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ARTICLE ARCHIVE

Safety

Nuclear safety is, of course, an oxymoron. Nuclear reactors are inherently dangerous, vulnerable to accident with the potential for catastrophic consequences to health and the environment if enough radioactivity escapes. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Congressionally-mandated to protect public safety, is a blatant lapdog bowing to the financial priorities of the nuclear industry.

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Entries by admin (362)

Friday
Feb102012

"New Containment Flaw Identified at the BWR Mark I"

Nuclear engineer Arnie Gundersen (pictured at left), in a video now posted at the homepage of Fairewinds Associates, explains that a non-radioactive test performed at the Brunswick, North Carolina General Electric Boiling Water Reactor of the Mark I design 40 years ago, supports his theory that the primary reactor containment head at Fukushima Daiichi Unit 1 lifted, due to elongation of bolts, allowing hydrogen gas generated by the meltdown in the reactor core to escape into the secondary or outer reactor containment building. "It only took a spark" to then detonate the hydrogen gas, destroying the reactor containment building. Thus, and very significantly, all the talk (including in the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Fukushima Task Force deliberations) about "hardening" the vents at U.S. and other Mark Is around the world is irrelevant. This is a flaw in the Mark I design that any hardening of the vents to make them "new and improved" cannot solve. Arnie shows a photo revealing that the vent at Fukushima Daiichi Unit 1 appears to have been functioning before the explosion -- steam is visible exiting the top of the Unit 1 "smoke stack." Despite this, it did not prevent the explosion that followed.

Wednesday
Feb082012

"Cracking in the safety-related shield building of the containment system" at the heart of contention against 20 more years at Davis-Besse

U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)The quoted phrase above were the words of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, ironically enough, in a Dec. 2, 2011 Confirmatory Action Letter to FirstEnergy Nuclear allowing it to re-start the Davis-Besse atomic reactor, despite severe cracking -- of unknown root cause and unknown extent -- in its concrete shield building. Beyond Nuclear and its environmental coalition allies have been joined by U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich is questioning the safety risks of NRC's rush to grant re-start approval, despite the many unanswered questions about the safety significance of the cracking.

U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) asks "Why won't FirstEnergy tell the truth about Davis-Besse?" regarding the extensive cracking, of unknown origin and extent, in its 225 foot tall, 2.5 foot thick concrete shield building, an integral component of its overall radiological containment structure. On Nov. 21, 2011, Rep. Kucinich called for a public meeting on the cracking problem, which NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko supported. The NRC public meeting took place at Camp Perry, Ohio on January 5, 2012, at which Beyond Nuclear's Kevin Kamps testified. On Jan. 10th, Beyond Nuclear and environmental allies submitted a contention on the cracking to the NRC Atomic Safety (sic) and Licensing Board panel presiding over FirstEnergy's application for a 20 year license extension at Davis-Besse, urging that the proposal be blocked. (The 60 page cracking contention can be viewed here.) FirstEnergy has urged the ASLB to reject the contention. NRC staff, for its part, also urges the ASLB to reject most of the contention, although, remarkably, given its long track record of strenuously opposing environmental interveners at every twist and turn of ASLB proceedings, does partially support the contention's admission for a hearing on the merits. Environmental interveners have until Monday to rebut the counter arguments to its Davis-Besse cracking contention.

 

Monday
Feb062012

Safety significant atomic reactor replacement parts prematurely failing despite being brand new

A tube rupture in a brand new replacement steam generator at San Onofre Unit 3 last week, and a defective brand new replacement reactor head at Palisades, show that safety significant structures at atomic reactors are of questionable integrity and quality assurance. Three Mile Island and Arkansas Nuclear One have also experienced premature degradation of new replacement steam generators, manufactured by Areva of France. Of these, Paliades, Arkansas Nuclear One, and Three Mile Island have already had their 20 year license extensions rubberstamped by NRC.

Tuesday
Jan312012

North Anna's twin reactor experience another earthquake

NRC file photo of North Anna nuclear power plant, located on the shore of Lake Anna, VAAs reported by a Dominion Nuclear "Notification of Unusual Event," the twin atomic reactors at North Anna nuclear power plant in Mineral, Virginia experienced a 3.2 magntiude earthquake yesterday. Dominion claims no damage was done, and both reactors remain at 100% power. The timing of the earthquake is ironic. Today, NRC announced a new model for determining seismic risks at atomic reactors in the central and eastern U.S. And on Feb. 2nd, an NRC Petition Review Board will hold a second meeting with Beyond Nuclear and environmental allies, regarding an emergency enforcement petition to shut down both North Anna atomic reactors until adequate seismic protections are put in place. A 5.8 magnitude quake, epi-centered just 11 miles from North Anna, damaged high-level radioactive waste storage casks on August 23, 2011.

