NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 Office of Public Affairs, Region I

 475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa.

 Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov/OPA

No. I-05-024 April 21, 2005

Contact: Diane Screnci, 610/337-5330 E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov

Neil Sheehan, 610/337-5331

NRC TO DISCUSS 2004 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT

FOR NINE MILE POINT NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Nine Mile Point

Nuclear Station, LLC, on Thursday, April 28, to discuss the agency’s annual assessment of safety

performance at the Nine Mile Point nuclear power plant. The period of performance to be discussed is

Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2004.

Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station, LLC, operates the two-reactor plant in Scriba, N.Y.

The meeting, which will be open to the public for observation, is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. in

the Joint News Center for the plant, located at the Oswego County Airport, on County Route 176 in

Fulton, N.Y. Before the session is adjourned, NRC staff will be available to answer questions from the

public on the plant’s safety performance, as well as the agency’s role in ensuring safe operation of the

facility.

In addition to the afternoon meeting, the NRC will conduct a separate discussion with the

public that evening on the performance of both the Nine Mile Point and James A. FitzPatrick nuclear

power plants. That meeting is scheduled for 7 to 8 p.m. in the Town of Scriba’s Assembly Hall, 42

Creamery Road in Oswego, N.Y.

“The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Nine Mile Point plant and the nation’s

other commercial nuclear power facilities,” NRC Region I Administrator Samuel J. Collins said. “This

meeting will provide an opportunity for a discussion of our annual assessment of safety performance

with the company and with local officials and residents who live near the plant. Our goal is to explain

the NRC oversight process and make as much information as possible available to the public regarding

our regulation of these facilities.”

Overall, the Nine Mile Point plant operated safely during the period. The NRC uses colorcoded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear power plant performance. The

colors start with “green” and then increase to “white,” “yellow” or “red,” commensurate with the safety

significance of the issues involved. During 2004, all of the inspection findings and performance

indicators for Nine Mile Point were determined to be “green.” Therefore, the plant will receive a

baseline level of inspections during the upcoming assessment period.
Besides routine inspections performed at the plant in 2004, the NRC conducted a supplemental

inspection last September in response to a “white” performance indicator for Unit 2 in the third quarter

of 2003. The indicator tracks the number of unplanned scrams, or shutdowns, per 7,000 hours of

critical operation. At the conclusion of the inspection, the NRC determined the company’s corrective

actions were sufficient to address the causes of the problem and to prevent a recurrence.

Routine inspections are performed by three NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and

by inspection specialists from the Region I Office in King of Prussia, Pa., and the agency’s

headquarters in Rockville, Md. Among the areas of plant operations to be inspected this year are

radiological safety, emergency preparedness and problem identification and resolution.

A letter sent from the NRC Region I Office to plant officials addresses the performance of the

plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is available on the

NRC web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/nmp_2004q4.pdf . The

notice and slides for the afternoon meeting are available in the NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access

and Management System (ADAMS) under accession numbers ML050880025 and ML050880029,

respectively. The notice and agenda for the evening meeting can be found under accession number

ML050880106. ADAMS is accessible via the agency’s web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/readingrm/adams.html . Help in using ADAMS is available by contacting the NRC’s Public Document Room

at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737 or by e-mail at PDR@nrc.gov .

Current performance information for Nine Mile Point Unit 1 is available on the NRC web site

at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/NMP1/nmp1_chart.html .

Current performance information for Nine Mile Point Unit 2 is available on the NRC web site

at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/NMP2/nmp2_chart.html .

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