No. III-08-026 

Contacts: 

Viktoria Mitlyng 630-829-9662 

Prema Chandrathil 630-829-9663 

 June 17, 2008 

 E-Mail: opa3@nrc.gov 

Web site: www.nrc.gov

NRC TO DISCUSS 2007 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT 

FOR BRAIDWOOD NUCLEAR POWER PLANT 

 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Exelon 

Generation Company on Monday, June 23, to discuss the agency’s assessment of the safety 

performance during 2007 at the Braidwood Nuclear Power Plant. The plant is located in 

Braidwood, Ill. 

 The meeting, which will be open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. CDT at 

the Reed-Custer High School Auditorium, 249 Comet Drive, in Braidwood. The NRC staff will 

present the results of the assessment, talk about the NRC and its range of activities, and be 

available to respond to questions or comments from the public about the NRC and its oversight 

of the Braidwood Station before the close of the meeting. 

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

other commercial nuclear power facilities,” NRC Region III Administrator James Caldwell said. 

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

company and with local officials and area residents. Our goal is to explain how the NRC works 

and make sure as much information as possible is available on our regulation of these facilities.” 

 A letter sent from the NRC Region III Office to plant officials addresses Braidwood’s 

performance 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/listofasmrpt.html. 

 The NRC’s assessment concluded that the Braidwood plant operated safely during the 

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 NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Region III 

2443 Warrenville Road 

Lisle IL 60532 
 All performance indicators for Braidwood during 2007 were determined to be “green.” 

Performance indicators are a statistical measurement of plant and equipment performance. 

 In the first quarter of 2007, there was one “white” finding meaning it had low to moderate 

significance to safety in the area of radiation safety. This finding was related to the failure to 

perform adequate and timely radiological evaluations following historical unplanned radioactive 

leaks from the station’s blow-down line vacuum breakers. 

 In January 2007, the NRC conducted an inspection to review the actions taken by the 

utility to address the radiation protection deficiency. The inspection focused on reviewing the 

utility’s identification of the root and contributing causes of the issue, the thoroughness of the 

utility’s review of the extent of the problem and the effectiveness of corrective actions to address 

these causes and to prevent recurrence. The NRC concluded that the company’s review of the 

issue and the corrective actions were adequate. 

 Based on this performance, the NRC will conduct the normal, baseline level of 

inspections during the upcoming year. 

 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. Among the areas of plant 

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

conditions of welds and engineering modifications. 

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

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/BRAI1/brai1_chart.html for Unit 1 and 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/BRAI2/brai2_chart.html for Unit 2. 

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