Press Release-I-06-023, NRC to Discuss 2005 Performance Assessment for Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant

Press Release-I-06-023: NRC to Discuss 2005 Performance Assessment for Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant

ML061040339
Person / Time
Site:	Calvert Cliffs
Issue date:	04/14/2006
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region I
To:
Category:Press Release
References
Press Release-I-06-023
Download: ML061040339 (2)

Text

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region I 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa.

www.nrc.gov No. I-06-023 April 14, 2006

Contact:

Diane Screnci, 610/337-5330 E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov Neil Sheehan, 610/337-5331 NRC TO DISCUSS 2005 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT FOR CALVERT CLIFFS NUCLEAR POWER PLANT Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Constellation Generation Group, LLC, on Thursday, April 20, to discuss the agencys annual assessment of safety performance at the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant. The period of performance to be discussed is Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2005.

Constellation operates the twin-reactor plant, which is located in Lusby (Calvert County), Md.

The meeting, which will be open to the public for observation, is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Express, 355 Merrimac Court in Prince Frederick, Md. 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.

As we do every year, we have carefully reviewed the safety performance of the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant during the previous calendar year, NRC Region I Administrator Samuel J. Collins said. The meeting on April 20th will afford the public a chance to learn more about the results of our assessment and to pose any questions they might have regarding plant performance or our oversight activities.

A letter sent from the NRC Region I 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/calv_2005q4.pdf . The meeting notice, with the meeting agenda attached, is available in the NRCs Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) under accession number ML060740658. The NRC slides are available in ADAMS under accession number ML060940405. ADAMS is accessible via the agencys web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html . Help in using ADAMS is available by contacting the NRCs Public Document Room at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at PDR@NRC.GOV .

Overall, the Calvert Cliffs plant operated safely during the period. The NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear power plant performance. The colors

start with green and then increase to white, yellow or red, commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved. Because all of the inspection findings and performance indicators for the plant as of the end of 2005 were determined to be green, Calvert Cliffs will receive a baseline (or routine) level of inspections during the upcoming assessment period.

Calvert Cliffs had a white inspection finding open during the first quarter of last year. That finding involved a relay failure that caused the steam dump valves to remain full open following a Unit 2 reactor trip in January 2004. A supplemental inspection, conducted in January 2005, determined that the root causes for the performance deficiencies were understood and that completed and planned corrective actions were reasonable to address the related causes. Based on that information, the finding was closed.

Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and by inspection specialists from the Region I Office in King of Prussia, Pa. Among the areas of plant operations to be inspected during the next year by NRC specialists are the replacement of reactor vessel heads at both units and the dry cask storage for spent fuel at the facility.

Current performance information for Calvert Cliffs 1 is available on the NRC web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/CALV1/calv1_chart.html .

Current performance information for Calvert Cliffs 2 is available on the NRC web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/CALV2/calv2_chart.html .