The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Southern Nuclear Operating Company on Wednesday, March 29, to discuss the agency’s assessment of safety performance last year at the Vogtle Nuclear Power Plant, located 26 miles southeast of Augusta, Ga.
The meeting, which is open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 12 noon at the Burke County Courthouse in Waynesboro, Ga. The NRC staff will present the results of the assessment and be available to respond to questions or comments from the public before the close of the meeting.
"The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Vogtle plant and the nation’s other commercial nuclear power facilities," NRC Region II Administrator William Travers said. "This meeting is a chance for us to discuss that safety performance with the company, with local officials and with people living near the plant."
A letter sent from the NRC Region II Office to plant officials addresses the performance of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting discussion. It is available on the NRC web site at: www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/vog_2005q4.pdf  .
The NRC’s assessment concluded that the Vogtle plant operated safely during the period. The NRC uses color-coded inspection findings and performance indicators to assess nuclear plant performance. The colors start with "green" and then increase to "white," "yellow" or "red," depending on the safety significance of the issues involved.
All of the inspection findings and performance indicators for Vogtle during 2005 were determined to be "green." As a result of this performance, the NRC is conducting the normal or baseline level of inspections this year.
Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and by inspection specialists from the Region II Office in Atlanta, and the agency’s headquarters in Rockville, Md. Among the areas to be inspected during 2006 by NRC specialists are containment emergency recirculation sump blockage and reactor vessel head penetrations.
Current performance information for the two units at the Vogtle plant is available on the NRC’s web site at: www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/VOG1/vog1_chart.html and www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/VOG2/vog2_chart.html. |
