ML120690651

Press Release-I-12-005: NRC to Hold Conference on March 7 with Massachusetts Firm Over Use, Storage of Devices in NRC Jurisdictions Outside of State

ML120690651
Person / Time
Issue date:	02/24/2012
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region I
To:
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Press Release-I-12-005
Download: ML120690651 (2)

See also: see also:Press Release-I-12-005

Text

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs, Region I

475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406

E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov

Site: www.nrc.gov

Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov

No. I-12-005 Feb. 24, 2012

Contact: Diane Screnci, (610) 337-5330 Email: opa1.resource@nrc.gov

Neil Sheehan, (610) 337-5331

NRC TO HOLD CONFERENCE ON MARCH 7 WITH MASSACHUSETTS FIRM

OVER USE, STORAGE OF DEVICES IN NRC JURISDICTIONS OUTSIDE OF STATE

Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of a Wilmington,

Mass., company on March 7 to discuss an apparent violation of agency regulations involving the

use and storage of devices containing nuclear materials in locations outside of Massachusetts that

are subject to NRC jurisdiction.

The meeting with Morpho Detection, Inc. (MDI) is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. at the

NRCs Region I Office, located at 475 Allendale Road in King of Prussia, Pa. Members of the

public are invited to observe the session and will have an opportunity to communicate with NRC

staff regarding the subject following the meeting with the company.

MDI is a manufacturer of explosive-detection systems used in airport security and border

control. It is authorized by the NRC to distribute ion mobility spectrometer devices containing

licensed nuclear material, but the firms NRC license does not permit the possession or use of the

devices. Rather, MDI holds a license from Massachusetts allowing the possession and use of

nuclear material within that state, including the use of the devices for promotional purposes at

temporary job sites throughout the commonwealth. (Massachusetts, like many other states, has

an agreement with the NRC whereby it licenses the possession and use of nuclear materials

within its borders that would otherwise be regulated by the NRC.)

In May 2011, MDIs Radiation Safety Officer contacted the NRC to inquire about

performing work in states under the agencys jurisdiction. Companies licensed by a state or

states are required to notify the NRC when they will be performing work using nuclear materials

in non-Agreement States, which is called filing for reciprocity. During an inspection at MDIs

offices on Aug. 4, 2011, an NRC inspector reviewed the companys work activities and found

that MDI was unable to present a complete set of NRC-approved documentation of reciprocity

filings for activities conducted between 2007 and 2011.

Subsequently, MDI conducted an internal review of product shipments and uses at

temporary job sites outside of Massachusetts and determined that NRC reciprocity requirements

had been misinterpreted by company staff. Further, the review indicated that about 60

specifically licensed units had been shipped to locations within NRC jurisdiction since 2007

without MDI having filed for reciprocity with the NRC. Those locations were in four states and

the District of Columbia.

In a letter dated Jan. 27, 2012, the NRC notified MDI that its failure to file for

reciprocity, as required, on those approximately 60 occasions between Oct. 8, 2007, and March

28, 2011, constituted an apparent violation of NRC requirements.

The decision to hold a predecisional enforcement conference does not mean that the NRC

has determined that a violation has occurred or that enforcement action will be taken. Rather, the

conference is being held to obtain information to assist the NRC in making an enforcement

decision.

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