[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 115 (Thursday, June 13, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30102-30103]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-15017]



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

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-261]


Carolina Power & Light Company, H.B. Robinson Steam Electric 
Plant, Unit No. 2; Exemption

I

    Carolina Power and Light Company (CP&L or the licensee) is the 
holder of Facility Operating License No. DPR-23, which authorizes 
operation of the H.B. Robinson Steam Electric Plant, Unit No. 2 (HBR), 
at steady-state reactor power level not in excess of 2300 megawatts 
thermal. The facility consists of one pressurized water reactor located 
at the licensee's site in Darlington County, South Carolina. The 
license provides, among other things, that it is subject to all rules, 
regulations and Orders of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the 
Commission or NRC) now or hereafter in effect.

II

    Section III.J of Appendix R to Part 50 of Title 10 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (10 CFR Part 50) requires that emergency lighting 
units with at least an 8-hour battery power supply be provided in all 
areas needed for operation of post-fire safe shutdown equipment and in 
access and egress routes thereto. The NRC may grant exemptions from the 
requirements of the regulations which, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a), are 
(1) 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. Special circumstances 
exist whenever, according to 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii), ``Application of 
the regulation in the particular circumstances would not serve the 
underlying purpose of the rule or is not necessary to achieve the 
underlying purpose of the rule * * *.''

III

    By letters dated February 2, 1995, May 15, 1995, and September 29, 
1995, Carolina Power & Light Company (the licensee), requested an 
exemption from certain technical requirements of Section III.J of 
Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for HBR. Section III.J of Appendix R 
requires that emergency lighting units with at least an 8-hour battery 
power supply be provided in all areas needed for operation of post-fire 
safe shutdown equipment and in access and egress routes thereto. The 
licensee plans to implement procedure enhancements to its post-accident 
safe shutdown procedure that would require manual operation of certain 
valves. The licensee proposed to use the diesel-backed security 
lighting system for access and egress to, and operation of, auxiliary 
feedwater (AFW) valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 and instrument air (IA) valve 
IA-297, stating that the use of the diesel-backed security lighting 
system will provide an equivalent level of fire safety to that achieved 
by compliance with Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for 
access and egress to, and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104, 
located in fire zone 33, and valve IA-297, located in fire zone 25.

IV

    Valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297 are located in outdoor areas 
within the protected area. These areas and the access and egress paths 
do not have 8-hour fixed battery-operated emergency

[[Page 30103]]

lighting as required by Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50.
    Valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 are located in fire zone 33 at the bottom 
of the condensate storage tank (CST). Failure to manually isolate 
valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 could result in overfilling the CST with 
service water after switchover of the AFW cooling source from the CST 
to the service water system. These AFW valves are located in outdoor 
areas within the protected area and are provided with lighting from the 
security lighting system. However, the licensee may need to manually 
operate these valves during the hours of darkness. Because the security 
lighting system is also backed by a standby diesel generator, the 
licensee would like to rely on the security lighting system with its 
standby diesel generator as an acceptable alternative fire protection 
configuration equivalent to that achieved by conformance with the 
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III.J.
    Valve IA-297 is located in an outdoor area within the protected 
area near the southeast corner of the turbine mezzanine in fire zone 25 
next to the steam dump accumulator. The HBR safe shutdown analysis 
takes credit for the availability of the main steam safety valves. The 
use of the nitrogen backup to the main steam power-operated relief 
valves is a contingency evolution for coping with a fire in the 
charging pump room. The licensee has already committed to provide 
emergency lighting with at least an 8-hour battery power supply for the 
main steam isolation and relief valve area, also in the southeast 
corner of the turbine building mezzanine. The licensee would rely on 
that planned emergency lighting in the vicinity of IA-197 as well as 
the security lighting system with its backup diesel generator to ensure 
the light necessary to take the actions described by the licensee.
    The manual actions would be limited to operating valves AFW-1, AFW-
104, and IA-297 over their full travel, with no requirement to 
partially open or close a valve, by relying on instruments, or other 
means, to determine valve travel.
    In the licensee's submittal of September 29, 1995, the licensee 
confirmed that a walkdown was conducted in the areas for which the 
exemption was requested. With the normal lighting turned off, the light 
provided solely by the security lighting system was adequate for access 
and egress to, and operation of, valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297. 
During a telephone conference call on December 1, 1995, the licensee 
confirmed that postulated fires requiring the operators to travel to 
and operate valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297 would not affect the 
security lighting system. In addition, the security lighting system is 
backed by a standby diesel generator that has been very reliable; 
records indicate only two failures in 250 surveillance starts. However, 
none of the failures were failures to start but, rather, failures to 
come up to rated speed within the prescribed time of 10 seconds. Should 
the diesel fail to start, procedure OP-926, ``TSC/ EOF/ PAT Diesel 
Generator,'' provides instruction for manually starting the diesel, and 
such an action would be initiated by a call to the control room 
operators. Therefore, in the event of a fire that requires manual 
operation of valves AFW-1, AFW-104, and IA-297, or in the event of a 
loss of offsite power, there is reasonable assurance that the security 
lighting system will be available and will provide the light necessary 
to take the actions described above.
    On the basis of this evaluation, the NRC staff has concluded that 
the use of the diesel-backed security lighting system will provide an 
equivalent level of fire safety to that achieved by compliance with 
Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50 for access and egress to, 
and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104, located in fire zone 33, 
and valve IA-297, located in fire zone 25.
    The Commission, thus, has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
50.12, the exemption requested by the licensee's letters dated February 
2, 1995, May 15, 1995, and September 29, 1995, as discussed above, is 
authorized by law and will not endanger life or property and is 
otherwise in the public interest. Furthermore, the Commission has 
determined, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12(a), that special circumstances as 
set forth in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(ii) are present and applicable in that 
application of the regulation in these particular circumstances is not 
necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of the rule.
    The Commission hereby grants an exemption from the technical 
requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III.J, for the use 
of the diesel-backed security lighting system for access and egress to, 
and operation of, valves AFW-1 and AFW-104 and IA-297.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that 
granting of this exemption will have no significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (61 FR 6044). This exemption is 
effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 3rd day of June 1996.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Steven A. Varga,
Director, Division of Reactor Projects--I/II, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 96-15017 Filed 6-12-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P