The Utilities Service Alliance (USA) Security Core Peer Team (CPT) is working together to improve performance on Force-on-Force exercises throughout our fleet. A Force-on-Force inspection is conducted over several days in two separate visits by an inspection team at the licensee’s site. This inspection is on a three-year cycle.

What is a Force-on-Force exercise? Below is the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) definition:

First, NRC security and operations specialists conduct table-top drills on a mock-up of the facility. During this phase they evaluate the effectiveness of licensee security plans against a series of attack scenarios. Drill coordinators explore the number of defenders, their protective positions, and their protective strategy. The role of State, local and Federal law enforcement, along with emergency planning officials is also discussed during the table-top drills.

Second, armed with information from the table-top drills, and with information gathered before conducting the table-top drills, detailed plans are made for a number of commando-style attacks seeking to probe potential deficiencies in the protective strategy. A mock adversary force carries out these attacks. The mock adversary force attempts to reach and simulate destroying enough safety equipment to set in motion an event that would damage the reactor’s core or spent fuel pool and potentially cause a release of radiation to the environment. The power reactor’s security force seeks to interdict the adversary force and prevent them from reaching the safety equipment.

From Security’s point of view, these exercises are very important. They allow the Security force to practice real-life scenarios. The NRC inspection teams that conduct the Force-on-Force inspections at NRC licensed facilities include active duty U.S. Special Operations Forces, which offer very challenging scenarios. The ultimate goal of each licensee (plant) is to protect the health and safety of the public against a design basis threat.

Due to the activities of the team, over the past 24 months the USA fleet has executed six NRC Force-on-Force drills successfully at Fermi, Cooper, Susquehanna, Monticello, Prairie Island and Columbia. The participation from the fleet with shared resources for controllers and assessment support was instrumental in the success rate for these exercises. These results and behaviors solidify the mantra “Not in our house,” a phrase coined at Fermi but adopted by the team.

The Security CPT engagement is at an all-time high, which results in a very well-informed fleet. Additionally, we have strong USA fleet representation at the NEI Security Working Group (SWG) to ensure that new regulations being proposed are thoroughly vetted amongst the USA plants. In fact, the USA Security CPT Executive Sponsor – Larry Weber (DC Cook CNO) – is currently Chairman of the SWG.

The Security CPT has been a great platform to share lessons learned, best practices, new observed tactics and Operating Experience. The group also reaped the benefits of participating in regular calls to discuss regulatory challenges and to leverage team member subject matter experts’ insights and support.

Looking ahead for 2013, Cook, Fermi and Ft. Calhoun will have Force-on-Force exercises. The fleet will look for continued support in controller sharing, peer assessments and peer support during the pre-weeks. These exercises require time and funding commitments from the individual sites of our fleet. And that’s an investment that will pay dividends for years to come. As they say… “The Roots Determine the Fruits!”