[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 6, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9111-9112]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-3027]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION


Public Workshop to Discuss Nuclear Power Reactor Steam Generator 
Tube Issues

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of Workshop.

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SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will host a public 
workshop to provide an opportunity for discussion of recent events with 
respect to nuclear power plant steam generators and their implications. 
The workshop is open to the public.

DATES: The workshop will be held on Tuesday, February 27, 2001, from 
7:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. and Wednesday, February 28, 2001 from 8:00 a.m. 
to 11:45 a.m.

ADDRESSES: Holiday Inn, Bethesda, 8120 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, 
Maryland 20814. The hotel's telephone number is (301) 652-2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert L. Rothman, Mail Stop O-9D3, 
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, telephone: 
(301) 415-3306, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: All pressurized water reactor licensees are 
required by NRC regulations to provide reasonable assurance of steam 
generator tube integrity. These regulations pertain to design, 
operation and surveillance activities of steam generators and are 
reflected in the licensing basis of each facility. The surveillance 
requirements are important to maintaining integrity, since different 
types of tube degradation are expected to occur over the life of the 
steam generator. Tubes that are identified as containing defects of a 
specified depth are removed from service.
    In recent years, the NRC staff has examined the regulatory programs 
which comprise the framework for ensuring the integrity of steam 
generator tubes. In 1997 the Nuclear Energy Institute proposed NEI 97-
06, ``Steam Generator Program Guidelines,'' as a formal industry 
initiative to provide a consistent industry approach for managing steam 
generator programs and for maintaining steam generator tube integrity. 
In 1998, the Commission

[[Page 9112]]

approved an approach to work with the industry to more efficiently 
resolve program concerns and move toward NRC endorsement of NEI 97-06, 
coupled with voluntary industry implementation of improved steam 
generator technical specifications.
    On February 4, 2000, the Nuclear Energy Institute provided the NRC 
staff with its proposed steam generator generic change package which 
was prepared under the Formal Industry initiative NEI 97-06. The staff 
suspended its review of NEI 97-06 as a result of regulatory activities 
associated with the Indian Point Unit 2 steam generator tube failure 
which occurred February 15, 2000. There have been several other 
activities in the steam generator area in the past year. These 
activities are discussed in Regulatory Information Summary 2000-22 
dated November 3, 2000, and the lessons learned report from the review 
of the Indian Point Unit 2 steam generator tube failure dated October 
23, 2000. These two documents are available on the NRC web site. On 
December 11, 2000 NEI submitted a revised Industry Steam Generator 
Program License Change Package and stated in their transmittal letter 
that the revised package supercedes the earlier version in its 
entirety. The NRC's Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) 
sponsored workshop will discuss recent events and their implications 
with respect to nuclear power plant steam generators. Proposed topics 
are: steam generator inspection technical issues, steam generator 
programmatic issues, steam generator tube integrity issues, and steam 
generator inspection oversight issues.

Registration

    There is no registration fee for the meeting; however, notification 
of attendance is requested so that adequate preparations for the 
meeting can be arranged. Please notify R. L. Rothman at (301) 415-3306, 
email [email protected], if you plan to attend.

Solicitation of Participation by Stakeholders

    The NRC staff is soliciting additional stakeholder participation 
from interested parties on both the technical and regulatory aspects 
related to the workshop topics. The staff requests that all persons 
wishing to formally make presentations at the workshop contact R. L. 
Rothman at (301) 415-3306, email [email protected], no later than February 
10, 2001.

    Dated at Rockville, MD this 31st day of January 2001.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Jack R. Strosnider,
Director, Division of Engineering, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 01-3027 Filed 2-5-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P