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Washington, D.C. - Concerned that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) does not recognize the need for a comprehensive Independent Safety Assessment (ISA) at the Indian Point nuclear power plant, Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-NY), and Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) today directly called on NRC Chairman Dale Klein to immediately initiate such a review. The appeal from the three House members comes just two weeks after Klein announced that he had ordered a review of how Indian Point's safety measures are evaluated -- a first step welcomed by the House members, but far short of the comprehensive assessment they say is needed.
In a letter sent to Klein today, the House members acknowledged the need for the type of review the NRC Chairman called for, but said, "...this type of investigation does not replace a thorough, top-to-bottom review of key systems at Indian Point with a history of safety problems. An assessment of an assessment does little to address and identify actual safety issues at the plant and does far less to alleviate the public’s growing unease over the increasing safety problems of the aging nuclear plant and its spent fuel pools."
Earlier this year, Hinchey introduced a measure that Lowey and Engel cosponsored, which would require the NRC to conduct an ISA of the Indian Point nuclear power plant. The legislation would force the NRC to report its findings on the safety of Indian Point no later than six months from the day the measure is signed into law. The bill requires a focused, in-depth ISA of the design, construction, maintenance, and operational safety performance of Indian Point and its spent fuel pools. It also demands a comprehensive evaluation of the emergency evacuation plan for the nuclear power plant in the event of a terrorist attack or radiological accident. The safety plan that Klein called for earlier this month only focuses on a review of the safety procedures and does not deal with the overall design, construction, and maintenance of the plant.
In their letter to Klein, the three House members pointed to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that the NRC, "has been slow to act on needed improvements, particularly in improving the agency’s ability to identify and address early indications of declining safety performance.”
In turn, the House members wrote, "It is this conclusion that warrants the need for an Independent Safety Assessment at Indian Point, a plant that operates within a 50-mile radius with over 20 million people and continues to show increasing signs of aging and degradation. A thorough independent assessment will provide the type of information needed by the NRC to make an informed determination if Entergy [the company that owns Indian Point] seeks a twenty-year license extension."
Indian Point, which is located 24 miles north of New York City, has experienced a series of safety problems throughout the span of its operation.
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The full text of the letter from Hinchey, Lowey, and Engel follows:
October 25, 2006
Chairman Dale Klein
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555
Dear Chairman Klein:
We are writing in response to your letter dated October 11, 2006, in which you direct Nuclear Regulatory Commission Executive Director for Operations Luis Reyes to work with NRC staff to develop an independent assessment of the agency’s Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) at the Indian Point nuclear power plant.
While the recent findings of the Government Accountability Office, published recently in “Nuclear Regulatory Commission: Oversight of Nuclear Power Plant Safety Has Improved, but Refinements Are Needed” (GAO-06-1029) indicate that such a review is warranted, we strongly note that this type of investigation does not replace a thorough, top-to-bottom review of key systems at Indian Point with a history of safety problems. An assessment of an assessment does little to address and identify actual safety issues at the plant and does far less to alleviate the public’s growing unease over the increasing safety problems of the aging nuclear plant and its spent fuel pools.
We continue to be concerned with the NRC’s failure to require an Independent Safety Assessment at Indian Point. A number of us in the New York Congressional delegation have repeatedly called for a Maine Yankee-style ISA due to several factors, including a long history of safety problems at Indian Point, a gravely flawed emergency plan, an ongoing tritium and strontium-90 leak originating from at least one spent fuel pool, and a potential twenty-year license extension for both reactors should Entergy submit its application in March 2007 as all indicators predict.
We urge that you immediately direct NRC staff to develop an ISA for Indian Point as outlined in legislation proposed in both the U.S. House (H.R.4891) and Senate (S.2488). Both bills require a thorough and independent review of the design, construction, maintenance, and operational safety performance of key systems at Indian Point, including: (1) the reactor protection system; (2) the control room ventilation system and the containment ventilation system; (3) the 4.16 kv electrical system; (4) the condensate system; and (5) the spent fuel storage system.
The legislation would also require a comprehensive evaluation of the radiological emergency plans for
Indian Point, including a detailed explanation of the factual basis upon which the NRC and FEMA have approved the plans, despite conclusions by former FEMA head James Lee Witt that the plans are gravely flawed and in the event of a fast-breaking release probably could not protect the public.
The GAO report notes that the NRC “has been slow to act on needed improvements, particularly in improving the agency’s ability to identify and address early indications of declining safety performance.” It is this conclusion that warrants the need for an Independent Safety Assessment at Indian Point, a plant that operates within a 50-mile radius with over 20 million people and continues to show increasing signs of aging and degradation. A thorough independent assessment will provide the type of information needed by the NRC to make an informed determination if Entergy seeks a twenty-year license extension.
We look forward to a timely response to our request for an ISA at Indian Point and would welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter further with you.
Sincerely,
Maurice Hinchey, Nita Lowey, Eliot Engel
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