In the Matter of United States Enrichment Corporation; Paducah Gaseous Enrichment Plant; Confirmatory Order (Effective Immediately), 53494-53497 [2011-21902]

Agencies

• NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 166 (Friday, August 26, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53494-53497]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-21902]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 70-7001; Certificate No. GDP-1; EA-11-056; NRC-2011-056]


In the Matter of United States Enrichment Corporation; Paducah 
Gaseous Enrichment Plant; Confirmatory Order (Effective Immediately)

I

    The United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC), a subsidiary of 
USEC Inc., is the holder of the United States Nuclear Regulatory 
Commission (NRC or the Commission) Certificates of Compliance (COC) No. 
GDP-1 issued by the NRC pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (10 CFR) Part 76 on November 26, 1996, and renewed on 
December 22, 2008. The COC is set to expire on December 31, 2013. The 
certificate authorizes USEC to operate the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion 
Plant (Paducah), located near Paducah, Kentucky. The certificate also 
authorizes USEC to receive, and other NRC licensees to transfer to 
USEC, byproduct material, source material, or special nuclear material 
to the extent permitted under the COC.
    This Confirmatory Order is the result of an agreement reached 
during an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mediation session 
conducted on July 22, 2011.

II

    On March 17, 2010, an incident occurred at the Paducah facility 
involving the spread of contamination while operators were involved in 
the routine activity of swapping cylinders from the enrichment cascade 
in the 337A feed building. USEC-Paducah management promptly initiated 
an investigation to review the incident.
    On July 14, 2010, the NRC's Office of Investigations (OI) initiated 
an investigation (OI Case No. 2-2010-037) regarding activities at the 
Paducah facility. The purpose of the investigation was to determine 
whether an operator willfully violated applicable radiation protection 
procedures.
    Based on the evidence developed during the NRC investigation, the 
NRC staff identified one apparent violation, as documented in the NRC's 
letter to USEC-Paducah dated May 18, 2011. The apparent violation 
involved the failure to adhere to the requirements of USEC-Paducah 
Procedure UE2-HP-RP1030, Rev. 4, ``Conduct of Radiological 
Operations,'' which requires that personnel shall properly perform a 
whole body frisk when exiting from areas controlled for removable 
contamination, unless otherwise authorized by Health Physics. USEC-
Paducah is required by Certificate GDP-1 to implement the procedure in 
accordance with Technical Safety Requirements 3.9.1, ``Procedures 
Scope,'' which requires, in part, that written procedures shall be 
implemented to cover activities listed in Appendix A to Safety Analysis 
Report (SAR) Section 6.11. Appendix A to SAR 6.11, ``Procedures,'' 
requires, in part, the licensee to implement procedures to cover 
radiation protection activities. In this case, an operator failed to 
properly use a radiation monitor before exiting the contamination 
control zone (CCZ), and spread contamination of high activity level to 
the Operations Monitoring Room, an area adjacent to the CCZ and inside 
the 337A feed building.
    The NRC's letter of May 18, 2011, preliminarily concluded that the 
cause of the violation was due, in part, to the deliberate misconduct 
of an operator at the Paducah facility.

III

    On July 22, 2011, the NRC and USEC met in an ADR session mediated 
by a professional mediator, which was arranged through Cornell 
University's Institute on Conflict Resolution. ADR is a process in 
which a neutral mediator with no decision-making authority assists the 
parties in reaching an agreement or resolving any differences regarding 
their dispute. This confirmatory order is issued pursuant to the 
agreement reached during the ADR process. The elements of the agreement 
consist of the following:
    1. USEC-Paducah agreed that the issue described in Section II above 
represents a violation of Certificate GDP-1, Technical Safety 
Requirements 3.9.1, and USEC-Paducah Procedure UE2-HP-RP1030, in that 
an employee by-passed a radiation monitor and exited the CCZ. USEC-
Paducah also agreed with the NRC's conclusion that the violation was 
due, in part, to the deliberate misconduct of the employee at the 
Paducah facility.
    2. At the ADR session, USEC-Paducah acknowledged the seriousness 
associated with the procedural violation and the deliberate misconduct 
of its employee. The incident caused the spread of contamination and 
constituted a serious violation of its procedures, standards, and 
expectations. The potential consequences of the incident could have 
been more significant, because under different circumstances, 
contamination could have been spread to other areas of the facility, 
and off-site. The incident prompted USEC to conduct a thorough 
investigation of the event, a determination of the extent of condition, 
and a root cause evaluation. USEC's investigation also included a 
review of the circumstances that took place during the routine 
operational activities of swapping cylinders to the enrichment cascade 
that resulted in the existence of contaminated material. In addition, 
USEC investigated the operational and procedural aspects that 
established the conditions that led to the spread of contamination in 
the autoclave facility.
    3. In response to the violation described above, USEC-Paducah 
implemented numerous corrective actions and enhancements to address the 
incident and to prevent recurrence, including but not limited to:
    a. A prompt investigation into the incident, and the initiation of 
its

[[Page 53495]]

disciplinary process to address the conduct of the employee involved;
    b. Decontamination and restoration of the normal CCZ boundaries in 
the C-337A building;
    c. The placement of an entry in the Daily Operating Instructions 
requiring Operators to wear full anti-contamination clothing while 
changing cylinders in the C-337A building, pending the results of the 
Company's investigation;
    d. Issuance of a ``Required Reading'' to provide uranium 
hexafluoride handling personnel initial information about the 
contamination event;
    e. Issuance of a long-term order requiring Operators to check for 
abnormal pressure spikes before disconnecting a cylinder (to prevent a 
similar release of contamination);
    f. The conduct of briefings about the contamination event with all 
HP Technicians.
    g. The conduct of a Stand Down with all Operations crews to discuss 
the contamination event;
    h. The operators involved in the incident were required to take 
Radworker Refresher training;
    i. Issuance of a second ``Required Reading'' to provide an update 
to the immediate Required Reading about: (a) the contamination event; 
and (b) the reasons for the issuance of the long-term order described 
above;
    j. Issuance of a second long-term order requiring Area Control Room 
Operators to verify the feed valve on the empty cylinder is closed 
before opening the feed valve on the full cylinder when swapping feed 
cylinders that have emptied;
    k. Clarification of management's expectation that supervisors 
document in the Company's Corrective Action Program when an unexpected 
pressure spike occurs;
    l. The conduct of briefings of all plant personnel by management in 
each Organization about this contamination event, including 
reinforcement of the potential consequences of failing to comply with 
radiological protection requirements;
    m. USEC revised procedure CP4-CO-CN2045a to require Area Control 
Room operators to ensure the feed valve on the empty cylinder is closed 
before opening the feed valve on the full cylinder. The revision also 
included a note explaining the significance of the valve sequencing 
from a potential contamination perspective. USEC also revised CP4-CO-
CN2045a to require the vaporizer operators to check for abnormal 
pressure spikes before disconnecting a cylinder;
    n. The General Manager and Plant Manager conducted ``all hands'' 
meetings to communicate a zero tolerance for willfully violating or 
bypassing safety requirements;
    o. USEC reviewed and evaluated all reported cylinder change 
pressure spikes for the nine-month period ending December 31, 2010, 
focusing on operating parameters of the autoclaves involved, including 
a discussion of valving operations supporting the cylinder change. The 
review found one similar pressure spike, but the cause was a plugged 
feed header in C-333, not a valving error. Personnel used enhanced HP 
monitoring when this cylinder was disconnected and no release of 
radioactive particulates or contamination occurred;
    p. USEC completed an effectiveness review of the above corrective 
actions on February 3, 2011, which concluded that the corrective 
actions were effective.
    4. In addition to the actions completed by USEC as discussed above, 
USEC agreed to additional corrective actions and enhancements, as fully 
delineated in Section V of this Confirmatory Order.
    5. At the ADR session, the NRC and USEC agreed that the above 
elements will be incorporated into a Confirmatory Order. The resulting 
Confirmatory Order will be considered by the NRC for any assessment of 
USEC-Paducah, as appropriate.
    6. USEC-Paducah agrees to waive its hearing rights for the issues 
documented in the Confirmatory Order.
    7. In consideration of the corrective actions and commitments 
delineated in Section III.3 and Section V, the NRC agrees to not issue 
a Notice of Violation, and refrain from proposing a civil penalty for 
all matters discussed in the NRC's letter to USEC of May 18, 2011 (EA-
11-056). This completes the Agency's enforcement action with respect to 
USEC-Paducah regarding all matters discussed in the NRC's letter to 
USEC of May 18, 2011.
    8. This agreement is binding upon successors and assigns of USEC.
    On August 11, 2011, USEC consented to issuance of this Order with 
the commitments, as described in Section V below. USEC further agreed 
that this Order is to be effective upon issuance and that it has waived 
its right to a hearing.

