Public Meeting To Discuss Nuclear Power Plant Exercise

Release Date: October 13, 2004 Release number: R7-04-095

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) today announced that a public meeting would be held Oct. 22, 2004, to discuss the evaluation of the performance of the utility, state and local participants in a full-scale exercise with the Duane Arnold Energy Center, located near Palo, Iowa.

Members of the public and the media are invited to attend this meeting beginning at 10:30 a.m. at the Kirkwood Community College’s Community Traning and Response Center, 6301 Kirkwood Blvd. SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Representatives from FEMA’s Region VII office, located in Kansas City, will chair the meeting and discuss offsite activities. A representative from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Region III office, located in Lisle, Ill., will discuss the onsite activities.

The state of Iowa, along with Linn, Benton and Marshall counties, will participate with Duane Arnold Energy Center in a one-day exercise Oct. 20.

The exercise will require the activation of emergency facilities for the state of Iowa, as well as the above listed counties. The activities of the state, county and local units of government will be observed and evaluated by FEMA. The Duane Arnold Energy Center onsite performance will be observed and evaluated by NRC.

The exercise is a biennial requirement to determine the adequacy of the radiological emergency preparedness and response plans. The primary focus is on the ability of the state of Iowa, the utility and the participating counties to protect the health and safety of the public living in the vicinity of the Duane Arnold Energy Center. The evaluated exercise provides reasonable assurance that the appropriate protective measures can be taken onsite and offsite in the event of a radiological emergency.

The NRC is the federal agency responsible for evaluating onsite emergency plans and exercises for nuclear power plants. FEMA is responsible for evaluating offsite plans and exercises for states and counties through the Radiological Emergency Preparedness Program.

On March 1, 2003, FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. FEMA's continuing mission within the new department is to lead the effort to prepare the nation for all hazards and effectively manage federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates proactive mitigation activities, trains first responders, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration.