July 14, 2011

Mr. Joe Klinger, Assistant Director

Illinois Emergency Management Agency

Division of Nuclear Safety

1035 Outer Park Drive

Springfield, IL 62704

Dear Mr. Klinger:

A periodic meeting with you and your staff was held on June 15, 2011. The purpose of the 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of Illinois’ Agreement State Program. The 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission was represented by Ms. Anne Boland, Ms. Lisa Dimmick and 

me.

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary, including any specific actions that 

will be taken as a result of the meeting.

If you feel that our conclusions do not accurately summarize the meeting discussion, or have 

any additional remarks about the meeting in general, please contact me at (630) 829-9661 or 

email to james.lynch@nrc.gov to discuss your comments. 

Sincerely,

/RA by Anne T. Boland acting for/

James L. Lynch

Regional State Agreements Officer

Division of Nuclear Materials Safety

Enclosure: 

As stated

cc w/ encl: Mr. Paul Eastvold

 Bureau of Radiation Safety
Mr. Joe Klinger, Assistant Director

Illinois Emergency Management Agency

Division of Nuclear Safety

1035 Outer Park Drive

Springfield, IL 62704

Dear Mr. Klinger:

A periodic meeting with you and your staff was held on June 15, 2011. The purpose of the 

meeting was to review and discuss the status of Illinois’ Agreement State Program. The 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission was represented by Ms. Anne Boland, Ms. Lisa Dimmick and 

me.

I have completed and enclosed a general meeting summary, including any specific actions that 

will be taken as a result of the meeting.

If you feel that our conclusions do not accurately summarize the meeting discussion, or have 

any additional remarks about the meeting in general, please contact me at (630) 829-9661 or 

email to james.lynch@nrc.gov to discuss your comments. 

Sincerely,

/RA by Anne T. Boland acting for/

James L. Lynch

Regional State Agreements Officer

Division of Nuclear Materials Safety

Enclosure: 

As stated

cc w/ encl: Mr. Paul Eastvold

 Bureau of Radiation Safety

Distribution: 

Anne Boland

Patrick Louden

Allan Barker

Lisa Dimmick

Michelle Beardsley

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Enclosure

AGREEMENT STATE PERIODIC MEETING SUMMARY FOR THE ILLINOIS

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

DATE OF MEETING: JUNE 15, 2011

DISCUSSION:

The Agreement State Program is administered by the Bureau of Radiation Safety (the Bureau), 

within the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. Most of the radioactive materials program 

functions reside in the Bureau, led by Paul Eastvold. Gibb Vinson is currently the Head of the 

Radioactive Materials Section (the Section). The Section consists of three programs: Materials 

Licensing, Inspection & Enforcement, and Materials Security. The Materials Security program 

was recently created to focus on the security portions of the Agreement Program. The 

inspection staff is mostly based out of the West Chicago regional office.

Some programs, such as decommissioning and financial surety are located in the Bureau of 

Environmental Safety. Discussions with personnel from both Bureaus indicated that they work 

cooperatively together and resources from one may be used to assist the other, if needed. Gary 

McCandless, Environmental Safety Bureau Chief indicated that his program is expanding their 

presence in the Agreement State area, including response to scrap and waste disposal alarm 

trips and licensing/inspection of radioactive waste generators.

Jonathon Monken was appointed by Governor Pat Quinn as Director of the Illinois Emergency 

Management Agency in February 2011. Joe Klinger was named Assistant Director. Mr. Klinger 

is the State Liaison Officer and remains as the NRC’s main contact and responsible party for the 

radiation control program. Illinois has approximately 714 specific licensees.

The State’s last IMPEP review was conducted in May 2009. The review team found Illinois’ 

performance to be satisfactory for all performance indicators reviewed. The review team made 

one recommendation, discussed below. Accordingly, the review team recommended, and the 

Management Review Board agreed, that the Illinois Agreement State Program was adequate to 

protect public health and safety, and compatible with NRC’s program.

The status of the recommendation from the 2009 Illinois Final IMPEP Report is summarized 

below:

• The review team recommends that the State provide inspection documentation to its 

licensees within 30 days of a completed inspection in accordance with the Section’s 

policies and procedures.

NRC Attendees Illinois Attendees

Jim Lynch, RSAO Joe Klinger, Assistant Director, IEMA

Anne Boland, Director, DNMS Paul Eastvold, Bureau Chief

Lisa Dimmick, FSME Gary McCandless, Bureau Chief

Gibb Vinson, Section Head
Illinois Periodic Meeting Summary Page 2

Enclosure

Status: The Section refined their inspection documentation process, including the use of 

NRC 591-type forms that can be used to close out inspection documentation in the field. 

