1.Maintenance Outage at Oyster Creek
2. Oyster Creek License Renewal NJDEP-BNE Contentions and Request for Hearing
3. State and Local Stakeholders Working Group Meeting
4. Pilot Study Initiated
5. Harrison Career Institute

1. Maintenance Outage at Oyster Creek

On January 25, 2006, operators reduced power to 53% following the trip of the "B" reactor recirculation water pump. This power reduction was dictated by a restriction in the Oyster Creek Operating License for power operation with three circulation water pumps in service. The plant has five of these pumps but one, the “A” pump, was already out of service.

These pumps are located inside the primary containment, consequently the plant had to be shutdown to allow personnel to enter the containment for the repairs. A plant shutdown during the winter months brings a high probability of a fish kill because some warm water species take up residence in the plant discharge during plant operation and do not migrate into a warmer climate. When the plant shuts down, the warm water discharge from the plant diminishes greatly. With the fish kill as a major concern, plant management opted to begin the Oyster Creek shutdown early Saturday morning, January 28, due to the warm weather in the forecast. A slow reduction of power was implemented so that the plant discharge dropped only 1 degree F per hour. Shutdown was achieved at 10:22 PM Saturday evening.

Two large portable diesel generators were place on top of the west bank of the canal near the outfall of the dilution pumps. Their purpose is to power heater banks that are submerged in the discharge canal to elevate the water temperature in the hope that it will allow the resident fish to survive during the plant shutdown. Two floating booms surrounded the heater banks.

Personnel attempted to "harvest" fish using rod and reel from three boats. Fish caught were placed in coolers and taken to a local food bank.

Operators slowly lowered plant power so that the discharge temperature was being lowered about 1 degree F per hour. Plant shutdown occurred at 10:22 PM Saturday January 28.

Seventy dead bluefish were recovered in the discharge canal beginning on Sunday morning.

Restart is scheduled for the evening of Thursday, February 2, 2006.

2. Oyster Creek License Renewal NJDEP-BNE Contentions and Request for Hearing

On January 10, 2006, the USNRC Atomic Safety and Licensing Board (ASLB) reviewing NJDEP contentions related to the Oyster Creek license renewal application, requested Supplemental Briefs on the Forked River Combustion Turbines contention be submitted by January 17, 2006 from the three interested parties, NJDEP, AmerGen, and NRC Staff. Specifically, this brief was to address what would happen if the combustion turbines become unavailable if AmerGen’s aging management plan for the combustion turbines is not properly implemented.

Similarly, on January 23, 2006, the ASLB requested Supplemental Briefs on the NJDEP Metal Fatigue contention be submitted by January 17, 2006 from the three interested parties. Specifically, this brief was to address the ASLB observation, as stated in the NJDEP contention, that the increase in the allowable cumulative usage factor used to qualify metal fatigue effects on the reactor coolant pressure boundary used by AmerGen is not part of their now-effective Oyster Creek current licensing bases and is therefor in violation of the requirements of 10CFR54.21(a)(3) for license renewal.

These briefs were submitted in a timely manner to the ASLB by the Attorney General's Office. The ASLB will make the final decision when and if hearings will be held on NJDEP’s contentions.

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3. State and Local Stakeholders Working Group Meeting

On January 23 through 27, 2006 Patricia Gardner, Manager, attended a meeting of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Domestic Nuclear Detection office State and Local Stakeholders Working Group in Las Vegas, Nevada. The meeting included a day trip to the Nevada Test Site. The purpose of the meeting was to solicit feedback on a new training curriculum, Prototype Preventive Radiation/Nuclear Detection. Ultimately, this training will be a standardized course delivered nationwide to state and local public safety agencies.

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4. Pilot Study Initiated

The Bureau of Radiological Health (BRH) has initiated a pilot study to evaluate patient dose entrance skin exposure (ESE) values of diagnostic x-ray equipment using both manual and automatic exposure control (AEC) techniques factors. The BRH intends to evaluate how widely dose measurements vary on the same machine when switching between manual and AEC exposure modes. X-ray machines equipped with AEC, automatically adjust x-ray exposure technique factors (i.e. tube current, exposure time) based on patient size in order to optimize the radiographic image.

This study was prompted by several New Jersey certified medical physicists who expressed concerns regarding current BRH dose measurement practices. Specifically, some physicists question the validity of measuring patient dose using manual technique factors on x-ray machines equipped with AEC. The physicists stated that manual technique settings result in higher patient dose readings than equivalent AEC technique settings. The physicist further stated that these higher readings are then memorialized in BRH post inspection reports to facilities, which direct facilities to lower radiation exposure if the values are high. The physicists contend that the letters are misleading in these circumstances.

The bureau considered potential dose differences between manual and AEC exposures when it established its testing protocols. The bureau made the decision to test all equipment using manual technique factors for the following reasons: six years ago, AEC equipped x-ray machines were not very common in the medical imaging community. Early bureau surveys indicated that less than twenty percent of all medical x-ray machines had AEC capability. Additionally, earlier designed AEC devices routinely malfunctioned, requiring facilities to frequently use manual technique factors on these machines. Finally, design limitations of bureau radiation testing equipment prevent inspectors from measuring patient dose in AEC mode.

Today, AEC equipped x-ray machines are more prevalent throughout the medical imaging community. What is more, newer AEC devices are more reliable than past systems, permitting more radiographs to be taken in AEC mode. As such, the bureau concurs that this is the proper time to re-evaluate its patient dose measuring protocols. The bureau completed field testing of patient dose on a limited number of machines using both manual and AEC technique factors and will begin evaluating the results in the coming weeks. The bureau will present its study findings at a meeting with medical physicists scheduled for March 9, 2006. After obtaining input from the physicists, the bureau will determine if testing protocols changes are required.

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5. Harrison Career Institute

On November 30, 2005 the Technologist Certification Section conducted an investigation at Harrison Career Institute (Harrison). The section substantiated several violations that include: (1) permitting a person who was not a licensed radiologic technologist or a student enrolled in a Board approved dental radiography program to perform x-ray procedures on humans; (2) issuing a formal certificate of completion to a person who was not enrolled in the program; (3) appointing an unqualified instructor to teach dental radiography to nineteen students in April 2005; and (4) since June 2005, has used an unapproved dental radiography curriculum. Harrison operates four dental radiography programs located throughout New Jersey.

In January 2006, the Department issued Administrative Orders and Notice of Prosecutions to two of Harrison's dental radiography approved programs totaling $8,100. This is the largest monetary penalty issued to an education program. The Radiologic Technology Board of Examiners will be meeting on February 7, 2006 to discuss these violations, consider the accreditation status of Harrison's programs and determine if graduates who completed the dental radiography program during this time period are eligible for New Jersey licensure.

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