[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 29 (Monday, February 13, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 8260]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-3522]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 50-313]


Entergy Operations, Inc. (Arkansas Nuclear One, Unit 1); 
Exemption

I

    Entergy Operations, Inc. (the licensee) is the holder of Operating 
License No. DPR-51, which authorizes operation of Arkansas Nuclear One, 
Unit 1 (ANO-1). The operating license provides, among other things, 
that it is subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the 
Commission now and hereafter in effect.
    The facility consist of pressurized water reactor at the licensee's 
site in Pope County, Arkansas.

II

    Section III.D.1(a) of appendix J to 10 CFR part 50 requires, ``* * 
* a set of three Type A tests [Overall Integrated Containment Leakage 
Rate Tests, or ILRTs] shall be preformed, at approximately equal 
intervals during each 10-year service period. The third test of each 
set shall be conducted when the plant is shutdown for the 10-year plant 
inservice inspection.'' By letter dated November 8, 1994, the licensee 
requested an exemption from this requirement of the Commission's 
regulations.
    The NRC may grant exemptions from the requirements of the 
regulations, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, that (1) are 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. Section 50.12(a)(2) of 10 CFR part 50 describes 
special circumstances as including cases that would not serve the 
underlying purpose of the rule or are not necessary to achieve the 
underlying purpose of the rule.
    In its November 8, 1994, letter, the licensee also applied for an 
amendment to Facility Operating License No. DPR-51 to change related 
provisions of the ANO-1 Technical Specifications (TSs). The TS 
amendment request will be addressed as a separate action.

III

    The Type A test is defined in 10 CFR part 50, appendix J, section 
II.F, as a ``test intended to measure the primary reactor containment 
overall integrated leakage rate (1) after the containment has been 
completed and is ready for operation, and (2) at periodic intervals 
thereafter.'' A total of six Type A tests (ILRT) has been performed on 
the ANO-1 containment including the preoperational ILRT that was 
performed in 1973. Except for leakage detected by Type B and C tests, 
containment leakage rates have always been below the ANO-1 acceptance 
criteria. The requested exemption does not affect the performance of 
Type B and C leakage tests which are expected to detect the most 
probable sources of containment leakage.
    In order to schedule the next ILRT (the third ILRT of this service 
period) such that it coincides with the 10-year inservice inspections, 
the licensee has requested a one-time exemption from the appendix J 
requirements. The exemption would permit the licensee to perform the 
ILRT together with the 10-year inservice inspections that are schedule 
during the thirteenth refueling outage. If performed during the 
thirteenth refueling outage, the third ILRT will not be completed until 
after the end of the current 10-year service period. To comply with 
regulations as written, an ILRT would be required during the twelfth 
refueling outage to satisfy the requirement for three ILRTs during the 
10-year service period and another ILRT would be required during the 
thirteenth refueling outage to satisfy the requirement for the third 
ILRT to be performed when the plant is shutdown for the 10-year 
inservice inspections.
    The thirteenth refueling outage is currently scheduled for the 
summer of 1996 and an ILRT performed during this refueling outage would 
result in a test interval between the second and third ILRTs of 
approximately 53 months. If the ILRT were performed during the twelfth 
refueling outrage, currently scheduled for early 1995, the interval 
between the second and third ILRTs would be approximately 34 months. In 
the absence of the exemption and related technical specification 
changes, the licensee would be required to perform ILRTs during both 
the twelfth and thirteenth refueling outages. A requirement to perform 
ILRTs during two consecutive refueling is clearly beyond the intent of 
the regulations and given the satisfactory results of previous tests at 
ANO-1, there is little, if anything, to gain from two closely spaced 
tests.
    For the reasons set forth above, the NRC staff concludes that this 
one-time relief from the requirement to perform the third ILRT within a 
10-year service period is not significant in terms of complying with 
the intent of appendix J, section III.D.1(a). Accordingly, the staff 
finds that the performance of ILRTs during both the twelfth and 
thirteenth refueling outages would not result in a commensuate increase 
in the confidence of containment integrity. Therefore, the subject 
exemption request meets the special circumstances of 10 CFR 
50.12(a)(2)(ii), in that in these particular circumstances, the fourth 
test is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.
    On this basis, the NRC staff finds that the licensee has 
demonstrated that special circumstances are present as required by 10 
CFR 50.12. Further the staff also finds that extending the schedule for 
the third ILRT to beyond the 10-year service period will not present a 
undue risk to the public health and safety.

IV

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12(a), that this exemption is authorized by law and will not 
endanger life or property or the common defense and security and is 
otherwise in the public interest. Therefore, the Commission hereby 
grants Entery Operations, Inc. an exemption from the requirements of 10 
CFR part 50, appendix J, section III.D.1(a).
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will have no significant impact of the 
quality of the human environment (60 FR 6568).

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 3rd day of February 1995.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Elinor G. Adensam,
Deputy Director, Division of Reactor Projects III/IV, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 95-3522 Filed 2-10-95; 8:45 am]
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