IR 05000255/2015006

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Annual Assessment Letter for Palisades Nuclear Plant (Inspection Report 05000255/2015006)
ML16060A304
Person / Time
Site: Palisades Entergy icon.png
Issue date: 03/02/2016
From: Louden P
Division Reactor Projects III
To: Vitale A
Entergy Nuclear Operations
References
IR 2015006
Download: ML16060A304 (6)


Text

UNITED STATES rch 2, 2016

SUBJECT:

ANNUAL ASSESSMENT LETTER FOR PALISADES NUCLEAR PLANT (REPORT 05000255/2015006)

Dear Mr. Vitale:

On February 10, 2016, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) completed its end-of-cycle performance review of Palisades Nuclear Plant. The NRC reviewed the most recent quarterly performance indicators (PIs) in addition to inspection results and enforcement actions from January 1, 2015, through December 31, 2015. This letter informs you of the NRCs assessment of your facility during this period and its plans for future inspections at your facility.

The NRC determined that overall, Palisades Nuclear Plant operated in a manner that preserved public health and safety and met all cornerstone objectives. The NRC determined the performance at Palisades Nuclear Plant during the most recent quarter was within the Licensee Response Column of the NRCs Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) Action Matrix because all inspection findings had very low (i.e., green) safety significance, and all PIs indicated that your performance was within the nominal, expected range (i.e., green). Therefore, the NRC plans to conduct ROP baseline inspections at your facility.

For the first three quarters of 2015, Palisades Nuclear Plant was in the Regulatory Response Column of the NRCs ROP Action Matrix due to a White performance issue in the Occupational Radiation Safety Cornerstone. The NRC staff completed Inspection Procedure (IP) 95001, Inspection for One or Two White Inputs in a Strategic Performance Area, on September 3, 2015 as documented in NRC inspection report 05000255/2015011 (ADAMS Accession Number ML15289A262). Palisades Nuclear Plant returned to the Licensee Response Column on October 1, 2015.

The enclosed inspection plan lists the inspections scheduled through December 31, 2017.

Routine inspections performed by resident inspectors are not included in the inspection plan.

The inspections listed during the last 9 months of the inspection plan are tentative and may be revised at the mid-cycle performance review. The NRC provides the inspection plan to allow for the resolution of any scheduling conflicts and personnel availability issues. The NRC will contact you as soon as possible to discuss changes to the inspection plan should circumstances warrant any changes. This inspection plan does not include security-related inspections, which will be sent via separate, non-publicly available correspondence. The NRC inspection schedule includes a biennial inspection conducted in accordance with Inspection Procedure 71152, Problem Identification and Resolution, and a triennial inspection conducted in accordance with Inspection Procedure 71111.17T, Evaluations of Changes, Tests, and Experiments and Permanent Plant Modifications. The NRC also plans to conduct several infrequently performed inspection activities related to (1) the operation of the Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation (ISFSI) using IP 60856, Review of 10 CFR 72.212(b) Evaluations, IP 60854.1, Preoperational Testing of an Independent Spent Fuel Storage Facility Installations at Operating Plants, and IP 60855.1, Operation of an ISFSI Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation at Operating Plants; (2) follow-up on previously documented violation involving inaccurate information provided to the NRC using Inspection Procedure 92702, Follow-up on Traditional Enforcement Actions Including Violations, Deviations, Confirmatory Action Letters, Confirmatory Orders, and Alternative Dispute Resolution Confirmatory Orders; and (3) spent fuel pool operation using Inspection Procedure 60715, Spent Fuel Pool Safety at Operating Reactors.

In response to the accident at Fukushima, the Commission issued Order EA-12-049, Order Modifying Licenses with Regard to Requirements for Mitigation Strategies for Beyond-Design-Basis External Events. This Order requires licensees to develop, implement, and maintain guidance and strategies to maintain or restore core cooling, containment, and spent fuel pool cooling capabilities following a beyond-design-basis external event. Additionally, the Commission issued Order EA-12-051, Order Modifying Licenses with Regard to Reliable Spent Fuel Pool Instrumentation. This Order requires licensees to have a reliable means of remotely monitoring wide-range Spent Fuel Pool levels to support effective prioritization of event mitigation and recovery actions in the event of a beyond-design-basis external event. The NRC is conducting audits of licensee efforts towards compliance with these Orders. The audit was completed for Palisades Nuclear Plant and the information gathered will aid staff in development of the Safety Evaluation for the site. After the NRC staff receives the Final Compliance letter for the site, the Final Safety Evaluation will be issued. Then, the NRC staff will confirm through inspections the full implementation of the orders mentioned above by performing Temporary Instruction 191, Inspection of the Implementation of Mitigation Strategies and Spent Fuel Pool Instrumentation Orders and Emergency Preparedness Communication/Staffing/Multi-Unit Dose Assessment Plans.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRCs Rules of Practice, a copy of this letter will be available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the Publicly Available Records (PARS) component of NRC's document system (ADAMS). ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html (the Public Electronic Reading Room). Please contact John Jandovitz at 630-829-9763 with any questions you have regarding this letter.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Patrick L. Louden, Director Division of Reactor Projects Docket Nos. 50-255 License Nos. DPR-20 Enclosure:

Inspection Plan cc: Distribution via LISTSERV