ML993500387

Meeting Summary for 10/6/99 and 11/10/99 Meetings with Risk-Informed Technical Specifications Task Force

ML993500387
Person / Time
Issue date:	12/14/1999
From:	Beckner W Technical Specifications Branch
To:	Brooks A Nuclear Energy Institute
Gilles N V, NRR/DRIP, 415-1180
References
Download: ML993500387 (3)

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December14,1999Mr.AnthonyBrooksNuclearEnergyInstitute Suite400 1776IStreet,NW Washington,DC20006-3708Mr.Brooks:ThepurposeofthisletteristotransmitthesummaryoftwomeetingswiththeRisk-Informed TechnicalSpecificationsTaskForce.ThefirstmeetingwasheldattheSanOnofreNuclear GeneratingStationonOctober6-7,1999.ThesecondmeetingwasheldattheU.S.Nuclear RegulatoryCommission(NRC)HeadquartersofficesinRockville,Maryland,onNovember10, 1999.Sincerely, Originalsignedby:

WilliamD.Beckner,ChiefTechnicalSpecificationsBranch DivisionofRegulatoryImprovementPrograms OfficeofNuclearReactorRegulation

Enclosures:

1.MeetingSummary2.AttendanceList 3.OctoberMeetingPresentations 4.NovemberMeetingPresentationscc:Seeattachedlist December14,1999Mr.AnthonyBrooksNuclearEnergyInstitute Suite400 1776IStreet,NW Washington,DC20006-3708Mr.Brooks:

ThepurposeofthisletteristotransmitthesummaryoftwomeetingswiththeRisk-Informed TechnicalSpecificationsTaskForce.ThefirstmeetingwasheldattheSanOnofreNuclear GeneratingStationonOctober6-7,1999.ThesecondmeetingwasheldattheU.S.Nuclear RegulatoryCommission(NRC)HeadquartersofficesinRockville,Maryland,onNovember10, 1999.Sincerely, Originalsignedby:

WilliamD.Beckner,ChiefTechnicalSpecificationsBranch DivisionofRegulatoryImprovementPrograms OfficeofNuclearReactorRegulation

Enclosures:

1.MeetingSummary2.AttendanceList 3.OctoberMeetingPresentations 4.NovemberMeetingPresentationscc:Seeattachedlist DISTRIBUTION:Seeattached.DOCUMENTNAME:G:\RTSB\GILLES\MTGSUMRITSTF111099.WPDOFFICENRR/DRIP/RTSBNRR/DRIP/RTSBNRR/DRIP/RTSBNAMENVGillesRLDennigWDBecknerDATE12/14/9912/14/9912/14/99OFFICIALRECORDCOPY MultipleAddresseesDecember14,1999 cc:Mr.AlanHackerottOmahaPublicPowerDistrict Ft.CalhounNuclearStation P.O.Box399 Ft.Calhoun,NE68023-0399Mr.NoelClarksonDukeEnergy/Oconee MailCode:0N03RC Highways130&183(29678)

P.O.Box14393652 Seneca,SC29679-1439Mr.GregKruegerPECOEnergyCompany MailCode63A-3 965ChesterbrookBoulevard Wayne,PA19087Mr.WayneHarrisonSouthTexasProjectElectricGeneratingStationSTPNuclearOperatingCompany P.O.Box289 Wadsworth,TX77483Mr.DennisHennekeSanOnofreNuclearGeneratingStation SouthernCaliforniaEdison 5000PacificCoastHighway SanClemente,California92674-0128Ms.SharonMahlerCooperNuclearStation NebraskaPulicPowerDistrict P.O.Box98 Brownville,NE68321-0098Mr.FrankRahnElectricPowerResearchInstitute P.O.Box10412 PaloAlto,CA94303Mr.DonaldHoffmanEXCELServicesCorporation 11921RockvillePike,Suite100 Rockville,MD20852Mr.JackStringfellowSouthernNuclearOperatingCompany P.O.Box1295 Birmingham,AL35201-1295 MultipleAddresseesDecember14,1999DISTRIBUTION

