No. III-10-030 

Contacts: 

Viktoria Mitlyng 630-829-9662 

Prema Chandrathil 630-829-9663 

 July 20, 2010 

 E-Mail: opa3@nrc.gov 

Web site: www.nrc.gov

NRC TO DISCUSS 2009 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT 

FOR PERRY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT JULY 28

 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of FENOC 

Nuclear Operating Company on Wednesday, July 28, to discuss the agency’s assessment of 

safety performance last year at the Perry Nuclear Power Station. The plant is located in Perry, 

Ohio, about 35 miles northeast of Cleveland. 

 The meeting, which will be open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. EDT at 

the Perry Township Community Building, 2800 Perry Park Rd., in Perry. 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 before the close of the meeting. 

 “The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Perry 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/perr_2009q4.pdf. 

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

indicators to measure plant performance. The colors go from “green” to “white,” “yellow” or 

“red,” commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved. 

 

 The NRC’s assessment concluded that Perry operated safely in 2009. All of the inspection 

findings and performance indicators for Perry during 2009 were determined to be “green.” 

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

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Office of Public Affairs Region III 

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Lisle IL 60532 
 The NRC letter also addressed two substantive cross-cutting issues in the area of human 

performance and problem identification and resolution. 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 to adhere to these procedures. 

 In Perry’s case, the human performance cross-cutting issue involves human errors made 

in work planning, practices and oversight. The NRC first identified the issue in early 2008. The 

plant implemented a plan to address these issues but the number of human performance issues 

remains high. The NRC has issued a request for the plant to conduct an independent safety 

culture assessment to help identify reasons for their inability to address the human performance 

issues, which should be completed by the end of 2010. 

 The letter also addressed the problem identification and resolution cross-cutting issue 

which involves the plant’s inability to properly evaluate, address and classify problems. The 

NRC identified this issue in September 2009. The agency remains concerned that a weakness in 

this particular area may also be a significant factor in the plant’s inability to correct the human 

performance issues. When a substantive cross-cutting issue is identified at a nuclear power plant, 

the NRC expects the problem to be corrected. The NRC has requested the plant to discuss their 

progress and plans to correct these issues during the upcoming meeting. 

 As a result of this performance, the NRC will continue to conduct the very detailed 

routine inspections for plants that are performing well. Inspections are performed by two NRC 

Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant, and 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, emergency response and the identification and resolution of problems. 

 Current performance information for Perry is available on the NRC’s Web site at: 

http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/PERR1/perr1_chart.html

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