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INFORMATION REPORT

SECY-00-0218

November 9, 2000

WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 3, 2000

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

ENCLOSURE A

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Revised MD 8.11 Issued

A revised Management Directive, (MD 8.11, "Review Process for 10 CFR 2.206 Petitions," was issued on October 26, 2000. The revisions to the MD resulted from stakeholder comments and recommendations on the staff's review process, several Commission and staff meetings with stakeholders, and staff experience with the process. The latest revision includes three significant improvements to the 2.206 petition review process. They are:

These three process changes were implemented on a trial basis for all petitions received after July 1, 2000. In addition to these process improvements, the MD has been completely reorganized and rewritten to enhance clarity and ease of use.

A communication plan is being prepared. The Office of Public Affairs (OPA) pamphlet on the Public Petition Process has been updated to reflect the changes in the MD and OPA has issued a news release announcing the revised MD.

V.C. Summer

On October 25, 2000, the licensee for V.C. Summer met with the NRC in the Region II office to discuss the licensee's plans for evaluating and repairing the "A" hot leg weld crack. Messrs. Wessman, Koo, and Benner, and Ms. Cotton, from NRR attended the meeting. Other members of the offices of NRR, RES, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (NRC/RES contractor) participated by video conference. The licensee presented photos of the crack from the outside of the pipe and from a video taken of the inside of the weld.

The licensee stated that an attempt had been made to ultrasonic test (UT) the crack from outside the pipe; however, the results were inconclusive because of the limited accessibility of the outside surface. Plant records indicated that this weld was the first of its type installed at Summer, and they had significant difficulties achieving an acceptable weld. A large part of the original weld had to be cut out and replaced. Installation of the remaining two hot leg and three cold leg welds was performed using only automated welding techniques. As a result, fewer weld repairs were required. The video photos of the inside of the other hot leg welds appear to show smoother weld roots than the "A" hot leg.

The licensee described the resources they were applying to the problem and their plans for root cause analysis and repair. A UT was performed on the weld in 1993 as part of the first 10-year ISI at Summer. Radiological analysis of the boron that leaked from the crack suggests that the crack had been leaking for several months; however, the licensee is still investigating the age of the crack. Region II issued the meeting summary on November 1, 2000.

The NDE testing of all the hot and cold leg welds is scheduled to start on November 4. Removal of the entire weld for metallurgical analysis and repair is planned for the second week of November. A Special Inspection Team went on-site on November 1, 2000, and plans to complete the first plant visit by November 7, 2000.

NRC issued Information Notice 2000-17 on October 18, 2000, describing the discovery of the crack. A protocol and a communications plan have been developed, and a communications team has been established to help keep NRC, the public, and other interested parties informed regarding the activities at Summer. A website has been developed as part of the communications plan (available at http://nrcweb.nrc.gov/NRC/REACTOR/SUMMER/index.html); the Website should be available externally within 2 weeks.

Reactor Oversight Process

During the week of October 23, 2000, the Inspection Program Branch (IIPB) staff visited Regions II and III, including six site visits in each region, to solicit feedback on the implementation of the reactor oversight process from licensees and regional inspectors and management. These site visits, and the opportunity to talk with the resident inspectors and regional and licensee management, are one of the ways IIPB is collecting feedback on the efficacy of the reactor oversight process (ROP).

The feedback from these site visits will be factored as appropriate into the initial implementation self-assessment effort, along with other feedback and input, to identify lessons learned and develop appropriate program revisions. Feedback from these visits will also be used to help structure other forums for feedback such as internal surveys and lessons learned workshops. The site and regional visits for Region I and IV are scheduled during the week of October 31, 2000, and November 7, 2000, respectively.

The Inspection Manual Chapter (IMC) 1245 Working Group on Inspector Qualifications met in Region III on October 25-26, 2000. The Regional Administrator and the Deputy Regional Administrator provided valuable insights to the task group. They discussed the results of the electronic survey on training and qualification for the ROP previously sent to inspectors. The next meeting in Region IV is planned for November 29 -30, 2000, and will focus on completing knowledge, skills and abilities for core tasks.

