ML20199B385
| ML20199B385 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Humboldt Bay |
| Issue date: | 11/13/1997 |
| From: | Scarano R NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION IV) |
| To: | Rueger G PACIFIC GAS & ELECTRIC CO. |
| References | |
| 50-133-97-02, 50-133-97-2, NUDOCS 9711180297 | |
| Download: ML20199B385 (5) | |
See also: IR 05000133/1997002
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AR LINGTON, T E XAS 76011 8064 -
November 13, 1997-.
Gregory M. Rueger, Senior Vice President
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~ Nuclear Power Generation Bus. Unit -
Pacific Gas and Electric
Nuclear Power Generation, B14A77
77 Beale Street, Room 1451
P. O. Box 770000
San Francisco, California 94177
SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO NRC INSPECTION REPORT 50-133/97-02
Dear Mr. Rueger:
Thank you for your letter of Octcber 27,1997, in response to our October 1,1997iletter
and Notice of Violation concerning the incorrect setting of the process water monitor high alarm.
We have reviewed your reply and find it responsive to the concerns raised in our Notice of
Violation. We will review the implementation of your corrective actions during a future inspection
to determine that full compliance has been achieved and will be maintained.
Sincerely,
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Ross A. Scarano, Director
Division of Nuclear Materials Safety
Docket No.: 50-133
License No.: DPR-7
cc:
Christopher J. Wamer, Esq.
Law Department
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
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P.O. Box 7442
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Thomas A. Moulia, Plant Manager -
- Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Humboldt Bay Power Plant
1000 King Salmon Avenue
Eureka, California _95503
Chairman -
- Humboldt County Board of Supervisors
County Courthouse
825 Fifth Street
Eureka, California 95501
Linda J. Brown, Esq.
Donohew, Jones, Brown & Clifford
1100 Van Ness Avenue,19th Floor
- San Francisco, California 94102
' Regional Radiation Representative
U. C Environmental Protection Agency _
- Region IX Office --
75 Hawthorne Street
. San Francisco,- California 94105
Dr. Richard Ferguson
Energy Chair
1100 lith Street, Suite 311
Sacramento, California 95814
Dr. James F. Davis, State Geologist
Department of Conservation
Division of Mines & Geology
801 K Street MS 12-30
Sacramento, California 95814-3531
Mr. Steve Hsu
Radiological Health Branch
State Department of Health Services
- P.O. Box 942732
Sacramento, California 94234
' Director
Energy Facilities Siting Division
' Energy Resources Conservation &
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Development Commission
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1516 9th Etreet
L Sacramento, California 95814
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PG&E Letter HBL 07 016
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Docket No. 50-133 OL-DPR 7
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Humbo!di Bay Power Plant, Unit 3
Reply to Notice of Violation in NRC Inspection Reoort No. SM33/97-02
Dear Commissioners and Staff:
NRC Inspection Report No. 50-133/97-02, dated October 1,1997. included a
Notice of Violation citing one Severity Level IV violation. The violation perteins to
an incorrect setting of the process water monitor high alarm. PG&E's response
to the Notice of V:..iation is enclosed,
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Sincerely,
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Gregory M. Rueger
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cc:
Richard F. Dudley
Kenneth E. Perkins
Ellis W. Merschoff
Humboldt Distribution
Enclosure
HB3-97-QC-N003
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Enclosure
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PG&E Lett:r HBL 97-016
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REPLY TO NOTICE OF VIOLATION IN
NRC INSPECTION REPORT NO. 50133197-02
On October 1,1997, as part of NRC Inspection Report No. 50-133/97-02, NRC Region
IV issued one Severity Level IV violation for Humboldt Bay Power Plant (HBPP), Unit 3.
The statement of violation and PG&E's response follow.
STATEMENT OF VIOLATION
Facility Operating License DPR-7, Paragraph 2.(2) states, in part, that the
Technical Specification contained in Appendix A, as revised, is hereby
incorporatedin the license.Section V.B.2.b of the Technical Specifications
state, in part, that the process water monitor shaII be set to alarm at or below a
cesium 137 concentration in the discharge line of 1 x 10' microcuries/ milliliter
(pCl/ml).
Contrary to the above, from April B-15,1997, the process water monitor was set
to alarm at 300,000 counts per minute. This equates to 9.78 x 10' pCi/ml.