IV

    Since USEC has completed the actions as delineated in Section 
III.3, and agreed to take the actions as set forth in Section V, the 
NRC has concluded that its concerns can be resolved through issuance of 
this Order.
    I find that USEC's commitments as set forth in Section V are 
acceptable and necessary and conclude that with these commitments the 
public health and safety are reasonably assured. In view of the 
foregoing, I have determined that public health and safety require that 
USEC's commitments be confirmed by this Order. Based on the above and 
USEC's consent, this Order is immediately effective upon issuance.

V

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 104b, 161b, 161i, 161o, 182 and 
186 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and the Commission's 
regulations in 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR Part 76, it is hereby ordered, 
effective immediately, that Certificate No. GDP-1 be modified as 
follows:
    a. USEC will use multiple site-wide communication tools (e.g., 
``All Hands'' meetings and written communications) to emphasize safety 
culture to employees and contractors at Paducah and the importance of 
using human error prevention tools, the need to comply with job rules, 
regulations, and procedures, and the potential consequences when 
compliance does not occur. The first of these communications will occur 
within 60 days of the issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
    b. Within four months of the issuance of the Confirmatory Order, 
USEC will develop and begin implementation of a required training 
program at Paducah that describes the requirements of 10 CFR 76.9, 
Completeness and Accuracy of Information, and 10 CFR 76.10, Deliberate 
Misconduct, to all employees. This training is to include the potential 
consequences individuals may experience for willful violations of 10 
CFR 76.10.
    c. Within six months of the issuance of the Confirmatory Order, 
USEC will enhance new employee orientation and General Employee 
Training at Paducah to ensure that personnel clearly understand that 
deliberate acts of non-compliance with regulations or procedures will 
not be tolerated and could result in a significant disciplinary action 
up to and including termination.
    d. USEC will expand the independent, Safety Conscious Work 
Environment assessment, required by Confirmatory Order EA-06-140, 
Section V.III, dated August 13, 2009, to include an assessment of the 
safety culture components of decision making and work practices. 
Particular attention shall be focused on the effectiveness of 
corrective actions associated with the

[[Page 53496]]

March 17, 2010 incident in the areas of: (1) training; (2) the use of 
error prevention methods; and (3) procedural adherence. The 
effectiveness review shall, at a minimum, include direct observation of 
facility staff, and shall include the benchmarking of other nuclear 
industry facilities in the area of error prevention.
    e. Within three months of USEC's receipt of the report of the 
Safety Conscious Work Environment assessment, USEC shall brief the NRC 
on the results of the assessment and any planned corrective actions 
arising out of the assessment. During this briefing, USEC shall also 
provide the NRC with the results of its efforts to identify appropriate 
metrics to measure site safety culture.
    The Regional Administrator, NRC Region II, may relax or rescind, in 
writing, any of the above conditions upon a showing by USEC of good 
cause.

