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NRC NEWS
U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION I
475 Allendale Road, King of Prussia, Pa. 19406 | | CONTACT: |
Diane Screnci (610)337-5330/ e-mail: dps@nrc.gov
Neil A. Sheehan (610)337-5331/e-mail: nas@nrc.gov |
or nas@nrc.gov
I-96-70 October 24, 1996
Contact: Diane Screnci FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Neil Sheehan
NRC PROPOSES TO FINE PSE&G $150,000 FOR ALLEGED VIOLATIONS
AT ITS HOPE CREEK NUCLEAR GENERATING STATION
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has proposed to fine Public Service
Electric & Gas Company (PSE&G) $150,000 for five alleged violations of NRC
requirements at its Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station in Lower Alloways Creek,
N.J. PSE&G was cited, but not fined, for a sixth violation.
All the violations were identified during two NRC inspections conducted
between February 1 and August 3 and involve lack of planning, corrective action and
safety evaluations. Specifically, the inspectors found:
. Before plant start-ups in February 1991 and April 1994 and during a
shutdown for refueling between November 1995 and March of this year,
the utility failed to plan appropriate surveillance testing following
maintenance work on control rod drives and their associated hydraulic
operating systems (two violations).
. When informed by a contractor in 1992 that 15 pairs of reactor building
backdraft isolation dampers were installed backwards, PSE&G officials
failed to correct these non-conforming conditions until February 1996.
The dampers seal the ventilation system to prevent the spread of steam in
the event of a steam line break.
. After learning in May 1992 that control rod drive speeds were excessive,
the utility did not correct that situation until October of that year, and did
not address the root cause of the condition until this year.
. In February of this year, PSE&G implemented a design change affecting
valves that are part of the service water system, which provides cooling
water to the plant's auxiliary equipment. The utility failed to obtain NRC
review and approval because this change resulted in an unreviewed safety
question.
In a letter to PSE&G, NRC Region I Administrator Hubert Miller said: "These
violations represent a significant regulatory concern because they indicate that
management did not aggressively assure (1) appropriate planning for the testing of
equipment following maintenance, (2) timely identification and correction of problems
identified concerning safety related equipment, and (3) appropriate evaluation prior to
making changes to the facility."
"While these issues were ultimately corrected in a manner to avoid significant
safety consequences," Mr. Miller said, "these actions were completed in response to the
NRC's identification of the problems. For these issues that are the subject of these
violations, your independent review was neither sufficient nor timely."
The utility was cited for a sixth violation, which involved inappropriate service
water throttle valve settings. This violation was found by PSE&G as part of an
extensive review of the Service water system in response to the fifth violation. In light
of PSE&G's identification and corrective actions, a civil penalty is not proposed for this
violation.
PSE&G has 30 days either to pay the proposed fine or to request in writing that
part or all of it be withdrawn.
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