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Month: March 2016

Breaking: Belgian nuclear power plants evacuated following airport and train station terrorist attacks

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From ENE News
March 22, 2016
BREAKING: Belgian nuclear power plants evacuated” after terror attacks — Multiple reactor sites cleared “amid heightened fears of another attack” — Military and armed police on scene — Capitol on lockdown after dozens killed — “Dismembered bodies everywhere… It’s like the apocalypse” (VIDEO)

Xinhua, Mar 22, 2016 (emphasis added): Urgent: Nuclear power plant in southeast Belgium evacuated — Employees of the Tihange nuclear power plant [have] been evacuated, according to reports from Flemish media outlet VTM. The causes for the evacuation were not immediately made known. The threat level in Belgium has been raised to the highest level 4 from the previous level 3 following explosions at Brussels airport and on a city subway train…

Reuters, Mar 22, 2016: Belgium’s Tihange nuclear power plant evacuated-VTM — Belgium’s Tihange nuclear power plant has been evacuated, public broadcaster VTM said without giving further details. Tihange could not immediately be reached for comment. “The police have evacuated the Tihange nuclear station,” VTM said, citing police sources.

Reuters, Mar 22, 2016: Belgian nuclear plants Doel and Tihange partly evacuated — Staff not essential for the running of nuclear plants in Doel and Tihange in Belgium have been evacuated… the evacuation was part of a set of safety measures related to the high security alert in the country… Belgian broadcaster VTM said earlier Tihange had been evacuated following the attacks.

The Mirror, Mar 22, 2016: Brussels attacks: Tihange nuclear power plant evacuated after dozens killed in terror attack… A major nuclear power plant in Belgium has been partially evacuated following this morning’s terror attacks. Workers at the Tihange nuclear power plant are now leaving the building… Two explosive devices ripped through Brussels airport in the departure hall, then a third blast hit a metro station in the city centre… officials have declared the Belgium capital city is on “lockdown”. One witness described seeing ‘dismembered bodies everywhere’ after the ceiling collapsed in the airport building… Samir Derrouich said: “The two explosions were almost simultaneous. They were both at check in desk. One was close to the Starbucks. It was awful. There was just blood. It was like the apocalypse.”

The Express, Mar 22, 2016: BREAKING: Belgian nuclear power plants evacuated after Brussels terror attack; TWO nuclear power plants in Belgium have been evacuated… The Tihange power plant… and the Doel power plant in Antwerp have been cleared amid heightened fears of another attack. Security has been stepped up at both Doel, which houses four reactors, and Tihange, which houses three. Armed police and the Belgian military have been on site since the weekend… Energy company Engie said all non-essential staff had been evacuated at the request of Belgian authorities… Belgian authorities are braced for a follow-up attack… French Prime Minister Manuel Valls declared Europe was “at war”…

Politco, Mar 22, 2016: Energy utility Electrabel has stepped up security at Belgium’s two nuclear power plants, following the attacks in Brussels Tuesday. The two plants — Doel, made up of four reactors, and Tihange, with three — have been closed, with “systematic control” of all vehicles coming and going, Anne-Sophie Hugé, a company spokeswoman told POLITICO…

BNO, Mar 22, 2016: [A]uthorities have confirmed at least 34 dead and 187 injured… Belgium has been put on its highest terror alert level… Brussels has been brought to a virtual standstill… Tihange nuclear power plant in Huy in the Belgian province of Liege has been evacuated, according to local police, but there is no word on the cause. Nuclear watchdog FANC says nuclear power plants are operating at minimum capacity until further notice.

Zee Media (India), Mar 22, 2016: Belgium’s Tihange nuclear plant evacuated, reports Belgian media… A pro-Islamic State group Twitter handle… threatened more attacks: “Expect more bombs, more death! in future also.” Pro-Islamic State group praises Brussels bombings, warns of more attacks… Belgian authorities urge media blackout on ‘ongoing investigations’ after attacks…

Watch video of the attacks here

http://enenews.com/breaking-belgian-nuclear-power-plants-evacuated-after-terror-attacks-multiple-reactor-sites-cleared-amid-heightened-fears-another-attack-military-armed-police-scene-capital-city-lockdown-afte

Monterey Bay: Seals starving, dying; 100% death rate of baby seals at pupping beach in Pacific Grove

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This beach is located in Pacific Grove near Lovers’ Point, at Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station. It is next to the route of the Big Sur Half Marathon.

