Press Release-III-07-016, NRC to Discuss 2006 Performance Assessment for Quad Cities Nuclear Power Plant

Press Release-III-07-016: NRC to Discuss 2006 Performance Assessment for Quad Cities Nuclear Power Plant

ML071020454
Person / Time
Site:	Quad Cities
Issue date:	04/12/2007
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region II
To:
Category:Press Release
References
Press Release-III-07-016
Download: ML071020454 (2)

Text

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 2443 Warrenville Road Lisle IL 60532 Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov E-mail: opa3@nrc.gov No. III-07-016 April 12, 2007 CONTACT: Viktoria Mitlyng (630) 829-9662 NRC TO DISCUSS 2006 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT FOR QUAD CITIES NUCLEAR POWER PLANT The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Exelon Generation Co. on Wednesday, Apr. 18, to discuss the agencys assessment of safety performance for last year at the Quad Cities Nuclear Power Plant. The plant is located near Cordova, Ill..

The meeting, which will be open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Best Western Steeplegate Inn, 100 West 76th Street, in Davenport, Iowa. The NRC staff will present the results of the assessment and be available to respond to questions or comments from the public before the close of the meeting.

The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Quad Cities plant and the nations other commercial nuclear power facilities, NRC Region III Administrator James Caldwell said. This meeting will provide an opportunity for a discussion of our annual assessment of safety performance with the company and with local officials and residents who live near the plant. Our goal is to explain the NRC oversight process and make as much information as possible available to the public regarding our regulation of these facilities.

A letter sent from the NRC Region III Office to plant officials addresses the performance of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is available on the NRC web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/quad_2006q4.pdf.

The NRCs assessment concluded that the Quad Cities plant operated safely during the period.

The NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear plant performance. The colors start with green and then increase to white, yellow or red, commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved.

During 2006, there was one white inspection finding of low-to-moderate safety significance at Quad Cities, Unit 1. This finding was associated with the failure to verify that the design of the electromatic relief valve actuators would not be damaged by increased vibrations produced by operation at extended power uprate power levels.

As a result, in addition to regular, baseline inspections during calendar year 2007, the NRC conducted a supplemental inspection on Unit 1 to review the plants corrective actions on this issue.

All of the inspection findings and performance indicators for Quad Cities, Unit 2, during 2006 were determined to be green.

As a result of this performance, the NRC will conduct the normal, baseline level of inspections on Unit 2 during calendar year 2007.

Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and by inspection specialists from the Region III Office in Lisle, Ill., and the agencys headquarters in Rockville, Md. Among the areas of plant operations to be inspected this year by NRC specialists are modifications, maintenance effectiveness, radioactive material processing and transportation; radiological environmental monitoring program and radioactive material control; performance indicator verification; and operation of an independent spent fuel storage facility.

Current performance information for Quad Cities is available on the NRCs web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/QUAD1/quad1_chart.html for Unit 1 and http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/QUAD2/quad2_chart.html for Unit 2.