NRC TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING ON MAY 25th TO DISCUSS 

ANNUAL ASSESSMENT FOR OYSTER CREEK NUCLEAR POWER PLANT 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a public meeting on Tuesday, May 25 

regarding the agency’s annual assessment of safety performance for the Oyster Creek nuclear 

power plant during 2009. 

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn – Toms River, at 290 Route 37 East 

in Toms River, N.J. Prior to the meeting’s conclusion, there will be an opportunity for members 

of the public to ask questions of the NRC staff regarding the plant’s performance and about the 

agency’s oversight of the facility. 

The NRC staff will also conduct an informational poster-board session for interested 

members of the public in conjunction with the meeting. That session, which will run from 6 to 7 

p.m. at the same location, will allow those in attendance to discuss plant-related topics on a oneon-one basis with NRC staff, as well as provide information on agency activities on poster 

boards. 

Oyster Creek is the site of a single boiling-water reactor. It is located in Lacey Township 

(Ocean County) and is owned and operated by Exelon Generation Co., LLC. 

The NRC utilizes a combination of color-coded inspection findings and performance 

indicators to gauge plant performance. The colors start with “green,” representing very low 

safety significance, and increase to “white,” “yellow” or “red,” commensurate with the 

significance of the issues involved. 

 

Overall, Oyster Creek operated safely during 2009. However, at the conclusion of last 

year, and continuing into 2010, the facility was in what is known as the “Regulatory Response” 

Column of the NRC’s Action Matrix for plant performance, which is available at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/actionmatrix_summary.html. That 

categorization was based on the plant’s Performance Indicator for Unplanned Scrams 

(shutdowns) per 7,000 hours of operation changing from “green” to “white” in the third quarter 

of 2009. The Performance Indicator, which is based on a rolling average, subsequently returned 

to “green” in the fourth quarter of last year. 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs, Region I 

475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406 

E-mail: opa1@nrc.gov 

Site: http://www.nrc.gov

No. I-10-026 

Contact: Diane Screnci 610/337-5330 

 Neil Sheehan 610/337-5331 

May 18, 2010 

Email: OPA1.RESOURCE@nrc.gov
As a result of the “white” Performance Indicator, Oyster Creek received additional NRC 

oversight. In mid-February 2010, the agency conducted a supplemental inspection to determine 

whether the company fully understood the root and contributing causes; had evaluated the extent 

of the condition; and had implemented sufficient corrective actions to prevent a recurrence. An 

NRC report on the inspection issued on March 8, 2010 found Exelon’s actions to be appropriate. 

Therefore, the agency resumed a normal level of oversight for the plant as of that time. 

In 2009, the NRC devoted about 8,200 hours to inspection of the facility, including 13 

inspections by specialists from the agency’s regional office. 

“Each year, the NRC steps back and assesses the performance of nuclear power plants in 

a systematic and detailed manner. We take these reviews very seriously and they help guide our 

oversight in the year ahead,” NRC Region I Administrator Samuel J. Collins said. “We also 

believe that providing the public with an opportunity to not only learn about these results firsthand but to communicate with us on our determinations is an integral part of the process and 

consistent with our commitment to openness and transparency.” 

In addition to issuing inspection reports, the agency issues its review of performance at 

specific plants twice a year. Inspection findings and performance indicators are also updated on 

the NRC’s web site, www.nrc.gov, each quarter. Following the release of the annual 

performance reviews every March, the NRC meets with plant management and the public in the 

vicinity of each facility to discuss the results. The meetings are in keeping with the agency’s 

commitment to transparency with regard to its activities. 

The annual assessment letter for the Oyster Creek plant is available on the NRC web site 

at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/oc_2009q4.pdf. The notice for 

the open house is available in the NRC’s Agencywide Documents Access and Management 

System (ADAMS) under accession number ML101230079. ADAMS is available at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. Help in using ADAMS can be obtained via the 

NRC’s Public Document Room at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, or by e-mail at 

PDR.Resources@NRC.GOV. 

Routine inspections are carried out by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant 

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

the areas at Oyster Creek to be inspected this year by NRC specialists are the dry cask storage of 

spent nuclear fuel, the plant’s problem identification and resolution program, and emergency 

preparedness. In addition, a post-approval site inspection for license renewal is scheduled for 

November 2010. 

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

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/oc_2009q4.pdf. 

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