NRC TO DISCUSS APPARENT VIOLATIONS WITH CHESAPEAKE, VA., COMPANY
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Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff will meet with representatives of a Chesapeake, Va., firm on Thursday, April 17 to discuss two apparent violations of agency requirements.  The apparent violations by IBS of America Corp., involve a failure to notify the NRC in writing within 60 days of a decision to permanently cease activities at a site and a failure to confine the use of nuclear gauges to a location authorized on the company’s NRC-issued license.

The meeting, known as a predecisional enforcement conference, is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. at the NRC’s Region I Office in King of Prussia, Pa.  The session will take place in the office’s Public Meeting Room.  It will be open to the public for observation and attendees will have an opportunity to ask questions of participating NRC staff members prior to the meeting’s adjournment.

On Nov. 5, 2007, the NRC conducted an unannounced inspection at the Chesapeake offices of IBS, which is a service company to the paper-manufacturing industry.  The inspectors determined that IBS had ceased principal activities at its facility on Cook Boulevard and was now based instead at a facility on Profit Way, even though the firm failed to notify the NRC of this change in writing within 60 days, as required.  The company was also storing nuclear gauges at the Profit Way site when its license did not authorize it to do so at that location.

In addition to those apparent violations, the agency also identified a failure by the company to perform leak tests at the required 6-month interval.  However, that last violation is not being considered for escalated enforcement and therefore will not be discussed during the April 17th conference.

The decision to hold a predecisional enforcement conference does not mean that the NRC has made a final determination that a violation or violations did occur or that enforcement action, such as a monetary fine, will be taken.  Rather, the purpose of the meeting is to discuss the apparent violations, their causes and safety significance.  In addition, it will allow the company an opportunity to point out any errors that may have been made in the NRC inspection report and to discuss its corrective actions.

No decision on the apparent violations or any enforcement action will be made at this conference.  Those decisions will be made by senior NRC officials at a later time.

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Tuesday, April 15, 2008