Press Release-II-12-026, NRC to Discuss Nfs Performance at Public Meeting in Erwin

Press Release-II-12-026: NRC to Discuss Nfs Performance at Public Meeting in Erwin

ML12121A611
Person / Time
Issue date:	04/30/2012
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region II
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Category:Press Release
References
Press Release-II-12-026
Download: ML12121A611 (2)

Text

NRC NEWS U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION Office of Public Affairs, Region II 245 Peachtree Center Ave. NE, Suite 1200 Atlanta, GA 30303-1257 Web Site: www.nrc.gov No. II-12-026 April 30, 2012 CONTACT: Roger Hannah (404) 997-4417 E-mail: OPA2@nrc.gov Joey Ledford (404) 997-4416 NRC TO DISCUSS NFS PERFORMANCE AT PUBLIC MEETING IN ERWIN Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials will meet with management of Nuclear Fuel Services in Erwin, Tenn., on Tuesday, May 8 to discuss the results of a licensee performance review for the companys nuclear fuel facility in Erwin.

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the Circuit Court Room on the second floor of the Unicoi County Courthouse, 100 N. Main St. in Erwin. The meeting will be open to members of the public and the news media. NRC officials will provide a brief presentation on the companys performance, followed by a response from NFS management. NRC officials will then be available to answer questions from the public about the agencys oversight and inspection of the facility.

The NRC staff assessed performance at NFS during a period beginning Jan. 1, 2011, and ending Dec. 31, 2011, in the areas of safety operations, radiological controls, facility support and special topics, and those evaluations will form the basis of the meeting discussion. The area of safeguards was also assessed, but that area will not be discussed publicly due to the sensitive nature of the information. The NRC staff review determined that NFS conducted its activities safely and securely, protecting the public, workers and the environment.

During a similar review in 2010, the NRC found that NFS needed improvement in two areas, safety operations and facility support. Additional inspections and oversight at the facility have since ensured that NFS has met its commitments and performed the necessary corrective actions to address the problems.

Nuclear Fuel Services 2011 safety culture performance has demonstrated improvements, wrote Anthony Gody, NRCs Director of the Division of Fuel Facility Inspection, in a letter to NFS. Gody added that the NRC inspection staff noted that NFS actions in 2011 were properly focused on safety and were consistent with their improved processes.

In 2011, the NRC will conduct its core inspection programs at NFS. However, oversight beyond the core inspection program will still be required to verify that NFS is complying with its previous commitments.

A copy of the NRC letter detailing the NFS review is available online in the NRCs Agency-wide Document Access and Management System at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html#web-based-adams. The number to access the document is ML12072A191.

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