INFORMATION REPORT

January 17, 2003 SECY-03-0007

For: The Commissioners

From: John W. Craig, Assistant for Operations, Office of the EDO

Subject: SECY-03-0007 WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK 

ENDING JANUARY 10, 2003

Contents Enclosure

Nuclear Reactor Regulation A

Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards B

Nuclear Regulatory Research C*

Nuclear Security and Incident Response D

General Counsel E*

Administration F

Chief Information Officer G

Chief Financial Officer H*

Human Resources I

Small Business & Civil Rights J*

Enforcement K*

State and Tribal Programs L*

Public Affairs M

International Programs N*

Office of the Secretary O

Region I P

Region II P

Region III P*

Region IV P

Executive Director for Operations Q*

Congressional Affairs R*

*No input this week.

/RA/

John W. Craig

Assistant for Operations, OEDO

Contact:

C. Glenn, OEDO
January 17, 2003 SECY-03-0007

For: The Commissioners

From: John W. Craig, Assistant for Operations, Office of the EDO

Subject: SECY-03-0007 WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK 

ENDING JANUARY 10, 2003

Contents Enclosure

Nuclear Reactor Regulation A

Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards B

Nuclear Regulatory Research C*

Nuclear Security and Incident Response D

General Counsel E*

Administration F

Chief Information Officer G

Chief Financial Officer H*

Human Resources I

Small Business & Civil Rights J*

Enforcement K*

State and Tribal Programs L*

Public Affairs M

International Programs N*

Office of the Secretary O

Region I P

Region II P

Region III P*

Region IV P

Executive Director for Operations Q*

Congressional Affairs R*

*No input this week.

/RA/

John W. Craig

Assistant for Operations, OEDO

Contact:

C. Glenn, OEDO

DISTRIBUTION:

Central File

Public Document Name: C:\WIR\WEEK110.WPD

OEDO AO/OEDO

CGlenn:paa JWCraig

01/17/03 01/21/03
WEEKLY INFORMATION REPORT - WEEK ENDING JANUARY 10, 2003

The Weekly Information Report is compiled by the Office of the EDO and includes highlights of

Headquarters and Regional Office activities. 

Contact: C. Glenn, OEDO by E-mail: cjg1@nrc.gov. 

Use GO TO (Ctrl+Home) to advance to the page number for a specific Office.

PgDn and PgUp can also be used to advance through the text.

OFFICE Page OFFICE Page

NRR 2 STP *

NMSS 4 OPA 17

RES * IP *

NSIR 9 SECY 19

OGC * Region I 20

ADM 10 Region II 21

CIO 11 Region III *

CFO * Region IV 23

HR 15 OEDO *

SB/CR * OCA *

OE *

*No input this week
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE A

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

North Anna, Unit 2, Reactor Vessel Head (RVH) Replacement

On January 6 and 7, 2003, the staff visited North Anna Power Station to begin an inspection of

the licensee’s reconciliation report, design specifications, and modification package for the

Unit 2 head replacement. At the entrance meeting, the licensee informed the staff that it had

not completed the review and approval of the documentation. During the inspection, the staff

determined that because the licensee had not yet approved the reconciliation material and the

design specifications were incomplete that it was not appropriate to continue the inspection at

this time. While the licensee had received the reconciliation material from Framatome ANP, it

had not completed its review of this material and was in the process of resolving comments with

the vendor. Based on the review the staff had completed, the staff identified the need for the

licensee to submit a relief request for the volumetric inspection of the reactor vessel dome to

flange weld. The staff terminated the inspection on January 7, 2003, and notified the licensee

that they will return after the licensee completes its review of the reconciliation reports and

design specifications. The team leader discussed the concerns with the timing of the NRC

review with Senior Managers at Virginia Electric and Power Company. The staff will return to

the site to review the reconciliation report, design specifications, and modification package

before North Anna, Unit 2 begins restart.

Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, Unit 2

On December 26, 2002, Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, Unit 2, tripped from 100 percent power as a

result of low reactor coolant system (RCS) flow. The low RCS flow was the result of a trip of

Reactor Coolant Pump No. 3 due to a ground in the motor winding. After the unit tripped, all

systems responded as designed and the unit was taken to Mode 3 (hot standby). Tennessee

Valley Authority (TVA) initiated an inspection to locate a previously identified minor leak inside

containment. During this inspection, an accumulation of boric acid was discovered coming from

a leak in a reactor vessel level indication system compression fitting. The inspection identified

that the leakage had seeped through seams in the insulation and onto the reactor pressure

vessel (RPV) head. The leakage caused material wastage on the RPV head in an area about 5

inches long and 5/16 inches wide with a maximum depth of 1/8-inch. Additional inspection

activities identified a less-significant leak through a canopy seal weld on an empty control rod

drive mechanism penetration. On January 3, 2003, the NRC staff transmitted a request for

additional information to TVA to proceed with its review. 

Exelon License Renewal Application for Dresden & Quad Cities

On January 3, 2003, the staff received a joint license renewal application for both Dresden

(Units 2 and 3) and Quad Cities (Units 1 and 2) from Exelon. The application, dated January 3,

2003, requests the extension of the operating licenses for both Dresden (Units 2 and 3) and

Quad Cities (Units 1 and 2) for additional 20 years beyond their current 40 year term. The

current operating licenses for Dresden Units 2 and 3 expire in 2009 and 2011, respectively. For

Quad Cities, the current operating licenses for both units expire in 2012.
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE A

With the Dresden/Quad Cities application, the staff is currently reviewing 9 license renewal

applications for 12 plants totaling 20 units. 

Duke License Renewal Application for McGuire 1&2 and Catawba 1&2

On January 6, 2003, the Safety Evaluation Report (SER) for Duke’s license renewal application

for McGuire (Units 1&2) and Catawba (Units 1&2) was issued in accordance with the staff’s

review milestone. All open and confirmatory items identified in the SER were successfully

resolved. The staff will present the results of its review to the Advisory Committee on Reactor

Safeguards on February 6, 2003.
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE B

Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

U.S. Enrichment Corporation

On January 9, 2003, the U.S. Enrichment Corporation (USEC) informed NRC that it will be

submitting on or before February 28, 2003, its application for a gas centrifuge uranium

enrichment test facility (Lead Cascade) to be sited at its existing Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion

Plant site. Based on earlier indications from USEC, NRC’s plans had called for receiving the

application by the end of January 2003.

The staff expects that USEC’s February 2003 application submittal will include, among other

things, the main body of the application and the Environmental Report (ER); Integrated Safety

Analysis Summary; cost benefit analysis to support the ER; and Fundamental Nuclear Material

Control Plan.
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE D

Nuclear Security and Incident Response

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Preliminary Notifications

1. PNO-IV-02-080, Lor Geotechnical Group - STOLEN PORTABLE GAUGE
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE F

Office of Administration 

Items of Interest 

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Federal Advisory Committee Act Regulations (Part 7)

A final rule that amends the Commission’s regulations concerning compliance with the Federal

Advisory Committee Act was published in the Federal Register on December 31, 2002 (67 FR

79837). The amendments conform NRC’s regulations with regulations issued by the General

Services Administration. The final rule clarifies Commission practices concerning Federal

advisory committee exemptions from Federal Advisory Committee Act requirements. The final

rule becomes effective January 30, 2003.

List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks: Standardized Advanced NUHOMS-24PTI, Addition

(Part 72)

A final rule that adds an entry for the Standardized Advanced NUHOMS-24PTI cask system to

the list of approved spent fuel storage casks was published in the Federal Register on

January 6, 2003 (68 FR 463). The final rule allows holders of power reactor operating licenses

to store spent fuel in the Standardized Advanced NUHOMS-24PTI storage system under a

general license. The final rule becomes effective February 5, 2003.

Acquisition for Project Managers

On January 8, 2003, the Division of Contracts provided an acquisition briefing to 17 new

Nuclear Reactor Regulation project officers. The briefing included an overview of project officer

roles and responsibilities and a brief review of the Overview handbook (copies of the handbook

were provided to each participant). During this session, the Office of General Counsel also

provided an overview of conflict of interest regulations. 
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE G

Chief Information Officer

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

On-Line “Contact-Us” Submission Improvement

A new on-line “Contact Us” form submission process has been implemented at the public site.

