Press Release-III-07-024, - NRC Begins Special Inspection at Byron Nuclear Station to Review Corrosion and Leakage of Equipment Cooling Water Piping

Press Release-III-07-024 - NRC Begins Special Inspection at Byron Nuclear Station to Review Corrosion and Leakage of Equipment Cooling Water Piping

ML072960643
Person / Time
Site:	Byron
Issue date:	10/23/2007
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region II
To:
Mitlyng, V
Category:Press Release
References
Press Release III-07-024
Download: ML072960643 (1)

Text

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region III 2443 Warrenville Road Lisle IL 60532 No. III-07-024 October 23, 2007

Contact:

Viktoria Mitlyng E-Mail: opa3@nrc.gov Phone: 630-829-9663 Web site: http://www.nrc.gov NRC BEGINS SPECIAL INSPECTION AT BYRON NUCLEAR STATION TO REVIEW CORROSION AND LEAKAGE OF EQUIPMENT COOLING WATER PIPING The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun a special inspection at the Byron Nuclear Power Station to review the circumstance surrounding the corrosion of piping in the equipment cooling water system and subsequent leak in one pipe. The two-reactor station, which is located near Byron, Ill., is operated by Exelon Generation Co.

As a result of the leakage, reactor operators shut both reactors down on Friday, Oct. 19, to repair the leak and inspect similar pipes. The pipes carry water from the plant where it is used for cooling of essential safety equipment back to basins under fan-driven cooling towers. Other systems provide cooling water to the reactors.

The NRC inspectors will review the utilitys previous inspections of the eight similar pipes in the system, called the essential service water system. Corrosion had previously been observed on the exterior of the pipes and plant workers were performing further inspections and tests when the leak developed. The cooling water carried by the pipes is not radioactive.

The inspection team will consider the utilitys handling of the pipe corrosion and the decision-making which led to the shut down of the two reactors, said James Caldwell, NRC Region III Administrator. Our resident inspectors were onsite during the reactor shutdown, and reported that all safety systems functioned normally during the shutdown.

The NRC team will also monitor the utilitys ongoing analysis of the pipe corrosion and leakage and any repair activities.

A written inspection report will be issued four to six weeks following the completion of the inspection. It will be available on the NRC web site - www.nrc.gov - and from the NRC Region III Office of Public Affairs.

NRC news releases are available through a free list serve subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html . The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's Web site.