10 CFR 50.54(q)(2) Conditions of Licenses requires, in part, that licensees maintain an
emergency plan that meets the requirements of
10 CFR 50, Appendix E and the planning standards in
10 CFR 50.47(b).
10 CFR 50.47(b)(4) requires use of a standard emergency classification and action level (
EAL) scheme. Additionally,
10 CFR 50, Appendix E, Section IV.C.2 states that the licensee maintain the capability to assess, classify, and declare an emergency condition within 15 minutes after the availability of indications that an
EAL has been exceeded. Contrary to the above, on March 2, 2014,
FENOC failed to declare a Notification of Unusual Even
(NOUE) in a timely manner. Specifically, while performing an evolution to fill the safety injection accumulator, a containment residual heat removal system smoke alarm was received at 9:20 pm on March 1, 2014. The Shift Manager determined the alarm was invalid and was likely due to a relief valve that lifted during the fil
evolution causing the smoke alarm. However, the EAL basis for HU4, Fire within the Protected Area not extinguished within 15 minutes, specifies that the alarm must be assumed to be an indication of a fire unless a person on scene can disprove the alarm within 15 minutes. After further review, FENOC determined that conditions did exist for an NOUE, in accordance with EAL HU4, and declared a NOUE at 12:13 am on March 2, 2014. The finding was determined to be of very low safety significance (Green) in accordance with Section 4.3 and Attachment 1 of IMC 0609 Appendix B, Emergency Preparedness SDP, for failing to adequately implement the emergenc
plan by not making an emergency declaration (
NOUE) during an actual event in a timely manner. This event was documented in
FENOCs corrective action program as CR 2014-04517.