The new process improves the security of online form submission in several ways, including

methods to minimize receipt of “spam.” We are also implementing a new reply message that is

consistent with our public confidence goal and follows best practices for Web customer service. 

It gives users an explicit service level for responses to their e-mail messages sent to NRC via

the public Web site.

Technical Library Acquires Environmental Radiation Data Reports To Assist NRR

The Technical Library has obtained, free-of-charge, all Environmental Radiation Data (ERD)

reports from 1985 through 1992 in response to an Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR)

request. The data in these ERD reports, compiled by the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, National Air and Radiation Environmental

Laboratory, contains information about radionuclides resulting from environmental releases

from nuclear activities. ERD reports contain radiation analyses and numerical data for the Air

Program, Water Program, External Gamma Ambient Monitoring Program, and Milk Program. 

NRR is examining the Milk Program section of these reports to evaluate long term trends of the

general population’s intake of gamma emitting nuclides.

Freedom of Information and Privacy Act Requests received during the period of

January 3 through January 9, 2003:

Nuclear Materials Events Database (NMED) for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, all years

(FOIA/PA-2003-0112)

Manhattan Project, role of York International between 1940 and 1945, all records (FOIA/PA2003-0113)

Industrial licenses granted in 2001 and 2002 (FOIA/PA-2003-0114)

Contract NRC-10-03-153, copies of all initial & revised proposals submitted by Wackenhut that

resulted in the award of contract (FOIA/PA-2003-0115)

NRC policy document regarding Law Enforcement Availability Pay (FOIA/PA-2003-0116)

White House Chief of Staff memo of 3-19-02, Weapons of Mass Destruction, all records,

guidance, memoranda, training materials, or legal analyses (FOIA/PA-2003-0117)
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE I

Office of Human Resources

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Arrivals

DORSEY, Melissia STUDENT LAW CLERK ASLBP

HARDIN, Kimberly NUCLEAR ENGINEER (CRITICALITY) NMSS

JANUS, Alexandra MANAGEMENT ANALYST (STUDENT TRAINEE) NRR

KRAUS, Kelly CRIMINAL INVESTIGATOR OIG

PEDUZZI, Francis INFORMATION SECURITY SPECIALIST NSIR

RHOADES, Travis REACTOR INSPECTOR RI

TOMLINSON, John SENIOR LEVEL ADVISOR ON SECURITY NSIR

WARD, Leonard SR. REACTOR SYSTEMS ENGINEER NRR

Retirements

SCHWEIBINZ, Ed COMM. SPECIALIST RIII

Departures

MARTIN, David OFFICE ASSISTANT RIII

MAXIM, Susan SECRETARY CSU/HR

O’KELLY, Kevin OFFICE ASSISTANT RIII

REITER, Michael STUDENT CLERK OI/RIII

SULLIVAN, Margaret OFFICE ASSISTANT RIII
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE M

Office of Public Affairs

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Media Interest

There was media interest in Chairman Meserve’s response to the Inspector General’s report on

the staff’s decision to allow Davis-Besse to operate until February 16, 2002, amid concerns

about vessel head penetration nozzle cracking.

On January 10, 2003, there was heavy media interest in a report commissioned by New York

Governor George Pataki on the Review of Emergency Preparedness at Indian Point and

Millstone, released by James Lee Witt Associates.

On January 6, 2003, the staff participated in the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research Risk

Communications project meeting. 

Press Releases

Headquarters:

03-003 NRC Orders Nuclear Power Plants to Enhance Facility Access

Authorization

03-004 Notice to Editors

03-005 NRC Meeting on Proposed MOX Facility

03-006 NRC Announces Opportunity for Hearing on Surry Independent

Spent Fuel Storage Installation

03-007 NRC Announces the Availability of License Renewal Application for

Dresden, Quad Cities Nuclear Power Plants

Regions:

III-03-001 NRC Staff Issues Inspection Reports on Radiation Exposures and

Release of Radioactive Particles from Davis-Besse Nuclear Plant

III-03-002 NRC Oversight Panel to Hold Two Meetings on Davis-Besse

Reactor Vessel Head Damage in Port Clinton, OH
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE O

Office of the Secretary

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Document Released

to Public

Date Subject

Information Papers

1. SECY-03-0004 1/8/03 SECY-03-0004 Weekly Information Report -

Week Ending January 3, 2003

Commission Correspondence

1. Letter to Congress dated December 31, 2002 provides the October report on the status

of NRC’s licensing and regulatory duties. 