E-Mailw/oEnclosures3&4SCollins/RPZimmerman JJohnson BWSheron DBMatthews SFNewberry GMHolahan WDBeckner RJBarrett RLDennig FMReinhart MLWohl NTSaltos TSBStaff JAZwolinski JFWilliams AWMarkley MACunningham,RES MMarkley,ACRSStaffHARDCOPYFILECENTERPUBLIC TSBR/F NVGilles Enclosure1 1NRC/INDUSTRYMEETINGOFTHERISK-INFORMEDTECHNICALSPECIFICATIONTASKFORCEMeetingSummariesOctober6-7andNovember10,1999TwomeetingsbetweentheNRCstaffandindustryrepresentativescomprisingtheRisk-InformedTechnicalSpecificationsTaskForce(RITSTF)wereheldonOctober6-7and November10,1999.TheattendeesarelistedinEnclosure2.Themeetingswerea continuationofearliermeetingswheretheNRCstaffandtheindustrydiscussedongoingrisk-informedtechnicalspecificationinitiativesandthecreationofafullyrisk-informedsetof standardtechnicalspecifications(STS).ThemainpurposeoftheOctober6-7meetingwastohaveamoredetaileddiscussionoftheprobabilisticriskanalysis(PRA)workdonetosupportthecurrenttechnicalspecification(TS) initiativesbeingpreparedforsubmittaltothestaff.TherewaslimitedRITSTFrepresentationat thismeeting.SouthernCaliforniaEdisonhasvolunteeredSanOnofreNuclearGenerating Station(SONGS)tobetheindustry'sleadplantforthemajorityoftheseveninitiativescurrently beingpursuedbytheRITSTF.Theseinclude:1.DefinepreferredendstatesforTSactions(e.g.,hotshutdownvs.coldshutdown)2.Increasethetimeallowedtodelayenteringrequiredactionswhenasurveillanceis missed3.Modifyexistingmoderestraintlogictoallowuseriskassessmentsforentryintolimitingconditionsforoperation(LCOs)withinoperableequipmentbasedonlowrisk4.Developarisk-informedextensionofcurrentallowedoutagetimesbasedonaconfigurationriskmanagementprogram(CRMP)5.Optimizesurveillancerequirements(SRs) 6.ModifyLCO3.0.3actionsandtimingbyextendingminimumtimetobeginLCO3.0.3shutdownfrom1hourto24hoursandallowingforarisk-informedevaluationto determinewhetheritisbettertoshutdownorcontinuetooperate7.DefineactionstobetakenwhenequipmentisnotoperablebutisstillfunctionalThestaffandtheindustrydiscussedthemeaningoftheterm"risk-informed"asitrelatestoregulatoryapplications.Theindustrystatedthatitwastheirgeneralphilosophytouse qualitativeriskassessmentswheretheybelievedthebenefitsofaproposedchangewere obvious,andtousequantitativeassessmentswheretheoutcomewasnotasobvious.The industryalsostatedthattheytakeintoaccountotheraspectssuchasdefenseindepthand safetymarginswhenconsideringaproposedchange.Theindustrybelievedsuchanapproach wasconsistentwiththeguidanceinRegulatoryGuide1.174,"AnApproachforUsing ProbabilisticRiskAssessmentinRisk-InformedDecisionsonPlant-SpecificChangestothe LicensingBasis,"tousePRAtoimprovedecisionmakingandregulatoryeffectiveness.The staffreservedjudgementofsuchanapproachnotingthatbenefitsthatareobvioustoone personorgroupmightnotbeobvioustoanother.SONGSrepresentativesthenpresentedsomedetailsregardingtheirPRAworkinsupportofsomeoftheRITSTFinitiatives.TheSanOnofrepresentationsarecontainedinEnclosure3.