VI

    Any person adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order, other 
than USEC, may request a hearing within 20 days of its publication in 
the Federal Register. Where good cause is shown, consideration will be 
given to extending the time to request a hearing. A request for 
extension of time must be made in writing to the Director, Office of 
Enforcement, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555, 
and include a statement of good cause for the extension.
    All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings, including a 
request for hearing, a petition for leave to intervene, any motion or 
other document filed in the proceeding prior to the submission of a 
request for hearing or petition to intervene, and documents filed by 
interested governmental entities participating under 10 CFR 2.315(c), 
must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-Filing rule (72 FR 49139, 
August 28, 2007). The E-Filing process requires participants to submit 
and serve all adjudicatory documents over the Internet, or in some 
cases to mail copies on electronic storage media. Participants may not 
submit paper copies of their filings unless they seek an exemption in 
accordance with the procedures described below.
    To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 
ten (10) days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should 
contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at 
hearing.docket@nrc.gov, or by telephone at 301-415-1677, to request (1) 
a digital ID certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel 
or representative) to digitally sign documents and access the E-
Submittal server for any proceeding in which it is participating; and 
(2) advise the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a 
request or petition for hearing (even in instances in which the 
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the 
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the hearing in this 
proceeding if the Secretary has not already established an electronic 
docket.
    Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is 
available on NRC's public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html. System requirements for accessing 
the E-Submittal server are detailed in NRC's ``Guidance for Electronic 
Submission,'' which is available on the agency's public Web site at 
https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. Participants may 
attempt to use other software not listed on the Web site, but should 
note that the NRC's E-Filing system does not support unlisted software, 
and the NRC Meta System Help Desk will not be able to offer assistance 
in using unlisted software.
    If a participant is electronically submitting a document to the NRC 
in accordance with the E-Filing rule, the participant must file the 
document using the NRC's online, Web-based submission form. In order to 
serve documents through the Electronic Information Exchange (EIE), 
users will be required to install a Web browser plug-in from the NRC 
Web site. Further information on the Web-based submission form, 
including the installation of the Web browser plug-in, is available on 
the NRC's public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
    Once a participant has obtained a digital ID certificate and a 
docket has been created, the participant can then submit a request for 
hearing or petition for leave to intervene. Submissions should be in 
Portable Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance 
available on the NRC public Web site at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the time the 
documents are submitted through the NRC's E-Filing system. To be 
timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing system 
no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date. Upon receipt of 
a transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document and sends 
the submitter an e-mail notice confirming receipt of the document. The 
E-Filing system also distributes an e-mail notice that provides access 
to the document to the NRC Office of the General Counsel and any others 
who have advised the Office of the Secretary that they wish to 
participate in the proceeding, so that the filer need not serve the 
documents on those participants separately. Therefore, applicants and 
other participants (or their counsel or representative) must apply for 
and receive a digital ID certificate before a hearing request/petition 
to intervene is filed so that they can obtain access to the document 
via the E-Filing system.
    A person filing electronically using the agency's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC Meta System 
Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site 
at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by e-mail at 
MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov, or by a toll-free call at 866-672-7640. The NRC 
Meta System Help Desk is available between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern 
Time, Monday through Friday, excluding government holidays.
    Participants who believe that they have a good cause for not 
submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in 
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing 
requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper 
format. Such filings must be submitted by: (1) First class mail 
addressed to the Office of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: 
Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or 
expedited delivery service to the Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth 
Floor, One White Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 
20852, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications Staff. Participants 
filing a document in this manner are responsible for serving the 
document on all other participants. Filing is considered complete by 
first-class mail as of the time of deposit in the mail, or by courier, 
express mail, or expedited delivery service upon depositing the 
document with the provider of the service. A presiding officer, having 
granted an exemption request from using E-Filing, may require a 
participant or party to use E-Filing if the presiding officer 
subsequently determines that the reason for granting the exemption from 
use of E-Filing no longer exists.
    Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in 
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at 
https://

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ehd1.nrc.gov/EHD/, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the 
Commission, or the presiding officer. Participants are requested not to 
include personal privacy information, such as social security numbers, 
home addresses, or home phone numbers in their filings, unless an NRC 
regulation or other law requires submission of such information. With 
respect to copyrighted works, except for limited excerpts that serve 
the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would constitute a Fair Use 
application, participants are requested not to include copyrighted 
materials in their submission.
    If a person (other than USEC) requests a hearing, that person shall 
set forth with particularity the manner in which his interest is 
adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order and shall address the 
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d) and (f).
    If a hearing is requested by a person whose interest is adversely 
affected, the Commission will issue an order designating the time and 
place of any hearing. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered 
at such hearing shall be whether this Confirmatory Order should be 
sustained.
    In the absence of any request for hearing, or written approval of 
an extension of time in which to request a hearing, the provisions 
specified in Section V above shall be final 20 days from the date this 
Confirmatory Order is published in the Federal Register without further 
order or proceedings. If an extension of time for requesting a hearing 
has been approved, the provisions specified in Section V shall be final 
when the extension expires if a hearing request has not been received.
    A request for hearing shall not stay the immediate effectiveness of 
this order.

    Dated this 17th day of August 2011.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Leonard D. Wert, Jr.,
Deputy Regional Administrator for Operations.
[FR Doc. 2011-21902 Filed 8-25-11; 8:45 am]
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