ECLs for EOCs [Transcript]
[Narrator] Hello and welcome to the Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management’s online training course Emergency Classification Levels. Please type your name, both first and last, and press enter.
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Introduction
Working closely with Xcel energy, FEMA and local units of government, the state of Minnesota has developed detailed emergency plans that address actions to be taken to protect the health and safety of the public surrounding both the Monticello and Prairie Island nuclear generating plants. These plans are practiced routinely with oversight from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The purpose of this training is to explain how an emergency at a nuclear power plant is classified and what actions are taken by offsite organizations at each classification level.
We will discuss Emergency Action Levels (or EALs), Emergency classification Levels (or ECLs) and finally what actions are taken by offsite organizations at each level.
Emergency Action Levels
Let’s begin with Emergency Action Levels. An Emergency Action Level is a plant-specific indication, condition or instrument reading which is used by plant personnel to classify an emergency at a nuclear power plant.
There are 6 categories of EALs:
- Abnormal Radiation Levels / Radiological Effluent
- In other words, increased levels of radiation have been detected either in or around the power plant.
- Cold Shutdown / Refueling System Malfunction
- Various problems can occur even when the plant is shut down for refueling
- Fission Product Barrier Degradation
- Which would include any problems with the either the fuel Cladding, the reactor coolant system or the containment surrounding the reactor vessel.
- Hazards and Other Conditions
- This category includes such possibilities as natural events like earthquakes, fires, floods and tornadoes; or manmade events like an attack by hostile forces. This category also includes any other events that don’t fit in to the other categories.
- System Malfunctions
- Such as a loss of Power
- Or if the Control Rods fail to shutdown the reactor
- Events related to the independent spent fuel storage installation (ISFSI) – also known as the dry cask storage.
The emergency action levels are then used by plant personnel to classify the severity of the emergency to offsite response organizations. The level of this response is based on how serious a threat the condition presents to plant and public safety, so it is a graded response.
The Emergency Action Levels (or EALs) are based on a very specific Plant Condition and serve as the foundation for The Emergency Classification Levels (or ECLs).
Emergency Classification Levels
There are four emergency classification levels, each having its own level of response. The classification levels are listed here in order of increasing severity:
First is a Notification of Unusual Event - Next is the Alert – Then a Site Area Emergency - And finally a General Emergency
A Notification of Unusual Event is a low level event which poses no threat to public safety but which warrants an increased awareness on the part of plant and off-site agency personnel. No release of radiation requiring an offsite response is expected.
An Alert is also a low level condition which poses no threat to public safety, but for which precautionary mobilization of certain response functions is appropriate in case conditions degrade. Small amounts of radioactive material could be released but would be only inside the plant. And any release is expected to be only a small fraction of the Environmental Protection Agency Protective Action Guidelines for exposure levels.
For a Site Area Emergency, conditions have degraded to a point warranting the full activation of response functions. Small amounts of radioactive material could be released into the atmosphere near the plant, but these are not expected to exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s Protective Action Guidelines for exposure levels beyond the site boundary. However, precautionary protective actions for high risk portions of the general public might be recommended.
At a General Emergency, conditions have degraded to a point threatening public safety for which some form of protective actions will be initiated. Radioactive releases may exceed the Environmental Protection agency’s Protective Action Guidelines beyond the site boundary. Protective actions based on actual or projected data may be required for those people living and working within the 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone surrounding the plant.
During radiological emergency preparedness drills and exercises, we usually begin at one of the lower ECLs such as the Alert and move progressively through the ECLs until we have completed all of our actions through the general emergency. We do this in order to demonstrate all of our plans and procedures for each emergency classification level. However in the unlikely event of an actual emergency at a nuclear power plant, there would not necessarily be a steady progression from one ECL to the next. In fact, historically speaking when an ECL has been declared by a nuclear power plant, the emergency usually begins and ends with the same ECL.
The remainder of this training will go into greater detail as to what actions are taken by offsite response organizations at each of the emergency classification levels just discussed.
Notification of Unusual Event
The following actions will be taken if a notification of unusual event is declared by either Prairie Island or the Monticello nuclear generating plant.
Even though a notification of unusual event is a low level event which poses no threat to public safety, it does require that offsite agency personnel be made aware of the situation. Therefore, if an NUE is declared at Prairie Island, both MN and WI would be notified as would the Prairie Island Indian community and the risk counties of Goodhue and Dakota in Minnesota and Pierce county in Wisconsin.
If it were declared in Monticello, then Minnesota would be notified along with Wright and Sherburne counties.
While the state and the utility may initiate communications about technical issues, due to the low level of severity posed by a notification of unusual event, neither the offsite agencies nor the utility would activate their Emergency Operation Centers at this time.
The way notification to the offsite responses organizations occur when the utility declares an emergency classification level is that Xcel Energy first notifies the Minnesota Duty Officer located at the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the appropriate county dispatch centers. This notification is then verified by either a follow-up fax or a phone call. After the verification, the Duty Officer and the County Dispatch use their call-down lists to notify appropriate State and Local agencies.
Alert
The following actions will be taken if an ALERT is declared by either Prairie Island or the Monticello nuclear generating plant.
Even though an ALERT Emergency Classification Level is also a low level condition which poses no threat to public safety, precautionary mobilization of certain response functions needs to occur in case conditions degrade.
For this reason, the governor signs and issues a predetermined Emergency Executive Order activating the State Emergency Operations Center and portions of the National Guard.
Activating the State Emergency Operations Center includes opening up the hotline in order to answer questions from the general public and to track any rumors that may arise. As part of the SEOC activation, a Joint Information Center is setup. This is where Public Information Officers from the state, counties, local units of government, tribal entities and the utility come together in order to push out a consistent and accurate message to the public and to address any rumors that may have been captured by the hotline.
