Calvert Cliffs facing scrutiny after discovery of safety lapse

Risk considered ‘low to moderate' by commission

Friday, March 6, 2009

Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant is again on the verge of increased federal oversight, following a preliminary decision by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission that a gap in its emergency preparedness procedures presents a "low to moderate" safety risk.

On Feb. 26, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced a preliminary "white finding" for the Lusby plant following a discovery that information missing from the plant's emergency plan could impede the site supervisor's quick declaration of an emergency, according to a letter to Site Vice President Jim Spina and NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan. A white finding is the second-lowest on a scale of four, ranging from green to red. Green findings must be fixed but do not result in increased oversight.

"The finding was more than minor because it … affected the associated cornerstone objective to ensure that the licensee is capable of implementing adequate measures to protect the health and safety of the public in the event of a radiological emergency," the letter said.

Specifically, a lack of information could delay the declaration of a "site area emergency," the second most serious designation of four. A site area emergency "involves events … that result in actual or likely major failures of plant functions needed for protection of the public." The flaws would not hamper the declaration of a "general emergency," the most serious category, Sheehan said.

The mistake was reported by plant owner Constellation Energy and confirmed by an NRC inspection, Sheehan said.

The preliminary finding was issued "because they did not include appropriate information that could have impaired their decision-making abilities. To Constellation's credit, they identified the problem and took measures to address it, but nonetheless this condition did exist during this period of time, and so we consider it to be preliminarily a white finding," Sheehan said.

Constellation has until March 26 to request a meeting with NRC or provide information to contest the finding, and NRC's final decision will be issued by May 26. While Constellation will be given a fair hearing and any new information the company provides will be taken into consideration, preliminary findings are generally affirmed, Sheehan said. If this happens, the plant will likely be subject to stricter oversight for a year, "though we could end up closing out the white finding if we're satisfied" by the results of an inspection, Sheehan said.

Constellation spokeswoman Maureen Brown declined to comment.

"At this point, we're still evaluating the letter from the NRC, the finding, the preliminary finding. We have 10 days to respond, so any detailed comments would really be more appropriate after we have formulated our response to the NRC," she said.

Power plant spokesman Dave Fitz did not return calls seeking comment.

In fall 2006, Unit 1 received a "white finding" from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission after a test tripped a circuit breaker in the wiring connecting the reactor's emergency generator to its cooling fans and other supporting equipment, an NRC spokesman said at the time. The emergency generators are required to shut the plant down safely if power from the electrical grid is lost. That white finding, which applied only to Unit 1, was in effect until the middle of 2007.

emitrano@somdnews.com