WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords, I-Vt., today told the head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that his agency must work diligently to restore public confidence in the wake of the discovery of two missing fuel rods at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
"This is an outrageous and frightening situation for Vermont families. The Commission must commit its resources to ensure that this material is accounted for immediately. I stand ready to assist the NRC in any way necessary to make sure that these materials are found and secured," Jeffords told NRC Commissioner Nils Diaz.
Jeffords is ranking member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which has oversight of the NRC. His comments came during a subcommittee hearing held today to review the NRC's procedures.
Jeffords noted that this is the second report of missing nuclear fuel at a Northeast power plant in five years. Missing fuel rods at the Millstone plant have also not been found.
"I do not want missing fuel to become the norm. It is not enough to tell the public that we 'think' it is likely that highly radioactive material went to storage. We must improve our nuclear materials accounting system, and we must do it now," Jeffords told Diaz, who was joined at the hearing by other NRC officials. "I want to know what the NRC is going to do to prevent this from ever happening again at Vermont Yankee or, for that matter, at any other nuclear facility in America."
Jeffords also asked Diaz to outline the NRC's plans for an independent review of the Yankee plan in accordance with Yankee's uprate request that is pending before the Vermont Public Service Board. While time limitations prevented Jeffords from asking further questions, he did submit more questions for the record that the NRC will be required to respond to.
(A list of the questions is attached below, in addition to Senator Jeffords' full statement )
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Senator Jeffords' Questions for Chairman Diaz
1. At the briefing in preparation for this hearing, your staff indicated that the remote camera search of the spent-fuel pool at Vermont Yankee is complete and the missing fuel rod pieces have not been found. This information was repeated in a May 19, 2004 Rutland Herald story.
Is it the case that the search of the fuel-pool is complete, and what are the next steps that you will be taking to locate the missing fuel?
2. I have a question regarding recordkeeping related to nuclear fuel. It is my understanding that the NRC used to have a more direct role in keeping records on the location of nuclear fuel and waste at power plants, but that it changed its policy in the 1980s. Now the license holders are primarily responsible for this task. In light of what has happened at Vermont Yankee, and with the increase in buying and selling of nuclear plants to new owners, is the NRC reconsidering taking a more active role? Would you need additional authority from Congress to do so?
3. The discovery of the missing fuel rods at Vermont Yankee resulted from NRC inspections required of all plants as a follow-up to the loss of fuel at Millstone? Have other plants reported missing fuel? And when will these inspection of other plants be completed?
4. On May 4, 2004, the NRC responded to the Vermont Public Service Board's request for additional independent review at Vermont Yankee. Your letter stated that a pilot engineering assessment would be conducted. The assessment team will be comprised of NRC staff, state officials, and at least two independent contractors.
What will the NRC do to ensure the independence of the "independent" contractors? What will be the process for selecting them, and what qualifications will they need to have?
5. When will the engineering inspection at Vermont Yankee start? Can you commit to having an independent observer in addition to the independent contractors on the inspection team?
6. There have been on-going allegations from advocacy groups in New England that NRC staff "misled" Senator Leahy and me regarding the extent to which the NRC's new power uprate guidelines were related to the Independent Safety Assessment conducted at Maine Yankee. These allegations have been made to the Commission in writing.
Will you clarify this issue and provide a summary to the Subcommittee of the provisions of the extended power uprate guidelines that were explicitly drawn from the Maine Yankee Independent Safety Assessment?
7. Constituents have raised concerns with me regarding the process for requesting a public hearing on the Vermont Yankee power uprate. I am hoping you can clarify two issues:
First, my constituents believe that the time in which they need to request a hearing begins when the notice of the application appears on the Commission's web site rather than in the Federal Register. Isn't the Federal Register notice the official start of the clock for hearing requests?
Second, my constituents are concerned about both the evidentiary and standing requirements contained in the new NRC hearing regulations. In response to a request for a hearing, does the NRC have the discretion to decide whether or not to use its current or former regulations to govern the hearing process?
8. At the NRC public meeting held on March 31, 2004 in Vernon, Vermont my constituents were told by NRC staff that all nuclear materials at the Vermont Yankee facility was secured and in the appropriate place. Three weeks later, it is discovered that pieces of fuel rods are missing at the plant. At the time of the March 31 meeting, the NRC knew that a more detailed look at the fuel-pool was scheduled during the plant's upcoming power outage. The NRC's statement at the meeting that the location of the fuel was known was premature at best. How will NRC correct this in the future?