TheSONGSrepresentativespresentedinformationregardingtheirlivingPRAandSafety Monitor,includingthefullpower,transition,andlowpowerandshutdownriskmodels.The SONGSrepresentativesstatedthattheyhadtheirowntransitionmodeldevelopmentdocument Enclosure1 2thatwouldlikelybereferencedorincludedintheSONGSplant-specificsubmittalforInitiative

1. 1.ThestaffandtheRITSTFdiscussedsomespecificsubmittalandimplementationandtechnicalissuesrelatedtoafewoftheinitiatives.WithregardtoInitiative#1relatedtosafeendstates, theRITSTFindicatedthattheCombustionEngineeringOwnersGroup(CEOG)waspreparinga draftreporttosupportthisinitiativeandthatthereportwouldaccompanyanindustryrequestfor agenericchangetotheSTS.TheRITSTFindicatedthatchangestotheTSendstateswould beproposedforthevastmajorityofLCOsintheSTS.TheRITSTFindicatedthatuncertainties andsensitivitiesofPRAresultswillbeinvestigated.Thegroupdiscussedthatadditional knownshutdownissueswhichmayimpacttheresults(e.g.,externaleventsandborondilution) shouldbeaddressed.RepresentativesfromtheBoilingWaterReactorOwnersGroup(BWROG)statedthattheyarestillconsideringthisinitiativeandthattheriskofoperatinginhotshutdownandincold shutdownisrelativelythesame,whereasforthepressurizedwaterreactorsthereappearstobe aclearriskbenefittooperatinginhotshutdowninmostcases.Theyindicatedthattheywould bemoreinterestedinchangingthecurrentTStoallowthemtousePRAindecidingwhetherto stayatpowerorshutthereactordown.Theyalsoindicatedthattheymaybeinterestedin extendingthetimerequirementsforgoingtocoldshutdown.Thiswouldallowthemtooperate longerinhotshutdownconditions.TheBWROGisconsideringapilotplantforthisissue.TheRITSTFandthestaffdiscussedhowtheSONGSassessmentresultsforInitiative#1couldbeappliedtootherplants.TheWestinghouseOwnersGroup(WOG)indicatedthattheywould attempttoshowhowtheSONGSresultsapplyusingqualitativeassessmentsandcomparisons, andthattheydidnotplantoperformanyfurtherplant-specificanalyses.TheBabcockand WilcoxOwnersGroupindicatedthattheyintendedtopursueasimilarapproach.Thegroup indicatedthattheycouldusetheSONGSmodeltohelpdevelopsensitivitystudiestoaddress someofthedesigndifferencesbetweentheplants.Thestaffstatedthattheycouldnotmake anydefinitivedecisionsonwhattypeofsubmittalstheywouldfindacceptableandthatthe burdenofproofofsimilaritytotheCEOGworkwouldrestwiththeotherownersgroups.WithregardtoInitiative#2relatedtomissedSRs,thegroupdiscussedthePRAaspectsofthatinitiative.Inordertoassesstheincreaseinriskitisnecessarytomakeanassumptionabout thefrequencyofthevariousexpectedmissedsurveillances.Thisrequiresanunderstandingof thereasons,thenatureandcircumstancesunderwhichsurveillancesaremissed.TheRITSTF pointedoutthatevenifthefailurerateofacomponentisdoubled,duetothemissed surveillanceonthatcomponent,theplantriskwouldnotbeaffectedsignificantly.Thestaff agreedthatmostlikelytheriskincreasewouldnotbesignificantunlesssomelicenseesabuse theproposedflexibility.Thedevelopmentandimplementationofanappropriateregulatory oversightprocesscouldaddressthisissue.Theindustryandthestaffagreedthatthestaff's reviewofthisissuewouldinvolvemoreofapolicydecisionthanatechnicaldecision.WithregardtoInitiative#3relatedtomoderestraints,SONGShasbeenstudyingthisissuebycomparingtherelativeimportanceoffunctionsandassociatedsystemsatvariousmodesof operation.TheproposedchangewouldallowalicenseetouseaCRMPtodecidewhetherto enterintoamodeorotherspecifiedconditionwithintheapplicabilitywithinoperableequipment.