The Section Head stated that inspection documentation was currently provided to 

licensees in a timely fashion. Inspection documentation is tracked by the Bureau Chief 

in a monthly report. This recommendation should be verified and closed at the next 

IMPEP review.

Other topics covered at the meeting included:

Program Strengths:

The experienced, competent staff is the most notable strength of the program. Many of 

the staff members have over 20 years experience with the State. Program supervisors 

are very experienced and have maintained a strong radioactive materials program 

during a difficult budget period.

The State provides excellent support to NRC and other Agreement States with their 

thorough evaluation of proposed regulations and procedures.

The Illinois orphan source program has been very successful, significantly reducing the 

number of unwanted, potentially dangerous radioactive sources in the State.

Program Weaknesses:

Vacancies in the licensing program have resulted in increased workloads for supervisors 

and inspection staff personnel.

Travel issues have resulted from the State’s budgetary woes. Out-of-State travel is 

currently allowed, but needs to be approved by the Governor’s office.

Feedback on NRC’s Program:

The State managers indicated that they appreciated the good relationship and 

communication that they have with NRC Region III. They were also appreciative of 

NRC’s funding for Agreement State training.

Staffing and Training:

Staffing for the Agreement State program remains a challenge with significant budget 

issues facing the State. An inspector was recently hired to fill the Springfield inspector 

position left vacant by a retirement. Three licensing positions are currently being 

evaluated by the Director’s office. The Assistant Director stated that filling the positions 

is a priority for the Agency.

With the potential new hires coming into the program and increased duties for 

Environmental Safety staff, State managers inquired about the possibility of bringing 

some of the basic NRC-sponsored training courses, such as licensing procedures and 

inspection procedures, to Illinois in the next fiscal year. The NRC representatives 
Illinois Periodic Meeting Summary Page 3

Enclosure

discussed the training course development process and suggested that they contact the 

FSME Training Coordinator if they wish to sponsor a course. The State asked if the 

Region III office could be a potential training location and were told by Anne Boland that 

it could be feasible.

Gary McCandless requested a status update on several training course applications for 

his staff. After checking with the FSME Training Coordinator, it was discovered that 

several applications had been overlooked and NRC has now placed the applications in 

the training course queue.

Gibb Vinson asked if NRC training materials were available for courses that had been 

added as core courses. These would be used to train staff that may not be able to travel 

for certain courses. Jim Lynch said that many course training materials were available 

to IEMA upon request.

Program Reorganizations:

As mentioned earlier, the Materials Security program was recently created to focus on 

the security portions of the Agreement Program. The Health Physicist chosen to lead 

this program was temporarily reassigned, however, to perform downstate inspections as 

needed due to the retirement of the Springfield inspector, and to perform licensing 

actions to assist the depleted Materials Licensing program.

Changes in Program Budget/Funding:

No significant budgetary changes were identified by State managers. The Agreement 

State program receives approximately 88 percent of its budget from licensee fees; the 

other 12 percent comes from other sources. The fee-based funding level was increased 

from approximately 50 percent to its current level with a fee increase in March 2009.

Materials Inspection Program:

Illinois inspection frequencies are at least as frequent as found in NRC’s Inspection 

Manual Chapter (IMC) 2800. According to the Section Head, no inspections are 

currently overdue with respect to NRC priorities. New licensees are inspected within 

12 months of license issuance, regardless of whether the licensee has received 

radioactive material. Reciprocity inspections are performed in accordance with the 

frequencies identified in NRC Manual Chapter 1220.

Materials Licensing Program:

No significant licensing backlogs exist; however, with the shortage of license reviewers, 

IEMA is prioritizing licensing actions with health, safety and security-related actions 

taking precedence. IEMA issues licenses on a 5-year term. An expedited license 

renewal program is being used for licensees whose programs do not have significant 

changes.

A due diligence review is performed for new licensees and new radioactive material 

users. This review is an extensive background check. Pre-licensing visits are 
Illinois Periodic Meeting Summary Page 4

Enclosure

performed for all applicants unless they already have an NRC or Agreement State 

license. Financial assurance obligations are reevaluated every 2 years.

Regulations and Legislative Changes: 

The Section Head stated that in May 2011, the State submitted final versions of the 

five latest regulation packages which were due for adoption (RATS IDs: 2007-1, 

2007-2, 2007-3, 2008-1, and 2009-1). The regulation promulgation process in Illinois 

takes approximately 1 year to complete.

