No: I-16-012 April 20, 2016

CONTACT: Neil Sheehan, 610-337-5331

 Diane Screnci, 610-337-5330

NRC to Hold Open House on April 27 in Berwick, Pa.,

to Discuss 2015 Performance of Susquehanna Nuclear Plant

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will conduct a public open house on Wednesday, April 

27, in Berwick, Pa., to discuss the agency’s annual review of safety performance at the Susquehanna 

nuclear power plant.

NRC staff will be at the Susquehanna Energy Information Center, at 634 Salem Blvd., from 

4:30 - 6 p.m. to discuss the plant’s performance in 2015 and the agency’s oversight plans for the 

remainder of 2016. On hand will be agency employees responsible for inspections of the plant, 

including the Resident Inspectors based on a full-time basis at the Salem Township (Luzerne County), 

Pa., site.

The NRC’s Reactor Oversight Process is the foundational program that enables the agency to 

successfully complete its mission of assessing plant safety. Under that program, the NRC 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.

Based on its 2015 reviews, the NRC determined that the Susquehanna nuclear plant, which is 

owned by Talen Energy and is the site of two boiling-water reactors, operated safely during 2015. The 

plant had one “white” (low to moderate safety significance) issue in the area of emergency 

preparedness open as of the end of last year. The issue involved a concern with how plant personnel 

would determine the start of a 15-minute clock for emergency assessment and declaration for a scenario 

involving the potential loss of primary containment.

In response, the NRC completed a supplemental inspection at Susquehanna in November 2015 

to review the company’s root cause evaluation and corrective actions. The NRC found the response to 

be satisfactory and closed out the finding as of the first quarter of 2016.

Otherwise, all performance indicators for Susquehanna were “green” and no inspection findings 

were “greater than green” as of the end of 2015. Therefore, the plant will receive the NRC’s normal 

level of oversight in 2016, barring any changes. In 2015, the agency devoted approximately 6,265 

hours of review at Susquehanna.

“Our Annual Assessments allow us to step back at regular intervals and size up plant 

performance. However, we view oversight of each facility as an ongoing responsibility,” NRC Region I 
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Administrator Dan Dorman said. “In the case of Susquehanna, the plant’s current performance qualifies 

for our normal level of oversight.”

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. Normal inspections are carried out by the two Resident Inspectors assigned to Susquehanna. 

Reviews are also performed at the sites by specialist inspectors on a periodic basis.

Among the areas to be inspected this year at Susquehanna are the plant’s problem identification 

and resolution program, emergency preparedness and dry cask storage of spent nuclear fuel. In 

addition, the NRC will perform inspections of the implementation of NRC post-Fukushima 

requirements at the plant.

The Annual Assessment letter for Susquehanna, as well as the notice for the April 27th open 

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

Susquehanna Unit 1 and Unit 2.