Thestaffagreedthatthestudyofconditionsandrisksassociatedwithvariouslikelytransitions couldhelpfocustheissueandidentifyanappropriateregulatoryoversightmechanism.

Enclosure1 3WithregardtoInitiative#6relatedtochangestoLCO3.0.3,theRITSTFstatedthatthisinitiativeisverycloselytiedtothemaintenanceruleasitaddresseswhatactionstotakefora lossofsafetyfunction.Theindustryindicatedthatthefrequencyofplantconditionsforwhich thisTSchangeisapplicableislow.Thestaffmentionedthattheidentificationandstudyof examplesofplantspecificLCO3.0.3entriesandconditionsthatwoulddrivetheplantto shutdown,includingassociatedrisks,couldhelpfocustheissue.ThegroupdiscussedtheprocessforplantstoadoptapprovedchangestotheSTS.Thestaffbrieflydiscussedprocessesbeingconsideredtomakeadoptionofsuchapprovedchanges moreefficient.Finally,thegroupdiscussedsubmittalschedulesforsomeoftheinitiatives.TheRITSTFstatedthattheyexpectedtosubmitInitiatives#2and#3tothestaffaroundOctober30,1999,andthat theymightbeabletosubmitsomeoftheirPRAassessmentforInitiative#1byDecember31, 1999.TheRITSTFstatedthatInitiatives#4and#6wouldcomesometimein2000.TheNovember10,1999meetingwasameetingofthefullRITSTFtodiscusshigh-levelobjectivesandthestatusofthecurrentinitiatives.Allpresentationsforthemeetingare containedinEnclosure4.Thestaffopenedthemeetingwithageneraldiscussionofthestatus ofrisk-informedregulatoryactivitiesattheNRC.Thestaffpointedoutthattherewasahigh levelofinterestintheRITSTFactivitiesandthatweneededtounderstandhowbroadthe interestintheindustrywas.Thestaffpresentedseveralthoughtsonalong-termvisionforrisk-informedTSandacknowledgedthatstructureandresourceissueswillneedtobeworkedout.

Thestaffalsopointedoutthatitwillneedtoaddressthefourstrategicperformancegoals identifiedintheCommission'sNuclearReactorSafetyStrategicPlan.Thoseperformance goalsare:(1)Maintainsafety;(2)Increasepublicconfidence;(3)Reduceunnecessary regulatoryburden;and(4)MakeNRCactivitiesanddecisionsmoreeffective,efficient,and realistic.TheRITSTFpresentedsomeofitsthoughtsonalong-termvisionforrisk-informedTS.MuchofthediscussionfocusedonaslidewhichpresentedtheWestinghouseOwnersGroup(WOG) fiveyearrisk-informedTSstrategy.Thegroupdiscussedatwhatpointrulemakingmightbe neededtoaccommodatealloftheenvisionedchangestoTS.Thegroupalsodiscussedthe issueofPRAqualityandthefactthattheASMEPRAstandardcurrentlybeingdevelopeddid notaddressconfigurationriskmanagementtoolslikethoseenvisionedasnecessaryto implementmanyoftheTSchangesunderdevelopment.RepresentativesfromtheSouthTexasProjectpresentedaconceptofafullyrisk-informedsetofTSthatessentiallyreliesonaCRMPasthebackboneoftheTS.Theylikenedtheproposed risklimitsintheirconcepttoradiationprotectionlimits(i.e.,ALARAlimits).TheNRCregulates ALARAlimitsatahighlevelandlicenseescontroltheselimitsatalowerleveladministratively.

