No: I-15-014 April 8, 2015

CONTACT: Diane Screnci, 610-337-5330 

 Neil Sheehan, 610-337-5331 

NRC to Conduct Open House April 16 in Delta, Pa.,

to Discuss 2014 Performance of Peach Bottom Nuclear Plant

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a public open house April 16 in Delta, Pa., to 

discuss the agency’s annual review of safety performance at the Peach Bottom nuclear power plant.

NRC staff will be on hand from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Peach Bottom Inn, located at 6085 Delta 

Road. Agency employees responsible for inspections of the plant, including the Resident Inspectors 

based at the Delta (York County), Pa., site on a full-time basis, will be available to discuss the facility’s 

performance in 2014 and the agency’s oversight plans for 2015.

Under the NRC’s Reactor Oversight Process, the agency gauges plant performance through the 

use of color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators, which are statistical measurements 

of plant performance that can trigger additional oversight if exceeded.

The twin-reactor Peach Bottom plant is owned and operated by Exelon. On an overall basis, the 

plant operated safely in 2014. As of the end of last year, both Peach Bottom Unit 2 and 3 had no 

inspection findings or performance indicators that were greater than green (very low safety 

significance). Therefore, those units are currently under the NRC’s normal level of oversight.

The NRC’s normal level of oversight at each U.S. nuclear power plant involves thousands of 

hours of inspection. In 2014, the agency devoted approximately 4,700 hours of review at Peach 

Bottom.

“By assessing each plant’s performance in a comprehensive manner, we are able to focus our 

inspection resources on those areas most in need of attention,” NRC Region I Administrator Dan 

Dorman said. “Because Peach Bottom did not have any safety or security issues rising above very low 

significance in 2014, we are not currently planning any inspections above and beyond our normal 

reviews.”

The NRC issues reports on performance at each plant 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 a quarterly basis on the agency’s website. Following the release of the annual 

assessment letters each March, the NRC meets with the public in the vicinity of each plant to discuss 

the results.
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Normal inspections are performed by two Resident Inspectors assigned to Peach Bottom. 

Reviews are also carried out at the site by specialist inspectors assigned to the agency’s Region I Office 

in King of Prussia, Pa. Among the areas to be inspected this year at Peach Bottom are the plant’s power 

uprates, its dry cask spent fuel storage facility, fire protection and radiological safety. In addition, the 

NRC will perform an audit at the plant in late June with respect to some of the agency’s postFukushima requirements, namely “Mitigation Strategies for Beyond-Design-Basis External Events” 

and enhanced spent fuel pool instrumentation. Also, an inspection is planned to check on the 

company’s follow-up actions in response to an escalated enforcement action finalized in November for 

a security-related issue at Peach Bottom.

The annual assessment letters for Peach Bottom, as well as the notice for the April 16 open 

house, are available on the NRC website. Current performance information is also available for Peach 

Bottom 2 and Peach Bottom 3.