ML20147B851
| ML20147B851 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Salem  |
| Issue date: | 12/28/1992 |
| From: | Sniezek J NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | Davis A, Ebneter S, Martin T NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION I), NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II), NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION III) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20147B843 | List: |
| References | |
| FOIA-96-351, RTR-NUREG-0654, RTR-NUREG-654 NUDOCS 9702040026 | |
| Download: ML20147B851 (50) | |
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UNITED STATES
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 1b
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MEMORANDUM FOR:
Thomas T. Martin, Regional Administrator, RI
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Stewart D. Ebneter, Regional Administrator, RII A. Bert Davis, Regional Administrator, RIII Mq
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John B. Martin, Regional Administrator, RV
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Thomas E. Murley, Director, NRR y g
Edward L. Jordan, Director, AE00 g'
James Lieberman, Director, OE FROM:
James H. Sniezek Deputy Executive Director i
for Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Regional Operations and Research 1
SUBJECT:
DECLARATION OF ALERT FOR LOSS OF ANNUNCIATORS - ENFORCEMENT r.
ACTIONS As you are aware, the industry has recently experienced more loss of annunciators than we would like to see.
Based on the guidance in NUREG 0654/ FEMA-REP-1, and at the urging of the staff years ago, many licensees have classified " Loss of Annunciators" as an ALERT for Emergency Action Level classification purposes. As you are aware, one of the main purposes of the l
ALERT is to advise offsite authorities to 1) augment resources and bring g' L/
primary response centers and EBS to standby status and 2) place key emergency personnel, monitoring teams and communications personnel in a standby status.
The Class Description for ALERT is defined in 0654 as, " Events are in progress or have occurred which involve an actual or potential substantial degradation of the level of safety of the plant. Any release expected to be limited to small fractions of the EPA Protective Action Guideline exposure levels."
The following is an excerpt from a recent inspection report pertaining to the loss of all annunciators for about 12 hours1.388889e-4 days <br />0.00333 hours <br />1.984127e-5 weeks <br />4.566e-6 months <br /> while the plant was in steady state power operation:
Safety Sionificance The annunciator system is not a safety-related syste'm and is not considered in any of the licensee's safety analyses.
During this event, safety-related instrumentation was still available to monitor important plant parameters. Automatic safety systems were unaffected during the event and were available to shut down and cool the reactor if required.
l The plant was stable and no significant systems were out-of-service during the event.
Based upon the above information, this loss of annunciator event posed no significant threat to public or plant safety.
However, this event is considered significant because of the licensee's failure to recognize and enter an ALERT EAL despite clear and convincing i
I evidence of the extent of the annunciator problems.
97(M040026 970127 PDR FOIA O'NEILL96-351 PDR
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Addressees December 28, 1992 In the above instance the staff had proposed escalated enforcement action for failure of the licensee to declare an ALERT.
In light of the foregoing, it is questionable whether a loss of annunciators should be classified as an ALERT and it clearly does not appear appropriate to take escalated enforcement action for failure to make such a declaration when the conditions intended to be established by the declaration are not desirable, i
I request that NRR and AE00 take appropriate actions to evaluate the current classification for Loss-of-Annunciators and expedite any necessary revisions.
Likewise, I request OE to examine the enforcement guidance and make the appropriate changes.
Prompt attention to this matter would be appreciated.
_G &
JhmesH.Sniezek (Jeputy Executive Director for Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Regional Operations and Research cc:
J. Taylor J. Scinto l
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4 6/7/93 DATE SENT:
DATE SIGNED:
I-93-27 NRC STAFF SENDS AUGMENTED INSPECTION TEAM TO IT S SBT-SALEM NUCLEAR PLANT TO INVESTIGATE CAUSES OF ELECTRICAL PROBLEM IN REACTOR CONTROLS i
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The attached itan(s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan K. Simpson The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich The Honorable Philip Sharp 4
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. WILLIAM HUGHES SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN 9
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UNITED STATES
- ,p a g' NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King Of Prussia, PA 19406 s.,++***
Tel. 215-337-5330 I-93-27 June 7, 1993
Contact:
Diane Screnci Karl Abraham i
NRC STAFF SENDS AUGMENTED INSPECTION TEAM TO SALEM NUCLEAR PLANT TO INVESTIGATE CAUSES OF ELECTRICAL PROBLEM IN REACTOR CONTROLS KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff assembled an Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) at the Salem nuclear power plant on Artificial Island in South Jersey on Saturday, June 5th, to look into several instances of failures in the circuitry that controls the movement of reactor control rods.
Beginning on May 25, 1993, and during the subsequent week, when soveral attempts were made to restart the Salem Unit 2 reactor at the end of an outage, difficulties were experienced with the rod control system.
The system failed to function as expected and designed.
In one instance, early on June 2, during the initial stages of reactor restart, when a bank of nine rods were commanded to move into the core, one of the rods moved in the opposite direction--outward.
Inserting control rods into the core when the plant is running will reduce reactor power, and the withdrawal of rods will increase power.
The rod control system failure would not have affected the ability of all of the control rods to be inserted into the reactor core during a reactor trip.
The augmented inspection team has specialists in electrical engineering and reactor controls, as well as nuclear engineers familiar with reactor operations.
The team will independently assess the failures and the safety implications.
The NRC AIT also will determine the root causes of the malfunction, assess the corrective actions of the plant's operator, Public Service Electric and Gas Company of New Jersey, and determine if there are any generic implications posed by the events at the Salem facility.
When the team's work is completed, it will prepare a written reports of its findings, and that report will be made public.
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DATE SENT:
6/17/93 DATE SIGNED:
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4 ITEM SENT:
PRESS RELEASE I
SUBJECT:
NOTE TO EDITORS REGARDING SALEM UNIT 2 i
The attached. item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan K. Simpson The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich The Honorable Philip Sharp i
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
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Sen. Bill Bradley Sen. Frank Lautenberg Rep. William Hughes Sen. Joseph Biden
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
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j OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I s, * * * # /
475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 l
1 Tel. 215-337-5330 NOTE TO EDITORS:
June 16, 1993 KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet on June 18, 1993, with officials of Public Service Electric and Gas Company of New Jersey (PSE&G) to discuss the recent anomalies in the functioning of the control rod control system of the Salem Unit 2 nuclear reactor on Artificial Island, New Jersey.
The meeting will be at 10 a.m. in the NRC Region I office, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA, and it is open to observation by the public.
NRC Attendees: T. Martin, Regional Administrator, Region I W.
Kane, Deputy Regional Administrator J. Wiggins, Acting Director, Division of Reactor Projects (DRP)
E. Wenzinger, Chief, Projects Branch No.
2, DRP J. White, Chief, Reactor Projects Section 2A, DRP E.
Imbro, Acting Deputy Director, Division of Reactor Safety (DRS)
W.
Ruland, Chief, Electrical Section, EB, DRS S. Barr, Resident Inspector, Salem / Hope Creek Licensee Attendees:
S. Miltenberger, Sr. Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer S. Labruna, Vice President, Nuclear Engineering J. Hagan, Vice President, Nuclear Operations F. Thompson, Manager, Nuclear Licensing l
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DATE SENT:
7/2/93 DATE SIGNED:
1 ITEM SENT:
PRESS RELEASE l
SUBJECT:
NOIE 'IO EDI'IORS CWCERNDE EAIB4 h6 POWER PLANT
_(PUBIJC_ SERVICE _ELDCTR_lC AND GAS CNPANY) l The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan K. Simpson The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich l
The Honorable Philip Sharp ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
Sen. Bill Bradley Sen. Frank Lautenberg Rep. William Hughes Sen. Joseph Biden
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UNITED STATES i
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION j
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 gN***,,-
Tel. 215-337-5330 l
l July 2, 1993 NOTE TO EDITORS:
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Augmented Inspection Team (AIT), sent to the site of Salem Units 1 and 2 on Artificial Island, NJ, on June 4, 1993, will give a preliminary report of its findings to officials of Public Service Electric and Gas Company on Wcdnesday, July 7, 1993.
The AIT was sent to the Salem site to look into the causes of a failure of the control rod control system in Salem Unit 2, when licensee testing and operation of the control rods results in a series of abnormal occurrences affecting the system, including unexpected outward movement from one of the control rods when it was electrically signalled and expected to go into the core.
The report will be given at a meeting at 10 a.m.
in the Salem / Hope Crcok Processing Center, at the site, and it is open to observation by the public.
NRC Attendees: M. Hodges, Director, Division of Reactor Safety W.
Ruland, Chief, Electrical Section, DRS (AIT Leader)
E. Wenzinger, Chief, Reactor Projects Branch No.
2, DRP J. White, Chief, Projects Section 2A, DRP T. Johnson, Senior Resident Inspector, DRP S.
Barr, Resident Inspector, DRP (AIT Assistant Leader)
L.
Scholl, Engineering Specialist, DRS (AIT Member)
H. Garg, Senior Engineer, NRR (AIT Member)
J.
Stone, Salem Project Manager, NRR C. Miller, Project Director, NRR E.
Lazarowitz, Senior Engineer, DRS (AIT Member)
Licensee Attendees:
S. Miltenberger, Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer J.
Hagan, Vice President, Nuclear Operations S.
LaBruna, Vice President, Nuclear Engineering C. Vondra, General Manager, Salem Operations F. Thomson, Jr., Manager Licensing and Regulation L. Miller, General Manager, Nuclear Operations Support C.
Lambert, Manager, Nuclear Engineering Design M.
Bursztein, Nuclear Electrical Engineer Manager M. Shedlock, Maintenance Manager, Salem K.
Pike, Technical Manager, Salem (Acting) t P. O'Donnell, Operations Manager, Salem (Acting)
T.
Cellmer, Rad Pro / Chem Manager, Salem R.
Chranowski, Technical Engineer
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DATE SENT:
3/2/94 DATE SIGNED:
ITEM SENT:
TO ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT AND BUSINESS EDITORS Meeting on March 16, 1994 to discuss the status of nuclear power p1&nts in Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan K. Simpson j
The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich t
The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
None
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UNITED STATES
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I
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475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406
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Tel. 610-337-5330 I-94-15 March 2, 1999 Contacts. Di.ne Serenci Karl Abraham TO ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT AND BUSINESS EDITORS:
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Regional Administrator for the Northeastern United States will hold a special media briefins in Philadelphia, on March 16, 1994, to discuss the status of nuclear power plants and other federally licensed users of radioactive materials in Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
This briefing will begin at 1:30 p.m.
in the Adams Mark Hotel, at City Avenue and Monument Road.
It will be the first such briefing this year by Thomas T. Martin, the NRC Region I Regional Administrator.
Region I covers 11 Northeastern states and the District of Columbia, and includes 39 licensed nuclear power plants, 18 test and research reactors, several fuel facilities, and about 2,560 other users of radioactive materials.
Mr. Martin will discuss the recent perfarnance of the Three Mile Island, Peach Bottom, Susquehanna and Limerick nuclear plants in Nope Creek and 0 ster Creek facilities in Penns9 vania, and the Salem, 1
9 New Jerse9 He also will talk about some of the NRC's experiences with federally regulated medical, commercial and industrial users of radioactive materials in Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
The briefing will include a discussion of several of the radioactive 19 contaminated industrial sites--some dating back many decades--and the NRC's program for the clean-up and eventual decommissioning of these sites.
This is a media briefing, not a public meeting.
The room for the briefins will be open at 12:30 p.m.
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3/10/94 DATE SENT:
DATE SIGNED:
l ITEM SENT:.
I-94-16 NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC
& GAS trin nnn rno ALLEGED VI0lATinNS AT SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION The attached iteut(s) was/wara sent on the above data to the following individuals:
The Honorabia Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan E. Simpson The Honorabia Richard Lab'==a/cc: Rap. Barbara Yucanovich The Honorabia Philip Sharp /ce: Rep. Mirhant Bilirakis ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUD_E:
SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG
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REP. WILLIAM HUGHES SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN l
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION j
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I
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475 Allendale Road, King Of Prussia, PA 19406 Tel. 610-337-5330 I-94-16 March 10, 1994
Contact:
Diane Screnci Karl Abraham NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC & GAS $50,000 1
FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS AT SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION KING OF PRUSSIA, PA -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has cited Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G), c ' New Jersey, for alleged violations of NRC requirements at the Salem Nuclear Generating Station in Hancocks Bridge, New Jersey.
The staff proposed a $50,000 fine.
The Technical Specifications (TS) of Salem's license require that procedures be established, implemented and maintained for equipment control, for the control of maintenance and the control of radioactivity.
Salem was cited for eight alleged violations of this technical specification.
NRC inspectors compiled the examples during an inspection from October 17 to November 27, 1993.
The alleged violations include:
1) performing maintenance on equipment without appropriate tagging to ensure that it was safe to work on;
- 2) removing tags from equipment without first ensuring that maintenance had been completed;
- 3) failing to adhere to writtsn instructions for performing work; and, 4) failing to prepare a work order before doing maintenance on certain components, systems and plant structures.
In a letter to PSE&G, Thomas T. Martin, Administrator, NRC Region I, said, "These violations, in our view, are a direct result of continued demonstrated weaknesses in performance of first line supervisors and middle management at the Salem facility and is of concern to NRC."
He also said, "While none of these violations were significant from a nuclear safety parspective, some demonstrated the potential to cause physical harm to individuals.
Collectively, the violations demonstrated that weaknesses exist in the maintenance and control of work process activities, which could, under other circumstances, Ldversely affect the operability of safety related equipment at the facility."
PSE&G has 30 days either to pay the proposed fine or to request in l
writing that part or all of it be withdrawn.
The utility also has 30 days to admit or deny the alleged violations, to describe the actions it has taken or plans to take to prevent their happening in t:m future, and to give the date by which it expects to be in full compli.ance with NRC requirements.
The State of New Jersey was informed of this enforcement action.
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4/8/94 DATE SIGNED:
i-I-94-27 NRC SENDS AUGMENTED INSPFCTION TEAM TO SALEM NUCLEAF gg.
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POWER PLANT TO EXAMINE THURSDAY"9 TFMPORARY 1099 0F PRESSURE CONTROL j
OF UNIT 1 REACTOR 1
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The attached ites(s) vaa/ warm sent on the above data to the l
following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Liabarnan/cc: Senator Alan E. Simpson The Honorabia Richard La* ="/cc: Rap. Barbara 7ucanavich i
The Honorabia Philip sharp /ce: Rep. M4rhm.1 Bilirakis i
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
j SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG 4
REP. WILLIAM HUGHES SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN s
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OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King Of Prussia, PA 19406 l
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Tel. 610-337-5330 No. I-94-27 April 8, 1994 Contacts: Karl Abraham Diane Screnci NRC SENDS AUGMENTED INSPECTION TEAM TO SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT TO EXAMINE THURSDAY'O TEMPORARY LOSS OF PRESSURE CONTROL OF UNIT 1 REACTOR j
KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff today cent an Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) to the Salem nuclear power plant cite naar Salem, NJ, to look into the causes of an automatic shut-down of the reactor at 10:47 a.m. yesterday (4/7) and subsequent loss of normal prcssure control of the plant operated by Public Service Electric & Gas of Nsw Jersey.
The seven-member AIT includes specialists in plant operations and plant systems, and includes three officials of the NRC's Office of Nuclear R: actor Regulation and the Office for the Evaluation and Analysis of Operational Data, from NRC Headquarters in Rockville, MD.
Thomas T. Martin, Regional Administrator of NRC Region I, said that tho Salem Unit 1 reactor scrammed from 25% power during maneuvers to shut 4
the plant down.
Subsequent to the reactor scram, the plant experienced a ccries of safety injections which resulted in loss of the pressurizer steam bubble and normal reactor pressure control.
In addition to the reactor trip and safety injection, certain valves that are required to operate, failed to close.
Because of multiple failures in safety related systems during the event and questions about operators' actions, "I have determined that an Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) should be initiated to review the cauces and safety implications associated with these malfunctions," Martin caid.
The team will:
1.
Conduct a thorough and systematic review of the circumstances surrounding the reactor scram and the resulting loss of the pressurizer steam bubble.
2.
Assess the operators' actions preceding and subsequent to the reactor scram.
Develop a sequence of events and events causal factor analysis for the plant and operator' responses to the event.
Compare the expected plant response to the actual plant response.
3.
Review the licensees event classification and notifications for appropriate responses.
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2 4.
Assess the safety significance of the event and communicate to the regional and headquarters management the facts and safety concerns related to the problems identified.
5.
Examine the equipment failures and identify associated root causes.
6.
Determine if any generic deficiencias exist that warrant notification of other nuclear power plants in this country.
7.
Prepare a report documenting the results of this review for the Regional Administrator within thirty days of the completion of the inspection.
The Utility and the NRC staff have agreed that PSE&G will not attempt to restart Salem Unit 1 without the prior consent of the NRC Region I Rsgional Administrator, Mr. Martin.
The AIT will produce a written report on this inspection. That report will be made public.
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1 4/25/94 DATE SIGNED:
4 DATE SENT:
4 ITEM SENT:.
PRESS RELEASE FROM REGION I
SUBJECT:
NOTE TO EDITORS RE. SALEM AIT The attached itan(s) was/were sent on the above data to the following individuals:
The Honorable.foseph Liabarman/cc: Senator Alan E. Simpson The Honorabia Richard L-*="/cc: Rap. Barbara Yucanavich The Honorable Phillp Sharp /cc: Rep. Michaal h ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEE 5 INCLUDE:
Sen. *radley Sen. Lautenberg Sen. Biden Rep. Hughes
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UNITED STATES 1
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION j
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 g *****,,-
Tel. 610-337-5330 April 22, 1994 NOTE TO EDITORS:
KING 07 PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Coumission's Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) will meet with offic_ils of Public Service Electric cnd Gas Company (PSE&G) of New Jersey on Tuesday, April 26, 1994, to diccuss the preliminary results of the team's inspection of the April 7 temporary loss of pressure control and automatic shutting down of the Salem Unit i reactor, in Hancocks Bridge, NJ.
The AIT was dispatched to the site on April 8, and spent more than a week looking into the details surrounding ths events that led to an Alert declaration at the site.
The meeting will be at 10:00 a.m. in the Salem Nuclear Generating Station Processing Center, at the site.
It is open to observation by the public.
NRC W. Hodges, Division Director, Division of Reactor Safety Attendees:
(DRS)
E. Wenzinger, Chief, Projects Branch 2, Division of Reactor Projects (DRP)
R.
Summers, Project Engineer, DRP (Team Leader)
- S.
Barr, NRC Resident Inspector, Hope Creek
- S.
Stewart, Operations Engineer, DRS
- L. Scholl, Reactor Engineer, Electrical Section, DRS
- J.
Kauffman, Office of Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data (AEOD)
- W.
Lyon, Senior Reactor Systems Engineer, AEOD
- I. Ahmed, Senior Electrical Engineer, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR)
- J.
Stone, Project Manager, NRR R.
Skokowski, Reactor Engineer, Electrical Section, DRS
- H. Rathbun, Intern, NRR *
- AIT Member Licensee S.
Miltenberger, Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer Attendees:
J. Hagan, Vice President - Operations / General Manager -
Salem Operations S.
LaBruna, Vice President - Engineering and Plant Betterment F. Thomson, Manager, Licensing and Regulation
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7/21/94 l
DATE SENT:
DATE SIGNED:
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l ITEM SENT:
'I-94-52 NRC STAFF SCHEDULES OPEN ENFORCEMENT CONFERENCE WITH I PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC AND GAS CO. ON SHUTDOWN OF SALEM UNIT I IN SOUTH JERS i
LAST APRIL 7 1
1 1
The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
j The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan Simspon The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
Sen. Bill Bradley Sen. Frank Lautenberg Rep. William daghes Sen. Joseph i Len l
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OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 Tel. 610-337-5330 No. I-94-52 July 21,1994 Contacts: Karl Abraham Diane Screnci l
NRC STAFF SCHEDULES OPEN ENFORCEMENT CONFERENCE WITH PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC AND GAS CO. ON SHUTDOWN OF SALEM UNIT 1 IN SOUTH JERSEY LAST APRIL 7 KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has schedulec an open enforcement conference for 10 a.m. on July 28, 1994, to discuss with Public Service Electric and Gas Company of New Jersey some apparent violations of NRC requirements associated with the April 7 shutting down of the Salem Unit i nuclear plant in Lower Alloways Creek Township, after its Delaware River watcr intake became clogged with grass.
The enforcement conference will be in the NRC Region I office, 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA, and will be open to observation by the i
public.
Whether these apparent violations were real violations, and what enforcement action may be appropriate, if any, will not be decided at the i
enforcement conference. That will be determined by NRC management at a later i
tima.
Based on the findings reported in the Augmented Inspection Team report anc in two other inspection reports, the following are some of the apparent violations of NRC requirements that occurred during the initial event and the utility's efforts to cope with fluctuating conditions in the plant:
The Senior Nuclear Shift Supervisor (SNSS) left the control room to attend to a pump, thereby relinquishing his command function in the I
midst of a significant plant problem.
During his absence, other operators allowed reactor coolant temperature to decrease below the minimum temperature permitted while there was a continuing luclear I
chain reaction in the operating reactor; and While the SNSS was absent from the control room, the nuclear shift supervisor (NSS), who was left in charge of the control room, assumec the duties of a reactor operator when he moved some control rods in the reactor.
As a result, for the period of time the NSS was manipulating the controls, no individual was properly exercising command in the control room.
(more)
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During the April 7 event, the initial response to the grass intrusion l
at the intake structure and the recovery from the subsequent unusual plant conditions were complicated for the operators.
Their procedural guidance was inadequate in detail or nonexistent, constituting other apparent violations, including problems with procedures for:
l Restoring reactor coolant system temperature back up into the permissible range; Achieving rapid pow'er reductions to respond to the grass intrusions into the water intake structure; Recognizing and responding to disagreeing signals from two redundant safety injection train logic components.
Recovering the plant to normal conditions when the pressurizer is completely filled with water (it should have a bubble of steam in the l top half of it for pressure control during regular operation).
j NRC inspectors gave the following two examples of other apparent violations, involving the utility's failure to maintain control of essential plant equipment:
l During previous reactor / turbine automatic shut-downs, on June 10, 1989, July 11, 1993, and February 10, 1994, the utility failed to identify and correct the cause of a known problem--the spurious signal falsely indicating high steam flow. As a result, the licensee failed to prevent an unnecessary safety injection actuation last April 7, in response to this reactor trip; and In March 1977, the licensee modified the control system for the main steam atmospheric relief valves (MS-los) and has since failed to correct deficiencies introduced during the modification.
As a result, the licensee failed to preclude a second unnecessary safety injection actuation on April 7, 1994, (precipitated by opening of the main steam safety valves in lieu of the MS-los), which would open at a lower pressure.
During the 1993 Unit 2 outage, power operated relief valve (PORV) internals made of 17-4PH stainless steel (original design material) were installed in two PORV's, in lieu of components made of type 420 stainless steel (which was the vendor-recommended and licensee-approved design change replacement material).
The utility's investigation after the April 7 event found that the installed summator module for the high steam flow setpoint did not have the right part identification and also contained a wrong electronic part.
(more)
l Two years ago, the Commission decided to undertake a trial program of opsning to public observation enforcement conferences that, up until then, all had been closed to the public. The trial program generally selected 25 percent of such conferonces to be open, and provided for opening other selected enforcement conferences to public view, as in this case, because of the wide public interest in these events.
The States of New Jersey and Delaware have been informed of the scheduling of this enforcement conference.
NRC Attendees: T.T. Martin, Regional Administrator, Region I
)
J. Wiggins, Division Director, Division of Reactor Safety (DRS) l J. Gray, Deputy Director, OE E. Wenzinger, Chief, Projects Branch 2, DRP l
J;. White, Chief, Reactor Projects Section 2A, DRP i
C. Marschall, Senior Resident Inspector, Salem / Hope
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Creek E. Kelly, Chief, Systems Section, DRS J. Stone, Project Manager, NRR l
Other Members of Senior NRC Staff Licznsee Attendees:
S.
E. Miltenberger, Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer J. J. Hagan, Vice President-Operations / General Manager-Salem Operations F. Thomson, Manager, Licensing and Regulation Other Members of PSE&G Senior Staff l
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DATE SENT:
8/19/94 DATE SIGNED:
ITEM VNT:
PRESS RELEASE i
SUBJECT:
NOTE TO EDITORS RE SALEM AND HOPE CREEK POWER PLANTS l
l I
The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following j
individuals:
j The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan Simspan The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Yucanovich t
i ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
Sen. Bradley Sen. Lautenberg Rep. Hughes l
Sen. Biden l
4 i
i 4
e UNITED STATES
- +.p ".,%
4 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 s*++**,,
Tel. 610-337-5330 August. 19, 1999 NOTE fu EDITORS:
1 KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet. on August 29, 1999, wit.h officials of Public Service Elect.ric &
Sas Company of New Jerseg t.o receive a present.ation by the ut.ilit.9 on plans, actions, assessment.s, and schedules for the improvements to the design and operation of t.he Salem circulating water int.ake from the Delaware estuary. PSE&G also will sive its assessments and contingency piang to deal with future potential debris impact on eit.her Salen or Nope Creek service water intakes. This meet.ing was requested by the NRC as a result of findings ident.ified by the April 7, 1999 Augmented Inspection Team in which a grass intrusion ultimat.ely caused a plant shut.down wit.h cumplicat. ions.
The__~_setins 4i1I be at. 10 a.m.
in t.he NRC Resion I office, 975 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, mid it is open to observat. ion by the public.
NRC At.tendees: E. Kelly, Chief.
S si. ems Section, DRS 9
E. Wen:.i nser. Chief. Projects Branch 2, DRP S. Barber, Project. Eosineer, Reactor Project.s Sect. ion ZA.
DRP C. Marschal1, Senior Resident. Inspect.or, Salen J. Stone, Project Manager, NRR Other Members of NRC Staff Licensee At.tendees:
S. LaBruna, Vice President., Nuclear Engineerina T. Taylor, Project Manager, Special Project.s i
D. Smith, Principal Engineer, Nuclear Licensing J. Ronafalv9, Est.uary Enhancement Other Members of PSE&G Senior Staff l
l l
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I SLEU
( DL&kW DATE SENT:
9/6/94 DATE SIGNED:
ITEM SENT:
NOTE TO EDITORS: MEETING ON SEPTEMBER 9, 1994 TO DISCUSS SALEM i
I i
The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following
)
individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan Simspon The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis j
The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich j
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN, BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. WILLIAM HUGHES SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN k
l
6 UNITED STATES
/c.
. n.,*i NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION E
j OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I s % +u */
475 Allendale Road, King : f Prussia, PA 19406 Tel. 610-337-5330 September 6, 1999 i
l NOTE TO ED1 TORS:
l KING OF PRUSSI A, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission st.af f l
will mee' wit.h officials of Public Service Electric & Gas Compang on Fr idag. September 9, 1994, to discuss t.he preliminary findings l
and rasults of a special NRC perfurnance assessment init.iative being used to deternine future NRC inspection activities and initiatives at t.he Salen nuclear power plant, unit.s 1 and 2, in Hancocks Bridge, New Jersey.
The meet.ing was requested by NRC.
The neeting will be at.10: 00 in the Salen/ Hope Creek Access l
Processing Facility at the site.
It is open to observation by t.he i
public.
NRC Att.eadees:
R. Gal lo, Chief, Special Inspection Branch (RSIB), Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR)
J. Jacobson, RSIB/NRR l
R. Cooper. Direct.or, Division of React.or Pro.bcts (DRP), Region I (RI)
J. Wiggina, Director, Division of Reactor Safety (DRS), R1 Wencinger, Chief, Projects Branch 2, DRP, m.
J. White. Chief, Reactor Projects Sect. ion ZA, DRP C. Marschail, Sr. Resident. Inspector, Salen l
J. Zinnerman, NRR l
Licensee Attendees:
S. Miltenberger, Vice President. and Chief Nuclear Officer J. Nagan, General Manager-Operat. ions /Vice-President, Nuclear Operations S. LaBruna, Vice President., Nuclear Engineering M. Morroni, Manager - Maint.enance A. Ort.icelli, Manager - Mechanical Maint.enance L. Catalfono, Manager - Salem Operat. ions J. Morrison, Manager - Salen Technical C. Lambert., Mgr., Nuclear Engineering Design B. Prest.on, Mar., Nuclear En3ineering Project.s F. Thanson, Manager, Licensing and Regulation
()()()
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,o 1i DATE SENT:
10/5/94 DATE SIGNED:
ITEM SENT:
I-94-60 NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE /PSESG $500,000 FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS AT SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT l
i The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan Simspon The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich i
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN. BRADLEY SEN. LAUTENBERG l
REP. WILLIAM HUGHES SEN. BIDEN l
9
,1 l
l l
UNITED STATES e
/f ocoy%,
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION i
OFFICE OF P'UBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I q
g 475 Allendale Road, King Of Prussia, PA 19406 Tel. 610-337-5330 gp**T 4 p.
- +5 I-94-60 October 5, 1994
Contact:
Diane Screnci NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PSE&G $500,000 FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS AT SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has cited Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) for six alleged violations of NRC requirements in connection with the April 7 Alert at its Salem Unit 1 nuclear plant in Lower Alloways Creek, New Jersey.
The l
staff has proposed a $500,000 fine for four of the alleged violations.
On April 7, marsh grass clogged the travelling screens of the circulating water system's intake structure, which led to a trip of the circulating water pumps.
Although the control room operating staff began to reduce power to cope with the transient, the Senior Nuclear Shift Supervisor (SNSS) lost command and control focus when he parsonally tried to restart a circulating water pum,- that had tripped.
That activity was not authorized by procedure and required him to leave j
the cantrol room during a critical stage of the transient.
In addition, whi'a the SNSS was involved with trying to restart the pump, the Nuclear Shift Supervisor, who was in charge at the time, also Jnst his command cnd control focus for a short period when he became directly involved in the withdrawal of control rods for the purpose of recovering reastor coolant temperature from an overcooling condition.
The reactor tripped when power was increased above 25 percent.
The reactor and turbine trip caused the turbine stop valves to close, which caused a pressure wave in the main steam piping, which, coupled with low reactor coolant temperature at the time, caused an autome. tic actuation of the safety injection system, which then caused the pressurizer to fill solid with water.
Although the reactor coolant temperature and steam generator pressure both increased to a point where the atmospheric relief valves should have opened, the valves did not.
And, as a result, tha steam generator code safety valve opened, leading to a rapid decrease in reactor temperature and pressure, which initiated another cafety injection.
This safety injection, with an already solid pressurizer, required the pressurizer power operated relief valves to cycle numerous times and led to the eventual rupture of the pressurizer relief tank rupture disks.
The NRC sent an Augmented Inspection Team to review the circumstances of the event.
A staff review of the Team's report and a i
follow-up inspection on May 1 through June 25 found the six alleged f
violations of NRC requirements.
(more)
._. _ _ _ _,_ _ _ _._ _ ___.m.._
2 PSE&G was cited for failing to promptly identify significant conditions adverse to quality, determine the causes and take corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
In June 1989, July 1993, and February 1994, the license's did not promptly identify and correct the cause of epurious high steam flow signals that occurred during previous reactor / turbine trips.
This spurious signal happened again during the April 7 event, leading to an unnecessary Safety Injection actuation.
The NRC also cited PSE&G for failing to revise the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR) after making modifications to the design, construction and operation'of system within the plant.
In this case, tha licensee modified the controller for the steam generator pressure opsrated relief valves so that they would not open to the atmosphere t
under certain conditions without operator intervention.
The changes l
ware made without a complete safety evaluation being performed and without revising the FSAR.
PSE&G also was cited for failing to provide adequate training, guidance and procedures to the operators to cope with plant transients resulting from grass intrusion events, events which had previously occurred frequently at the Salem facility and which had caused serious j
omfaty system challenges and reactor trips.
i The NRC has proposed a $150,000 fine for each of these alleged violations, for a total of $450,000.
The fine for such violations ~is normally $50,000 each.
In this case the staff exercised enforcement discretion to increase the fines by $100,000 each, to $150,000 each, to further emphasize the importance that the NRC places on the need for cach licensee te identify conditions adverse to quality, determine the root causes, and promptly put into place long-lasting corrective actions rather than tolerating degraded conditions and workarounds.
4 Salem's technical specifications require that the Senior Nuclear Shift Supervisor, or his designated replacement, be responsible for the i
control room command function.
During the April 7 event, neither the i
Sanior Nuclear Shift Supervisor nor the nuclear shift supervisor remained free to survey and analyze all operating parameters, and, for a r.hort period of time, lost control and perspective of the overall operation.
For this alleged violation, the NRC staff proposed a $50,000 fine.
PSE&G also was cited, but not fined, for two additional alleged t
violations:
failing to provide specified information about an event to the NRC within 60 minutes; and, failing to establish measures to control tha use of parts and components to ensure that incorrect parts are not used.
i (more)
- - - _ - ~ -. - -.
3 i
i In a letter to PFE&G, James M. Taylor, NRC Executive Director for Opsrations, said, "Although the NRC found each of your immediate corrective actions to be acceptable, the NRC is unwilling to predict or assume success fo'r your long-term actions because historically, the implementation of such actions for past problems has proven ineffective.
While your actions are aimed at proximate causes, the NRC is not yet confident that lasting actions have been established that will prevent l
l rscurrence.
Specifically, although senior management generally has catablished appropriate expectations for staff level performance, those i
Gxpectations were neither clearly communicated to the staff, nor offectively reinforced by middle management and first line supervision.
The NRC is particularly concerned because communications between senior atstion management and the staff have been deficient for some time, and ths deficiencies have contributed to a number of prior events."
Mr. Taylor continued, " Simply stated, it appears that you have f
tolcrated an atmosphere that accepts degraded conditions and resultant i
workarounds such as those that contributed to the event, rather than actablish ar. atmosphere of a quality licensee environment."
i PSE&G has 30 days either to pay the proposed fine or to request in wrc;1ng that part or all of it be withdrawn.
The company also has 30 days to admit or deny the alleged violations, to describe the actions it han taken or plans to take to prevent recurrence, and to give the date i
by which it expects to be in full compliance.with NRC requirements.
The States of New Jersey and Delaware were informed of this enforcement action.
L i
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60L NY es DATE SENT:
1/4/95 DATE SIGNED:
l 1-95-1 NRC STAFF ISSUsS SYSTEMATIC ASSESSMENT OF LICENSEE j
ITEM SENT:
PERFORMANCE FOR THE SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION NEAR SALEM, NJ The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Joseph Lieberman/cc: Senator Alan Simspon The Honorable Philip Sharp /cc: Rep. Michael Bilirakis The Honorable Richard Lehman/cc: Rep. Barbara Vucanovich i
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN. BILL BRADLEY 4
SEN FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. FRANK ~LO'BIONDO i
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN i
e
_m
(
UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
.i j
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 g,*****,,,
Tel. 610-337-5330 No. I-95-1 January 4, 1995
Contact:
l NRC STAFF ISSUES SYSTEMATIC ASSESSMENT OF LICENSEE PERFORMANCE l
FOR THE SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION NEAR SALEM, NJ KING OF PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has l
icsued a Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP) report on Public Service Electric and Gas's (PSE&G) Salem Nuclear Generating Station l
in Lower Alloways Creek Townr. hip, New Jersey.
The report assesses operations in four functional areas (operations, mnintenance, engineering and plant support) at Salem from June 20, 1993, to November 5, 1994.
Three performance categories are assigned to each func~ional area.
Category 1 is the highest, and Category 3 is the minimum acceptable level of performance.
1 The NRC assessed performance in the areas of Operations and j
l Maintenance as being in Category 3, with performance in the area of Engineering being assessed as Category 2 and Plant Support assessed as l
Category 1.
In a letter to PSE&G, Thomas T. Martin, Regional Administrator, NRC l
R gion I, said, " Operators generally responded appropriately with good command and control to the many plant trips and operational transients that occurred during this period.
A notable exception was during the April 7, 1994, grass intrusion event.
Further, the operators did not effectively assure that plant systems and equipment were always sufficiently maintained to perform as designed.
Too often, the Operations organization cccommodated long-standing equipment or system problems that resulted in unn:cessary challenges to operators and safety systems in normal and upset i
conditions.
Further, the general lack of a questioning attitude by oporators resulted in anomalous indications or conditions being unnoticed or not understood, and consequently, ineffectively resolved.
Weaknesses in l
operability decision making resulted in some determinations that were not conservative or otherwise lacked a solid technical basis."
He continued, "The Maintenance organization's performance was weak in i
tho implementation of programs and activities.
Consequently, there were j
frequent problems involving procedure adherence, procedural adequacy, and control and oversight of work.
Some improvements, such as better communications with the operating organization, improved prioritization and echaduling of work, and improved material condition have been achieved.
Notwithstanding, weaknesses still prevail relative to the effectiveness of corrective actions, troubleshooting and resolution of recurrent equipment problems, and management oversight of maintenance activities."
(more) i
"The performance of the Engineering organization was inconsistent.
The quality of design and modification activities was generally good, and the organization provided competent support in several programmatic areas throughout this period.
Notwithstanding the capability and potential offectiveness, the priorities of the Engineering organization did not always reflect the needs of the plant.
The organization was not offectively engaged in the diagnosis, root cause assessment, and resolution of the chronic system and equipment problems that impaired overall plant performance," said Mr. Martin.
" Performance in the plant support area continued to be strong.
Well trained and capable management and staff contributed to the effectiveness of radiation protection and ALARA efforts, and radiological environmental monitoring and effluent control programs.
The performance of the emergency preparedness organization improved in this period and was effectively demonstrated in drills and actual event responses.
The plant security
)
organization performed well, notwithstanding problems with assessment aids I
and occasional weaknesses relative to supervisory oversight and personnel parformance.
Performance relative to fire protection and prevention program activities improved during this period," Mr. Martin said.
"In summary, overall performance has declined and we are particularly concerned with the challenges to plant systems and operetors caused by repetitive equipment problems and personnel errors that had the potential to, or actually did, adversely affect plant or personnel safety.
Notwithstanding, we recognize that your organization has, within the last year, initiated several comprehensive actions that have the potential to improve overall plant performance.
However, while we acknowledge some recent incremental performance gains, these efforts have not yet resulted in any noticeable change in overall performance."
Mr. Martin went on to say, "In arriving at this assessment, we determined the following contributing factors: (1) the tendency of your operations staff to accept and accommodate system performance that was not j
in accordance with design; (2) the tendency of your organization not to aggressively question the validity of assumed causes of degraded conditions or unexpected system performance, and dismiss or not adequately consider other possible contributors or factors without substantial technical basis or rationale; (3) the general reticence of your maintenance and operations organizations to solicit technical support from the engineering organization for the resolution of plant system or equipment issues; and the engineering organization's apparent reservation to engage in the diagnosis or resolution of plant technical problems without requirement or request; (4) the lack of value attributed to, or expected from, nuclear cafety review and quality assurance activities, and the consequent insffectiveness of these functions; (5) insufficient critical self-assessment initiatives to evaluate the adequacy and performance of personnel, procedures, and hardware; and (6) insufficient supervisory oversight and poor communication of senior plant management's expectations relative to the performance of activities."
r
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DATE SENT:
1/17/95 OATE SIGNED:
I ITEM SENT:
PRESS RELEiSE
SUBJECT:
NOTE TO EDITORS RE SALEM l
The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the fellowing individuals:
The Honorable JtapixxtrishtNM Dan Schaefer l
l l
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
Sen. Bill Bradley Sen. Frank Lautenberg Rep. Frank to Biondo Sen. Joseph Biden
/
....,* A UNITED STATES
~
()D, #
M!)..i NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION S
'/
Office of Public Affairs Washington, D.C. 20555 January 13, 1995 NOTE TO EDITORS:
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with officials of Public Service Electric & Gas Ccmpany (PSE&G) on Wednesday, January 18, to discuss the most recent Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP) for the Salem Generating Station in Hancocks Bridge, New Jersey.
The SALP covers the the period from June 20, 1993, to November 5, 1994.
The meeting, which is open for public observation, will be held at 10 a.m.
in the Access Processing Facility at the Salem site.
1 l
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i'k i
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DATE SENT:
4/12/95 DATE SIGNED:
ITEM SENT:
I-95-18 NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC i
& GAS COMPANY $80,000 FOR ALLEGED VIOLATION AT ITS SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
The Honorable Dan Schaefer/cc: The Honorable Frank Pallone The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: The Honorable Bob Graham ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. FRANK LOBIONDO SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN l
/
i l
UNITED STATES p%n.
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
}
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406 g*****
Tel. 610/337-5330 No. I-95-18 April 12, 1995
Contact:
Diane Screnci Victor Dricks NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC & GAS COMPANY $80,000 FOR ALLEGED VIOLATION AT ITS SALEM NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION KING 0F PRUSSIA, PA--The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has cited Public i
Service Electric & Gas Company, (PSE&G) for an alleged violation of NRC requirements at its Salem Huclear Generating Station, in Lower Alloways Creek, N.J.
The staff has proposed a fine of $80,000.
1 The NRC staff proposed the fine after determining that two safety review group (SRG) engineers at the plant suffered harassment and intimidation after raising safety concerns on December 3, 1992.
The two engineers questioned whether the commercial grade air supply pressure setpoint regulators, which control service water flow to the containment fan cooling units, were seismically qualified, were classified properly in an information system as safety-related, and were configured properly.
Based on investigation, the NRC staff concluded that the then-General Manager-Salem Operations (GM0) and the then-Operations Manager (OM), engaged in a number of discrete acts, that created a hostile work environment for two SRG engineers who attempted to file an incident report on a safety concern in accordance with station procedures. After the OM and GM-S0 met privately for approximately 15 minutes, the two SRG engineers were called into the meeting. During the meeting, the GM-S0 became frustrated as he was unable to convince the SRG engineers to modify, amend, or otherwise revise their proposed incident report. When matters reached an impasse, one of the engineers indicated that he (the engineer) could document the matter as a safety concern.
The GM-S0 took this statement as a threat, became more angry, ordered the two SRG engineers to get out of his office, and threatened to have site security officers remove them.
The next day, the GM0 signed a letter prepared by the OM requesting that the two safety engineers be removed from any further involvement with the Salem station.
The NRC staff has determined that the actions are a violation of the requirement that prohibits licensees from discriminating against employees who raise safety concerns.
"A hostile work environment is not conducive to the raising of safety concerns by individuals, and can potentially have an adverse impact on the safe operation of the facilities," Region I Administrator Thomas T. Martin said in a letter written to PSE&G officials.
"As such, a hostile work environment at a licensee facility, cannot and will not be tolerated."
Mr. Martin also expressed concern that senior management at PSE&G did not resolve the issue "promptly and effectively" after becoming aware of it in late December 1992 and early January 1993.
(MORE)
l
"Th'e former Vice President and Chief Nuclear Officer initially failed to recognize
!8 the significance of the issues and to monitor resolution and the former Vice President, i
- Nuclear Operations, exercised poor judgment by abstaining from any involvement in the resolution of the issues," Mr. Martin said.
The NRC staff has classified the alleged violation as Severity Level II, because senior plant management was involved in creating a hostile work environment.
The normal fine for a Severity Level II violation is $80,000.
l The NRC staff also recognized that PSE&G identified the alleged violation and has i
takenanumberofstepstocorrectitandpreventrecurrence,includingremovingboththe i
former GM0 and the former 0M from involvement with the Salem station.
i PSE&G has 30 days to pay the proposed fine or to request in writing that part of it i
or all of it be withdrawn.
The company also has 30 days to admit or deny the alleged j
violations and to describe the actions it has taken or plans to take to prevent i
recurrence.
l The states of Delaware and New Jersey have been informed of this enforcement action.
i
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(MORE)
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DATE SENT:
10/5/95 OATE SIGNED:
j ITEM SENT:
I-95-57 NRC TO CONDUCT SPECTAl INSPECTION OF RAf FM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT FOLLOWING TEMPORARY LOSS OF CONTROL ROOM ALARM 9 i
AT UN'IT 1 i-
)
i f
The ai;tached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the fc11owing l
2 indiviacals:
The Honorable Frank Pallone The Honorable Dan Schaefer/cc:
The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: The Honorable Bob Graham i
1 ADDITTONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:-
SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. FRANK LOBIONDO SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN
.i,
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4
la UNITED STATES i
NUCLEAR REGULATORY' COMMISSION i
Office of Public Affairs
%,**"*/
475 Allendale Road King of Prussia, PA 19401 I-95-57 October 5,1995
Contact:
Diane Screnci Victor Dricks NRC TO CONDUCT SPECIAL INSPECTION OF SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT FOLLOWING TEMPORARY LOSS OF CONTROL ROOM ALARMS AT UNIT 1 The staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has sent two inspectors to the Salem nuclear power plant in Lower Alloways, New Jersey, to look into the temporary loss of overhead control room annunciators at Unit 1 that prompted Public Service Electric
& Gas Company to declare an alert early today.
J One NRC specialist will evaluate the engineering and technical' issues surrounding the event and a second specialist in emergency preparedness will evaluate the licensee's implementation of their emergency plan.
The alert occurred while the Unit i reactor was shutdown and defueled.
There was no
)
effect on any plant systems and there was no release of radiation from the plant.
The problem first came to light shortly after 11 p.m.
Wednesday, when a PSE&G worker who was performing a preplanned test of a service water system noticed that a control room alarm failed to activate.
Operators later determined that the last control room annunciator had activated at 10:35 p.m.
At 11:35 1
p.m., operators reset the control room annunciator system, restoring it to service.
But because more than 75 percent of the l
control room annunciators had been inactive for a period greater than 15 minutes, the plant's technical specifications required the declaration of an alert, the second lowest level of nuclear emergency.
After declaring the alert, PSE&G activated and l
staffed its Technical Support Center.
At 5:24 a.m, diagnostic testing by the licensee confirmed the operability of the control room annunciators and the alert was terminated.
J The States of New Jersey and Delaware have been notified.
l
f l ;m DATE SDIT:
10/17/95 OATE SIGNED:
l PRESSRELkhSEN0.I-9'5-59 ITEM SENT:
SUBJECT:
NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE C'ECTRIC A GAS
$600,000 FOR SIX ALLEGED VIOLATIONS OF NRC R,1QUIREMENTS-AT SALEM NUCLEAR POWER PLANT 4
i The attached item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
i The Honorable Dan Schaefer/cc: The Honorable Frank Pallone The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: The Honorable Bob Graham i
ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEE 5 INCLUDE:
Sen. Bill Bradley Sen. Frank Lautenberg Rep. Frank LaBiondo Sen. Joseph Biden iV e
["%,g United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission r-g Office of Public Affairs, Region I i
/ i 475 Allendale Road King of Pnuma, PA 19401 Phone: 610/377-5330 Fax: 610/337-5241
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Internet: dps@nre. gov or vid@nrc. gov III I
I-95-59 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Diane Screnci October 17,1995 Victor Dricks NRC STAFF PROPOSES TO FINE PUBLIC SERVICE ELECTRIC & GAS $600,000 FOR SIX ALLEGED VIOLATIONS OF NRC REQUIREMENTS AT SALEM NUCLEAR i
POWER PLANT The staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has cited Public Service Electric & Gas Company (PSE&G) for six alleged violations of NRC requirements at its Salem nuclear power plant in Lower Alloways Creek, N.J.
The staff has proposed a fine of
$600,000.
The' alleged violations were identified during four inspections by NRC staff conducted between December 5, 1994 and 4
June 23, 1995.
The alleged violations involved conditions adverse to quality that existed, but were not identified and promptly corrected, in a number of plant systems.
The licensee also failed to document, report the problems to the proper levels of management and take corrective actions to preclude recurrence of the problems.
PSE&G was cited for failure to identify and correct the following conditions:
i
- 1) Failure to maintain an operable Residual Heat Removal (RHR) System at Salem Unit 2 between February 9, 1995, and June 7,
1995.
The system provides cooling to the reactor following shutdown.
- 2) Failure to maintain an operable switchgear ventilation supply fan at Unit 1 from December 12, 1994, until May 16, 1995.
The system provides filtered air conditioning and ventilation to the plant control room in the event of an emergency.
- 3) Failure to take prompt corrective action after being informed by the Westinghouse Corporation on March 15, 1993, of a significant condition adverse to quality affecting the Pressurizer Overpressure Protection System, (POPS) which protects the reactor coolant system under low temperature conditions.
- 4) Unauthorized changes in the design basis of the POPS by incorrectly taking credit for an RHR relief valve to provide overpressure protection.
(MORE) 1
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f
- 5) Numtrous othar instancas betwann May 8, 1990 End January 14, 1995,=of failure to identify and prompt'y correct conditions 4
j adverse to quality.
L
- 6) Failure to properly position a valve in a common drain i
line for three pressurizer safety valves prior to startup of Unit l
2 in May 1993.
As a result, the drain line remained closed until October 1994.-
i "The number and nature of the violations, demonstrate.
1 i
inadequate performance by a licensee of the Commission," James L.
I Milhoan, the NRC's Deputy Executive Director for Nuclear Reactor I
t-Regulation, Regional Operations and Research, said in a letter to l
PSE&G.
"The past overall response by your staff and management relative to decision-making on operability issues and the approach to resolution of these issues has not been acceptable."
s Mr. Milhoan noted that he has sent four Augmented Inspection Teams to-the Salem plants in the past four years, although these are "relatively rare and reserved for significant J
l occurrences."
l
)
After the NRC staff proposed a $500,000 fine in connection with the April 7, 1994 alert at Salem Unit 1, Mr. Milhoan said l
the NRC " raised questions regarding the manner in which l
management's expectations are established and communicated to the Salem staff regarding their performance at the station.
We noted u
~
that while NRC found your immediate corrective actions acceptable for that event, the NRC was unwilling to predict or assume 4
l:
success for your-long-term actions because historically, the implamentation of such actions for past problems has proven to be ineffective.
I further noted that it appeared that staff tolerated an atmosphere that accepts degraded conditions rather than establishing an atmosphere of a high quality operating F
l environment."
i
[
A little more than one year after issuing a $500,000 civil penalty to PSE&G for numerous violations, Mr. Milhoan said he remains concerned about operations at the site.
For example, Mr. Milhoan said, although the. Westinghouse Corp. informed PSE&G j
in March 1993 of a concern that could affect Salem's Pressurizer Overpressure Protection System, the problem remained unresolved for more than a year and a half.
Two other examples involved i
degraded equipment affecting switchgear ventilation equipment in Unit 1, and residual heat removal minimum flow recirculation i
valves in Unit'2.
In both cases, Mr. Milhoan said, PSE&G officials failed to respond promptly when component failures affecting those systems were first identified in late 1994 and 4
early 1995, respectively.
