Kenneth Fletcher
WC Monitor
2/27/2015
In preparation for a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board hearing this spring on last year’s incidents at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, DNFSB Members Sean Sullivan and Daniel Santos plan to visit Carlsbad, N.M. next week. While the date and agenda for this spring’s public meeting have not yet been announced, the DNFSB plans to hold a hearing in Carlsbad on the February 2014 incidents at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant that resulted in the ongoing shutdown of the facility. The Board members are traveling to Carlsbad next week to visit the facility in advance of the hearing.
DNFSB staff will recommend this spring’s meeting focus on three areas, DNFSB Staff Technical Director Steven Stokes told WC Monitor in January. The first would be to discuss the results of the Department of Energy’s investigation into the fire and radiation leak events, Stokes said. The second focus area would involve the recovery efforts from the two events, while the third would include any “long-term changes in the mine’s nuclear safety posture given any proposed changes to the safety equipment of the mine,” Stokes said. “For example, if they are going to redesign the ventilation system there would be a lot of questions as to what are the safety concerns with that redesign, how are you performing them and what will be the controls that you use to operate the facility safely.”