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Statement of Senator James M. Jeffords
Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate Change, and Nuclear Safety
Oversight Hearing on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Thank you Mr. Chairman, today's hearing continues our ongoing oversight of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. I believe this is the sixth oversight hearing the Subcommittee has had in the last seven years. Chairman Voinovich, you and Ranking Member Carper deserve credit for continuing the commitment to hold these hearings regularly in order to review the NRC's activities. Today, I want to discuss both the NRC's handling of extended power uprates and a recent incident involving missing pieces of fuel rods at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in my state. I appreciate that Chairman Diaz and Commissioner Merrifield have been willing to discuss my concerns about the recent events at the Vermont Yankee with me directly. I also want to say to the Chairman and all the Commissioners that I am pleased you are here today. The mission of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is one of the most vital missions carried out by the federal government. Regulating the nation's civilian use of nuclear materials, ensuring adequate protection of public health and safety when these materials are used or disposed of, and protecting the environment are all critical. I want to make myself perfectly clear, and I know the Chairman and Ranking Member of this Subcommittee share my view: the top priority for the NRC is safety. There is no greater issue than safety. I want the people of Vermont and across the country to be safe and it is the NRC's job to guarantee it. As you are well aware, there have been some serious problems at Vermont Yankee since this panel's last oversight hearing. Vermont Yankee, operated by Entergy, discovered that two pieces of radioactive fuel rods were missing from the plant's storage facilities last month. Officials with Entergy Nuclear have said they could not find two rods, one seven inches and another about 17 inches long. Either is capable of quickly giving a lethal dose of radiation to an unshielded handler. The NRC has been involved in Vermont Yankee inspections using a remote-control camera to see if they misplaced the rods among the 2,789 spent fuel rods in the plant's spent fuel pool. The NRC is also working with the utility to review records and see if two missing fuel rods from the plant are in waste facilities in South Carolina or Washington. Company officials speculate the rods may have been confused with low-level waste and shipped to the out-of-state storage sites. So far, efforts to locate the rods at the Vermont Yankee facility have failed. This is an outrageous and frightening situation for Vermont families. The Commission must commit its resources to ensure that this material is accounted for immediately. I stand ready to assist the NRC in any way necessary to make sure that these materials are found and secured. But, I note, that this is the second incident of missing nuclear fuel at a Northeast nuclear plant in five years. When the Millstone incident occurred, the NRC said that fuel rods had never before gone missing in the history of commercial nuclear power in the United States. While I know that the materials at Vermont Yankee were found to be missing due in part to the new inspection procedures the NRC instituted after Millstone, the sad fact is that fuel is again missing. I do not want missing fuel to become the norm. It is not enough to tell the public that we "think" it is likely that highly radioactive material went to storage. We must improve our nuclear materials accounting system, and we must do it now. I want to know what the NRC is going to do to prevent this from ever happening again at Vermont Yankee or, for that matter, at any other nuclear facility in America. Keeping with my view that safety is "job one" for the NRC, I also want to know what the NRC is doing to ensure that any boost in Vermont Yankee's power will be reviewed in a thorough manner. Entergy has asked the NRC to approve its proposal to boost the power from Vermont Yankee by 20 percent. As you know, the NRC must determine whether or not such an extended power uprate will jeopardize the plant's ability to operate safely. I expect the NRC to explain, design, and conduct a review that will allow Vermonters to have confidence that if an uprate is approved for Vermont Yankee, the plant will be reliable and safe for the long term. I am pleased that the NRC agreed to Senator Leahy's and my request to hold a public meeting in Vermont in March to explain the uprate review process. Many constituents have told me that this was a helpful meeting, but more needs to be done to inform and assure Vermonters. The review of Vermont Yankee's uprate will be the first time that the NRC will conduct such a review using the new extended power uprate guidelines issued in December 2003. I am also pleased that the NRC has agreed to conduct a pilot inspection and collect additional information as requested by the Vermont Public Service Board. The purpose of these additional inspections will be to collect data about the plant's operations under the proposed boosted power conditions. This is information Vermonters want. I am pleased that my state will be doing a service to the country as they work with the NRC through the use of new guidelines and the implementation of a new pilot inspection program. The NRC has an opportunity to assure this Subcommittee that they will make these new guidelines and inspections work, that they will implement them in a thorough and transparent way, and that they will strive to address the concerns of the public. If we are going to be serious about protecting our environment while providing safe, reliable, and affordable electricity for all Americans, we need to increase our use of renewables, improve how we burn fossil fuels, promote energy efficiency, and make sure that nuclear plants operate well and safely. Again, I thank Chairman Diaz, the rest of the Commissioners, and the other witnesses for coming here to discuss these issues. I look forward to their testimony and to working with my colleagues.
Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate Change, and Nuclear Safety
Oversight Hearing on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Thank you Mr. Chairman, today's hearing continues our ongoing oversight of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. I believe this is the sixth oversight hearing the Subcommittee has had in the last seven years. Chairman Voinovich, you and Ranking Member Carper deserve credit for continuing the commitment to hold these hearings regularly in order to review the NRC's activities. Today, I want to discuss both the NRC's handling of extended power uprates and a recent incident involving missing pieces of fuel rods at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in my state. I appreciate that Chairman Diaz and Commissioner Merrifield have been willing to discuss my concerns about the recent events at the Vermont Yankee with me directly. I also want to say to the Chairman and all the Commissioners that I am pleased you are here today. The mission of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is one of the most vital missions carried out by the federal government. Regulating the nation's civilian use of nuclear materials, ensuring adequate protection of public health and safety when these materials are used or disposed of, and protecting the environment are all critical. I want to make myself perfectly clear, and I know the Chairman and Ranking Member of this Subcommittee share my view: the top priority for the NRC is safety. There is no greater issue than safety. I want the people of Vermont and across the country to be safe and it is the NRC's job to guarantee it. As you are well aware, there have been some serious problems at Vermont Yankee since this panel's last oversight hearing. Vermont Yankee, operated by Entergy, discovered that two pieces of radioactive fuel rods were missing from the plant's storage facilities last month. Officials with Entergy Nuclear have said they could not find two rods, one seven inches and another about 17 inches long. Either is capable of quickly giving a lethal dose of radiation to an unshielded handler. The NRC has been involved in Vermont Yankee inspections using a remote-control camera to see if they misplaced the rods among the 2,789 spent fuel rods in the plant's spent fuel pool. The NRC is also working with the utility to review records and see if two missing fuel rods from the plant are in waste facilities in South Carolina or Washington. Company officials speculate the rods may have been confused with low-level waste and shipped to the out-of-state storage sites. So far, efforts to locate the rods at the Vermont Yankee facility have failed. This is an outrageous and frightening situation for Vermont families. The Commission must commit its resources to ensure that this material is accounted for immediately. I stand ready to assist the NRC in any way necessary to make sure that these materials are found and secured. But, I note, that this is the second incident of missing nuclear fuel at a Northeast nuclear plant in five years. When the Millstone incident occurred, the NRC said that fuel rods had never before gone missing in the history of commercial nuclear power in the United States. While I know that the materials at Vermont Yankee were found to be missing due in part to the new inspection procedures the NRC instituted after Millstone, the sad fact is that fuel is again missing. I do not want missing fuel to become the norm. It is not enough to tell the public that we "think" it is likely that highly radioactive material went to storage. We must improve our nuclear materials accounting system, and we must do it now. I want to know what the NRC is going to do to prevent this from ever happening again at Vermont Yankee or, for that matter, at any other nuclear facility in America. Keeping with my view that safety is "job one" for the NRC, I also want to know what the NRC is doing to ensure that any boost in Vermont Yankee's power will be reviewed in a thorough manner. Entergy has asked the NRC to approve its proposal to boost the power from Vermont Yankee by 20 percent. As you know, the NRC must determine whether or not such an extended power uprate will jeopardize the plant's ability to operate safely. I expect the NRC to explain, design, and conduct a review that will allow Vermonters to have confidence that if an uprate is approved for Vermont Yankee, the plant will be reliable and safe for the long term. I am pleased that the NRC agreed to Senator Leahy's and my request to hold a public meeting in Vermont in March to explain the uprate review process. Many constituents have told me that this was a helpful meeting, but more needs to be done to inform and assure Vermonters. The review of Vermont Yankee's uprate will be the first time that the NRC will conduct such a review using the new extended power uprate guidelines issued in December 2003. I am also pleased that the NRC has agreed to conduct a pilot inspection and collect additional information as requested by the Vermont Public Service Board. The purpose of these additional inspections will be to collect data about the plant's operations under the proposed boosted power conditions. This is information Vermonters want. I am pleased that my state will be doing a service to the country as they work with the NRC through the use of new guidelines and the implementation of a new pilot inspection program. The NRC has an opportunity to assure this Subcommittee that they will make these new guidelines and inspections work, that they will implement them in a thorough and transparent way, and that they will strive to address the concerns of the public. If we are going to be serious about protecting our environment while providing safe, reliable, and affordable electricity for all Americans, we need to increase our use of renewables, improve how we burn fossil fuels, promote energy efficiency, and make sure that nuclear plants operate well and safely. Again, I thank Chairman Diaz, the rest of the Commissioners, and the other witnesses for coming here to discuss these issues. I look forward to their testimony and to working with my colleagues.