"These examples indicate a management
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and staff' attitude that is not conducive to the safe operation of a nuclear power plant,"
Mr. Milhoan said.
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Mr. Milhorn credited PSE&G for its dscision to ehut down both of the Salta units'cnd not r:2 tart them withcut first obtaining NRC agreement and the commitments by management to j
sweeping performance improvements.
But he said the proposed civil penalties totaling $600,000 l
underscore the "bariousness with which-we regard your deficient conduct of operations."
The base civil penalties of $50,000 for each of the six violations were doubled because Salem's enforcement record has not been good, the majority of the violations were identified by the NRC and prior actions to ensure problems would be corrected in a timely manner have not been effective.
The licensee has 30 days either to pay the proposed fine or i
to request-in writing that part or all of it be withdrawn.
The l
company also has 30 days to admit or. deny the alleged violations and to describe the actions it has taken or plans to take to prevent recurrence.
The States of New Jersey and Delaware have been informed of this enforcement action.
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12/08/95 DATE SIGNED:
i P.d TO EDITORS: ' meeting on Salem Nuclear Power Plant on Monday, l'
. ITEM SENT: -
'Decemtier 11, 1995 i
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The attached-item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following individuals:
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The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: Sen. Bob Graham The~ Honorable Dan Schaefer/cc: Rep. Frank Pallone ADDITIONAL ADDRESSEES INCLUDE:
SEN. BILL.BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. FRANK LOBIOND0 SEN..' JOSEPH BIDEN r
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a United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission Office of Public Affairs, Region i 475 Allendale Road King of Prussia, PA 19401 l
Phone: 610/337-5330 Fax: 610/337-5241 Internet: dps@nrc. gov or vid@nrc. gov l
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Contact:
Diane Screnci FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE l
Victor Dricks December 8,1995 l
NOTE TO EDITORS:
The staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Comuniscion will meet with officials from Public service Electric & Gas Co. on Monday, December 11, to discuss the licensee's restart plan for the Salass nuclear power plant in New Jersey. The meeting, which will be open to public observation, will be held at 10 a.m. at the Processing Facility at the site.
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DATE SENT:
11/12/96
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I-96-74 NOTE TO EDITORS:
Meeting with officials of Public Service Electric & Gas (PSE&G) November 18, 1996 l
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t a ta item (s) was/were sent on the above date to the following I
The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: Sen. Bob Graham The Honorable Dm schaefer/cc: Rep. Frank Pallone
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_DITIONAL anngrrrrrg INCf fine-SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG J
REP. FRANK L0BIONDO I
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN I
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610/337-5241 l
Internets dpsearc. gov or nas6nre. gov i
I-96-74 November 12, 1996 i
Contact:
Diane Screnci' FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Neil A. Sheehan NOTE TO EDITORS:
i i
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with officials of Public Service Electric & Gae (PSEGG) on Monday afternoon, November 18, to review PSEGG's progress and the efforts to verify the utility can perform a l
safe restart of the Salem Generating Station in Hancocks Bridge, New Jersey.
Th!.s meeting was requested by the NRC to discuss the status of these restart activities.
The meeting, which begins at 1:00, will be held in the Processing Center at the Salem site.
It is open to the public for observation only.
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12/12/96 w
IT&f SENT.
I-96-80 NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFF PROPOSES $180,000 IN FINES l
l FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS AT SALEM AND HOPE CREEK PLANTS e
i he attached itam(s) was/were sent on the above data to the fol
.ndividuals:
The Honorable Lauch Faircloth/cc: Sen. Bob Graham The Honorable Dan Schaefer/cc: Rep. Frank Pallone
'ITIONAL ADDRMFWR INCLUDE:
SEN. BILL BRADLEY SEN. FRANK LAUTENBERG REP. FRANK L0BIONDO SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN l
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610/337-5241 Internet: dpsenre. gov or nesenre. gov l
'I-96-80 December 12, 1996 j
L
Contact:
Diane.Screnci-FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE R
i Neil A.
Sheehan NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION STAFF PROPOSES $180,000 IN FINES FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS AT SALEM AND HOPE CREEK PLANTS
.The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed $180,000 in fines against the operator of the Salem and Hope Creek nuclear power plants, Public l
Service Electric & Gas (PSEGG) Company, for three alleged violations of l
security requirements and one alleged violation involving harassment, intimidation and discrimination of workers at the Hancocks Bridge, N.J.,
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' facilities.
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PSEGG also has been cited, but not fined, for three additional violations dealing with plant security.
The alleged security-related violations were found during NRC l
inspections conducted at the plants in August and September, with three
. stemming from a failure to control access to the protected reactor area.
For those three violations, a $100,000 fine has been proposed.
j One of the violations for which a fine has been proposed was the discovery that a security force memoor had taped over a lock on a door to a room that contained workers' photobadge keycards.
The move was apparently l
prompted by a. problem with the lock, but the move could have allowed L
unauthorized individuals to enter, obtain a keycard from a security desk inside and advance to the plant's protected area.
l Another violation involved a contractor being permitted to proceed to the protected area,'without a required patdown search, even though the individual had set off metal detectors at the access control point three times.
The NRC also determined that plant starf follow-up after the event was poor.
For instance, a' security supervisor, once noti *ied of the event, began trying to locate the individual.
However, the security supervisor did not notify the senior nuclear shift supervisor on site, which was required since the individual should have been considered an intruder.
The other three alleged security violations, for which no fines have l
been proposed, includes a failure to deactivate photobadge keycards for individuals who no longer required site access after being terminated; a l
L failure to complete training for security supervisors prior to assigning them to supervisory duties; and a failure to test an intrusion detection system in l
accordance with procedures.
In a letter to PSEGG, Region I Administrator Hubert J. Miller saia, "These three violations of fundamental access control requirements at nuclear power plants represent a significant degradation in the security program at the facility.
The case of alleged harassment, intimidation and discrimination, which occurred in 1993 and 1994 and was identified through an inquiry conducted by the NRC Office of Investigations, involved a former PSEGG Nuclear Safety Review Group manager.
A fine of $80,000 has been proposed.
The NRC found that the ex-manager retaliated against and harassed an
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on-site safety review engineer -- through negative comments in the worker's performance appraisals -- because of the engineer's involvement with a l
December 3, 1992, incident.
On that occasion, the engineer supported two i
subordinates, both of them safety review engineers, who attempted to raise an safety concern.
In addition, the agency determined the former manager had discriminated against one of the safety review engineerr by transferring the worker, against his will, from the Salem Safety Review Group to the Hope Creek Safety Review Group. Previously, on April 11, 1995, the NRC had issued an $80,000 civil penalty to PSE&G for discrimination related to the December 3, 1992 event.
l Miller said that although the adverse actions in this case occurred in l
the 1993-94 time period and under a different plant management team, the NRC l
wanted to emphasize the significance the NRC attaches to any finding of I
discrimination, as well as the importance of current management ensuring a safety-censcious environment where employees are not discouraged from voicing safety issue worries.
"Your organization has the responsibility to ensure that a work environment exists such that employees feel free to raise safety concerns,"
Miller wrote in a letter to PSE&G. "Tne actions of the former manager.
in i
late 1993 and early 1994, did not adhere to these standards, and did not l
provide an appropriate example for management, supervisors, or staff within their line organizations, nor for the other PSE&G organizations with which they interfaced."
PSE&G has 30 days either to pay the proposed fines or to request in writing that part or all of the penalties be withdrawn.
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