[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 2, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21569-21570]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-10733]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-278]


PECO Energy Company; Public Service Electric and Gas Company; 
Delmarva Power and Light Company; Atlantic City Electric Company (Peach 
Bottom Atomic Power Station, Unit 3); Exemption

I

    PECO Energy Company, et al. (PECo., the licensee), is the holder of 
Operating License No. DPR-56, which authorizes operation of the Peach 
Bottom Atomic Power Station, Unit 3, at steady state reactor core power 
levels not in excess of 3293 megawatts thermal. The license provides, 
among other things, that the licensee is subject to the rules, 
regulations and order of the Commission now or hereafter in effect.
    The plant is a boiling water reactor located at the licensee's site 
in York County, Pennsylvania.

II

    Section 50.54(o) of 10 CFR Part 50 requires that primary reactor 
containments for water cooled power reactors be subject to the 
requirements of Appendix J to 10 CFR Part 50. Appendix J contains the 
leakage test requirements, schedules, and acceptance criteria for tests 
of the leak tight integrity of the primary reactor containment and 
systems and components which penetrate the containment.
    Section III.D.2(a) of Appendix J to 10 CFR Part 50 requires that 
Type B leak rate tests, except for air locks, be performed during 
reactor shutdown for refueling, or other convenient intervals, but in 
no case at intervals greater than 2 years. Type B tests are intended to 
detect local leaks and to measure leakage across each pressure-
containing or leakage-limiting boundary for certain reactor containment 
penetrations.
    Section III.D.3 of Appendix J to 10 CFR Part 50 requires that Type 
C leak rate tests be performed during each reactor shutdown for 
refueling but in no case at intervals greater than 2 years. Type C 
tests are intended to measure containment isolation valve leakage rates 
for certain containment isolation valves.

III

    By letter dated February 22, 1995, the licensee requested a one-
time exemption from the requirements of Appendix J, Sections III.D.2(a) 
and III.D.3 for a period of 60 days for the isolation valves or leakage 
boundaries for 80 penetrations. In its request, the licensee provided a 
list of the affected penetrations and associated plant-specific leak 
test procedures, the date when the leak tests had last been performed 
and the date when the current leak test will expire.
    The licensee has implemented a 24-month operating cycle schedule at 
the Peach Bottom facility. The last refueling outage for Unit 3, 3R09, 
commenced in September 1993 and ended in November 1993 and the next 
refueling outage, 3R10 is scheduled to commence no later than September 
30, 1995. The leak tests for which the licensee has requested schedular 
exemption were last conducted during the refueling outage 3R09, based 
on the information provided in the licensee's application. The licensee 
has stated that the affected leak test require either that safety 
systems be isolated or require access to the drywell, either of which 
would require the reactor to be shutdown.
    The licensee has divided the affected leak tests into two 
categories: (1) Those that require shutdown reactor conditions but come 
due prior to the latest scheduled commencement of 3R10 on September 30, 
1995, and (2) those that require reactor shutdown conditions and come 
due after the scheduled commencement of 3R10. There are 52 leak test 
surveillance procedures affecting 47 penetrations or penetration groups 
in the first category. These tests and penetrations are listed in Table 
1 of the licensee's February 22, 1995 request. The earliest of these 
tests falls due on August 12, 1995, up to 49 days prior to the 
scheduled shutdown. The licensee has requested an exemption for 60 days 
which will allow the unit to operate until the beginning of the planned 
outage without shutting down to perform leak tests and which will allow 
for flexibility in planning the leak tests during the outage.
    There are 28 leak test surveillance procedures affecting 29 
penetrations in the second category described previously. These tests 
are listed in Table 2 of the licensee's February 22, 1995 submittal. 
The licensee has requested an exemption of 60 days to allow for 
flexibility in planning these leak tests during the outage. The 
licensee stated that all of the affected penetrations will be leak 
tested prior to restart from 3R10.

