer nuclear power plant shut down for a routine refueling outage. During an entry in containment on October 12, the licensee discovered a potential small leak of reactor coolant system (RCS) water as evidenced by a large collection of boron deposits near the hot leg RCS pipe. The licensee further determined the cause of the leak to be a hairline crack in a weld at the joint of the hot leg pipe to the reactor vessel nozzle. The licensee reported the finding as a 10 CFR 50.72 report.

The licensee plans to identify the cause of the crack and repair the crack during the outage. The NRC is using a special inspection team to monitor the licensee's activities for this issue. The team will also examine the issue for generic implications to other plants.

ENCLOSURE P

Region III
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Illinois Public Meeting to Discuss Changes in Reactor Oversight

On October 11, 2000, NRC officials held a public meeting in Clinton, Illinois, to discuss the NRC's reactor oversight process for the Clinton plant.

Region Holds Three-Day Training Session

Region III held the first of two mandatory training seminars on October 10-12, 2000. Regional employees could choose to attend either the October seminar or the second seminar that will be held on February 20-22, 2001. Topics covered during the seminar included: Managing Diversity; Sexual Harassment Prevention; Freedom of Information Act; Allegations and Enforcement; Stress Management; Incident Response Overview; a Union Official/Bargaining Unit Interface; Property/Travel/Procurement; and Computer Security Awareness.

ENCLOSURE P

Region IV
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Predecisional Enforcement Conference with the Oklahoma State University (OSU)

The Deputy Regional Administrator, along with a representative of the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, conducted a closed, predecisional enforcement conference on October 11, 2000, with OSU. Other personnel in attendance at this meeting included a representative of the NRC Office of Enforcement and several members of the Region IV staff. The purpose of the conference was to discuss apparent violations related to the control and use of radioactive material in the OSU research program. Although Oklahoma became an Agreement State on September 29, 2000, NRC in charge of this enforcement case and is working with the State to address these NRC findings.

ENCLOSURE Q

Office of the Executive Director for Operations
Items of Interest
Week Ending October 13, 2000

Frequency of Problem Identification and Resolution (PI&R) Inspections Differing Professional Opinion (DPO) Dispostitioned

The Office of the Executive Director of Operations (OEDO) dispositioned a DPO regarding the frequency of PI&R inspections. The filers of the DPO identified three concerns with the frequency of these inspections. The first concern was that the annual frequency of the inspections caused an unnecessary resource impact on licensees. The second concern was that the frequency could result in a potential reduction in plant safety. The last concern was that there was not fully developed program office evaluation criteria for making adjustments to inspection programs based on the self-assessment process for the Revised Reactor Oversight Program (RROP).

The ad hoc DPO panel did not find indications that the PI&R inspections were resulting in an unnecessary burden on licensees or impacting plant safety. Additionally, although the DPO panel concluded that the inspection frequency should not be changed at this time, the DPO report was forwarded to NRR for consideration during their self-assessment of the first year of the RROP.