ML20214A377

Board Exhibit B-2,consisting of 860706 Article Entitled, Safety Inspectors Hit Nuclear Plant

ML20214A377
Person / Time
Site:	Braidwood
Issue date:	07/08/1986
From:	Burton T CHICAGO TRIBUNE, CHICAGO, IL
To:
References
OL-B-002, OL-B-2, NUDOCS 8705190427
Download: ML20214A377 (1)

Text

~j

, m _

F E

-z- 3 - 2_ -

o- .

~

i; J Section 3 e i aJ .

• Ch'cagoland (hifag0 Giribune Sunday, July 6.1986 i

aSafety m.spectors g &I*mr #%Rme1. i E

1CC C cc c GW;r. C <t C r.JJtE T. 0 M11 set m t d3r.

Cce ohit nuclear plant L. 4 u r.,; - i

- ;BY Thornas M. Burtott The NRC ...-..~. .d-in doesn't iden-9 ",' g- ;

• . 4Wg;,Ng-

.-i tify the complainants, but they are quality W ,

Safety inspectors at the Brandwood nu-I. control inspectors for companies that

(* {-

- cleer plant, under construction 55 miles have done electrical work at Braidwood.

e southwest of Chicago, have complained in g/ - I',s== L'"-- ..

j 7-De federal agency has begun investigat ' ' y* : r- - -

b]'

,'J'- - =r j l the twt few weeks that safety concerns at ing the allegations, but not as actively as a the site are bems ignored, according to an it mi ht because the NRC inspector who j intemal memo of the federal Nuclear Re- wouhflook at it is involved elsewhere, ao ' "

• Pd i

• 0 j

gulatory Cornmission [NRC]. cording to commission spokesman Jan a

, g' '

The commission was told on June 4' p"" .

Strasma. -

" electrical quahty control problemss bem,of < 1 I , d. 1W%g g%c .'

Critics within the NRC questioned its ;t

~ " " ' ~

ignored" and " production grven mwe em-gk Q4 response in hlarch,1985, to safety corm- / '

, ),

i d., VMk;[,e.

j hasis than qualit ," according to a draft clamts by 24 quality control inspectors. mC w-i memoran um obtained by The In that instance, the agency allowed Com- EF g

ne. monwealth Edison Co., the Chicago utili- i. ,

n b -+

i 1

'These recent complairtts by inspectors ty buildmg Braidwood, to investigate the i **"'l"y M .**] { y g

)

, 3

. at Braidwood echo allegations about , complaints itself. The detal agenpy' -

,, i g ) . -- - - -

I protdems in electrical work made by at waited two months before i terviewmg en-le st 26 inspectors in 1934 and 1985. spetors. . i, i . v.

,, ., o .

,q

. [ NRC documents and interviews with fed- Robert Dwyer, an Edison spokesmans, 'g The control room for Braidwood's Reactor Number One: Are plant inspectors afritid to express concerns?' y

. eral officials, along with depositions in said that even though he wasn't familiae .j j

, l proceedings that, challenge Braidwood's with the specific compi.aints, "These ard of the project an NRC licensing board. The commission sel, uns uitical of the NRC for not

- l prospectsve openmg, show that questions things that are not dismissed without Braidwood,ra 200-foot-high concrete must decide that the Braidwood facility is notif> irs the ymup about the complamts -J

,y nave been raised for at least two years thorough insestigation. We take the time structure just cast of Int. Ilwy. 55. con- .

. j about the electrical quality control and toand looktheat NRC it. This takeis seriously, somethms that we sists of two reactors costing a projected open. safe Abefore group othe f.lanthving residents will be nearallowed the Theto NR'"s set out in the Struma draft the confirmed memo. legit-j about how the N,RC responded. total ofhas

$5.05 Inthon.

, Quality control inspectors hired by con- The disclosuye, of the renewed com- which been spent.about One33.5 odhon reactor, al- of piant has raised questions ahnut its safety- imacy of he memo, sayms it wis pre.

Those hearin

. . tractors on the job site are said to be nts by safety ms ors comes on the ready 95 percent budt, is scheduled for in Kankakee, bs, which have taken place hared imacomplamants r 'he assumption afraid,to espress concerns to the NRC,* arkham and Johet, have foiwarred to the before that it should according to the memo, prepared for Commission Is of a that voteraises by . Illinois Commerce an obstacle to the completion in May.1987. wtule the other. focused on allegations that quality control the remtr*stenn hcensms board. Dut he aWs n o about 70 percent finished, is set for an inspectors for contractors at Braidwood NRC he d sa e nin fB In a un ni October,1988. completion. said thatteder ~ is

. it" further was have been, harassed by supersisors into decidnt heji an d itimtial until inqUcth

' mission's division of ree tor projects at Edison 30 days to justify the costs of the Another challenge faced by Edison be- hurrymg mspection work to speed up investina mi As of now, he said. a final the a scrwn .t t:c draft memo has not been

. Gles flh.'s Midwest regionas office in nuclear plant or face possible revocation fore Braidwood can be finished is a set of construction.

of the certificate approvmg construcuan hearings, focusms on safets issues, before Douglass Cassel Jr.. BPI's general coun- f,rwar teil as % ashington.

.) . -

o ,. ,,

.; { .' ' i. j

/

8705190427 860708 PDR ADOCK 05000456 G PDR