WO 13-0070, Reply to Notice of Violation EA-13-084

Reply to Notice of Violation EA-13-084

ML13260A288
Person / Time
Site:	Wolf Creek
Issue date:	09/12/2013
From:	Rich Smith Wolf Creek
To:	Document Control Desk, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
References
EA-1 3-084, WO 13-0070
Download: ML13260A288 (4)

Text

W LF CREEK NUCLEAR OPERATING CORPORATION September 12, 2013 Russell A. Smith Site Vice President and Chief Nuclear Operating Officer WO 13-0070 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ATTN: Document Control Desk Washington, D. C. 20555

Reference:

Letter dated August 14, 2013, from N. O'Keefe, USNRC, to M. W.

Sunseri, WCNOC

Subject:

Docket No. 50-482: Reply to Notice of Violation EA-1 3-084 Gentlemen:

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.201, the attachment provides Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation's (WCNOC) reply to Notice of Violation (NOV) EA-13-084 as contained in the Reference (Inspection Report 05000482/2013003).

This letter contains no commitments. If you have any questions concerning this matter, please contact me at (620) 364-4156, or Mr. Mike Westman at (620) 364-4009.

Sincerely, Russell A. Smith RAS/rlt Attachment cc: C. F. Lyon (NRC), w/a N. F. O'Keefe (NRC), w/a S. A. Reynolds (NRC), w/a Senior Resident Inspector (NRC), w/a P.O. Box 411 / Burlington, KS 66839 / Phone: (620) 364-8831 An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/HC/VET

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Attachment to WO 13-0070 Page 1 of 3 Reply to Notice of Violation (NOV) EA-13-084 Description of Violation Identified in NOV EA-13-084 10 CFR 50.9 requires, in part, that information required by statute, orders, or license conditions to be maintained by the licensee shall be complete and accurate in all material respects.

Wolf Creek License Condition 2.C.5, "Fire Protection," requires that the licensee shall maintain in effect all provisions of the approved fire protection program as described in the Standardized Nuclear Unit Power Plant System Final Safety Analysis Report. Section 9.5-1 of the Wolf Creek Updated Safety Analysis Report, dated March 10, 2013, describes the fire protection program and includes the licensee's commitment to meet Appendix 3A, "Conformance to NRC Regulatory Guides," and Appendix A, Table 9.5A-1 of Regulatory Guide 1.39, "Housekeeping Requirements for Water-Cooled Nuclear Power Plants," Revision 2. Regulatory Guide 1.39, Revision 2, endorses ANSI Standard N45.2.3-1973, "Housekeeping During the Construction Phase of Nuclear Power Plants."

ANSI Standard N45.2.3-1973, Section 3.5, states, in part, that periodic inspection and examination of the work areas shall be performed at scheduled intervals to assure adequacy of cleanliness and housekeeping practices. Section 4 of the above ANSI Standard states, in part, that copies of inspection and examination records shall be prepared and placed with other project records.

Section 6.1.8 of Procedure AP 12-001, "Housekeeping Control," Revisions 6C and 7, dated May 5, 2006, and November 10, 2008, respectively, intended to implement the inspection and examination requirements of ANSI Standard N45.2.3-1973, states, in part that "assigned personnel shall walk down their areas monthly" and that "personnel record and document their walkdowns using the Housekeeping Inspection Card."

Contrary to the above, between October and December 2008, the licensee failed to maintain records required by License Condition 2.C.5 that were complete and accurate in all material respects. Specifically, the Housekeeping Inspection Card for the spent fuel pool area indicated that the inspection had been completed by a certain individual. Security access logs, however indicated that the individual that completed the record (Housekeeping Inspection Card) had not entered the area. This information is material because it provides assurance to the NRC that the licensee has performed periodic inspection and examination of work areas at scheduled intervals to assure adequacy of cleanliness and housekeeping practices as required by the license condition.