The data and graphs for the 3^rd Q 2000 performance indicators (PIs) under the Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) have been posted on the NRC internal web site. The PI data, the current plant issues matrix and related inspection reports should be published on the NRC external web site on November 6, 2000.

Public Meeting with the Maintenance Rule Inspection Clearinghouse of Winston & Strawn

On Wednesday, October 25, 2000, the Quality Assurance, Vendor Inspection, Maintenance and Allegations Branch (IQMB) of the Division of Inspection Program Management (DIPM) hosted a public meeting in One White Flint North, NRC Headquarters, Rockville, Maryland, with the Maintenance Rule Inspection Clearinghouse of Winston & Strawn. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the implementation of the new paragraph (a)(4) of the Maintenance Rule on assessing and managing the risk associated with maintenance. Former Commissioner James Curtiss and Mr. Donald Ferraro represented Winston & Strawn. Biff Bradley represented the Nuclear Energy Institute. Representatives from several utilities, NUS Information Services, Bechtel-SERCH and Licensing Support Services also attended.

Regional NRC/FEMA EP Exercise Scheduling Conference and Workshop

On October 24 and 25, 2000, NRR staff and management attended the Regional NRC/FEMA/State/Utilities Emergency Preparedness Exercise Scheduling Conference and Workshop in Annapolis, MD. Region I and Incident Response Operations personnel also participated in the conference from NRC. EP representatives from federal, state, and local government agencies, as well as nuclear utilities attended. NRC made a presentation on an update of NRC EP activities, and participated as part of a panel discussion.

Event Reporting Requirements

A final rule to modify the event reporting requirements in 10 CFR 50.72 and 50.73 was published on October 25, 2000, and will become effective on January 23, 2001. In conjunction with the final rule, the associated event reporting guidelines in NUREG-1022, Revision 2, was published in final form.

The changes will retain reporting for significant events that the NRC needs to review in its efforts to identify and resolve safety issues. However, they will reduce or eliminate the unnecessary reporting burden associated with events of little or no safety significance. Overall, these changes will help the NRC and its licensees to better focus their efforts on the most safety significant issues.

NRC Regulatory Issue Summary 2000-21 Changes to the Unplanned Scram and Unplanned Scram with Loss of Normal Heat Removal Performance Indicators dated October 31, 2000

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this Regulatory Issue Summary (RIS) to inform power reactor licensees that a 6-month pilot test will be conducted to evaluate changes to the "unplanned scrams per 7,000 critical hours" and the "unplanned scrams with loss of normal heat removal" performance indicators (PIs) that are intended to minimize the potential for unintended consequences.

ENCLOSURE B

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Revised Safety Analysis Report Received From GNB Gesellschaft for the CASTOR X/32 S Spent Fuel Storage Cask

On October 26, 2000, the Spent Fuel Project Office received a completely revised safety analysis report (SAR) for the CASTOR X/32 S spent fuel storage cask application in response to the staff request for additional information dated June 16, 2000. This SAR supersedes the original submittal dated November 1999. The acceptance review of the revised SAR has begun and a new schedule will be developed shortly. Based on the extent of changes to GNB Gesellschaft's original storage system design (including the use of a new neutron absorber material), the revised schedule will consider the actions necessary to complete the review.

Paducah Site Visit in Support of Higher Assay Upgrade Project

During the week of October 23, 2000, the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards (FCSS) project manager for the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant and three members of the criticality team performed a licensing review at the facility. This was the third visit by FCSS to support the aggressive schedule for the review of the U.S. Enrichment Corporation's Higher Assay Upgrade Project certificate amendment request. The visit included discussions of 21 of the total of 55 nuclear criticality safety approvals scheduled to be reviewed for this amendment request. The next site visit is scheduled for the week of November 27, 2000. The staff review remains on schedule with progress being made on resolving outstanding issues.

