TAFT – The Waterford 3 nuclear power plant was recently certified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration as a Voluntary Protection Program Star site – one of only three such facilities to earn this in the nation.

This is the highest possible industrial safety rating for a work site, according to Entergy, which owns the facility in St. Charles Parish. VPP Star sites are a facilities that have designed and implemented outstanding worker health and safety programs.

The other Star sites are River Bend in St. Francisville and Arkansas One, also an Entergy plant. Other industrial facilities are also VPP Star sites, including Little Gypsy power plant in Montz and Waterford 1 and 2 fossil-fuel plants in Taft.

An OSHA team visited Waterford 3 several months ago and evaluated the plant’s safety program. The team performed reviews that included an initial meeting, a document review, a walk-through, formal and informal interviews with employees and a meeting with plant leaders.

Gary Taylor, chief operating officer for Entergy Nuclear South, said, “Achieving VPP Star status is a tribute to the quality of our safety program and Entergy Nuclear South’s commitment to safety.”

Taylor added, “I am proud of every worker at Waterford 3 and River Bend whose individual, safety-focused behaviors have been part of our plants’ earning this distinction.”

Entergy is the third-largest power generator in the U.S.