Reason for the Violation Between October and December 2008, an individual documented that housekeeping observations in the spent fuel pool area had been completed. However, security access logs indicated that the individual that completed the record for the housekeeping observations had not entered the area. Following Quality Surveillance 31096, which originally reported the discrepancy between the housekeeping inspection cards and security access logs, the individual was interviewed in April 2009. There was willful misconduct by the individual both for the documentation of performance of the housekeeping observations in 2008 and by misrepresenting the facts in April 2009 during the initial investigation of this condition. A follow-up interview with the individual in October 2012 revealed that the individual documented the

Attachment to WO 13-0070 Page 2 of 3 housekeeping inspection for the spent fuel pool area between October and December 2008, but in fact did not perform the inspection or delegate the responsibility for the inspection.

The cause for the willful action could not be determined, as the responsible individual has resigned.

Corrective Steps That Have Been Taken and Results Achieved

• Following admission of falsifying housekeeping inspection cards for the spent fuel pool area, the responsible employee resigned October 18, 2012.

• Quality Assurance surveillance QS-2012-0314, Housekeeping Inspections, was completed December 12, 2012. QS-2012-0314 was a follow-up surveillance to Quality Surveillance 31096, which originally reported the discrepancy between the housekeeping inspection cards and security access logs between October and December 2008. Housekeeping inspection cards from April through September 2012 were reviewed for discrepancies between the housekeeping inspection cards and security access logs. All housekeeping inspection reports reviewed were confirmed to have occurred as reported.

• Station-wide publication, Crucial Times, September 11, 2013 edition published an article titled, "Maintaining a Strong Safety Culture is Key to Avoiding Willful Misconduct."

Crucial Times is distributed electronically to all employees. This article was identified as a face-to-face discussion between leadership and their direct reports. The content of the article is as follows:

"Because nuclear power is special and unique, we have a greater responsibility for protecting the health and safety of the public and are subject to higher standards.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) regulations state that information required by statutes or by the Commission's regulations, orders or license conditions to be maintained by the applicant or licensee shall be complete and accurate. Deliberate misconduct, including willful falsification of records, by all personnel applying for unescorted access and working at Wolf Creek is strictly prohibited.

Recently, the NRC issued Information Notice 2013-15, "Willful Misconduct/Record Falsification and Nuclear Safety Culture." The notice addresses several incidents of willful misconduct and record falsification at U.S. nuclear sites. The document emphasizes the importance of establishing and maintaining an effective safety culture by applicants, licensees and their contractors. In several cases, the violation involved work or signatures involving supplemental employees with the appropriate licensee oversight.

Maintaining quality records is a requirement of our operating license. Company records that are applicable may include Access Screening paperwork, housekeeping inspections, qualifying examinations and work packages. It is our obligation to provide complete and accurate information. This includes reporting when that does not occur.

That is why it is important when providing your signature on any document that you ensure the information is accurate and that work performed under these guidelines has been completed as written. Failure to exercise proper regard for complete and accurate documents can be perceived by the NRC as deliberate misconduct, an offense punishable as a civil or criminal violation.

Attachment to WO 13-0070 Page 3 of 3 One way that we can minimize willful misconduct at Wolf Creek is to create a strong safety culture environment. Most importantly, it is critical that personnel understand station expectations and that consequences are clearly stated and understood, and they are encouraged to freely raise concerns or issues. The key behaviors for a healthy safety culture include personal accountability (including admitting mistakes),

demonstrating a questioning attitude and a willingness to raise concerns and engage with management in problem resolution. Trust and respect need to permeate each organization while communications maintain a focus on nuclear safety and leaders demonstrate a commitment to safety in their decisions and behaviors."

Corrective Steps That Will Be Taken to Avoid Future Violation A cascading message will be developed that starts with the Site Vice President and Chief Nuclear Operating Officer and cascades through the organization that facilitates a discussion on willfulness and personal integrity. This discussion will result in a personal signed letter by employees and long-term contractors attesting to/or certifying that they understand the expectations and consequences of willful misconduct.

The annual code of ethics review will be revised to encompass the entire code of ethics by station personnel, not just the conflict of interest considerations.

These corrective actions are being taken as part of our corrective action program but are not being taken to restore compliance.

Date When Full Compliance Will Be Achieved Full compliance has been achieved.