ML073380878

IA-07-033, Notice of Violation

ML073380878
Person / Time
Site:	Sequoyah, 05521661
Issue date:	06/20/2007
From:	James Shea Division of Reactor Safety II
To:	Witt M - No Known Affiliation
References
IA-07-033
Download: ML073380878 (5)

Text

June 20, 2007 IA-07-033 Mr. Mark K. Witt

[Home Address Deleted Under 10 CFR 2.390]

SUBJECT:

NOTICE OF VIOLATION

Dear Mr. Witt:

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) received a letter dated March 12, 2007, from Tennessee Valley Authoritys Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, informing us of your confirmed positive test for alcohol. We plan to place this letter in your 10 CFR Part 55 docket file.

This confirmed positive test identified a violation of 10 CFR 55.53(d). The purpose of the Commission's Fitness-for-Duty requirements is to provide reasonable assurance that nuclear power plant personnel work in an environment that is free of drugs and alcohol and the effects of the use of these substances. The use of alcohol such that an operator exceeds the cutoff limits specified in 10 CFR Part 26, Appendix A, or in the licensee's fitness-for-duty program, is a serious matter which undermines the special trust and confidence placed in you as a licensed operator. The violation is categorized as a Severity Level III violation in accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy because the use of alcohol such that an operator exceeds the cutoff limits specified in 10 CFR Part 26, Appendix A, or in the licensee's fitness-for-duty program by licensed operators is a significant regulatory concern. This violation is described in the enclosed Notice of Violation. Please note that, in accordance with 10 CFR 26.27(b), future similar violations will substantially affect your authorization for unescorted access to the protected area of a licensed facility. In addition, note that as provided in 10 CFR 55.61, the NRC could have taken action to suspend or revoke your license resulting from a determination of unfitness for scheduled work as a result of the consumption of alcoholic beverages, and any repetition of this conduct in the future may result in revocation of your license.

The purpose of this letter is to make clear to you the consequences of your violation of NRC requirements governing fitness-for-duty as a licensed operator. You are required to respond to this letter and should follow the instructions specified in the enclosed Notice of Violation (Notice) when preparing your response. In your response, you should document the specific actions taken and any additional actions you plan to prevent recurrence in order to ensure your ability and willingness to carry out the special trust and confidence placed in you as a licensed operator of a nuclear power facility. After reviewing your response to this Notice, including your proposed corrective actions, the NRC will determine whether further NRC enforcement action is necessary to ensure compliance with NRC regulatory requirements.

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.390 of the NRC's "Rules of Practice," Part 2, Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, enforcement actions are made available electronically for public

Mr. Mark K. Witt 2 inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the NRCs document system (ADAMS).

ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. A copy of this letter and the enclosed Notice of Violation with your address removed will be made available to the Public after 45 days unless you provide a sufficient basis to withdraw this violation. The NRC also includes significant enforcement actions on its Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/enforcement/actions/. In addition, this letter will be maintained by the Office of Enforcement in an NRC Privacy Act system of records, NRC-3, Enforcement Actions Against Individuals. The NRC-3 system notice, which provides detailed information about this system of records, can be accessed from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/foia/foia-privacy.html.

Should you have any questions concerning this action, please contact Mr. Robert Haag of my staff. Mr. Haag can be reached at either the address listed above or at 404-562-4607.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Joseph W. Shea, Director Division of Reactor Safety Docket No. 55-21661 License No. SOP-21749

Enclosure:

Notice of Violation CERTIFIED MAIL NO. 7006 0100 0006 1396 3527 RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED cc: w/ encl and w/ HOME ADDRESS DELETED (HOLD FOR 45 DAYS-EICS ACTION)

Sequoyah Nuclear Plant ATTN: Mr. Randy Douet Site Vice President 2600 Igou Ferry Road Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379

Distribution w/ encl [HOME ADDRESS REMOVED]:

IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION:

C. Carpenter, OE M. Burrell, OE B. Jones, OGC N. Salgado, NRR M. Ashley, NRR C. Evans, RII M. Widman, RII R. Haag, RII B. Michael, RII Part 55 Docket File RELEASE AFTER 45 DAY HOLD- EICS ACTION L. Reyes, OEDO J. Dyer, NRR L. Chandler, OGC E. Julian, SECY D. Decker, OCA Enforcement Coordinators RI, RIII, RIV E. Hayden, OPA G. Caputo, OI H. Bell, OIG V. McCree, RII L. Slack, RII R. Hannah, RII K. Clark, RII PUBLIC OEMAIL OE:IA FILE OEWEB THIS ACTION MAY NOT BE RELEASED TO THE PDR OR OUTSIDE THE AGENCY WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF OE Distribution w/ encl [WITH HOME ADDRESS]