Staff Participation in a Japan Nuclear Material Control Organization Workshop

From October 30 to November 1, 2000, staff from the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards attended, at the invitation of the Japan Nuclear Material Control organization, a workshop conducted in Tokyo and Kashiwazaki, Japan. The staff made a presentation which addressed the design basis threat development. They also discussed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's response to a threat and provided physical protection strategies which are utilized for protection of sites.

Presentation Made to the Steering Committee for Safeguards Policy Review

On October 30, 2000, a staff member from the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards made a presentation to the inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee for Safeguards Policy Review. His presentation focused on the process for identifying, monitoring, adopting, and applying adversary characteristics in Nuclear Regulatory Commission required safeguards programs. The presentation directly supported the Committee's efforts to develop advice and counsel for the Director, Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards, and the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, on proposed changes to existing safeguards policy.

Staff Participation in National Low-Level Waste Meeting

During October 31-November 2, 2000, management and staff representatives from the Division of Waste Management, the Division of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety, and the Division of Fuel Cycle Safety and Safeguards participated in the 16th Low-Level Radioactive Waste Decisionmaker's Forum and Technical Symposium held in Scottsdale, Arizona. The meeting was attended by over 100 individuals representing licensees, federal and state agencies, and others. A total of seven papers were presented by the staff on the following topics: (1) decommissioning standards, guidance, and experience to date; (2) regulation of formerly utilized sites remedial action program (FUSRAP) waste disposal; (3) rulemaking for reactor entombment; (4) perspectives on assured isolation; (5) recent Nuclear Regulatory Commission decisions affecting uranium recovery activities; (6) orphan source control initiatives; and (7) standards for the control of radioactive contamination associated with solid materials.

Training on Reviewing Preclosure Safety Analyses for the Proposed Geologic Repository at Yucca Mountain

On October 25-27, 2000, the Division of Waste Management staff attended training on "Reviewing the Department of Energy's (DOE ) Preclosure Safety Analyses" at the Center for Nuclear Regulatory Waste Analyses in San Antonio, Texas. 10 CFR Part 63 regulations require DOE to prepare the preclosure safety analyses (PCSA) for the proposed Geologic Repository and Operations Area at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, using the principles of Integrated Safety Analyses (ISA). The results of the PCSA will be used in implementing the risk-informed performance-based approach to Part 63 regulations. The three-day training covered the basics of conducting an ISA, reviewing and interpreting the results of an ISA, and workshop problems and discussions. The training was conducted by the Process Safety Institute of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Nevada On-Site Representatives Brief Clark County Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Advisory Committee

On October 25, 2000, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) On-Site Representatives (ORs) attended a public meeting of the Clark County Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Advisory Committee at its request. During this meeting, the ORs presented an overview of the NRC's independent oversight role and its current function with respect to the proposed high-level waste repository at Yucca Mountain. This presentation, the first ever made to this group by the NRC, afforded an opportunity for the constructive exchange of information with the affected units of local government, citizen representatives, and Tribal constituents. The Advisory Committee members appreciated NRC's presentation and expressed interest in future interactions with representatives of the NRC. The staff views such interactions as important and effective extensions of the NRC's public outreach program.

Demonstration of the Department of Energy's Conditions/Issue Identification and Reporting System

On October 25, 2000, staff from the Division of Waste Management (DWM) observed the Department of Energy (DOE) Yucca Mountain Project Office training presentation for the new Conditions/Issue Identification and Reporting System (CIRS) at the DOE Forrestal Building in Washington, DC. CIRS is a DOE intranet web-based system tool for reporting and resolving any issue of any kind. CIRS provides the DOE staff with a single point of access to other databases for tracking activities such as regulatory commitments, deficiencies, management decisions, and lessons learned.