Federal Register Notices Issued

1. ASLBP Notice - Establishment of Atomic Safety and Licensing Board for Dominion

Nuclear Connecticut, Inc. - Millstone Unit 2.

2. SGL Carbon, LLC -Application for License to Export Nuclear Grade Graphite--Canada -

Notice of receipt.

3. SGL Carbon, LLC - Application for License to Export Nuclear Grade Graphite--Various

Locations - Notice of receipt. 

4. Notice of Renewal of the Charter of the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards

(ACRS).

5. Westinghouse Electric Co. - Application for a License to Export a Utilization Facility -

Notice of Receipt.
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE P

Region I

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Senior Region I and Region III Management Visit to Exelon

The Regions I and III Regional Administrators visited the Dresden Power Station on January 7,

2003, and met with Senior Exelon Management at their headquarters in Cantera, Illinois, on

January 8, 2003. The Dresden site visit included a plant tour, briefing on security status and a

meeting with plant management. The January 8, 2003, visit to Exelon Headquarters, which

also serves as the offices for the Mid-West Reactor Owners Group (ROG), included a tour of

the Emergency Operations Facility, and discussions regarding corporate support for the Exelon

fleet of nuclear plants. The corporate discussions included their change management controls

and future corporate initiatives.

Northeast Energy Alliance Meeting

The Region I Regional Administrator met with the Northeast Energy Alliance on January 9,

2003, in White Plains, New York. The Alliance includes virtually all companies operating

nuclear power plants in Region I. This meeting provided an opportunity to discuss activities

being initiated by the Alliance, including joint vendor auditing, benchmarking, and sharing of

resources during outages. The Regional Administrator provided the group (which included

Chief Nuclear Officer and Senior Vice President officials) information on the status of a variety

of NRC initiatives, such as those associated with security programs and Davis-Besse follow-up. 

Independent Review of Emergency Preparedness Around Indian Point

On January 10, 2003, James Lee Witt Associates (JLWA) released its independent review of

emergency preparedness around the Indian Point Energy Center. JLWA was hired by the

State of New York in August 2002 to perform the review and provide the report to New York

Governor George Pataki. The body of the report is over 250 pages, with numerous

appendices.

The report’s executive summary lists major findings, conclusions, and recommendations. Initial

press response to the report has focused on one conclusion related to Indian Point - "that the

current radiological response system and capabilities are not adequate... to protect the people

from an unacceptable dose of radiation." Region I has received numerous media inquiries.

The NRC and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the lead agency for offsite

emergency preparedness, are reviewing the report. The report’s executive summary, in

highlighting the many recommendations contained within, notes that the systems and practices

for emergency planning were developed in a different environment than currently exists. The

report is considered "draft," since public comments are being accepted until February 7, 2003. 

These comments will be reviewed, summarized, and addressed in the final report. 
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE P

Region II

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Chairman Meserve Visits BWX Technologies, Inc.,

On January 9, 2003, the Regional Administrator accompanied the Chairman and members of

his staff on a visit to the BWX Technologies, Inc., in Lynchburg, Virginia, to tour the facility and

to meet with licensee staff and managers and the NRC resident inspector.
January 10, 2003 ENCLOSURE P

Region IV

Items of Interest

Week Ending January 10, 2003

Wolf Creek Management Changes

On January 3, 2003, Otto Maynard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Wolf Creek

Nuclear Operating Corporation, retired. Rick Muench, previously the Vice President Technical

Services, has assumed the role of President and Chief Executive Officer. Britt McKinney,

previously Vice President Operations, will become Site Vice President with responsibility for

operations, engineering, training, and other functions directly supporting operation of the plant.