[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 51 (Wednesday, March 18, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11610-11612]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5812]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket No. 03033722, License No. 31-30187, EA-08-158; NRC-2009-0118]
In the Matter of Quality Inspection Services, Inc.: Confirmatory
Order Modifying License (Effective Immediately)
I
Quality Inspection Services, Inc. (QISI) (Licensee) is the holder
of a byproduct materials license issued by the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC or Commission) pursuant to 10 CFR Part 34. The license
was last renewed on November 28, 2005 (Amendment 8), and was last
amended on March 11, 2008 (Amendment 12). The license authorizes the
operation of the QISI facility in accordance with conditions specified
therein. The facility is located on the Licensee's site in Manchester,
Connecticut.
II
The NRC Office of Investigations (OI) initiated an investigation on
March 16, 2007, in part, to determine whether QISI willfully performed
unauthorized radiography operations. Based on the evidence developed
during the OI investigation, which was completed on November 30, 2007,
the NRC identified an apparent willful violation involving QISI failing
to maintain utilization logs for sealed sources, as required by 10 CFR
34.71. A description of this apparent violation and a factual summary
of the results of the investigation were sent to QISI in an NRC letter
dated August 15, 2008.
At the NRC's request, QISI attended a predecisional enforcement
conference (PEC) on August 27, 2008, to discuss the apparent violation
and the results of the OI investigation. After considering the
information presented in the PEC and the evidence developed during the
investigation, the NRC determined that the violation occurred and was
willful. Specifically, between November 15, 2006, and March 2, 2007,
QISI's former site radiation safety officer (RSO) willfully failed to
log the following information for each sealed source: (1) A description
of the radiographic exposure device or transport or storage container
in which the sealed source is located; (2) the identity and signature
of the assigned radiographer; and, (3) the plant or site where the
source was used, and when, including the dates on which the source was
removed and returned to storage. In a letter dated September 15, 2008,
the NRC issued QISI a Notice of Violation and Proposed Imposition of
Civil Penalty (Notice) in the amount of $6,500 for this violation.
Because the violation was willful, the September 15, 2008 NRC
letter included an offer to QISI to use the Alternative Dispute
Resolution (ADR) program, in an attempt to resolve any issues it had
with the enforcement action. The ADR program is a process in which a
neutral mediator with no decision-making authority assists the parties
in reaching an agreement on resolving any differences regarding the
dispute. In response, on October 22, 2008, QISI requested the use of
the ADR program.
III
On January 22, 2009, the NRC and QISI met in an ADR session
mediated by a professional mediator, arranged through Cornell
University's Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution. During that
ADR session, a preliminary settlement agreement was reached. This
Confirmatory Order is the result of that agreement, the elements of
which consisted of the following:
1. The NRC and QISI agree that the violation of 10 CFR 34.71,
referenced in the NRC letter, dated September 15, 2008, occurred, as
stated in the referenced Notice.
2. As documented in the September 15, 2008 NRC letter, QISI has
taken several corrective actions in response to the willful violation,
as well as other violations identified in the Notice of Violation and
Proposed Imposition of Civil Penalty. Those actions, which the NRC
agrees were prompt and comprehensive include: ensuring that employees
involved in radiography activities have reviewed QISI's Operations and
Emergency (O&E) Manual, and reinforcing expectations regarding the
existing Employee Concerns Program, specifically emphasizing the
opportunity for employees to raise safety concerns.
3. As a result of the ADR session, QISI agrees to take the
following additional actions:
a. Revise the existing O&E Manual to emphasize the importance of
safe performance of radiography, strict compliance with requirements,
all staff being complete and accurate in all communications, and all
staff understanding that engaging in any willful misconduct will not be
tolerated.
b. Retrain all employees regarding the revisions to the O&E manual.
c. Add a radiation safety component to the existing Corporate
Newsletter, to be issued at least quarterly, focusing on radiation
safety updates. In the first newsletter issued following the NRC
Confirmatory Order confirming these commitments, the front page of that
newsletter will include a message from the QISI President which
emphasizes the importance of safe performance of radiography, strict
compliance with requirements, all staff being complete and accurate in
all communications, and all staff understanding that engaging in any
willful misconduct will not be tolerated.