The Wall Street Journal quoted Dave Lochbaum, Director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' Nuclear Safety Project, on NRC's new seismic risk model:

"Critics said regulators are moving too slowly. 'The NRC does not need a new model—it needs a spine,' said Dave Lochbaum, director of nuclear safety for the Union of Concerned Scientists in Chattanooga, Tenn. The NRC already has sufficient evidence to require immediate upgrades to dozens of plants, he said, adding that further delay amounts to a 'bureaucratic stall tactic.' "

Tuesday
Jan312012

Mysterious fire causes "unusual event" at Byron Unit 2 in Illinois

NRC file photo of Byron nuclear plant; Unit 2's cooling tower is not currently releasing steam, but its turbine hall is -- steam contaminated with radioactive tritiumAs reported by a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) media release, Exelon Nuclear's Byron Unit 2 atomic reactor near Rockford, IL, primary electrical grid power was lost and safety and cooling systems had to run from emergency backup diesel generators when smoke was seen coming from a switchyard transformer. However, when the plant's fire brigade responded, they could not find the fire. The NRC activated its incident response center in Region III headquarters in Lisle, IL to monitor the situation.

As revealed by Exelon's "Event Report," offsite firefighters were called in, Unit 1 is still at full power, and Unit 2's cool down "steam [is] leaving via atmospheric relief valves."

An initial AP report on the incident stated: "The steam contains low levels of tritium, a radioactive form of hydrogen, but federal and plant officials insisted the levels were safe for workers and the public...[NRC] officials also said the release of tritium was expected...[NRC spokeswoman Viktoria] Mitlyng said officials can't yet calculate how much tritium is being released. They know the amounts are small because monitors around the plant aren't showing increased levels of radiation, she said...Tritium molecules are so microscopic that small amounts are able to pass from radioactive steam that originates in the reactor through tubing and into the water used to cool turbines and other equipment outside the reactor, Mitlyng said. The steam that was being released was coming from the turbine side...Tritium is relatively short-lived and penetrates the body weakly through the air compared to other radioactive contaminants."

But the linear no threshold theory, endorsed by the U.S. National Academies of Science for decades, holds that any exposure to radioactvity, no matter how small, still carries a health risk, and such risks are cumulative over a lifetime. It would be more honest for NRC officials to states that the tritium releases from Byron are "acceptably risky," in their judgment, but not "safe." After all, tritium is a potent radionuclide, a clinincally proven cause of cancer, mutations, and birth defects, and if inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin, can integrate anywhere in the human body, right down to the DNA level.

A follow up article by AP quoted NRC spokeswoman Viktoria Mytling as assuring that the reactor would not be re-started until a root cause of the incident was determined, and the problem fixed. However, such a promise by NRC at Davis-Besse, near Toledo, was recently broken by NRC: widespread cracking in the reactor's concrete shield building, a secondary radiological containment structure, did not stop NRC from rubberstamping the reactor's re-start on December 6th, even though the root cause, extent, and fix for the cracking have still not been determined.

The most recent update from AP reports that Exelon has announced a cause for the incident: a failed electrical insulator, which fell off.

As reported by a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) media release, Exelon Nuclear's Byron Unit 2 atomic reactor near Rockford, IL, primary electrical grid power was lost and safety and cooling systems had to run from emergency backup diesel generators when smoke was seen coming from a switchyard transformer. However, when the plant's fire brigade responded, they could not find the fire. The NRC activated its incident response center in Region III headquarters in Lisle, IL to monitor the situation.

As revealed by Exelon's "Event Report," offsite firefighters were called in, Unit 1 is still at full power, and Unit 2's cool down "steam [is] leaving via atmospheric relief valves."

An initial AP report on the incident stated: "The steam contains low levels of tritium, a radioactive form of hydrogen, but federal and plant officials insisted the levels were safe for workers and the public...[NRC] officials also said the release of tritium was expected...[NRC spokeswoman Viktoria] Mitlyng said officials can't yet calculate how much tritium is being released. They know the amounts are small because monitors around the plant aren't showing increased levels of radiation, she said...Tritium molecules are so microscopic that small amounts are able to pass from radioactive steam that originates in the reactor through tubing and into the water used to cool turbines and other equipment outside the reactor, Mitlyng said. The steam that was being released was coming from the turbine side...Tritium is relatively short-lived and penetrates the body weakly through the air compared to other radioactive contaminants."

But the linear no threshold theory, endorsed by the U.S. National Academies of Science for decades, holds that any exposure to radioactvity, no matter how small, still carries a health risk, and such risks are cumulative over a lifetime. It would be more honest for NRC officials to states that the tritium releases from Byron are "acceptably risky," in their judgment, but not "safe." After all, tritium is a potent radionuclide, a clinincally proven cause of cancer, mutations, and birth defects, and if inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin, can integrate anywhere in the human body, right down to the DNA level.

A follow up article by AP quoted NRC spokeswoman Viktoria Mytling as assuring that the reactor would not be re-started until a root cause of the incident was determined, and the problem fixed. However, such a promise by NRC at Davis-Besse, near Toledo, was recently broken by NRC: widespread cracking in the reactor's concrete shield building, a secondary radiological containment structure, did not stop NRC from rubberstamping the reactor's re-start on December 6th, even though the root cause, extent, and fix for the cracking have still not been determined.

The most recent update from AP reports that Exelon has announced a cause for the incident: a failed electrical insulator, which fell off.