[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 115 (Thursday, June 13, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30102-30103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-15017]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-261]
Carolina Power & Light Company, H.B. Robinson Steam Electric
Plant, Unit No. 2; Exemption
I
Carolina Power and Light Company (CP&L or the licensee) is the
holder of Facility Operating License No. DPR-23, which authorizes
operation of the H.B. Robinson Steam Electric Plant, Unit No. 2 (HBR),
at steady-state reactor power level not in excess of 2300 megawatts
thermal. The facility consists of one pressurized water reactor located
at the licensee's site in Darlington County, South Carolina. The
license provides, among other things, that it is subject to all rules,
regulations and Orders of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the
Commission or NRC) now or hereafter in effect.
II
Section III.J of Appendix R to Part 50 of Title 10 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 50) requires that emergency lighting
units with at least an 8-hour battery power supply be provided in all
areas needed for operation of post-fire safe shutdown equipment and in
access and egress routes thereto. The NRC may grant exemptions from the
requirements of the regulations which, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a), are
(1) Authorized by law, will not present an undue risk to the public
health and safety, and are consistent with the common defense and
security; and (2) present special circumstances. Special circumstances
exist 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 * * *.''
III
By letters dated February 2, 1995, May 15, 1995, and September 29,
1995, Carolina Power & Light Company (the licensee), requested an
exemption from certain technical requirements of Section III.J of
Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for HBR. Section III.J of Appendix R
requires that emergency lighting units with at least an 8-hour battery
power supply be provided in all areas needed for operation of post-fire
safe shutdown equipment and in access and egress routes thereto. The
licensee plans to implement procedure enhancements to its post-accident
safe shutdown procedure that would require manual operation of certain
valves. The licensee proposed to use the diesel-backed security
lighting system for access and egress to, and operation of, auxiliary
feedwater (AFW) valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 and instrument air (IA) valve
IA-297, stating that the use of the diesel-backed security lighting
system will provide an equivalent level of fire safety to that achieved
by compliance with Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for
access and egress to, and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104,
located in fire zone 33, and valve IA-297, located in fire zone 25.
IV
Valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297 are located in outdoor areas
within the protected area. These areas and the access and egress paths
do not have 8-hour fixed battery-operated emergency
[[Page 30103]]
lighting as required by Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50.
Valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 are located in fire zone 33 at the bottom
of the condensate storage tank (CST). Failure to manually isolate
valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 could result in overfilling the CST with
service water after switchover of the AFW cooling source from the CST
to the service water system. These AFW valves are located in outdoor
areas within the protected area and are provided with lighting from the
security lighting system. However, the licensee may need to manually
operate these valves during the hours of darkness. Because the security
lighting system is also backed by a standby diesel generator, the
licensee would like to rely on the security lighting system with its
standby diesel generator as an acceptable alternative fire protection
configuration equivalent to that achieved by conformance with the
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III.J.
Valve IA-297 is located in an outdoor area within the protected
area near the southeast corner of the turbine mezzanine in fire zone 25
next to the steam dump accumulator. The HBR safe shutdown analysis
takes credit for the availability of the main steam safety valves. The
use of the nitrogen backup to the main steam power-operated relief
valves is a contingency evolution for coping with a fire in the
charging pump room. The licensee has already committed to provide
emergency lighting with at least an 8-hour battery power supply for the
main steam isolation and relief valve area, also in the southeast
corner of the turbine building mezzanine. The licensee would rely on
that planned emergency lighting in the vicinity of IA-197 as well as
the security lighting system with its backup diesel generator to ensure
the light necessary to take the actions described by the licensee.
The manual actions would be limited to operating valves AFW-1, AFW-
104, and IA-297 over their full travel, with no requirement to
partially open or close a valve, by relying on instruments, or other
means, to determine valve travel.
In the licensee's submittal of September 29, 1995, the licensee
confirmed that a walkdown was conducted in the areas for which the
exemption was requested. With the normal lighting turned off, the light
provided solely by the security lighting system was adequate for access
and egress to, and operation of, valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297.
During a telephone conference call on December 1, 1995, the licensee
confirmed that postulated fires requiring the operators to travel to
and operate valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297 would not affect the
security lighting system. In addition, the security lighting system is
backed by a standby diesel generator that has been very reliable;
records indicate only two failures in 250 surveillance starts. However,
none of the failures were failures to start but, rather, failures to
come up to rated speed within the prescribed time of 10 seconds. Should
the diesel fail to start, procedure OP-926, ``TSC/ EOF/ PAT Diesel
Generator,'' provides instruction for manually starting the diesel, and
such an action would be initiated by a call to the control room
operators. Therefore, in the event of a fire that requires manual
operation of valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297, or in the event of a
loss of offsite power, there is reasonable assurance that the security
lighting system will be available and will provide the light necessary
to take the actions described above.
On the basis of this evaluation, the NRC staff has concluded that
the use of the diesel-backed security lighting system will provide an
equivalent level of fire safety to that achieved by compliance with
Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for access and egress to,
and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104, located in fire zone 33,
and valve IA-297, located in fire zone 25.
The Commission, thus, has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR
50.12, the exemption requested by the licensee's letters dated February
2, 1995, May 15, 1995, and September 29, 1995, as discussed above, is
authorized by law and will not endanger life or property and is
otherwise in the public interest. Furthermore, the Commission has
determined, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a), that special circumstances as
set forth in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(ii) are present and applicable in that
application of the regulation in these particular circumstances is not
necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.
The Commission hereby grants an exemption from the technical
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III.J, for the use
of the diesel-backed security lighting system for access and egress to,
and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 and IA-297.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that
granting of this exemption will have no significant effect on the
quality of the human environment (61 FR 6044). This exemption is
effective upon issuance.
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of June 1996.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Steven A. Varga,
Director, Division of Reactor Projects--I/II, Office of Nuclear Reactor
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 96-15017 Filed 6-12-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
