NRC TO DISCUSS 2005 PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT
FOR BRAIDWOOD NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
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The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff will meet with representatives of Exelon Generation Co. on Monday, July 31, to discuss the agency’s assessment of safety performance for last year at the Braidwood Nuclear Power Plant. The plant is located near Braceville, Ill.

The meeting, which is open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at the Reed-Custer High School, 249 South Comet Drive, in Braidwood. The NRC will respond to questions or comments from the public before the close of the meeting.

"The NRC continually reviews the performance of the Braidwood plant and the nation’s other commercial nuclear power facilities," NRC Region III Administrator James Caldwell said. "This meeting will provide an opportunity for a discussion of our annual assessment of safety performance with the company and with local officials and residents who live near the plant. Our goal is to explain the NRC oversight process and make as much information as possible available to the public regarding our regulation of these facilities."

A letter sent from the NRC Region III Office to plant officials addresses the performance of the plant during the period and will serve as the basis for the meeting’s discussion. It is available on the NRC web site at: http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/LETTERS/brai_2005q4.pdf .

The NRC’s assessment concluded that the Braidwood 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," commensurate with the safety significance of the issues involved.

All of the inspection findings and performance indicators for Braidwood during 2005 were determined to be "green." The NRC will conduct normal, baseline level of inspections during 2006.

However, the NRC recently identified a "white" finding related to the unplanned releases of trititum onsite and offsite and is evaluating the need for additional inspections.

Routine inspections are performed by two NRC Resident Inspectors assigned to the plant and by inspection specialists from the Region III Office in Lisle, Ill. Among the areas of plant operations to be inspected this year by NRC specialists are fire protection, problem identification and resolution, access control to radiologically significant areas, and reactor pressure vessel head and vessel head penetration nozzles.

Current performance information for Braidwood is available on the NRC’s web site at:
http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/BRAI1/brai1_chart.html (Unit 1)
and
http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/OVERSIGHT/ASSESS/BRAI2/brai2_chart.html (Unit 2).

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Thursday, February 22, 2007