U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Region III Office of Public Affairs

801 Warrenville Road, Lisle, IL 60532-4351

NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT: RIII-97-101 November 21, 1997

CONTACT: Jan Strasma 630/829-9663

Angela Greenman 630/829-9662

E-mail: opa3@nrc.gov

NRC STAFF PROPOSES $100,000 FINE FOR TWO VIOLATIONS

OF NRC REQUIREMENTS AT PERRY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed a

$100,000 fine against Centerior Services Co. for two violations

of NRC safety requirements at the Perry Nuclear Power Plant. The

plant is located in Lake County, Ohio.

The first violation involved an increase in the power level

of the reactor on November 9 of last year when a control valve

was placed in service and unexpectedly increased the flow of

water through the reactor. A similar incident occurred in 1994

but the utility's response to that incident, including training

of reactor operators, was not sufficient to prevent the November

9 incident.

The reactor power level increased from 98 percent to 100.2

percent. This increase did not represent a safety concern, but

indicated that reactor operators and other members of the Perry

staff did not understand the possible effects of putting the

control valve in service.

The utility was cited for failing to take adequate

corrective action from the earlier incident, and a $50,000 fine

was proposed.

The second violation involved the failure of the utility to

seek NRC approval for a change in its operating procedures for

the emergency closed cooling system which would supply cooling

water to plant equipment in the event of an accident.

Tanks that are part of that system were intended to provide

a seven-day supply of water, but potential leakage in the system

would have required plant operators to check the tank level

periodically following a possible accident and possibly add water

to the tanks. This need for operator action constituted a safety

issue that required NRC review, but the utility did not seek that

NRC review.

Subsequently, the utility tested the system in a more

appropriate manner and demonstrated that there would be an
adequate supply of water in the tanks without the repetitive

operator actions. The utility, therefore, rescinded the change

in its procedures.

The potential safety consequences of this situation were

low. The NRC, however, depends on utilities to perform an

adequate safety analysis to determine if an issue requires NRC

review. In this case, the Perry staff did not recognize the need

to seek NRC review. Accordingly, a $50,000 fine has been

proposed.

No fine was proposed for a third violation involving a

miswired electrical circuit breaker because of the extensive

corrective action taken by the utility. This circuit breaker

would have affected the operation of the emergency ventilation

system for the plant's control room.

The NRC staff also considered enforcement action for another

issue involving the potential of a possible fire in the control

room to generate shorts in electrical circuits elsewhere in the

plant. The staff decided not to issue a Notice of Violation or

fine because the utility had taken extensive corrective actions

to resolve the issue, including modifications to all affected

equipment.

The utility has until December 19, 1997, to pay the fine or

to protest it. If the fine is protested and subsequently imposed

by the NRC staff, the utility may request a hearing.

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