United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Office of Public Affairs, Region I

475 Allendale Road King of Prussia, PA 19401

Phone: 610/337-5330 Fax: 610/337-5241

Internet: dps@nrc.gov or nas@nrc.gov

I-97-99 August 6, 1997

Contact: Diane Screnci FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Neil A. Sheehan

NRC PROPOSES $80,000 CIVIL PENALTY, BARS TWO FORMER WORKERS

FOR RECORDS FALSIFICATION AT LIMERICK NUCLEAR PLANT

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed an

$80,000 fine against PECO Energy Company for multiple examples of

records falsification at the Limerick nuclear power plant in

Limerick, Pa. In tandem with that action, the agency has issued

orders prohibiting two of the former workers involved from taking

part in NRC-licensed activities for several years.

PECO Energy, which operates the two-reactor plant near

Philadelphia, first identified and investigated two incidents in

which records were wrongly filled out and reported them to the

NRC. Subsequently, the NRC’s Office of Investigations conducted

two separate investigations and concluded that records required

by the NRC to be maintained had in fact been falsified.

In one of the cases, a chemistry technician and a former

chemist at the plant, at the direction of a former chemistry

manager, deliberately falsified a record of the time a sample was

taken from the Reactor Enclosure Cooling Water System.

Plant technical specifications require that, with a

radiation monitor inoperable, at least one sample be taken from

the system at least once every 24 hours. On February 7, 1996,

the sample was taken about one hour and 15 minutes late.

However, the record was altered to indicate the sample was taken

within the 24-hour period.

Under orders issued by the NRC, the former chemistry manager

and chemist have been banned from activities licensed by the

agency for five and three years, respectively. Both workers have

been dismissed by the company.

The other case involved several occasions between April 3,

1995 and July 29, 1996 on which the records for required fire

protection tests were falsified. Specifically, a fire protection

technical assistant deliberately failed to properly perform a

fire hose visual inspection surveillance test but stated in a

document that the test had been carried out. Further, the worker

deliberately failed to perform other such tests yet wrongly
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filled out the related documents to show that he had done so.

Also, the employee failed to enter a specific area necessary to

complete a fire suppression water system spray and sprinkler

visual inspection, even though he signed documents indicating the

task had been successfully completed.

NRC Region I Administrator Hubert J. Miller, in a letter to

PECO Energy, wrote that not performing required activities, yet

documenting on records that the activities were carried out,

constitutes a “significant regulatory concern.” In addition, Mr.

Miller expressed concern as to whether plant staffers were

fearful of discussing problems when they occurred.

“The NRC has previously issued documents emphasizing the

importance of maintaining complete and accurate records of

activities performed, such as in NRC Information Notice 92-30,

issued on April 23, 1992, and NRC Generic Letter 93-03, issued on

October 20, 1993. Those documents describe similar occurrences

at other facilities,” Mr. Miller stated.

“While the NRC is clearly concerned with the individuals who

engaged in these activities at Limerick, the NRC is also

concerned whether the situation involving the Primary Chemistry

Manager is evidence that there have been at least pockets at

Limerick where staff was fearful of raising problems when they

occurred, notwithstanding generally strong corrective action

processes at the site.”

PECO Energy has 30 days to pay the fine or to request in

writing that all or part of the penalty be withdrawn.

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