The current 10 CFR Part 37 rulemaking process was also discussed during the 

meeting. NRC will send the State a Part 37 adoption process timeline, when it is 

available.

Event Reporting, including Follow-up and Closure Information in the Nuclear Materials 

Events Database (NMED): 

The Bureau had reported numerous events to NMED since the 2009 IMPEP review. All 

of the events were appropriately reported to the NRC, and were properly entered into, 

and updated, within NMED. Very good communication with Region III was noted during 

event response.

Response to Incidents and Allegations:

The Bureau continues to be sensitive to notifications of incidents and allegations. 

Incidents are quickly reviewed for their affect on public health and safety. Sixteen

reportable incidents were reported since the last IMPEP review. Staff is dispatched to 

perform on-site investigations when necessary, including mitigation of landfill and scrap 

dealer alarm trips. The program managers have placed emphasis on maintaining an 

effective response to incidents and allegations.

Status of Allegations and Concerns Referred by the NRC for Action:

The NRC referred three allegations to Illinois since the last IMPEP review. One of the 

allegations is currently under review, while the other two were closed by the State. 

The RSAO verified that the completed allegations were thoroughly investigated in a 

timely fashion. Allegers’ identities were protected, as appropriate.

Significant Events and Generic Implications:

The Bureau identified two abnormal occurrences since the last IMPEP review. Loyola 

University Medical Center had a human exposure incident and Rush University 

Medical Center had a medical event that met the abnormal occurrence criteria. The 

Loyola incident was reported in the Fiscal Year 2010 report to Congress. The Rush 

incident will be included in the Fiscal Year 2011 report. State managers stated that 

the write-up for that incident will be submitted to the NRC in the near future.

In 2010, Riverside Medical Center lost control of a brachytherapy safe containing 

14 cesium-137 sources. IEMA believes that the safe was disposed of in an Indiana 
Illinois Periodic Meeting Summary Page 5

Enclosure

landfill. NRC assisted the State by performing surveys at the landfill.

Current State Initiatives:

With the ongoing decommissioning of the Zion nuclear plant, State law requires IEMA to 

ensure that waste from the decommissioning efforts is transported safely within the 

State. Ms. Boland committed to have the Region III Decommissioning staff arrange 

further meetings with IEMA to discuss our respective regulatory authorities and best 

align our future Zion activities, in the most efficient and effective manner.

Large, Complicated, or Unusual Authorizations for use of Radioactive Materials:

Illinois’ significant decommissioning projects were discussed, including Chicago 

Magnesium and Tronox (aka Kerr-McGee). The Chicago Magnesium 

decommissioning in Blue Island should be completed in 2011. The industrial site and 

nearby forest preserve were successfully decontaminated.

The Tronox decommissioning project continues in West Chicago under an 

environmental trust arrangement. The factory site decommissioning is essentially 

completed. Kress Creek was also decontaminated. One reach of the DuPage River, 

downstream from Kress Creek, is yet to be decontaminated. Groundwater remediation 

at the factory site will continue for 10-15 years. The total decommissioning project cost 

is estimated to be $600-800 million. IEMA may request future assistance from NRC with 

the environmental analysis for this project.

Recently, a landfill in Roxana, Illinois has received a number of radioactive material 

contaminated waste shipments from waste transfer stations in Missouri, a nonAgreement State. The Bureau Chief asked NRC representatives if they could interact 

with the Missouri facilities, which are not licensees, to ensure that proper monitoring is 

performed prior to shipping waste to the landfill. Region III personnel contacted the 

waste transfer stations and received assurances that upgraded radiation monitoring 

systems were being installed which should help preclude shipments of contaminated

waste to the landfill.

Sealed Sources and Devices:

IEMA has an active SS&D program which issues approximately 6 to 7 amendments per 

year.

Current NRC Initiatives:

NRC staff discussed ongoing initiatives with the Illinois representatives. These included: 

medical rulemaking and workshops; brachytherapy guidance; license maximum 

possession limits; control of sensitive information; NRC’s enforcement guidance for 

portable gauges; and the recently published Inspection Manual Chapter 1248 which 

regards staff training and qualification.

CONCLUSION:
Illinois Periodic Meeting Summary Page 6

Enclosure

The Illinois Agreement State Program remains a very active, strong, stable program with 

excellent management support. Recent staffing changes have left the licensing program 

with three vacancies and put a strain on the entire program. The training level for staff 

members is on target. Illinois managers indicated that they will continue to support the 

IMPEP program and NRC working groups, to the extent practical.

Schedule for the Next IMPEP Review: 

NRC staff recommends that the next IMPEP review to be held, as currently scheduled, 

in 2013.