NRC sends confirmatory action letter to Westinghouse Nuclear Fuel for uranium-bearing material leak

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) sent a confirmatory action letter to the Westinghouse nuclear fuel manufacturing plant in Columbia, S.C., on Friday to confirm the actions it will take to correct a small uranium-bearing material leak.

Westinghouse conducted its annual maintenance shutdown in May. During the review, employees discovered uranium-bearing material in the facility’s scrubber system. The scrubber system is designed to remove waste from several plant processes. While the issue itself did not call for safety-related fines or consequences, the potential for health and safety risks existed.

When the NRC conducted an inspection to observe the leak, it discovered much higher rates of uranium than expected. As as aresult, the NRC is conducting an ongoing study to more closely observe the incident. The NRC sent Westinghouse the confirmatory action letter to outline actions taken by Westinghouse already, and those which must be taken before options may resume, such as determining the root cause and fixing the issue.

“The commitments outlined in the [letter] will greatly reduce the likelihood of such incidents in the future,” NRC Region II Administrator Cathy Haney said. “Westinghouse management has cooperated fully and has assured us of their commitment to these corrective actions and continued safe operations.”