There is no mention by local marine biologists of Fukushima radiation.

From ENE News
3 -22-16

100% death rate of baby seals on California coast — “None have survived” — “Many are starving, suffering from shortage of food in Pacific Ocean” — “Extremely thin… all sorts of illnesses, infections” — “Milkless moms immediately abandoning pups” — TV: “The problem is getting worse” (VIDEOS)

KION, Mar 17, 2016 (emphasis added): Sea lion moms and pups struggling to survive…  Bay Net, a volunteer group of naturalists, are keeping a watchful eye on them at the Hopkins Marine Station in Pacific Grove. They say the start of the season has been rough. “Some of them have been way too thin to have a healthy birth and have enough milk to feed it,” said Bay Net volunteer Thom Akeman. So far this season 13 pups have been born but none of them have survived. Many seals are underweight and starving, suffering from a shortage of food in the Pacific Ocean… “When they get extremely thin they’re open to all sorts of illnesses and infections,” said [volunteer Marg] Brigadier … The group Harbor Seals of Pacific Grove has been documenting the unusually high rate of dying pups on Facebook.

Chronological updates from Facebook page ‘Harbor Seals of Pacific Grove’

  • Jan 25: The first live birth hit Hopkins beach… [The mom] was not nursing it… The pup is very premature and does not appear fully developed…
  • Jan 26: The premature pup from last night was gone. It had been washed away but there was a second premature birth… [The mom] clearly did not have any milk… what concerns us is the overall look of the seals. So many of the seals appear thin…
  • Jan 30: I am sorry to report that our 3rd premature pup was born… This was by far the smallest pup I have ever observed. It did not last longer then [sic] about 5 minutes.
  • Jan 31: [W]e had our 4th premature pup born at Hopkins Beach… [it] died very quickly…
  • Feb 3: We continue to see very thin adult seals…
  • Feb 19: Our 5th premature pup was on the Hopkins beach tonight [and] will not survive…
  • Feb 23: Two more premature pups were born… I will spare you the photos… no moms were able to care for them… Saturday, a very young emaciated sea lion pup was discovered at Lovers Point. Washed ashore on the beach were a lot of red crab… if this trend continues in our oceans, many, many more animals will perish…
  • Mar 4: [P]remature pup #8 was born… and yesterday morning premature pup #9 was born… Neither of these pups survived and in both cases the moms abandoned them right away… Many of the harbor seals continue to look thin and it becoming painfully clear that we may have lost a portion of our adult seals as they have not returned to the rookery for the past 1 to 2 years… and have been constant fixtures on Hopkins beach… the warming of the oceans and lack of food are taking their toll on the harbor seals as well as, the seal lions and the waterfowl.
  • Mar 8: #10 was born… Once again, this pup was abandoned and is very premature. It will go the way of the 9 pups preceding it… It has already been abandoned…
  • Mar 10: After 10 live births this year where milkless moms immediately abandoned the pups, this mom stayed on Hopkins beach with the 11th live birth of the season… We watched the pup until after 6pm with no successful nursing…
  • Mar 15: I do not think our two pups (#11 with the mom and #12 the abandoned pup) will be with us… I did not see them… Yesterday, pup #12 was in the center of the beach looking very lethargic and pup #11 just never seemed to thrive or put any weight on…

KION transcript, Mar 16, 2016: The problem is getting worse. “Last year was unprecedented for us, we had 359. This year we’re already at 160, and it’s only the middle of March.”

Watch KION’s broadcasts: One | Two

http://enenews.com/100-mortality-baby-seals-california-coast-survived-underweight-starving-suffering-shortage-food-extremely-thin-all-sorts-illnesses-infections-milkless-moms-immediately-abandoning-pups-vide

Global rally for zero nuclear weapons, April 1, Washington DC

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Posted on Beyond Nuclear

Rally for Zero

Nuclear weapons do not equal security

On March 31 & April 1, world leaders are convening right here in DC to talk nuclear security. Not on the agenda: nuclear weapons.

