[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 25 (Friday, February 6, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Page 6234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-2995]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-346]
In the Matter of Toledo Edison Company; Centerior Service
Company; the Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company; (Davis-Besse
Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1), Exemption
I
Toledo Edison Company, Centerior Service Company, and The Cleveland
Electric Illuminating Company (the licensees) are the holders of
Facility Operating License No. NPF-3, which authorizes operation of the
Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1 (the facility). The license
provides, among other things, that the facility is subject to all
rules, regulations, and orders of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (the Commission) now or hereafter in effect.
The facility is a pressurized-water reactor located at the
licensees' site in Ottawa County, Ohio.
II
By letter dated November 18, 1997, as supplemented by facsimile
dated December 9, 1997, the licensees requested an exemption from
certain requirements in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations,
part 50, Appendix R, Section III.O, for Davis-Besse.
III
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the Commission may, upon application by
any interested person or upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from
the requirements of 10 CFR part 50 when (1) the exemptions are
authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to public health or
safety, and are consistent with the common defense and security, and
(2) when special circumstances are present. Special circumstances are
present whenever, according to 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), ``Application of
the regulation in the particular circumstances would not serve the
underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the
underlying purpose of the rule....''
10 CFR part 50, Appendix R, Section III.O, requires that the
reactor coolant pump (RCP) shall be equipped with an oil collection
system if the containment is not inerted during normal operation. The
oil collection system shall be so designed, engineered and installed
that failure will not lead to fire during normal or design basis
accident conditions and that there is reasonable assurance that the
system will withstand the Safe Shutdown Earthquake. The underlying
purpose of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix R, Section III.O, is to ensure that
leaking oil will not lead to a fire that could damage safe shutdown
systems during normal or design basis accident conditions.
On the basis of the enclosed Safety Evaluation, the NRC staff
concluded that the design of the oil filling system and the level of
protection provided by the licensees through the use of certain
compensatory measures during oil fill operations provides reasonable
assurance that a lube oil fire will not occur. The compensatory
measures, as itemized in the licensees' November 18, 1997, exemption
request, are:
(1) The licensees will take the following compensatory actions each
time oil is added:
(a) Oil will be added only when a low oil level computer alarm is
received on an RCP motor.
(b) Only a predetermined amount of oil necessary to clear the alarm
(approximately three pints based on experience) will be initially added
to the reservoir through the remote fill line. A maximum total volume
of four pints may be added in an attempt to clear the alarm.
(c) The oil fill pot will be verified empty before the technician
leaves the immediate area. Any spillage resulting from adding oil to
the remote oil fill pot will be cleaned up.
(d) Personnel responsible for adding the oil will be instructed to
report (to the control room) any evidence of smoke during the oil
addition process. If smoke is seen, the fire brigade will be
immediately dispatched to the area.
(2) In addition, a visual inspection will be conducted following
refueling outages to confirm the integrity of the remote fill line
system.
The staff also concluded that a worst-case postulated fire, from
not having a lube oil collection system for the RCP lube oil fill
lines, would be of limited magnitude and extent. In addition, the staff
concluded that such a fire would not cause significant damage in the
containment building and would not prevent operators from achieving and
maintaining safe shutdown conditions. Accordingly, in light of the
foregoing, the staff concluded that application of this collection
system requirement is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose
of the rule.
IV
Contingent upon the use of the compensatory measures that are
itemized in the licensees' November 18, 1997, exemption request, the
NRC staff has concluded that the licensees' proposed use of the remote
oil addition system without a collection system is authorized by law,
will not present an undue risk to public health and safety and is
consistent with the common defense and security. The NRC staff has also
determined that there are special circumstances present, as specified
in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), in that application of 10 CFR part 50,
Appendix R, Section III.O, is not necessary in order to achieve the
underlying purpose of this regulation.
Accordingly, the Commission hereby grants an exemption from the
requirements of 10 CFR part 50, Appendix R, Section III.O, to the
extent that the RCP lube oil fill lines are required to be protected
with a collection system. The granting of this exemption is conditioned
upon the licensees' use of the compensatory measures set forth in the
licensees' November 18, 1997 exemption request.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the
granting of this exemption will not result in any significant adverse
environmental impact (63 FR 4678).
This exemption is effective upon issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of January 1998.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samuel J. Collins,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 98-2995 Filed 2-5-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