d. Develop a video recording (DVD) that will be required viewing by
all company employees who are involved in any manner in activities
subject to NRC jurisdiction, and will also be placed on the QISI Web
site for employee viewing and access. The video will include opening
remarks by either the QISI President or the QISI Executive Vice
President providing the expectations set forth in the Corporate
Newsletter described in Item 3.c.
e. Place the DVD referenced in Item 3.d on the QISI public Web
site, and offer to make the DVD available for a presentation at a
national industry conference (e.g. American Society for Nondestructive
Testing).
[[Page 11611]]
f. Increase the audits of each radiographer working in areas of NRC
jurisdiction to three times annually for two years following issuance
of this Confirmatory Order, and have these audits conducted by the
Corporate Radiation Safety Officer (RSO).
g. Include, as part of the next two NRC required annual reviews of
the radiation safety program, an inquiry (independent of the Corporate
RSO) of all radiographers working in NRC jurisdiction. The inquiry will
assess the effectiveness of adherence to NRC requirements, and
implementation of the actions set forth above. The inquiry will
encourage all radiographers to raise any concerns they have, and to do
so anonymously if they so chose. The results will be summarized and
provided to the QISI President.
h. Complete the actions set forth in Items 3.a through 3.e within
six months of the Confirmatory Order issued to confirm this agreement.
Complete the actions in Items 3.f through 3.g within two years of the
Confirmatory Order.
i. Upon completion of the actions set forth in Items 3.a through
3.e, send the NRC a letter summarizing the completed actions within 30
days confirming that each of those actions has been completed. Upon
completion of the actions set forth in Items 3.f through 3.g, send the
NRC another letter summarizing the completed actions within 30 days,
confirming that those actions have been completed.
4. In light of the corrective actions that QISI took to correct the
violations, as noted in Item 2, as well as the additional actions QISI
committed to take, as described in Item 3, the NRC agrees to reduce the
amount of the civil penalty to $500. QISI agrees to pay this amount.
On March 4, 2009, the Licensee consented to issuing this Order with
the commitments, as described in Section V below. The Licensee further
agreed that this Order is to be effective upon issuance, and that the
Licensee has waived its right to a hearing.
IV
Since the Licensee has agreed to take additional actions to address
NRC concerns, as set forth in Item III above, the NRC has concluded
that its concerns can be resolved through issuance of this Order.
I find that the Licensee'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 also determined that public health and safety require
that the Licensee's commitments be confirmed by this Order. Based on
the above and the Licensee's consent, this Order is immediately
effective upon issuance.
V
Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 81, 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 34, it is hereby ordered,
effective immediately, that QISI shall:
A. Revise the existing O&E Manual to emphasize the importance of
safe performance of radiography, strict compliance with requirements,
all staff being complete and accurate in all communications, and all
staff understanding that engaging in any willful misconduct will not be
tolerated;
B. Retrain all employees regarding the revisions to the O&E manual;
C. Add a radiation safety component to the existing Corporate
Newsletter, to be issued at least quarterly, that will focus on
radiation safety updates, and have the front page of the first
newsletter issued following this NRC Confirmatory Order confirming
these commitments include a message from the QISI President which
emphasizes the importance of safe performance of radiography, strict
compliance with requirements, all staff being complete and accurate in
all communications, and all staff understanding that engaging in any
willful misconduct will not be tolerated;
D. Develop a video recording (DVD) that will be required viewing by
all company employees who are involved in any manner in activities
subject to NRC jurisdiction, and will also be placed on the QISI Web
site for employee viewing and access; the video will include opening
remarks by either the QISI President or the QISI Executive Vice
President providing the expectations set forth in the Corporate
Newsletter described in Item C;
E. Place the DVD referenced in Item D on the QISI public Web site,
and offer to make the DVD available for a presentation at a national
industry conference (e.g., American Society for Nondestructive
Testing);
F. Increase the audits of each of the radiographers working in
areas of NRC jurisdiction to three times annually for two years
following issuance of this Confirmatory Order, and have these audits
conducted by the Corporate RSO;
G. Include, as part of the next two NRC required annual reviews of
the radiation safety program, an inquiry (independent of the Corporate
RSO) of all radiographers working in NRC jurisdiction; ensure the
inquiry assesses the effectiveness of adherence to NRC requirements,