ThegroupalsodiscussedwhethertherewasaneedforaninstantaneousriskcapforTS.The RITSTFstatedthatthemajorquestionisthecostbenefitofgoingtothisextreme.For example,ifplantPRAsessentiallybecometheTS,thenlicenseeswouldhavetocontrol changestothePRAmodeltothesamedegreeasTSchangesarecurrentlycontrolled.TheRITSTFpresentedastatusoftheseveninitiativescurrentlyunderdevelopment.ThegroupdiscussedInitiative#1relatedtosafeendstates.TheRITSTFstatedthattheexpected resultswereconfirmedbythePRAworkdonebySONGS.Thegroupagaindiscussedwhat worktheotherownersgroupsplannedtodotojustifythechangesfortheirplanttypesbytaking Enclosure1 4advantageoftheSONGSandCEOGwork.Updatedschedulesforthevariousinitiativeswerediscussed.TheRITSTFstatedthattheyexpectedtosubmitInitiative#1inFebruaryorMarch2000.Initiatives#2and#3wereexpected tobesubmittedintheverynearfuture.Initiative#4wasplannedforsubmittalinlate2000.

Initiatives5,6,and7werealsoexpectedinmidtolate2000.Thegroupbrieflydiscussedthestaff'splannedprocessforreviewingandadoptingtheseinitiativesaschangestotheSTS.ThegroupalsodiscussedsupportfortheDecember16, 1999meetingwiththeAdvisoryCommitteeforReactorSafeguardsReliabilityandPRA SubcommitteeandagreedtoapossiblefuturemeetinginlateFebruary2000.

ÿýüûúø÷Enclosure2MeetingAttendeesOctober6-7,1999NameAffiliationDennisHennekeSouthernCaliforniaEdisonSharonMahlerSouthernCaliforniaEdison GaryChungSouthernCaliforniaEdison BrianWoodsSouthernCaliforniaEdison ThomasHookSouthernCaliforniaEdison EdSchererSouthernCaliforniaEdison DonMcCamyTennesseeValleyAuthority KentSultonNebraskaPublicPowerDistrict S.VisweswaranGeneralElectric ThomasSihkoVermontYankee JerryAndréWestinghouse MikeKitlanDukePower RickWachowiakNebraskaPublicPowerDistrict FrankRahnElectricPowerResearchInstitute NicholasSaltosNRC/NRR/SPSB MillardWohlNRC/NRR/SPSB NanetteGillesNRC/NRR/RTSB

ÿýüûúø÷Enclosure2MeetingAttendeesNovember10,1999NameAffiliationRaySchneiderABB-CombustionEngineeringNuclearFuelCompanyAlanHackerottOmahaPublicPowerDistrict DennisHennekeSouthernCaliforniaEdison SharonMahlerSouthernCaliforniaEdison BiffBradleyNuclearEnergyInstitute NoelClarksonDukePower WayneHarrisonSouthTexasProject RickGrantomSouthTexasProject DonaldHoffmanEXCELServices JerryAndréWestinghouse JimAndrachekWestinghouse JackStringfellowSouthernNuclear DonMcCamyTennesseeValleyAuthority E.D.IngramSouthernNuclear GlennWarrenBWROwnersGroup DavidStellfoxMcGrawHill JohnFehringerINEEL J.E.RhoadsEnergyNorthwest RichardHarrisEntergy MikeKitlanDukePower RodneyJohnsonDetroitEdison BertMorrisTennesseeValleyAuthority GregoryNorrisEntergy RickWachowiakNebraskaPublicPowerDistrict ScottNewberryNRC/NRR/DRIP RichBarrettNRC/NRR/SPSB MarkReinhartNRC/NRR/SPSB MarkRubinNRC/NRR/SPSB MillardWohlNRC/NRR/SPSB NickSaltosNRC/NRR/SPSB WilliamBecknerNRC/NRR/RTSB BobDennigNRC/NRR/RTSB JackFosterNRC/NRR/RTSB NanetteGillesNRC/NRR/RTSB

ÿýüûúø÷Enclosure2ENCLOSURE3OCTOBER6-7,1999MEETINGPRESENTATIONS

ÿýüûúø÷Enclosure2ENCLOSURE4NOVEMBER10,1999MEETINGPRESENTATIONS