[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 165 (Thursday, August 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43726-43729]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-20678]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[NRC-2009-0376; Docket No.: 07007001; Certificate No. GDP-1; EA-08-280]
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 NRC Certificates of Compliance (COC) No.
GDP-1 issued by the NRC pursuant to 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 1, 2009.
[[Page 43727]]
II
On September 30, 2008, the NRC's Office of Investigations (OI)
completed an investigation (OI Case No. 2-2008-009) regarding
activities at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant facility located in
Paducah, Kentucky. Based on the evidence developed during the
investigation, the NRC staff concluded that on August 10, 2007, a
Training Records Clerk and a Security Analyst willfully shipped a
package containing classified information to an address that was not an
approved classified mailing address (CMA). These actions were contrary
to 10 CFR 95.39(b)(3) and Paducah Security Procedure CP2-SS-SE1036,
Classified Matter Protection and Control, which require the external
transmission of classified mail be made to a uniquely designated CMA
for the receipt of classified information.
III
On July 1, 2009, 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. The NRC and USEC agreed that a violation occurred on August 10,
2007, when a Training Records Clerk and a Security Analyst shipped a
package containing classified information to an address that was not an
approved CMA. These actions were contrary to 10 CFR 95.39(b)(3) and
Paducah Security Procedure CP2-SS-SE1036, Classified Matter Protection
and Control, which require the external transmission of classified mail
be made to a uniquely designated CMA for the receipt of classified
information.
2. Based on its review and investigation, USEC-Paducah concluded
that the cause of the violation was not due to willfulness on the part
of the Training Records Clerk or the Security Analyst.
3. Based on USEC's review of the incident and NRC concerns
associated with precluding recurrence of the violation, USEC-Paducah
completed the following corrective actions and enhancements:
a. Processed procedural enhancements to procedure CP2-SS-SE1036 to
provide instructions for verifying proper use of classified mailing
addresses and shipping addresses, clarify entity with authority to
package and process classified shipments and mailings, provide specific
instructions for use of commercial carriers, and provide actions to
take for off-normal requests.
b. Security Management briefed and discussed the event and error
with the Security staff personnel. The briefing and discussions
included the apparent violation of the procedure and reiterated
management expectations with respect to procedure adherence.
c. The Records Management Document Control (RMDC) Manager briefed
and discussed the event and procedural error with RMDC personnel.
Expectations discussed included that classified materials may be mailed
and not shipped to USEC headquarters, and that RMDC has primary
responsibility for mailing classified information, while Shipping and
Receiving has primary responsibility for shipping classified
information.
d. Security and RMDC staff were retrained on requirements for off-
site shipping/mailing. The training highlighted shipment of classified
documents versus the mailing of classified documents.
e. Lessons learned were documented and issued to all site
personnel. The lessons included: the importance of procedural
adherence, even when under time constraints; the need to re-implement
procedure steps when the environment changes; the requirement that all
forms be completed; and the use of error prevention tools.
4. In addition to the actions completed by USEC as discussed above,
USEC agreed to additional corrective actions and enhancements, as fully
delineated below in Section V of the Confirmatory Order.
5. At the ADR session, the NRC and USEC agreed that (1) the actions
referenced in Section III.3 and Section V, would be incorporated into a
Confirmatory Order, and (2) the resulting Confirmatory Order would be
considered by the NRC for any assessment of USEC, as appropriate.
6. In consideration of the completed corrective actions delineated
in Section III.3 and the commitments delineated in Section V of this
Confirmatory Order, the NRC agreed to refrain from proposing a civil
penalty or issuing a Notice of Violation for all matters discussed in
the NRC's letter to USEC of February 6, 2009 (EA-08-280).
7. This agreement is binding upon successors and assigns of USEC.
On August 12, 2009, 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. In October 2008, USEC-Paducah developed recurring training for
Operations and Maintenance supervisors to reinforce ``conduct of''
principles and procedure compliance. Training will continue on a
quarterly basis for a period of at least twelve (12) months after
issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
b. In July 2008, a group of Paducah plant employees attended an
INPO course on Human Performance. This group formed the Human
Performance Steering team which was established to assist the plant in
efforts to prevent among other things, noncompliance with regulatory
requirements and other adverse events.
i. Brainstorming sessions were held with workers to identify
practical solutions to preventing adverse events.
ii. Multiple interactive informational training sessions were held
with small groups of employees focusing on identifying critical job
tasks and the tools to prevent and protect against causing adverse
events when performing critical tasks. Sessions in Maintenance and
Operations have been completed. This approach will continue for the
remainder of the Paducah employees for a period of at least twelve (12)
months after issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
[[Page 43728]]
c. By no later than sixty (60) calendar days after the issuance of
the Confirmatory Order, USEC agrees to develop a ``lessons learned''
document addressing the lessons learned from the event which gave rise
to this mediation, and share those lessons learned with USEC's Paducah
Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant,
Headquarters, the American Centrifuge Plant (ACP), and ACP vendors who
handle classified information. After issuance of the lessons learned,
USEC will require a response within ninety (90) days which identifies
any actions taken by the vendors to address the lessons learned. USEC
will track internal actions via the use of its Business Prioritization
System.
d. By no later than one-hundred twenty (120) calendar days after
the issuance of the Confirmatory Order, USEC agrees to revise the
relevant classified material mailing and shipping procedures applicable
to USEC's Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion
Plant, USEC Headquarters, and the ACP to clarify the definition of the
term ``cleared commercial carrier'' as that term applies to the mailing
or shipping of classified information, and provide associated training.
e. USEC-Paducah agrees to complete the items listed in Section V
above within twelve (12) months of issuance of the Confirmatory Order.
f. Within three (3) months of completion of the terms of the
Confirmatory Order, USEC-Paducah will provide the NRC with a letter
discussing its basis for concluding that the Confirmatory Order has
been satisfied.
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 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.
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 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.
A request for a hearing must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-
Filing rule, which became effective on October 15, 2007. The NRC E-
filing Final Rule was issued on August 28, 2007 (72 FR 49139), and was
codified in pertinent part at 10 CFR part 2, subpart B. 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 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, he/she 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 using the agency's adjudicatory e-
filing system 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 Meta-System Help Desk, which is
available between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through
Friday, excluding government holidays. The Meta-System 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, 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.
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
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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.
VII
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
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 18th day of August 2009.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Victor M. McCree,
Deputy Regional Administrator for Operations.
[FR Doc. E9-20678 Filed 8-26-09; 8:45 am]
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