and implementation of the actions set forth above in Items V.A-V.F; and
use the inquiry to encourage all radiographers to raise any concerns
they have, and to do so anonymously if they so chose;
H. Complete the actions set forth in Items V.A-V.E within six
months of the date of this Confirmatory Order, and complete the actions
in Items V.F-V.G within two years of the date of this Confirmatory
Order;
I. Upon completion of the actions set forth in Items V.A-V.E, send
the NRC a letter, within 30 days, confirming that those actions have
been completed;
J. Upon completion of the actions set forth in Items V.F-V.G, send
the NRC another letter, within 30 days, confirming that those actions
have been completed; and,
K. Pay a civil penalty in the amount of $500, within 30 days of the
date of this Confirmatory Order.
The Regional Administrator, Region I, may, in writing, relax or
rescind any of the above conditions upon demonstration by the Licensee
of good cause.
VI
Any person adversely affected by this Confirmatory Order, other
than the Licensee, may request a hearing within 20 days of its
issuance. 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 directed to the Director, Office of Enforcement, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, and include a
statement of good cause for the extension.
A request for a hearing must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-
Filing rule, which the NRC promulgated in August 2007, 72 FR 49,139
(Aug. 28, 2007). The E-Filing process requires participants to submit
and serve documents over the Internet or, in some cases, to mail copies
on electronic optical storage media. Participants may not submit paper
copies of their filings unless they seek a waiver in accordance with
the procedures described below.
To comply with the procedural requirements associated with E-
Filing, at least five (5) days prior to the filing deadline the
requestor must contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at
[email protected], or by calling (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 NRC proceeding in which it is participating; and/or (2)
creation of
[[Page 11612]]
an electronic docket for the proceeding [even in instances when the
requestor (or its counsel or representative) already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate]. Each requestor will need to download
the Workplace Forms ViewerTM to access the Electronic
Information Exchange (EIE), a component of the E-Filing system. The
Workplace Forms ViewerTM is free and is available at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/install-viewer.html. Information
about applying for a digital ID certificate also is available on NRC's
public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html.
Once a requestor has obtained a digital ID certificate, had a
docket created, and downloaded the EIE viewer, it can then submit a
request for a hearing through EIE. Submissions should be in Portable
Document Format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance available on the
NRC public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
A filing is considered complete at the time the filer submits its
document through EIE. To be timely, electronic filings must be
submitted to the EIE 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 EIE 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 document on those participants separately.
Therefore, any others who wish to participate in the proceeding (or
their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a digital
ID certificate before a hearing request is filed so that they may
obtain access to the document via the E-Filing system.
A person filing electronically may seek assistance through the
``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC technical help line,
which is available between 8:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m., Eastern Time,
Monday through Friday. The electronic filing Help Desk can be contacted
by telephone at 1-866-672-7640 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Participants who believe that they have good cause for not
submitting documents electronically must file a motion, 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, MD 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.
Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in
NRC's electronic hearing docket which is available to the public at
http://ehd.nrc.gov/EHD_Proceeding/home.asp, unless excluded pursuant
to an order of the Commission, an Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, or
a 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. 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 works.
If a person other than (the Licensee) requests a hearing, that
person shall set forth with particularity the manner in which his
interest is adversely affected by this Order and shall address the
criteria set forth in 10 CFR 2.309(d) and (f).
If the 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 of
this Order 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.
For The Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Dated this the 10th day of March 2009.
Marc L. Dapas,
Deputy Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. E9-5812 Filed 3-17-09; 8:45 am]
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