[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 24 (Friday, February 4, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-2533]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: February 4, 1994]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

 

Maintenance Inspection Procedure Public Workshop

SUMMARY: The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) will 
hold a public workshop on March 31, 1994, to conduct initial 
discussions regarding the draft maintenance inspection procedure 
developed for use by NRC inspectors to verify the implementation of 10 
CFR 50.65, ``Requirements for Monitoring the Effectiveness of 
Maintenance at Nuclear Power Plants'' (the Maintenance Rule). The 
effective date of the Maintenance Rule is July 10, 1996.
    NRC draft Inspection Procedure ``Maintenance Inspection Procedure 
XXXXX'' has been developed to ascertain compliance with the Maintenance 
Rule and to verify that licensees using NUMARC 93-01 ``Industry 
Guidance for Monitoring the Effectiveness of Maintenance at Nuclear 
Power Plants'' have satisfactorily implemented the Maintenance Rule.
    The commission believes that it would be beneficial to obtain 
public comment on this procedure from all interested parties at a 
public workshop. Participants are encouraged to ask questions and 
provide written comments on the procedure during the workshop. Written 
comments received from interested parties unable to attend the workshop 
will also be considered through April 14, 1994.
    At the workshop, NRC representatives will present an overview of 
the inspection program, the contents of the maintenance inspection 
procedure and, as applicable, issues related to the Maintenance Rule 
and the NUMARC 93-01 industry guidance. NRC regional inspection 
representatives will be available to participate in the discussions. 
The workshop will provide the participants an opportunity to ask 
questions, make comments during the discussion or submit written 
comments for NRC consideration. The workshop will conclude with a 
summary of the major issues identified at the meeting. The planned use 
of the procedure during pilot inspections will also be discussed.
    In order to ensure that adequate seating is available for the 
meeting, persons planning to attend the workshop are requested to 
either call the contact designated below or complete and forward the 
attached registration form to the same contact by March 25, 1994. A 
block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn Crown Plaza Hotel 
(1-800-638-5963) for the convenience of meeting attendees. These rooms 
will be available at a reduced group rate until March 9, 1994. 
Attendees should identify themselves with the NRC Maintenance Workshop, 
#4093, in order to ensure the group rate. The NRC however, does not 
encourage nor support frequenting this or any other specific 
establishment. The hotel will collect a ten dollar fee at room check in 
or the morning of the workshop to cover expenses for morning and 
afternoon refreshments.
    The draft procedure ``Maintenance Inspection Procedure XXXXX'' is 
publicly available at the NRC Public Document Room, 2120 L Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20555 by referencing a memorandum from Gary G. Zech to 
Elizabeth J. Yeates, dated January 25, 1994.

DATE AND LOCATION: The meeting will be held from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on March 
31, 1994 at: Holiday Inn Crown Plaza, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852, (301) 468-1100.

WRITTEN COMMENTS, REGISTRATION FORMS OR FURTHER INFORMATION SHOULD BE 
ADDRESSED TO: Thomas Foley, M/S 10-A-19, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Washington, DC 20555, 
Telephone (301) 504-1036.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 10, 1991, the NRC published the 
``Requirements for Monitoring the Effectiveness of Maintenance at 
Nuclear Power Plants'' as Sec. 50.65 of 10 CFR part 50, ``Domestic 
Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities.'' The Commission 
determined that a Maintenance Rule was needed because proper 
maintenance is essential to plant safety, especially as plants age. The 
Maintenance Rule will become effective on July 10, 1996. The five year 
period to implement the rule permits time to develop implementation 
guidance, inspection procedures and sufficient time for licensees to 
implement the rule requirements to ensure full conformance by July 10, 
1996.
    Shortly after the Maintenance Rule was published, the NRC and the 
Nuclear Management and Resource Council (NUMARC) embarked on parallel 
efforts to develop rule implementation guidance. The NRC staff 
determined that the NUMARC document provided an acceptable method for 
licensees to implement the requirements of the Maintenance Rule. In 
June 1993, the Commission issued Regulatory Guide 1.160, ``Monitoring 
the Effectiveness of Maintenance at Nuclear Power Plants,'' which 
endorsed the NUMARC guidance, NUMARC 93-01, ``Industry Guideline for 
Monitoring the Effectiveness of Maintenance at Nuclear Power Plants,'' 
dated May 1993. Subsequently, NUMARC conducted a verification and 
validation (V & V) program, with NRC staff observation, to test their 
guidance on several representative systems at nine nuclear units. The V 
& V effort concluded that the guidelines were adequate to implement the 
Maintenance Rule.
    The NRC staff has developed an inspection procedure to be used by 
NRC inspectors to verify the implementation of the Maintenance Rule 
requirements. The NRC staff expects to validate the inspection 
procedure during pilot inspections at selected nuclear power facilities 
following the March 1994 workshop.
    After considering the comments obtained from the workshop and 
information obtained during the implementation of the pilot 
inspections, the NRC staff expects to revise the inspection procedure 
as necessary, and conduct another workshop to provide interested 
parties an opportunity to participate in discussions on the results of 
the pilot inspections and any revisions to the inspection procedure.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Thomas Foley,
Senior Operations Engineer, Division of Reactor Inspection and Licensee 
Performance, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

REGISTRATION FORM

UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MAINTENANCE RULE INSPECTION 
PROCEDURE WORKSHOP

March 31, 1994.
(PLEASE PRINT)
NAME:------------------------------------------------------------------
(LAST)    (FIRST)    (MI)
COMPANY/ORGANIZATION:--------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
POSITION/TITLE:--------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
ADDRESS:---------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
TELEPHONE NUMBER:------------------------------------------------------
    Send Registration form to: Thomas Foley M/S 10-A-19, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555.

[FR Doc. 94-2533 Filed 2-3-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-M