CIRS will eventually be the one database for tracking all of the DOE Yucca Mountain Project issues and conditions. Several quality-related databases, such as the quality database for tracking nonconformances and performing quality trending, will eventually be incorporated into CIRS. The DWM staff believes that once the initial implementing problems are resolved, CIRS will be a useful tool for tracking issues and conditions related to the proposed high-level waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Following the presentation, the DOE stated that they will continue to interface with the DWM staff and provide information on the progress made to implement CIRS.

ENCLOSURE C

Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

MARSSIM Revised

Revision 1 of the "Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual" (MARSSIM), NUREG-1575, was recently published and made available at www.epa.gov/radiation/marssim. The MARSSIM provides the processes and approaches for the measurement of radioactivity to demonstrate compliance for the release of buildings and lands. The MARSSIM was jointly developed by DOD , DOE , EPA , and NRC and is endorsed by these agencies. This revision corrected errors, clarified guidance, and provided additional information. There were no changes to the original approaches and processes as a result of this revision. The revision is in loose-leaf form to facilitate future page changes and to enable users to insert their own notes. RES has the NRC lead for MARSSIM development and maintenance.

Draft Regulatory Guides on Criteria for Air Cleanup in Power Plants

RES has issued two draft guides on air filtration and adsorption units in power plants, for normal ventilation exhaust systems and for post-accident cleanup systems. The guides are DG-1102, "Design, Inspection, and Testing Criteria for Air Filtration and Adsorption Units of Post-Accident Engineered-Safety-Feature Atmosphere Cleanup Systems in Light-Water-Cooled Nuclear Power Plants," and DG-1103, "Design, Inspection, and Testing Criteria for Air Filtration and Adsorption Units of Normal Ventilation Exhaust Systems in Light-Water-Cooled Nuclear Power Plants."

ENCLOSURE D

Incident Response Operations
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Preliminary Notifications

PNO-II-00-025A, Professional Services Industries, RECOVERED STOLEN GAUGE.

ENCLOSURE F

Office of Administration
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Acquisition Training

On November 2, 2000, the Division of Contracts and Property Management conducted its Acquisition Certification and Training Program module, "Overview." This mandatory module serves as the primer for other workshops in the acquisition training program. The workshop familiarizes participants with the entire NRC acquisition process including federal acquisition regulations applicability, commercial contracts, and DOE laboratory interagency agreements.

Medical Use of Byproduct Material -- Specialty Boards and Medical Specialty Boards: Solicitation (Part 35)

A document inviting boards interested in having their certification process recognized by the NRC as fulfilling the training and experience requirements of their medical licensing regulations to submit appropriate requests was published in the Federal Register on November 2, 2000 (65 FR 65973). This action is being taken in anticipation of a revision of the NRC's regulations governing the medical use of byproduct material that will result in a new process for recognizing the specialty boards and medical specialty boards whose diplomates would fulfill the training and experience requirements for authorized medical physicists, authorized nuclear pharmacists, authorized users, and Radiation Safety Officers. The solicitation process began November 2, 2000.

ENCLOSURE G

Chief Information Officer
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Freedom of Information and Privacy Act Requests received during the 5-Day Period of October 27, 2000 through November 2, 2000:

Task Interface Agreement (TIA) 1999-021, re independence of auditors for Emergency Preparedness Audits. (FOIA/PA-2001-0029)

Site assessment, 21 Marcus St., SW, Grand Rapids (Cutlerville), MI (Hooper/Sheeran, Inc.). (FOIA/PA-2001-0030)

MLTS database, State of Wisconsin licensees. (FOIA/PA-2001-0031)

SECY Papers, SECY-00-0037 and SECY-00-0040, related to Potassium Iodide. (FOIA/PA-2001-0032)

Research Information Letter Number 4 (RIL-0004), 8/21/00 memo from AC Thadani, RES, to SJ Collins, NRR, related to severe accident codes. (FOIA/PA-2001-0033)

Self, investigative records, 11/90 to present. (FOIA/PA-2001-0034)

MLTS database, listing for State of Connecticut. (FOIA/PA-2001-0035)