C. Evans, RII OFFICE RII:ORA RII:DRS OE NRR OGC SIGNATURE RA /SES FOR:/ RA RA RA RA NAME CEVANS RHAAG DSOLORIO NSALGADO BJONES DATE 6/1/2007 6/7/2007 6/13/2007 VIA EMAIL 6/13/2007 VIA EMAIL 6/13/2007 VIA EMAIL E-MAIL YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO YES NO OFFICIAL RECORD COPY DOCUMENT NAME: C:\FileNet\ML073380878.wpd

NOTICE OF VIOLATION Mark K. Witt Docket No. 55-21661

[HOME ADDRESS DELETED License No. SOP-21749 UNDER 10 CFR 2.390] IA-07-033 As a result of a notification from Tennessee Valley Authoritys Sequoyah Nuclear Plant on March 12, 2007, a violation of NRC requirements was identified. In accordance with the NRC Enforcement Policy, the violation is listed below:

10 CFR 55.53(d) requires that each license is subject to, and the licensee shall observe all applicable rules, regulations, and orders of the Commission.

10 CFR 26.10(a) requires, in part, that nuclear power plant personnel perform their tasks in a reliable and trustworthy manner and are not under the influence of any substance which in any way adversely affects their ability to safely and competently perform their duties. 10 CFR 26 Appendix A, Subpart B, paragraph 2.7(f)(2) specifies, in part, a confirmatory test cut-off level for alcohol of 0.04% Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC).

Contrary to the above, on February 12, 2007, you reported for requalification training, which is required by 10 CFR 55.59 for an NRC licensed senior reactor operator, while under the influence of alcohol. Specifically, you attended training at the Sequoyah Nuclear Training Center with a BAC, confirmed through random testing, of 0.073% BAC, which exceeded the cutoff level for alcohol (0.04% BAC) contained in 10 CFR Part 26.

This is a Severity Level III violation (Supplement I).

Pursuant to the provisions of 10 CFR 2.201, Mr. Mark K. Witt (Licensee) is hereby required to submit a written statement or explanation to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ATTN:

Regional Administrator, Region II, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Suite 23T85, Atlanta, Georgia, 30303, and marked "Open by Addressee Only" and a copy to the NRC Resident Inspector at the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, with a similar marking within 30 days of the date of the letter transmitting this Notice of Violation (Notice). This reply should be clearly marked as a "Reply to a Notice of Violation; IA-07-033" and should include for each violation: (1) the reason for the violation, or, if contested, the basis for disputing the violation, (2) the corrective steps that have been taken and the results achieved, (3) the corrective steps that will be taken to avoid further violations, and (4) the date when full compliance will be achieved. If an adequate reply is not received within the time specified in this Notice, an order or a Demand for Information may be issued as to why the license should not be modified, suspended, or revoked, or why such other action as may be proper should not be taken. Where good cause is shown, consideration will be given to extending the response time.

If you contest this enforcement action, you should also provide a copy of your response, with the basis for your denial, to the Director, Office of Enforcement, United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001.

Enclosure

Notice of Violation 2 Because your response will be made available electronically for public inspection in the NRC Public Document Room or from the NRCs document system (ADAMS), to the extent possible, it should not include any personal privacy, proprietary, or safeguards information so that it can be made available to the public without redaction. ADAMS is accessible from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. If personal privacy or proprietary information is necessary to provide an acceptable response, then please provide a bracketed copy of your response that identifies the information that should be protected and a redacted copy of your response that deletes such information. If you request withholding of such material, you must specifically identify the portions of your response that you seek to have withheld and provide in detail the bases for your claim of withholding (e.g., explain why the disclosure of information will create an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy or provide the information required by 10 CFR 2.390(b) to support a request for withholding confidential commercial or financial information). If safeguards information is necessary to provide an acceptable response, please provide the level of protection described in 10 CFR 73.21. In addition, this letter will be maintained by the Office of Enforcement in an NRC Privacy Act system of records, NRC-3, Enforcement Actions Against Individuals. The NRC-3 system notice, which provides detailed information about this system of records, can be accessed from the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/foia/foia-privacy.html.

Dated this 20th day of June 2007 Enclosure