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	CONTACT:	Ken Clark (Phone: 404-562-4416, E-mail: kmc2@nrc.gov )
		Roger Hannah (Phone 404-562-4417, E-mail: rdh1@nrc.gov )

RIV: 97-42

July 25, 1997

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will hold a predecisional enforcement conference Tuesday, July 29, with officials of Entergy Operations, Inc., the operator of Waterford 3 nuclear power plant near Taft, La., to discuss two apparent violations of NRC requirements.

The conference will begin at 1 p.m. at NRC Region IV offices in Arlington, Texas. The meeting will be open to public observation; NRC officials will be available afterward for questions.

The two apparent violations were identified during an inspection conducted June 2-6. The first apparent violation was the failure to provide a method of closing containment isolation valves in the containment spray system and the containment fan cooling system from the control room under certain accident conditions. NRC regulations state that where piping systems penetrate the plant containment structure, a remotely operated valve must be provided to isolate the piping in the event of an accident.

The second apparent violation, which is related to the first, was the failure of Waterford 3 engineers to perform a safety evaluation to justify having no remote means to shut containment isolation valves in the above systems under all plant conditions.

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

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