U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs, Region IV

Walnut Creek Field Office

1450 Maria Lane, Walnut Creek, CA 94596-5378

CONTACT: Mark Hammond Nov. 27, 1996

Office: (510) 975-0254 FOR IMMEDIATE

RELEASE

Home: (415) 674-1024 RIV-9660

Pager: (800) 916-4952 e-mail:

mfh2@nrc.gov

NRC STAFF PROPOSES $100,000 FINE

FOR APPARENT VIOLATIONS AT WNP-2

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has informed the Washington

Public Power Supply System that it proposes to fine the utility $100,000

for five apparent violations of NRC requirements at the Washington Nuclear

Project-2 (WNP-2), near Richland, Washington.

The violations were identified during a special NRC inspection

conducted from late June through early September. They occurred on various

dates in June as the plant returned to power generation after a refueling

outage.

One violation was cited because plant personnel advanced through a

series of defined steps in the restart process while one train of the

control room emergency filtration system was inoperable, contrary to

requirements. The reactor systems were warming up at the time, but the

plant was not generating power. The filtration system is designed to

protect control room personnel from radiation under accident conditions.

Three other violations were noted in the Supply System's failure to

conduct required tests on certain equipment during the restart process. A

fifth violation was found in the Supply System's failure to have an

adequate procedure in place to test certain valves prior to the restart.

''Although the violations did not result in actual safety

consequences, the NRC considers the regulatory significance of the

violations high,'' L. Joe Callan, Regional Administrator of NRC Region IV

in Arlington, Texas, said in a letter to the Supply System.

''Taken collectively, the violations indicate that the Supply System

did not maintain an effective program for assuring that required

operational checks of equipment were performed at the appropriate times and

in accordance with technical specifications,'' Mr. Callan said. ``The

number of violations, and the fact that they occurred over a relatively

short period of time, suggest a serious weakness in this very fundamental

and important area.''
Mr. Callan noted that the Supply System took corrective actions that

the NRC considered prompt and comprehensive. ''We believe it is important

to note that the Supply System identified most of the current violations,

and important to recognize that this is, in and of itself, a sign of

improved performance on the part of the Supply System,'' he said.

The fact that violations with similar causes were noted in August

1995, when the NRC fined the Supply System $50,000, remains a significant

concern, Mr. Callan said.

The NRC has categorized the violations as Severity Level III. The

agency's enforcement system uses four Severity Levels, with Level I being

the most serious. The apparent violations were discussed by NRC and Supply

System officials at a predecisional enforcement conference on October 22 in

Arlington, Texas.

The Supply System has 30 days to respond to the NRC's citation, during

which time it may pay the civil penalty or protest it. If the protest is

denied, the utility may ask for a hearing.

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