[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 155 (Wednesday, August 12, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43198-43199]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-21606]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-338 and 50-339]


In the Matter of Virginia Electric and Power Company North Anna 
Power Station, Unit Nos. 1 and 2; Exemption

    The Virginia Electric and Power Company (VEPCO, the licensee) is 
the holder of Facility Operating License Nos. NPF-4 and NPF-7, which 
authorize operation of the North Anna Power Station (NAPS), Unit Nos. 1 
and 2. The licenses provide, among other things, that the licensee is 
subject to all rules, regulations, and orders of the Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (the Commission) now or hereafter in effect.
    The facility consists of two pressurized-water reactors at the 
licensee's site located in Louisa County, Virginia.

II

    Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section 
20.1703, ``Use of individual respiratory protection equipment'' 
requires in subsection (a)(1) that ``. . . the licensee shall use only 
respiratory protection equipment that is tested and certified or had 
certification extended by the National Institute for Occupational 
Safety and Health/Mine Safety and Health Administration (NIOSH/MSHA).'' 
Further, 10 CFR 20.1703(c) requires that ``the licensee shall use as 
emergency devices only respiratory protection equipment that has been 
specifically certified or had certification extended for emergency use 
by NIOSH/MSHA,'' and
    10 CFR Part 20, Appendix A, Protection Factors for Respirators, 
Footnote d.2 (d), states that ``. . . the protection factors apply for 
atmosphere-supplying respirators only when

[[Page 43199]]

supplied with adequate respirable air. Respirable air shall be provided 
of the quality and quantity required in accordance with NIOSH/MSHA 
certification (described in 30 CFR part 11). Oxygen and air shall not 
be used in the same apparatus.'' By letter dated March 3, 1998, as 
supplemented May 5, 1998, the licensee requested an exemption from 
certain requirements of 10 CFR 20.1703(a)(1), 10 CFR 20.1703(c) and 10 
CFR Part 20, Appendix A, Footnote d.2 (d).
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 20.2301, the Commission may, upon application by 
a licensee or upon its own initiative, grant an exemption from the 
requirements of the regulations in Part 20 if it determines that the 
exemption is authorized by law and would not result in undue hazard to 
life or property.

III

    The NAPS 1&2 containments are designed to be maintained at 
subatmospheric pressure during power operations. The containment 
pressure can range from 9.0 to 11.0 pounds per square inch absolute 
(psia). This containment environment could potentially impact personnel 
safety due to reduced pressure and resulting oxygen deficiency. Such 
environment requires the use of a Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus 
(SCBA) with enriched oxygen breathing gas. The licensee initially 
purchased Mine Safety Appliances, Inc. (MSA) Model 401 open-circuit, 
dual-purpose, pressure-demand SCBAs constructed of brass components 
which were originally intended for use with compressed air. The 
licensee qualified the Model 401 cylinders for use with 35% oxygen/65% 
nitrogen following the recommendations of the Compressed Gas 
Association's Pamphlet C-10, Recommended Procedures for Changes of Gas 
Service for Compressed Gas Cylinders, which established procedures to 
utilize these devices with an enriched oxygen mixture. The licensee is 
currently using these SCBAs with 35% oxygen/65% nitrogen instead of 
compressed air. The MSA Model 401 SCBA has received the NIOSH/MSHA 
certification for use with compressed air, but has not been tested for 
35% enriched oxygen applications. Using these SCBAs without the NIOSH/
MSHA certification requires an exemption from 10 CFR 20.1703(a)(1), 10 
CFR 20.1703(c) and 10 CFR Part 20, Appendix A, Protection Factors for 
Respirators, Footnote d.2.(d).

IV

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 20.1703(a)(2), SCBAs that have not been tested 
or certified or for which certification has not been extended by NIOSH/
MSHA require a demonstration by testing or reliable test information 
that the material and performance characteristics of the equipment are 
capable of providing the proposed degree of protection under 
anticipated conditions of use. VEPCO contracted with National 
Aeronautic and Space Administration's (NASA) White Sand Test Facility 
(WSTF) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to conduct 
applicable oxygen compatibility testing. WSTF evaluated the 
compatibility of the MSA Custom 4500 SCBA (testing of the model ``MSA 
Custom 4500'' envelops the lower pressure applications of models ``MSA 
Ultralite'' and ``Model 401'') with an oxygen-enriched breathing gas 
mixture. Based on these evaluations, the licensee concluded that 
compatibility exists provided 1) all hydrocarbon contamination is 
removed, 2) the SCBAs are maintained so as to preclude the introduction 
of hydrocarbon contamination, and 3) the temperature of the system does 
not exceed 135 deg. F when the regulator is first activated. LLNL also 
concluded that an MSA Custom 4500, equipped with the interchangeable 
silicone facepiece, meets the National Fire Protection Association 
Flame and Heat Test requirements whether operated with 35% oxygen/65% 
nitrogen breathing gas mixture or with compressed air.
    The licensee has indicated that the above conditions are met as 
follows: (1) the MSA repair guidance stipulates that no hydrocarbon-
based compounds are to be used within the pressure boundary during 
maintenance, (2) the SCBAs are required to be stored and repaired in 
clean, dry locations free of chemical contamination, (3) containment 
average temperature is required by Technical Specification to be less 
than or equal to 120 deg.F at NAPS 1&2, and (4) VEPCO procedural 
guidance presently requires that SCBAs using 35% oxygen 65% nitrogen 
breathing gas mixture be equipped with a silicone facepiece. VEPCO has 
also stated that it has over 20 years of actual safe operating 
experience using SCBAs with 35% oxygen/65% nitrogen mixture with no 
incidents of oxygen-induced failure or equipment maintenance problems 
associated with the enriched oxygen operation.
    The combination of the existing NIOSH/MSHA certification of the 
SCBAs (with compressed air), the testing of the SCBA with the enriched 
oxygen-nitrogen mixture conducted for VEPCO by NASA and LLNL, and 
VEPCO's safe use history constitutes an adequate basis for granting the 
requested exemption to permit the use of MSA SCBAs Model 401, Custom 
4500 and Ultralite with 35% oxygen-65% nitrogen breathing air mixture 
in the sub-atmospheric containments of NAPS, Units 1 and 2.

V

    Accordingly, the Commission has determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 
20.2301, the requested exemption is authorized by law, and will not 
result in undue hazard to life or property. Therefore, the Commission 
hereby grants an exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR 
20.1703(a)(1), 10 CFR 20.1703(c) and 10 CFR Part 20, Appendix A, 
Footnote d.2.(d), for North Anna Power Station, Unit 1 and Unit 2, 
provided VEPCO uses SCBAs identified and meeting the formal testing 
outlined above and follows the above described conditions.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.32, the Commission has determined that the 
granting of this exemption will not have a significant effect on the 
quality of the human environment (63 FR 40324).
    This exemption is effective upon issuance.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 31st day of July, 1998.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Samuel J. Collins,
Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 98-21606 Filed 8-11-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P