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NRC NEWS
U. S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, REGION II
61 Forsyth Street, Suite 23T85, Atlanta, GA 30303 |
| No. II-00-73 |
December 29, 2000 |
| CONTACT: |
Ken Clark (404)562-4416/e-mail: kmc2@nrc.gov
Roger D. Hannah (404)562-4417/e-mail: rdh1@nrc.gov |
NRC STAFF DETERMINES VIOLATION AT SUMMER NUCLEAR PLANT TO BE OF LOW TO MODERATE SAFETY
SIGNIFICANCE
]The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has determined that a violation of NRC regulations at the South Carolina Electric & Gas
Company Summer nuclear plant, near Jenkinsville, South Carolina, should be characterized as White, meaning that it is an issue with
low to moderate importance to safety but one which may require additional NRC inspections.
The violation, involving the Summer plant's steam-driven emergency feedwater pump being inoperable during power operation for
about 48 days, had preliminarily been characterized by the NRC staff as Yellow (an issue with substantial importance to safety), but
risk information provided by the company and evaluated by the NRC staff led to the change in safety significance.
Under the significance determination process, NRC officials classify certain conditions at nuclear power plants as being in one of
four colors which delineate increasing levels of severity, beginning with green and progressing in severity to white, yellow or red.
The Summer plant has two electric motor-driven emergency feedwater pumps, and another which is steam-driven, for use in the event
of an interruption in the normal feedwater flow to the unit's three steam generators. Although no abnormal conditions occurred
during the period in question, had there been a loss of feedwater and both of the electric motor-driven pumps, use of the steam-driven
pump would have been important in removing heat from the reactor's uranium fuel.
Because this violation falls into the regulatory response band of the NRC's oversight process, the Summer plant may be subject to
increased NRC oversight such as additional meetings or inspections. The agency will determine the most appropriate response and
notify SCE&G when that determination has been made.
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