Self, security clearance file. (FOIA/PA-2001-0036)

NUREG-0981/FEMA-51 re operational response procedures, and NUREG/BR-0230 re response coordination manual. (FOIA/PA-2001-0037)

MLTS database, list of companies authorized to purchase or handle radioactive material. (FOIA/PA-2001-0038)

Nuclear Development Corporation of America, all records 1955 through 1963, to include the site at 5 New Street, White Plains, NY. (FOIA/PA-2001-0039)

ENCLOSURE I

Office of Human Resources
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

ENCLOSURE M

Office of Public Affairs
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Media Interest

There was local media interest in the D.C. Cook restart status meeting held this week.

Bob Pierson, NMSS, was interviewed by Government Executive Magazine for an article on USEC.

ENCLOSURE O

Office of the Secretary
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Commission Correspondence

Federal Register Notices Issued

ENCLOSURE P

Region I
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Watertown GSA (MA) Public Meeting

On November 1, 2000, a planning meeting was held at NRC Headquarters to discuss approaches to different release scenarios and licensing issues related to the General Services Administration (GSA) property in Watertown, Massachusetts. The site is on the NRC SDMP list and is being considered for decommissioning by the Army Corps of Engineers. The meeting included participation by members of various Army organizations and their contractor, NRC Regional and Headquarters staff, GSA, and Massachusetts technical staff.

ENCLOSURE P

Region II
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

INPO CEO Conference - NRC Chairman Participation

On November 2-3, 2000, the Chairman of the NRC, Deputy Executive Director for Reactor Programs (DEDR), and Regional Administrator participated in the 2000 CEO Conference at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) in Atlanta, Georgia.

On November 3, 2000, the Chairman of the NRC and the DEDR visited the Region II office. They held discussions with the employees hired within the last year and principal staff. Discussion topics included implementation of the revised reactor oversight program, challenges to the materials program, and implementation of ADAMS.

Nuclear Energy Institute's National Licensing Forum - Deputy Regional Administrator Participation

On November 1-2, 2000, the Deputy Regional Administrator (DRA) participated in the National Licensing Forum, held in Rockville, Maryland. One key session was the elicitation of feedback from licensees and the public on the CRGR (Committee for the Review of Generic Requirements) process. The DRA is a member of the CRGR. The Chair of the CRGR noted the feedback and indicated that the CRGR would review for any appropriate action.

South Carolina Electric and Gas - V.C. Summer - Update

On November 1, 2000, the NRC Special Inspection Team arrived on site to begin further review of issues related to a crack, discovered by the licensee in a weld area of the alpha loop, hot leg pipe of the reactor coolant system (RCS) at the Summer nuclear plant. The team observed the licensee's mock-up process for performing non-destructive tests of appropriate portions of the RCS piping for all three RCS loops. Beginning November 3, the team is observing the licensee's actual testing of the piping in the three loops at the plant. The team is inspecting areas as outlined in a charter, issued on October 19.

ENCLOSURE P

Region III
Items of Interest
Week Ending November 3, 2000

Meeting on the Status of Restart Preparations for D.C. Cook 1

On October 30, 2000, members of the Region III staff met with officials of American Electric Power Co. at the D.C. Cook Nuclear Power Station to discuss the status of the utility's preparations for resuming operation of D.C. Cook Unit 1.

ENCLOSURE P

Region IV
Items of InterestWeek
Ending November 3, 2000

Meeting with Envirocare of Utah, Inc.

On October 31, 2000, the Region IV Regional Administrator, the Director, Division of Nuclear Materials Safety (DNMS) , and DNMS staff members conducted an open meeting, with the Senior Vice President of Envirocare of Utah, Inc. and other Envirocare representatives to review licensee performance.

Callaway Plant

The Director, Division of Reactor Safety (DRS), and other members of the DRS staff held a meeting on October 31, 2000, with licensee physical security and emergency preparedness representatives. The meeting was held at the licensee's request to discuss physical security and emergency preparedness topics.