IR 05000482/2015011

EA-15-170 - Wolf Creek Generating Station; Notice of Violation; Severity Level III Problem - NRC Inspection Report 05000482/2015011

ML16028A003
Person / Time
Site:	Wolf Creek
Issue date:	01/27/2016
From:	Dapas M Region 4 Administrator
To:	Heflin A Wolf Creek
References
EA 15-170 IR 2015011
Download: ML16028A003 (8)

Text

UNITED STATES ary 27, 2016

SUBJECT:

WOLF CREEK GENERATING STATION - NOTICE OF VIOLATION - SEVERITY LEVEL III PROBLEM - NRC INSPECTION REPORT 05000482/2015011

Dear Mr. Heflin:

This letter provides you the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) enforcement decision for the apparent violations documented in NRC Inspection Report 05000482/2015010, issued to Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation, the licensee for the Wolf Creek Generating Station (Wolf Creek), on December 16, 2015 (Agency-wide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) Accession Number ML15350A424). The apparent violations, associated with licensed reactor operator medical examinations and related NRC reporting requirements, were discussed with licensee representatives during a telephonic inspection exit meeting on December 16, 2015, and documented in the inspection report.

The NRC in its inspection report notified you that the apparent violations were being considered for escalated enforcement action in accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy, and provided you the opportunity to address the apparent violations by attending a pre-decisional enforcement conference (PEC), or by submitting a written response before we made our final enforcement decision. The NRC also informed you in the inspection report transmittal letter that we had sufficient information regarding the apparent violations and the licensees corrective actions to make an enforcement decision without the need for a PEC or a written response. In a telephone call on December 28, 2015, Mr. W. Muilenburg, Licensing Supervisor, the licensee, informed Mr. V. Gaddy, Chief, Operations Branch, that the licensee does not request a PEC nor intend to provide a written response.

Therefore, based on the information developed during the inspection, the NRC determined that violations of NRC requirements occurred. These violations are cited in the enclosed Notice of Violation (Notice) and the circumstances surrounding them are described in detail in NRC Inspection Report 05000482/2015010.

The first violation involved licensees submittal of information to the NRC in a licensed operator application, dated January 10, 2010, that was not complete and accurate in all material respects. Specifically, the application did not specify that the applicant had a permanent medical condition that required a restriction to take medication for a disabling medical condition.

Based, in part, on this inaccurate information, the NRC issued a renewed operator license that did not contain the necessary restricting license condition. The second violation involved the licensees failure to notify the NRC within 30 days of a permanent disability of a licensed operator. Specifically, the licensed operator informed the licensees contract medical staff in May 2006 that he was taking medication for a disabling medical condition. The licensee failed to report this condition to the NRC when it submitted NRC Form 396, Certification of Medical Examination by Facility Licensee, as part of the licensed operator application in January 2010, as well as the subsequent biennial requalification medical examinations in 2012 and 2014. The licensee also failed to request an amended license with a restricting license condition to account for the medical issue until July 2015.

The NRC concluded that both violations occurred as a result of the failure of the licensees contract medical personnel to follow prescribed processes. Accordingly, these violations are categorized collectively as a Severity Level III problem to emphasize the importance of providing suitable training, oversight, and focus on licensed operator medical requirements.

In accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy, a base civil penalty in the amount of $70,000 is considered for a Severity Level III problem involving a power reactor licensee. Because your facility has not been the subject of escalated enforcement actions within the last two years, the NRC considered whether credit was warranted for Corrective Action in accordance with the civil penalty assessment process in Section 2.3.4 of the Enforcement Policy. The NRC concluded that credit is warranted for the licensees corrective actions. Specifically, the inspector confirmed that the licensee: (1) requested the NRC amend the operators license to include a restriction for the use of prescribed medication (on July 15, 2015, the NRC issued the amended license with the new restriction), (2) initiated a causal analysis that included an extent of condition review for all operators to determine if there were any further unknown medical conditions, and (3) trained appropriate personnel on NRC medical restriction requirements.

Therefore, to encourage prompt and comprehensive correction of violations, and in recognition of the absence of previous escalated enforcement action, I have been authorized, after consultation with the Director, Office of Enforcement, not to propose a civil penalty in this case.

However, significant violations in the future could result in a civil penalty.

The NRC concluded that information regarding: (1) the reasons for the violations, (2) the actions planned or already taken to correct the violations and prevent recurrence, and (3) the date when full compliance was achieved, are already adequately addressed on the docket in either NRC Inspection Report 05000482/2015010 or in this letter. Therefore, you are not required to respond to this letter unless the description therein does not accurately reflect your corrective actions or your position. In that case, or if you choose to provide additional information, you should follow the instructions specified in the enclosed Notice.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRC's "Rules of Practice and Procedure," a copy of this letter and its enclosure will be made available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room and in ADAMS, accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To the extent possible, your response should not include any personal privacy, proprietary, or safeguards information so that it can be made available to the Public without redaction. If personal privacy or proprietary information is necessary to provide an acceptable response, please provide a bracketed copy of your response that identifies the information that should be protected and a redacted copy of your response that deletes such information. If you request withholding of such information, you must specifically identify the portions of your response that you seek to have withheld and provide in detail the bases for your claim of withholding (e.g., explain why the disclosure of information will create an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy or provide the information required by 10 CFR 2.390(b) to support a request for withholding confidential commercial or financial information).

The NRC also includes significant enforcement actions on its Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/enforcement/actions/.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Marc L. Dapas Regional Administrator Docket No. 50-482 License No. NPF-42 Enclosure:

Notice of Violation cc w/encl: Electronic Distribution