Commonwealth Edison Company (Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 3); Exemption

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket Nos. 50-237 and 50-249]

Commonwealth Edison Company (Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Units

2 and 3); Exemption

I

Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd, the licensee) is the holder of

Facility Operating Licenses Nos. DPR-19 and DPR-25 for the Dresden

Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 3. The licenses provide, among other

things, that the licensee is subject to all rules, regulations, and

orders of the Commission now or hereafter in effect.

Dresden Nuclear Power Station consists of two boiling water

reactors located in Grundy County, Illinois.

II

Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Section

50.48, ``Fire protection,'' paragraph (b) states, in part, that ``all

nuclear power plants licensed to operate prior to January 1, 1979 shall

satisfy the applicable requirements of appendix R to this part,

including specifically the requirements of sections III.G, III.J, and

III.O.'' Appendix R, Section III.J, ``Emergency lighting,'' requires

that ``Emergency lighting units with at least an 8-hour battery power

supply shall be provided in all areas needed for operation of safe

shutdown equipment and in access and egress routes thereto.'' This

requirement applies to Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 3,

since they were licensed to operate prior to January 1, 1979.

III

Section 50.12(a) of 10 CFR, ``Specific exemptions,'' states:

The Commission may, upon application by any interested person or

upon its own initiative, grant exemptions from the requirements of

the regulations of this part, which 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.

(2) The Commission will not consider granting an exemption

unless special circumstances are present.

Section 50.12(a)(2)of 10 CFR states that special circumstances are

present whenever ``(ii) Application of the regulation in the particular

circumstances * * * is not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose

of the rule * * *. ''

Equipment needed for safe shutdown at Dresden, Units 2 and 3, is

maintained inside the main power block and several buildings onsite.

Emergency lighting is provided inside these buildings for areas needed

for operation of safe shutdown equipment and for access and egress

routes in accordance with 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section III.J.

However, no emergency lighting meeting Section III.J requirements has

been installed for outdoor routes between the main power block, the

isolation condenser pumphouse, the cribhouse, or at the clean

demineralized water storage tank (CDST). Because of cost and

maintenance considerations, and after determining that application of

Section III.J was not necessary to achieve the underlying purpose of

the rule, the licensee submitted an exemption request with respect to

emergency lighting for these outdoor routes and for reading the CDST

level instrument.

The requested exemption from the requirements of Appendix R,

Section III.J, would allow the use of hand-held portable lights, in the

event that sufficient daylight or security lighting is not available,

when transiting access and egress routes between the main power block,

the isolation condenser pumphouse, the cribhouse, and the CDST,

including reading the CDST level instrument. These buildings contain

equipment relied upon in the detailed fire plans to mitigate the

consequences of a fire that could affect the capability to place the

reactor in cold shutdown. As stated above, emergency lighting is

maintained within these structures as required by Appendix R, Section

III.J. However, access and egress between these buildings, the CDST,

and the main power block requires walking outdoors. These areas are

normally lit by outdoor lighting powered by offsite power or emergency

power from the security diesel. However, the normally installed outdoor

and security lighting does not meet the Appendix R requirements for an

8-hour battery power supply.

Under the proposed exemption, in the worst-case scenarios that

postulate a fire concurrent with a loss of offsite power, the hand-

held, battery-powered, portable lighting units currently maintained on

site near the main control room would be used by the operations staff

to allow transit between buildings and reading the CDST level

instrument as required by the fire plans and operations procedures. The

transit routes through these areas are along normally traveled and

paved plant roadways that are maintained clear of obstructions and are

provided snow removal. The portable lighting units provide an adequate

level of illumination for transit and reading the CDST level

instrument.

The hand-held, battery-powered, portable lighting units are

administratively controlled and dedicated for operator use to perform

safe shutdown activities during and following plant fires. These

portable lighting units are verified to be functional in quarterly

surveillance.

The underlying purpose of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix R, Section

III.J, is to provide adequate illumination to assure the capability of

performing all necessary safe shutdown functions, as well as to assure

personnel movement to and from the equipment and components that must

be manually operated by plant personnel to effect safe shutdown during

emergencies. In addition, the illumination must have a capability to

allow sufficient time for normal lighting to be restored.

The availability of hand-held, battery-powered portable lights

would serve the underlying purpose of the rule with respect to transit

between the main power block, the isolation condenser pumphouse, the

cribhouse, and the CDST, in that the use of such hand-held lights would

provide adequate illumination to permit access to and egress from

buildings containing safe shutdown equipment and components and reading

the CDST level instrument. In addition, such hand-held lights would be

available for use during an 8-hour period as required by the

regulation.

The implementation of outdoor battery powered lighting units would

result in expenditure of engineering, construction, and plant resources

for their installation, maintenance, and operation. The associated

costs would include engineering and installation of additional lighting

units and supporting structures and increase surveillance and

[[Page 794]]

maintenance of the additional lighting units.

On the basis of its evaluation, the staff concludes that with the

availability of hand-held battery-powered portable lights for use

during transit between site structures described above and for reading

the CDST level instrument, the installation of emergency lighting units

with at least an 8-hour battery supply for these transit routes and the

CDST level instrument is not necessary to achieve the underlying

purpose of Section III.J of Appendix R to 10 CFR Part 50. Thus, special

circumstances are present as defined in 10 CFR 50.12(a)(2)(ii). The

staff has further determined that, pursuant to 10 CFR 50.12, the

requested exemption is authorized by law, will not present an undue

risk to the public health and safety, and is consistent with the common

defense and security. Accordingly, the licensee's request for an

exemption from the requirements of Section III.J to 10 CFR Part 50 to

allow the use of alternate means of lighting for access and egress

routes between the main power block, the isolation condenser pumphouse,

the cribhouse, the CDST, and for reading the CDST level instrument at

Dresden, Units 2 and 3, is acceptable to the staff.

In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission hereby grants the

licensee an exemption from the requirements of 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix

R, Section III.J, to provide emergency lighting units with at least an

8-hour battery power supply in all areas needed for operation of safe

shutdown equipment and in access and egress routes thereto, for access

and egress routes between the main power block, the isolation condenser

pumphouse, the cribhouse, the CDST, and for reading the CDST level

instrument at Dresden, Units 2 and 3, to the extent alternative means

of lighting as described herein are available.

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 (64 FR 72701).

This exemption is effective upon issuance.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 30th day of December 1999.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Suzanne C. Black,

Acting Director, Division of Licensing Project Management, Office of

Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

[FR Doc. 00-254 Filed 1-5-00; 8:45 am]

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