IV

    The licensee presented information in support of its request for a 
60-day extension of the Type B and C test intervals. The maximum 
allowable leakage rate for maintaining primary containment (L<INF>a--
minimum pathway leakage) is 125,417 cc/min. The as-found total Type B 
and C minimum pathway leakage rate observed during Unit 3 refueling 
outage 3R09 during the fall of 1993 was 33,434 cc/min. The as-left leak 
rate for that same outage was 27,188 cc/min.
    PECo stated that an extension of the leak test interval to allow 
for 49 days of operation in not likely to significantly decrease the 
margin between as-found leak rates and L<INF>a.
    PECo also stated that the remainder of the total 60-day extension, 
requested for outage planning flexibility, will have minimal safety 
significance since the unit will be in cold shutdown. Primary 
containment integrity is not required during cold shutdown.
    The licensee provided information regarding the requirements of 10 
CFR 50.12, ``Specific Exemptions.'' With respect to the requirements of 
10 CFR [[Page 21570]] 50.12(a)(1), the licensee stated that the 
requested action is authorized by law in that no prohibition of law 
exists which would preclude the activities which would be authorized by 
the exemption. In addition, the licensee stated that, for the reasons 
discussed above, the requested exemption does not present an undue risk 
to the public health and safety. Finally, the licensee stated that 
containment leak rate testing is not considered in the common defense 
and security of the nation.
    With respect to the requirements of 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii), the 
licensee stated that special circumstances are present because 
compliance with the strict requirements of Appendix J would result in 
hardships significantly in excess of those contemplated when the 
regulation was adopted. The licensee stated that at the time the 
regulation was adopted, a presumption was made that a 2-year test 
interval would easily accommodate performance of the required tests 
during an operating cycle. However, development of new core designs 
have resulted in cycles of 24 months, or longer. Performance of the 
tests at the 24-month frequency would result in undue financial 
hardship resulting from extended reactor shutdown beyond that intended 
by the regulation with little or no compensatory increase in the level 
of safety or quality.

V

    Based on the above, the staff finds there is reasonable assurance 
that the containment leakage-limiting function will be maintained and 
that a forced outage to perform Type B and C tests is not necessary. 
Therefore, the staff finds the requested exemption, to allow the Type B 
and C test intervals for the penetrations listed in the licensee's 
February 22, 1995 request to be extended for 60 days from their current 
expiration date, to be acceptable. The exemption request has been 
evaluated in a safety evaluation dated April 25, 1995.
    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12(a), the requested exemption is authorized by law, will not 
present an undue risk to the public health and safety, and is 
consistent with the common defense and security. The Commission finds 
that the special circumstances as required by 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2) are 
present. The Commission's finding is based on the information provided 
by the licensee regarding 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(iii). In addition, as 
specified in 50.12(a)(2)(ii), special circumstances are present 
whenever the application of the regulation in the particular 
circumstance would not serve the underlying purpose of the rule or is 
not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule. The 
underlying purpose of the rule is to ensure that the components 
comprising the primary containment boundary are maintained and leak 
tested at periodic and appropriate intervals. The 24-month maximum 
interval was originally expected to bound the typical operating cycle, 
including a limited amount of mid-cycle outage time. The advent of 
advanced fuel types has made it possible to operate the facility for 
the 24 months with minimal, if any mid-cycle outage time. Strict 
adherence to the 24-month maximum interval is not necessary to meet the 
underlying purpose of the rule in that, taking into consideration the 
60-day extension, the components that comprise the primary containment 
boundary will still be tested at a frequency that is appropriate to 
those components and their application. In addition, the 60-day 
extension represents a minimal increase in the existing 24-month 
interval required by the rule. Therefore, the staff finds the requested 
temporary exemption, to allow the Type B and C test intervals for 
penetrations described in the licensee's February 22, 1995 letter, to 
be extended for 60 days, to be acceptable.
    An exemption is hereby granted from the requirements of Sections 
III.D.2(a) and III.D.3 of Appendix J to 10 CFR Part 50, which requires 
that Type B and C tests be performed during each reactor shutdown for 
refueling but in no case at intervals greater than 2 years, for a 
period of 60 days from the expiration of the current leak test for the 
affected penetrations.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will have no significant impact on the 
quality of the human environment (60 FR 19968).
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 25th day of April 1995.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Steven A. Varga,
Director, Division of Reactor Projects--I/II, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 95-10733 Filed 5-1-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M