NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Region III

2443 Warrenville Road

Lisle IL 60532

Site: www.nrc.gov

Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov

No. III-11-005

Contact: Viktoria Mitlyng (630) 829-9662

 Prema Chandrathil (630) 829-9663

April 6, 2011

E-Mail: OPA3.RegionIII@nrc.gov 

NRC SCHEDULES OPEN HOUSE AND PUBLIC MEETING FOR APRIL 14 TO 

DISCUSS PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR POWER PLANT PERFORMANCE AND NRC 

OVERSIGHT

Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials have scheduled an open house for Thursday, 

April 14, to discuss with local residents the agency’s assessment of safety performance for last 

year at the Prairie Island nuclear power plant and other NRC oversight activities. 

The open house is informal and will be held from 5 to 6 p.m. CDT; the public meeting 

will begin at 6 p.m. and consist of a formal discussion of the plant’s 2010 performance and a 

portion of the meeting for the public to ask questions and make comments. The meeting will be 

held at the Red Wing Public Library, 225 East Avenue, Red Wing, Minn. 

The dual-unit plant is operated by Northern States Power Company, Minnesota, and is 

located in Welch, Minn., about 28 miles southeast of Minneapolis, Minn.

“The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Prairie Island plant and the 

nation’s other commercial nuclear power facilities,” said NRC Region III Administrator Mark 

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

members of the local community. The goal of this open house is to explain how the NRC works 

to protect people and the environment and answer questions from residents about nuclear 

regulation.”

A letter sent from the NRC Region III office to plant officials addressed the performance 

of the plant during 2010 and will serve as the basis for the discussion. It is available on the NRC 

Web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/prai_2010q4.pdf.

Overall, the NRC found that the Prairie Island plant operated safely in 2010.

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. 
All performance indicators and inspection findings for Prairie Island Units 1 and 2 during 

2010 were determined to be “green.” Performance indicators are a statistical measurement of 

plant and equipment performance. 

The NRC letter also notes that a cross-cutting issue in the area of human performance at 

the plant has been adequately addressed by the company. Human performance concerns 

constitute a “Cross-cutting issue” and affect multiple areas of plant operation. These issues tend 

to involve behaviors, such as the plant staff’s ability to effectively develop and follow 

procedures. These behaviors do not constitute violations of NRC requirements. However, they 

can be major contributing factors to safety-significant findings. When a cross-cutting issue is 

identified, the NRC expects the problem to be corrected.

The NRC first identified the human performance issue at Prairie Island in mid-2009 and 

subsequently documented this issue in its annual plant assessment for 2009 and the 2010 midyear assessment letters and held two public meetings in Dec. 2009 and Dec. 2010 to gain a better 

understanding of how the company planned to address human performance issues. In the last

quarter of 2010, the NRC noted an improvement in this area and “gained confidence in (the 

company’s) ability to correct the concerns identified.” 

Prairie Island will continue to receive the detailed inspection regime required for plants 

that are operating well and require no additional oversight. 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. Among the areas of plant 

operations being inspected are radiation protection, dry cask spent fuel storage, emergency 

preparedness and strike contingency planning.

The most current performance information for Prairie Island is available on the NRC 

website at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/PRAI1/prai1_chart.html and 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/PRAI2/prai2_chart.html.

###

News releases are available through a free listserv subscription at the following Web address:

http://www.nrc.gov/public-involve/listserver.html. The NRC homepage at www.nrc.gov also offers a 

SUBSCRIBE link. E-mail notifications are sent to subscribers when news releases are posted to NRC's 

website.