Better Oversight Needed for Safety and Health Activities at DOE's Nuclear Facilities
EMD-81-108
Published: Aug 04, 1981. Publicly Released: Aug 04, 1981.
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Highlights
GAO was requested to determine if the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) or some other form of regulation would be preferable to the Department of Energy (DOE) oversight program currently in existence for safety and health matters at DOE nuclear facilities. To determine the adequacy of the DOE oversight program, GAO reviewed the four functional program areas: (1) occupational safety; (2) emergency preparedness; (3) facility design safety; and (4) environmental monitoring.
Recommendations
Matter for Congressional Consideration
| Matter | Status | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Congress should consider legislation to require NRC to review and evaluate a number and a variety of DOE nuclear facilities and processes, including detailed review of plant operations, the contractors safety analysis methodology and report, and actions taken to mitigate hazards. |
Closed – Implemented
|
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information. |
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should reorganize those field organizations involved in safety and health oversight to report directly, and exclusively, to the elevated safety and health organization at headquarters. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should require, for a potentially serious safety or health complaint which cannot be adequately resolved at the contractor level, that DOE safety and health officials conduct an independent investigation and provide to the complainant a response which clearly addresses the issues of the complaint and provides data clearly supportive of the DOE findings or opinions. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should take action to develop a uniform policy for dealing with safety and health violations. This policy should include a system to delineate classes of violations based on danger to employees as well as requirements for posting violations, setting abatement time frames, and checking to ensure that corrective action has been taken. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should direct that a formal, consolidated system be established to collect and analyze information on workplace hazards for all DOE nuclear facilities and establish priorities for future safety and health oversight activities based on that analysis. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should consolidate the policymaking, coordinating, and appraisal functions into one organizational unit. To ensure that this unit has sufficient authority to carry out its responsibilities, it should at least be at a level of authority higher than those units responsible for implementing established policy. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should expedite the development of DOE emergency preparedness requirements. These requirements should clearly define DOE and contractor responsibilities and should describe specific emergency preparedness criteria. Such criteria should reflect post Three Mile Island lessons learned. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should establish requirements for annual appraisals of field office and contractor emergency preparedness programs. In addition, the Secretary should require that DOE independently review and evaluate contractor drills on a regular basis. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should provide the support necessary to carry out responsibilities delegated by FEMA in its national effort to improve emergency preparedness around nuclear facilities. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should take the necessary steps, as recommended previously, to correct the weaknesses noted in a March 1979 report. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should take action to increase safety analysis program staffing and budget to provide the program with the capability to adequately conduct and review safety analyses. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should establish a target completion date for the safety analysis program and issue specific criteria for conducting safety analysis for existing facilities. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should direct that radiological monitoring and radiological monitoring oversight requirements be issued for mandatory application to all DOE facilities. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should develop a coordinated system whereby radiological monitoring data supplied by the DOE operating contractors are verified with state or local government agencies with monitoring capability. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
| Department of Energy | The Secretary of Energy should evaluate the oversight aspects of the headquarters safety and health organization to report, as a staff organization, to the DOE Under Secretary. At this organizational level, competition with program offices should not exist and the safety and health organization would have the authority to mandate adherence to policy and standards. |
Closed – Implemented
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.
|
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Topics
Disaster recoveryEmergency managementEmergency preparedness programsEnergy suppliesEnvironmental monitoringFederal agency reorganizationInternal controlsNuclear facility safetyOccupational health and safety programsRadiation exposure hazardsRegulationSafety standards