NRC TO HOLD OPEN HOUSE ON MARCH 22 IN SHIPPINGPORT, PA., TO DISCUSS

ANNUAL ASSESSMENT OF BEAVER VALLEY NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

 Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will conduct an open house on Thursday, March 

22, regarding the agency’s annual assessment of safety performance for the Beaver Valley 

nuclear power plant.

 The open house will take place from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Shippingport Community and 

Municipal Center, 164 State Road 3016 in Shippingport (Beaver County), Pa. Members of the 

public will have an opportunity to learn first-hand from NRC staff members about the plant’s 

safety performance during 2011 and the NRC’s oversight of the facility. The meeting format will 

allow citizens to discuss plant-related topics on a one-on-one basis with NRC inspectors assigned 

to the plant and their NRC Region I supervisor.

Beaver Valley, which is the site of two pressurized-water reactors, is located in

Shippingport. It is owned and operated by FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co.

Overall, Beaver Valley operated safely during 2011. At the conclusion of last year, as 

assessed by the NRC’s Reactor Oversight Process, there were no performance indicators for the 

plant that were other than “Green” (very low safety significance) and no inspection findings that 

were “Greater than Green.” Therefore, for the rest of 2012 Beaver Valley will receive the very 

detailed inspection regime used by the NRC for plants that are operating well. In 2011, the NRC 

devoted approximately 5,600 hours of inspection to the Beaver Valley facility.

“Throughout 2011, our inspectors kept close watch on a daily basis to ensure there were 

no safety issues of significance. The Beaver Valley plant was among those to meet our clearly 

defined performance criteria last year,” NRC Region I Administrator Bill Dean said. “In 

addition, our inspectors spent time in 2011 checking on whether there were any immediate safety 

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: www.nrc.gov

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

No. I-12-009

Contact: Diane Screnci, (610) 337-5330

 Neil Sheehan, (610) 337-5331

March 19, 2012

Email: opa1.resource@nrc.gov
concerns at U.S. nuclear power plants following the March events at the Fukushima Daiichi 

facility in Japan. Those reviews indicated the plants remained safe for continued operation.”

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

indicators to measure plant performance. The colors start with “Green” and then increase to

“White,” “Yellow” or “Red,” commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved.

The agency issues reports on performance at specific plants twice a year: during the mid-cycle,

or mid-point, of the year, and at the conclusion of the year. Inspection findings and performance

indicators are also updated on the NRC’s website each quarter. Following the release of the 

annual reports every March, the NRC meets with the public in the vicinity of each plant to 

discuss the results. The meetings are in keeping with the agency’s commitment to transparency 

with regard to its activities.

The annual assessment for the Beaver Valley plant is available on the NRC website. The 

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

Management System (ADAMS) under accession number ML12067A055. 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.Resource@nrc.gov.

Routine inspections are carried out by the 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 of performance at Beaver Valley to be inspected this year by NRC specialists 

are activities associated with radiological safety, fire protection, emergency preparedness and the 

plant’s implementation of a voluntary industry initiative to address potential degradation of 

underground piping.

Current performance information for Beaver Valley Unit 1 and Beaver Valley Unit 2 is 

available on the NRCweb site.

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