Neil Sheehan
Public Affairs Officer
Region I
The
NRC abides by a bedrock constitutional principle -- due process -- when
considering enforcement actions against the companies were regulate. A
recent NRC enforcement decision helps illustrate this principle.
On April 16, 2013, a system used to cool fuel in the reactor at the
Nine Mile Point 1
nuclear power plant was temporarily knocked out of service during a
refueling outage. This was due to a combination of maintenance
activities, an unplanned loss of onsite electricity and the system being
later improperly restored.
After
reviewing the event, we told Constellation, the owner of the Scriba,
N.Y. plant, on Sept. 23, 2013, we had identified a violation from the
event. The violation was preliminarily classified as being of greater
than very low safety significance or what we call “greater than green.”
The
NRC uses a color-coded system for the ranking violations and
determining when enhanced oversight is needed. So a “greater than green”
meant the issue was being considered for “escalated enforcement.”
Our
due process offers the company a chance to meet with us. The company
can give us any information we may have missed, provide its perspective
on what happened and detail any corrective actions. Constellation met
with us in a public enforcement conference on Nov. 1, 2013, at the NRC
Region I Office.
Among
other things, the company was able to show how reactor operators
quickly identified the problem and took steps to address it. What’s
more, it demonstrated there were other timely means of detecting the
loss of the cooling system -- including steam and humidity on the
plant’s refueling floor had water begun to boil off – and multiple ways
to get more water into the reactor.
Constellation’s arguments, supported by videos and additional analysis, were ultimately convincing.
The
NRC staff announced in December the finding was being finalized as
“green,” which means of very low safety significance. And the finding
won’t result in additional oversight. But NRC inspectors will follow up
to make sure the company made changes to prevent a recurrence.
Taking
the time to arrive at the correct conclusion, and doing so in an open
and transparent manner, is consistent with the NRC’s values. By adhering
to due process, we increase the likelihood of arriving at the right
place when it comes to enforcement.
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