NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION III

801 Warrenville Road

Lisle IL 60532

No. III-00-36 July 5, 2000

CONTACT: Jan Strasma (630)829-9663/e-mail: rjs2@nrc.gov

Pam Alloway-Mueller (630)829-9662/e-mail: pla@nrc.gov

NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETINGS JULY 12 IN WISCONSIN ON REACTOR

OVERSIGHT CHANGES AND POINT BEACH AND KEWAUNEE PLANT ASSESSMENTS

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold three public meetings in Wisconsin July 12 to

discuss the NRC’s new reactor oversight process and, in separate meetings, the latest performance

review results for the Point Beach and Kewaunee nuclear power plants. The Point Beach plant is

operated by Wisconsin Electric Power Co., and the Kewaunee plant is operated by the Wisconsin

Public Service Corp.

NRC staff members, at 7 p.m. CDT July 12, will describe the new oversight program which

began at the Point Beach and Kewaunee plants in April. The meeting will be held at the Two Creeks

Town Hall, 5128 E. Tapawingo Road north of Two Rivers, Wisconsin. Members of the public will

have the opportunity to ask questions during the meeting.

The new oversight process uses more objective, timely, and safety-significant criteria in

assessing performance, while seeking to more effectively and efficiently regulate the industry. It also

takes into account improvements in the performance of the nuclear industry over the past twenty years.

Under the new oversight program, inspections by NRC resident inspectors and regional officebased personnel are supplemented by statistical measures of plant activities called performance

indicators. These performance indicators measure important safety aspects of plant operations,

including the viability of redundant safety systems, emergency planning, radiation protection, and

security measures.

Inspection findings and performance indicators for each nuclear power plant are posted on the

NRC’s internet web site every three months. The safety significance of each inspection finding or

performance indicator is assessed with a color coding -- green, white, yellow, or red.

The NRC response to the inspection findings and performance indicators will be based on the

assessment. A green finding would receive normal NRC oversight, while white, yellow, or red

assessments would receive increasing NRC involvement. Multiple red findings could result in a plant

shutdown.

NRC officials have scheduled a second public meeting at 1:30 p.m. CDT, July 12, at the

Carlton Town Hall, N. 1296 Town Hall Road in Kewaunee, Wisconsin, to discuss Kewaunee’s latest
plant performance review results.

A third public meeting to discuss Point Beach Nuclear Power Plant’s latest performance

review results will be held at 3:30 p.m. CDT, also on July 12, at the Point Beach plant’s Energy

Information Center, 6610 Nuclear Road north of Two Rivers, Wisconsin.

The Plant Performance Reviews (PPRs) are an interim measure the NRC has used to assess

nuclear power plant safety while the new reactor oversight process was being developed. The primary

purpose of the PPRs is to evaluate safety performance information and identify any changes in plant

performance so the NRC can allocate inspection resources appropriately. The text of each PPR letter,

including ones on Kewaunee and Point Beach, is available from the NRC Office of Public Affairs and

has been posted at: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA/ppr on the NRC web site.

Current performance information for the plants is available on the NRC web site at:

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/index.html

A plain language summary of the new reactor oversight process is available from the NRC

Office of Public Affairs or on the web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA/primer.htm.

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