Day: June 19, 2014

River Levels on the Rise – The NRC At The Ready

Lara Uselding
Public Affairs Officer
Region IV
 

NEW UPDATE: Currently, river levels are at 1000 feet 6 inches with levels not expected to increase more than a few inches over the next 24 hours. OPPD is returning the plant to full power. NRC inspectors provided around the clock coverage through last weekend and the agency will continue closely monitoring plant operations and river conditions.

UPDATE: Fort Calhoun began decreasing power at midnight, and is currently holding at a reduced power level. The river level is now predicted to crest at 1,002.4 feet on Saturday, which is lower than previously predicted. For comparison, the 2011 flood peaked at about 1,007 feet. Three people from Region IV will begin around the clock coverage today in support of the resident inspectors.

Three years ago this month marks the anniversary of the record Missouri river floods. Now, due to heavy rains, the NRC is once again watching rising Missouri River levels impacting Nebraska’s Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant,  north of Omaha.

Cooper Nuclear Station in Brownville is not anticipating a major impact this weekend.

Fort Calhoun’s procedure requires them to declare a Notice of Unusual Event and be shut down by the time river levels at the site reach 1,004 feet mean sea level. Thursday afternoon, river levels were at 998 and rising. Normally, river levels at the site range from 980 to 990 feet mean sea level.

Over the past week, NRC’s Region IV in Arlington, Texas, has been engaged in routine calls with the United States Army Corps of Engineers, National Weather Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, states, and local response organizations to understand changes in the predicted river levels and assess potential impacts on the plants. 

Simultaneously, the NRC has been overseeing actions that Omaha Public Power District (Fort Calhoun) and Nebraska Public Power District (Cooper) are taking to protect the plant against impending flood waters. At this time, river levels at Cooper are not projected to be high enough to require a plant shutdown.

OPPD’s actions involve the use of sand bags, flood doors, and readying mobile pumps as river levels are projected to rise. They have also ordered equipment to protect certain buildings on site. NRC resident inspectors, who live in the area and work at the plant, have been monitoring the flood preparations.

The NRC is sending more staff to the plant to support the resident inspectors and provide around the clock coverage. During the 2011 flood, river levels at Fort Calhoun reached about 1007 feet and the plant remained in a safe shutdown condition. The plant restarted late last year only after extensive flooding improvements and other safety upgrades mandated by the NRC. Fort Calhoun remains under increased NRC regulatory oversight.

Region IV will continue monitoring the situation for both plants over the weekend.

 

 

OIG Report Generally Positive on NRC’s FOIA Process But Suggests Some Improvements

Stephen Dingbaum
Assistant Inspector General for Audits

 

oigThe Office of the Inspector General’s most recent report – Audit of NRC’s Freedom of Information Act Process – is now available to the public. This audit looked at whether the NRC complies with current laws, and how efficiently it does its work, when processing Freedom of Information Act requests.

The Freedom of Information Act gives any person the right to request records kept by the federal government.

The OIG said the NRC generally follows federal rules and meets timeliness requirements in responding to these requests. But the audit found the NRC could improve through enhanced training, better use of technology, and better adherence with review and approval regulations.

The agency would also benefit from establishing controls to ensure more consistency in and better tracking of management reviews.

The report makes nine specific recommendations to improve the NRC’s process. NRC management stated their general agreement with the findings and recommendations.