That has to change. There are 15,000 nuclear weapons in the world today, thousands ready to fire at a moment’s notice. Nuclear weapons jeopardize global security – not strengthen it.

Join us as we rally to show world leaders that 15,000 nuclear weapons ≠ security. It’s time they take action for zero.

Who: Global Zero, the international movement to eliminate nuclear weapons, and you!

What: A rally featuring a life-size inflated nuclear missile and Global Zero movement leaders

When: Friday, April 1st, 12:00pm

Where: McPherson Square

RSVP at: http://www.globalzero.org/protest

Email ldaigle@globalzero.org for more information.

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/nuclear-weapons/2016/4/1/global-zero-rally-for-zero-april-1st-washington-dc.html

Update: Upcoming U.S. hearings: what would it take for YOU to CONSENT to Nuclear Waste? DOE wants to “know”

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DOE should be met with torches and pitchforks, and run out of town.

UPDATE: DOE is requesting/requiring registration. Each of these meetings can be viewed on the web as they happen.

From the Department of Energy
http://www.energy.gov/ne/consent-based-siting

UPCOMING EVENTS

Our next public meeting will be held in Sacramento, California on April 26th at the Holiday Inn Capitol Plaza.

The remaining five public meetings will be in:

  • Denver, Colorado on May 24, 2016 at the Embassy Suites Denver – Stapleton.
  • Boston, Massachusetts on June 2, 2016 at the Hyatt Regency Boston.
  • Tempe, AZ n June 23, 2016 at the Marriott Phoenix Tempe at the Buttes.
  • Boise, ID on July 14, 2016 at Boise Centre.
  • Minneapolis, MN on July 21, 2016 at the Hilton Minneapolis.

We look forward to your participation!

Posted on Beyond Nuclear

March 17, 2016

Our friends and colleagues at NIRS put out the following action alert on March 10, 2016:

The US Dept. of Energy (DOE) is holding 8 Public Meetings and taking written comments on

“CONSENTING” to TAKE NUCLEAR WASTE

After decades of trying to force-feed the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear dump down the throats of Nevadans and the Western Shoshone Nation, the DOE and nuclear proponents want to know what it will take to get people to “consent” or appear to consent to take nuclear waste.

DOE openly acknowledges this is “consent” to future nuclear waste production as part of the “integrated waste management system.” They say that the future of nuclear energy in this country depends on this.

Meetings will be held from noon or 1 PM to ~ 5PM

CHICAGO, IL           March 29, 2016           University of Chicago Conference Center

ATLANTA, GA          April 11, 2016             Georgia Institute of Technology Conference Center

[The following DATES were not included in NIRS’ action alert on March 10th; later that very same day, however, a DOE spokesman at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Regulatory Information Conference, during the “Spent Fuel – Perspectives on Interim Consolidated Storage” workshop session, confirmed the following dates, but still not the exact locations, other than the city and state.]

SACRAMENTO, CA   Late April, 2016           Exact location yet to be announced

DENVER, CO           Late May, 2016           Exact location yet to be announced

BOSTON, MA           Early June, 2016         Exact location yet to be announced

TEMPE, AZ              Late June, 2016          Exact location yet to be announced

BOISE, ID               Mid-July, 2016            Exact location yet to be announced

MINNEAPOLIS, MN       Late July, 2016       Exact location yet to be announced

DOE seeks our input on how to be FAIR, WHO to include, what RESOURCES it will take to induce participation.

They want to identify who adequately represents a community and will “consent” or claim to agree to take nuclear waste.

[Editor: This was done with Native American tribes. The U.S. government would find someone in the tribe willing to do what they wanted, and they would be appointed an “official” representative capable of making decisions for the whole tribe. Then the tribe would be sold out by the decisions made. This would also cause massive discord and enmity within the tribes, pitting member against member. Generally, these arrangements would concern natural resources and land.

Indigenous people typically regard land as held in common; dividing up land and portioning off land to individual families goes against their ways. By offering money to often desperately poor members, the U.S. government, and/or private companies could destroy the unity of the tribe and create so much internal tribal discord that opposition would be greatly diminished, and confiscate land and/or resources.]

