Jun 09, 2010 -- NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION DOCUMENTS AND PUBLICATIONS/ContentWorks



The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has banned a former contract employee at Duke Energy's McGuire Nuclear Station and issued a Confirmatory Order to the company, which has agreed to a series of corrective actions.

The settlement was reached under the NRC's Alternative Dispute Resolution process, which was initiated at Duke Energy's request to address an incident which occurred at the McGuire plant north of Charlotte in October 2008. An NRC investigation determined that a contract employee brought an illegal substance into the plant's protected area and allegedly used it while on the site. The NRC's Jan. 27 letter informed Duke Energy the case warranted two apparent violations of federal regulations.

The apparent violations involved a welder who brought marijuana into the protected area. A second contract employee became aware of the drug's presence and its use but failed to report it to plant officials.

The employee found to have used the marijuana has been banned from NRC-licensed activities for five years. The contract employee who failed to report the drug use is no longer employed at the site.

A mediation session was held with Duke Energy on March 29 and an agreement was reached. A Confirmatory Order outlines a number of corrective actions and enhancements Duke agreed to take to preclude recurrence of such an issue. The utility also agreed to enhanced training and communications for all employees, including contract workers.

The NRC requires nuclear power plant licensees to have fitness-for-duty programs to provide reasonable assurance that personnel are trustworthy, will perform their tasks in a reasonable manner, and are not under the influence of any substance, legal or illegal, that may impair their ability to perform their duties.

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