This is a Severity LevelIV violation (Supplement IV).
REASON FOR THE VIOLATION
PG&E agrees with the violation as stated in the inspection report.
Setting the process water monitor high alarm too high is a violation of Technical
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Specification (TS) V.B.2.b.
TS V.B.2.b. requires 11* process water monitor alarm to be set at or below 1.0 E-4
microcuries per milliliter (pCl/ml) for Cs 137, which is equivalent to approximately
26,500 counts per minute (cpm). To ensure HBPP effluents remain in compliance with
TS V.B.2.b., Surveillance Test Procedure (STP) 3.21.3, " Weekly Process Monitor
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Checks,"is used to set the process water r 'onitor warning and high alarm settings at
1500 cpm and 5000 cpm, respectively.
The process water monitor has two scales: one from 1 cpm - 10,000 (10K) cpm, the
other from 10 epin - 1,000,000 (1M) cpm. To parform STP 3.21.3, the operator sets
the alarms for the readings on the 1M scale of the monitor.
The following are the causes of the event.
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Enclosure -
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PG&E Lett:r HBL 97-016
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Personne! Error-
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_ adjusted the alarm setpoints on the monitor alarm panel in the control
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In performing STP 3.21.3 on April 8,1997, the operator manually
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room such that the alarm trip point was reduced to below the background
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level. Th's initiated the alarrn. After the test, the alarm setpoints were
readjusted back to the required readings of 1500 and 5000 opm.
However, the operator read the wrong scale on the process water
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monhor_ when setting the woming and high alarms. Instead of reading
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the 1M scale, the operator read the 10K scale. The value of 1500 cpm
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as read on the 10K scale corresponds to 41,000 opm on the 1M scale,-
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and is equivalent to approximately 1.28 E-4 pCL/ml. The value of
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5000 cpm as read on the 10K scale corresponds to 300,000 cpm on the
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1M scale, and is equivalent to approximately 9.78 E 4 pCi/ml, which
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exceeds the TS limit of 1.0 E 4 pCl/ml.
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Procedural Weakness
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STP 3.21.3 did not clearly identify the appropriate scale for the operator
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to use when setting the warning and high alarms.
A description and analysis of this event was provided to the NRC in Licensee
Event Report 3 97-001-00, submitted May 15,1997.
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CORRECTIVE STEPS TAKEN AND RESULTS ACHIEVED
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A number of immediate actions were taken to assure that the process water monitor
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warning and high alarms would remain set corredly while long term corrective actions
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were being implemented.
When a different operator performed STP 3.21.3 on April 15,1997 he observed the-
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incorrect settings and correctly reset lne procese water monitor waming and high
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All op3rators were re-educated on the proper method to set the process water
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monitor warning and high alarms.
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. A shift order was sont to' shift foremen requiring them to independently verify the
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correct settings for process water. monitor waming and high alarms. The shift order
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- action wasW. interim measure that remained in place until incorporated as a long-
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term corremlve action in a revision to STP 3.21.3.
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Enclosure
PG&E Letter HBL 97-016
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CORRECTIVE STEPS THAT WERE TAKEN TO AVolD FURTHER VIOLATIONS
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The following actions were taken to prevent recurrence, based on the causes of
the event:
PersonnelError
The supervisor discussed the event with the responsible employee. The
supervisor issued the employee an oral reminder as part of the positive
discipline prograr,1
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Procedural Weakness
STP 3.21.3 was revised to:
not require adjusting and resetting the process water monitor warning
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and high alarms if the as found settings are 1500 cpm and 5000 cpm,
respectively.
require an independent verification whenever the process water monitor
warning and high alarm settings are changed.
clearly identify the appropriate scale for the operator to use when setting the
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process water monitor warning and high alarms.
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HBPP personnel reviewed other STPs that contain alarm settings required by TS
to determine if these other STPs require modifications similar to those made to
STP 3.21.3. The results of this review dearmined that two other procedures,
STP 3.16.2, ' Source Check Area Mon 5 tors," and STP 3.16.3, " Stack Gas
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Monitoring System (PIOPS) Annual Calibration Check," include changing alarm
setpoints. Both of these STPs were revised in a similar manner to the revision
for STP 3.21.3.
All the above actions were completed by September 26,1997.
DATE WHEN FULL COMPLIANCE WILL BE ACHIEVED
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PG&E is currently in full compliance.
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