STORY:
Nuke Plants Prepare for Y2K

Still work to do to ensure that all nuclear power plants is ready for Y2K

Nuclear power plants across the country may still have some work to do if they want to assure safety when the New Year dawns, and computers reach the year 2000. Congressional auditors have met with Nuclear Regulatory Commission members and asked about readiness plans.

The NRC members said that most power plants are ready, but that some power plants need work. The General Accounting Office asked that the NRC not only make sure all the plants are Y2K ready but asked the NRC to take additional steps be taken to assure safety in the year 2000.

At this time the United States has 103 nuclear power plants in operation at 66 sites. Another 19 plants are no longer working, but 14 still have highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel stored at the facility. Ten more U.S. plants produce nuclear fuel.

The NRC says all operating power plants are Y2K ready except Philadelphia Electric Co.’s Peach Bottom 3 in Pennsylvania and the Southern Nuclear Operating Co.’s Farley 2 in Alabama.

Both of these plants have finished work on their safety systems but still need to work on repairing operating equipment. The Pennsylvania plant should be ready within the week and work at the Alabama plant is expected to be completed in mid-December.

Despite the fact that most plants are Y2K ready, the GAO wants more safety assurances. GAO members asked for the following requirements:

• Require independent verification of plants’ claims of Y2K readiness
• Ensure each plant has a checklist of things that must before before the New Year and after the stroke of midnight.
• Determine if nuclear plants’ most recent emergency exercises have included Y2K-specific scenarios in addition to general disaster preparedness.

The NRC reported that all decommissioned plants were also on track to be prepared, although the agency’s latest information, shown at the meeting, does not confirm that every site is ready.

NRC officials reassured lawmakers that they will closely monitor the progress of all its plants and that they expect the nuclear facilities will operate safely without interruption through the Y2K transition.

DATE: 11/2/99

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