1. Bureau of Radiological Health (Bureau) Holds Meeting with NJ Certified Physicists And Assistants
2. Radon Section - Outreach
3. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Advisory Committee on Reactor Safety (ACRS) Subcommittee on Power Uprates Reviews Proposed Hope Creek Uprate

1. Bureau of Radiological Health (Bureau) Holds Meeting with NJ Certified Physicists And Assistants

On March 6, 2008 BRH staff held a meeting with New Jersey certified medical physicists and physicist assistants. This was the third such meeting held since the implementation of quality assurance regulations in January 2001. The meeting this year enjoyed the largest participation by the physicist community with 32 people in attendance. The meeting focused on several topics of mutual interest including the presentation of the latest data and measured improvements realized by the Bureau’s quality assurance program. In addition, the physicist community was updated on current and planned regulatory revisions, enforcement activity among the physicist community, and emerging technology including Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CT). Mr. Al Orlandi presented results from our ongoing New Jersey CT dose study. He also presented the Bureau’s data regarding year two averages for CT dose and other statistical information. This topic received the most discussion and feedback from participants. Further details on all the presentations made at the meeting are available on the Bureau’s website at: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/rpp/index.htm

Back to the top!

2. Radon Section - Outreach

The Radon Program has implemented a Newborn Pilot Project to inform new parents about the harmful affects of radon and to promote testing. Counties with all municipalities classified as having a Tier 1 “high radon potential” were selected and those municipalities where a hospital was located in such an area were further targeted. Working in partnership with the Registrar’s Office in Hackettstown, Philipsburg and Newton, a radon brochure is currently being distributed along with birth certificates to new parents as a step to ensure that their newborn grows up in a healthy environment.

In order to ascertain the effectiveness of our outreach efforts, we will also be partnering with the Warren County Health Department who has agreed to provide free test kits to new parents. The Radon Program is offering $1000 reimbursement for the purchase of the test kits, which will be offered to new parents via a coupon that will be attached to the brochure. The actual mechanics behind this program, which include test kit tracking and text for the coupons, are currently in the planning phase.

Back to the top!

3. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Advisory Committee on Reactor Safety (ACRS) Subcommittee on Power Uprates Reviews Proposed Hope Creek Uprate

On March 20, 2008 one Bureau of Nuclear Engineering engineer listened via phone to the meeting held at Rockville, MD between the ACRS Subcommittee on Power Uprates, and the NRC staff and PSEG staff. The meeting continued on March 21, 2008.

The purpose of the meeting was for the NRC staff to present to the Subcommittee, a review of the Hope Creek Extended Power Uprate (EPU) license amendment. Both the NRC staff and the PSEG staff presented descriptions of the detailed preparations and numerous plant changes that were performed to ensure that the Hope Creek EPU project would not adversely impact nuclear safety or plant reliability.

Particular emphasis was on the fuel (due to the mixed core of GE14 and SVEA+ fuels) and the Steam Dryer structural analysis. The discussion also included operator training and procedures, flow accelerated corrosion (FAC), Containment response, electrical and grid reliability, dose consequences, reactor vessel internals, materials, chemistry, and Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA).

The Subcommittee recommended that the license amendment application be forwarded to the full ACRS Committee for final approval. The ACRS full Committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday, April 10, 2008 to consider the application.

If approved, power ascension testing at Hope Creek will methodically control the power increase to 111.5% of the current licensed thermal output by June 1, 2008. The EPU project will increase Hope Creek’s power output by approximately 130 megawatts electric.

Back to the top!