"“We did identify safety culture problems, both with the workforce and with management,” said [NRC's] John Jandovitz, the team leader for the second group of on-ground inspectors who spent weeks watching maintenance and other work at the plant.'"
"“Work planning is weak, and people here told us, ‘Yeah, we know. We just live with it.’ That’s not appropriate,” Jandovitz said. " Chattanooga Times Free Press article by Pam Sohn: http://timesfreepress.com/news/2012/jan/27/inspectors-cite-inadequate-work-planning-browns-fe/
A defective residual heat removal (rhr) system flow valve was found defective in October 2010. However, the defective component had been defective for more than a year and the management at Browns Ferry did not correct the problem.
TVA Executives and managers were given an opportunity to respond to the NRC's presentation. Keith Polson (seated second from left), Vice President of TVA Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant stated: "We concur with the NRC's findings. We strive for excellence, our goal is to be the best nuclear plant operating in the United States."
"Preston Swafford (Seated far left at table, picture above.), TVA's chief nuclear officer, told the audience that TVA has been learning more through the inspection process, but has known that its maintenance programs and processes have been deficient for some time. Swafford said they have been working hard in the past 30 months or so to bring in new personnel, and when necessary, to provide plant managers with contract workers to bolster the workforce."It has been an ugly period as we've been identifying issues," Swafford said. "But you can't get well unless you put these issues on the table and address them."" Huntsville Times article by Brian Lawson- http://blog.al.com/breaking/2012/01/nrc_offers_tough_assessment_of.html
I met with Mr. Polson (photo above) after the meeting to discuss management communications at the facility. He told me he had been at the plant for 2 years and it has been a challenging task to overcome negative attitudes and behaviors related to the safety culture. He stated he meets with different sections each week and there is a daily "morning report" which is reviewed by Browns Ferry Managers to identify and resolve any problems.
There are approximately 1 million people who reside within a 50 mile radius of the Browns Ferry Nuclear reactors. Browns Ferry has over 3.5 million pounds of highly radioactive spent fuel at the facility. The large majority of the radioactive spent fuel is contained within the fuel pools of which there is no required reinforced secondary containment above the cooling pool level, a serious design defect.
TVA 2012 Emergency Information Calendar link: Browns Ferry - TVA
Electric Light and Power web magazine listing-
http://www.elp.com/index/from-the-wires/wire_news_display/1591849908.html
No comments:
Post a Comment