No. III-10-014 

Contacts: 

Viktoria Mitlyng 630-829-9662 

Prema Chandrathil 630-829-9663 

 May 4, 2010 

 E-Mail: opa3@nrc.gov

 Web site: www.nrc.gov

NRC TO DISCUSS 2009 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT 

FOR PALISADES NUCLEAR POWER PLANT MAY 11

 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a public meeting with representatives 

of Entergy Nuclear Operations on Tuesday, May 11, to discuss the agency’s assessment of safety 

performance for last year at the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant. The plant is located in Covert, 

Mich., roughly five miles south of South Haven. 

 The meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. EDT at the Holiday Inn Express, 1741 

Phoenix Rd. The NRC staff will present the results of the annual assessment, talk about the NRC 

and its range of activities and be available to respond to questions or comments from the public. 

 “The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Palisades plant and the nation’s 

other commercial nuclear power facilities,” NRC Region III Administrator Mark Satorius said. 

“This meeting allows us to discuss our annual assessment of safety performance with the 

company and area residents. One of NRC’s main goals is to explain to people in the community 

how the agency regulates nuclear power plants.” 

 A letter sent from the NRC Region III 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/pali_2009q4.pdf. 

 The NRC’s assessment concluded Palisades operated safely during the 2009 period. The 

NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear plant 

performance. The colors start with “green” and then increase to “white,” “yellow” or “red,” 

commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved. 

 NRC inspectors identified one “white” finding of low to moderate safety significance in 

2009. This finding involved the degradation of a neutron absorber material in the plates that 

surround the fuel in the spent fuel pool. The spent fuel remained in a stable condition because 

another control system, soluble boron, was in place to ensure the safety function was met. The 

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NRC will conduct a supplemental inspection to make sure the problems surrounding the finding 

have been fully understood and resolved by the utility. 

 The letter also addressed one substantive cross-cutting issue in the area of human 

performance which has been resolved by the utility in 2009. Cross-cutting issues are issues that 

“cut across” multiple areas of plant operation. Examples of cross-cutting issues include problems 

associated with the plant staff’s ability to identify and correct problems, to develop effective 

procedures and adhere to these procedures. Cross-cutting issues cannot be quantified and are not 

assigned safety significance. When a substantive cross-cutting issue is identified at a nuclear 

power plant, the NRC expects the problem to be corrected. 

 At Palisades, the NRC identified a cross-cutting issue that involved a lack of clarity in the 

plant’s procedures and work planning in mid 2008. The utility took steps to address these issues. 

By the end of 2009, the NRC observed sustained improvement in the areas of concern and closed 

the cross-cutting issue. 

 Palisades will continue to receive the detailed inspection regime used by the NRC for 

plants. Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant 

and by inspection specialists from the Region III Office in Lisle, Ill., and the agency’s 

headquarters in Rockville, Md. In addition to the supplemental inspection, the areas of plant 

operation to be inspected this year by NRC specialists are radiation protection, fire protection and 

reactor license renewal. 

 Current performance information for Palisades is available on the NRC’s web site at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/PALI/pali_chart.html. 

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