tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4170623839736191950.post1080771700755010796..comments2022-12-03T19:22:46.911-08:00Comments on Safetymatters: Safety culture information, analysis and management: Willful Violations at Indian PointBob Cudlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08502712287881656493noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4170623839736191950.post-66646216139926370012014-05-15T12:22:46.226-07:002014-05-15T12:22:46.226-07:00Bob, you inquire:
"Something that is hard to...Bob, you inquire:<br /><br />"Something that is hard to square is the NRC assertion that there is a strong link between willful violations and safety culture, and the results of these various assessments at Indian Point by Synergy, the NRC and INPO. So if there is a link, and safety culture assessments don’t reveal its presence, are the assessments valid? Or if the assessments are valid, is there really a link with willful misconduct?"<br /><br />It certainly seems that the connections in this instance reflect a good deal of ambiguity concerning motive and what the actual internal culture seascape is at the site. I think your observation that "rectitude" NRC style tends to be driven by the framing of safety significance around the state of design basis configurations points to a standing concept of regulation gulf between the ROP "cornerstones" with their quantitative substance and the "cross-cutting areas" to which the whole Nuclear Safety Culture edifice has become attached. NSC at described in the recent NUREG is about as far from the crispness of the metrics as can be imagined.<br /><br />Luckily for NRC (perhaps at least for a while) there are only a few persons with the knowledge and experience to question this scheme and seemingly those have no open channel to NRC management through which to post such questions.<br /><br />I would point out that the description of the Chemistry Manager's decision as "willful" doesn't seem at all helpful as a discouragement to similar conduct if there is no way of knowing "willful in relation to what self-serving outcome." Serious misjudgment no doubt, but hardly on a par with deliberate fraudulent conduct - and it begs those questions about why this guy ended up out on such a distant branch all by himself.Bill Mullinsnoreply@blogger.com