At this time, county emergency operations centers will also activate. In the case of Monticello, it will be Wright and Sherburne Counties and in the case of Prairie Island, Goodhue and Dakota counties would activate in MN and Pierce County would activate in Wisconsin.
A state patrol helicopter would then be dispatched to a county staging area so that emergency notifications could be made in recreational areas.
Emergency Worker Decon sites are placed on standby. For problems with Monticello, these would include the Zimmerman Fire Department in Sherburne and Rockford Fire in Wright County. Or, for issues at Prairie Island, it would be Hastings Fire Department in Dakota County and Red Wing Fire Department in Goodhue County.
Reception Centers are also placed on standby at the Alert Emergency Classification Level. The reception centers include Princeton High School in Mille Lacs County and Rogers High School in Hennepin County if the issues were to occur at the Monticello Plant. Or Cottage Grove Armory in Washington County if the problem was to occur at the Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant.
The SEOC also recommends to counties that school districts within the 10-mile EPZ be notified to have busses placed on standby in case the situation worsens and evacuation becomes necessary.
At the Alert emergency classification level, Target is notified to discontinue the distribution of potassium iodide from Target pharmacies. The reason for this is because if conditions at the plant degrade to the point where protective actions such as evacuations are required to protect the public, it is in everyone’s best interest to follow these instructions rather than wasting time by lining up at Target Pharmacies.
Click on the voucher for a brief explanation of Minnesota’s potassium iodide distribution program.
Each year planning guides are mailed to all the residents that live within the 10-mile emergency planning zones of each of the nuclear power plants in Minnesota. These planning guides contain important emergency information regarding what the people should do in the unlikely event of a release at one of the nuclear power plants.
In addition to information, these Planning guides also contain a voucher that families, businesses and dependent care facilities can bring to Target Pharmacies within the 10-mile emergency planning zones and exchange for potassium iodide. Potassium Iodide, also known by its chemical symbol KI, is pre-distributed on a voluntary basis to members of the general public so that everyone in the proximity of either of the nuclear power plants has access to potassium iodide should the need arise. A standing order from the Minnesota Department of Health authorizes the secondary protective action of taking KI when directed to evacuate or shelter-in-place in affected areas. KI is not distributed post incident and is not available at reception centers.
Site Area Emergency
The following actions will be taken if a Site Area Emergency is declared by either Prairie Island or the Monticello nuclear generating plant. At this classification level events at the nuclear power plant are much more serious and a full activation of response functions begin to occur and Precautionary protective actions for high risk portions of the general public will be reviewed and possibly recommended.
At the Site Area Emergency, the governor issues a predetermined declaration of a “State of Emergency “
The declaration authorizes the use of state agencies and resources to assist in the affected areas. The declaration is a precautionary measure and is necessary for any formal request of assistance to be made to the federal government, should conditions become even more serious.
The State Emergency Operations Center now recommends to counties that have school districts inside the 10-mile EPZ to relocate the children to their designated sister schools located outside the 10-mile EPZ
And all schools located bordering the 10-mile EPZ are notified not to send school children home who live within the 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone.
Reception centers are also set up and staffed to receive and monitor evacuees in case protective actions become necessary. Also, Congregate Care Centers managed by the Red Cross are activated near the Reception Centers.
The Department of Natural Resources would now close Lake Maria State Park near Monticello – this is the only state park that is located within the 10-mile EPZ of either plant.
The Department of agriculture issues a livestock advisory recommending that livestock within the 10 mile Emergency Planning Zone be sheltered and placed on stored feed and water. The Dept of Agriculture also assesses the need to extend the livestock advisory beyond 10 miles if necessary.
At a Site Area Emergency, preparations are made to evacuate or shelter in place special populations should the need arise:
These would include:
· Jails and Prisons
· Nursing Homes, Dependant Care Facilities, Daycares
· And Government facilities such as Emergency Operations & Dispatch Centers.
Also, rail and river traffic is suspended within the 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone – this includes the North Star Commuter Rail Line around the Monticello Plant.
General Emergency
The following actions will be taken if a General Emergency is declared by either the Prairie Island or the Monticello nuclear generating plant. Remember this is the highest of the 4 emergency classification levels, which means that conditions have now degraded to a point where public safety is threatened and some protective actions will be initiated.
When a General Emergency is declared by a nuclear power plant it means that a release of nuclear material is either occurring or is likely to occur. Therefore protective actions are implemented to protect the public and emergency workers; these include evacuating the public or having them shelter in place. In combination with this, as a secondary protective action, the use of Potassium Iodide is approved for the general public and emergency workers.
The population that is evacuated or sheltered in place is based on plume projections and computer models that take into account:
· the amount of radiation that is or may be released
· wind speed
· and wind direction.
For example, this map shows the Monticello Emergency Planning Zone. It is not a perfect circle, with a 10 mile radius, but is divided into numerous irregularly shaped subareas. These subareas with names like 2, 5E or 10SW are portions of the 10 mile EPZ that are easily described based on townships, roads, rivers or other easily communicated boundaries.
Radiating outward from the center are 16 sectors each 22.5 degrees wide. These are used communicate important directional information about the wind and the plume.
In the unlikely event that a release at a nuclear power plant is imminent, the default protective action is to evacuate a two mile radius surrounding the plant and 5 miles downwind. So for Monticello, if the wind is moving in this direction down sector F, we take that sector plus 1 sector on either side which defines a wedge shape. The protective action for Monticello in this scenario would be to evacuate the two mile subarea and all subareas out to 5 miles that fall within this defined area – so in this example all businesses and residents that are within subareas 2, 5E and 5S would be evacuated.