NRC Finds Performance 'Acceptable' at Dresden Nuclear Power Station in Latest Review

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NRC NEWS U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION III 801 Warrenville Road, Lisle IL 60532

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NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT: No. III-99-17
April 1, 1999

CONTACT:

Jan Strasma (630) 829-9663/e-mail: rjs2@nrc.gov Angela Greenman (630) 829-9662/e-mail: opa3@nrc.gov

 

NRC FINDS PERFORMANCE 'ACCEPTABLE'
AT DRESDEN NUCLEAR POWER STATION IN LATEST REVIEW

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has found that safety performance remains acceptable in the NRC's latest plant performance review at the Dresden nuclear power plant, located near Morris, Illinois.

The review covers the period April 1 of last year through January 31.

Geoffrey Grant, NRC Region III Division Director, in a letter to Commonwealth Edison Company, said:

"Overall, performance at Dresden was acceptable...Entering 1999, both units had been operating for extensive periods... Operator performance was good in responding to the several scrams in April through June and during planned power changes. Two significant problem areas which emerged were failures by operators to identify applicable Technical Specification requirements and fundamental errors committed by non-licensed operators. The licensee has taken actions to reverse these trends and recent improvements were noted."

The text of the plant performance review letter is available from the NRC Region III Office of Public Affairs and on the NRC web site.

NRC reviews safety performance twice a year at every licensed nuclear power plant in the nation. These reviews give the agency staff an integrated assessment of plant performance and provide a basis for planning inspection activities.

Plant performance reviews are an interim measure NRC is utilizing to monitor nuclear power plant safety. The agency began using it for this purpose after suspending the Systematic Assessment of License Performance (SALP) process until a new assessment program is developed. Previously, SALP reports were issued every 12 to 24 months.

The new reactor oversight and assessment program being developed will provide quarterly performance reports, based on a number of performance indicators and on inspection findings. This program will be tested at eight sites beginning in June and will be extended to all plants next January. A full description of the new program is available on the NRC web site.