They are not defining exactly what or how much nuclear waste we would be “consenting” or not consenting to accept.

They are not asking how a community can refuse or express permanent “non-consent,” although you can let them know that if you choose to.

Although they have reports, diagrams of storage containers and systems, ideas and plans for the tens of thousands of tons of nuclear waste in this country, they claim to want to negotiate with communities who would “consent” to take it forever or supposedly temporarily.

NO CONSIDERATION OF THE RIGHTS OR CONSENT OF THOSE ALONG TRANSPORT ROUTES IS BEING MADE OR REQUESTED. Although one of the greatest dangers to the most people, environments and ecosystems is the movement of tens of thousands of tons of nuclear waste on roads, rails and waterways, DOE stated at its Washington DC ‘kickoff’ meeting that there is complete federal preemption over transport of nuclear waste so that would not be part of the process.

There is NO Consideration of the rights of future generations who will inevitably be affected.

The nuclear industry is eager for volunteers or consenting communities to take the waste and for the US Department of Energy to take title to it.

Meetings will be in 8 US CITIES from MARCH TO JULY 2016.

Comment deadline is June 15, 2016; email to consentbasedsiting@hq.doe.gov.  Please include “Response to IPC” [which stands for “Invitation for Public Comment”] in the subject line.

DETAILS:

Federal Register Notice:

https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/12/23/2015-32346/invitation-for-public-comment-to-inform-the-design-of-a-consent-based-siting-process-for-nuclear

DOE website for more of their information and to REGISTER for MEETINGS: http://www.energy.gov/ne/consent-based-siting

Info coming soon at www.nirs.org at Stop Fukushima Freeways

More info: dianed@nirs.org; after March 21  maryo@nirs.org; For Chicago meeting neis@neis.org

(See Beyond Nuclear’s web post from January 2016, immediately following DOE’s Washington, D.C. “Kick-Off” meeting for its “Consent-Based Siting” public comment proceeding (which, by the way, included NO oral public comment opportunity! Supposedly, future public meetings listed above WILL include an oral public comment opportunity — that is the whole point! But we will see. Another disconnect that still has to be resolved is, public comment meetings are scheduled for AFTER the deadline for public comment — so DOE must extend the public comment deadline until at least all scheduled meetings are finished and done!)

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/radioactive-waste-whatsnew/2016/3/17/nirs-what-would-it-take-for-you-to-consent-to-nuclear-waste.html

“The NRC Seven” push back against agency collusion with industry, expose dangerous flaw at all plants

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From Beyond Nuclear

March 10, 2016 newsletter

The Japanese Parliament, after an independent investigation, concluded that the root cause of the ongoing Fukushima Daiichi nuclear catastrophe, which began five years ago, was collusion between regulator, industry, and government officials. To our great peril, the U.S. has similar collusion in spades. But in a rare move, several U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staffers have gone public with an unresolved safety dispute.

Dubbed “the NRC Seven” by David Lochbaum of Union of Concerned Scientists, who praises “their courage and service to the country” as comparable to the Project Mercury astronauts, these staffers have blown the whistle on a risk present at all 99 operating U.S. reactors, as well as five more under construction.

“Open phase” electrical faults — revealed by a Jan. 2012 incident at Exelon’s Byron nuclear plant in Illinois — have gone effectively unaddressed, for more than four long years. Systems vital to maintaining safety and cooling, such as the Emergency Core Cooling System, might not work when called upon. Having exhausted their efforts within the system, “the NRC Seven” have acted in their capacity as private citizens, and filed a “2.206” petition.

But this “emergency enforcement petition” bureaucratic procedure was designed to fail: only one in 200 previous such citizen petitions has resulted in meaningful NRC safety upgrades. Their hope seems to be that media coverage, and resultant public awareness and pressure, will force the moribund agency to do its job, to protect public health, safety, and the environment.

Website:

…Hopefully, the NRC Seven will not encounter a harsh environment in response to their efforts to protect millions of Americans from a longstanding nuclear safety problem.

Lochbaum’s blog then summarizes the key milestones leading to the NRC Seven submitting their petition, beginning with the revelation of the problem on January 30, 2012 with an “open phase event” at Exelon’s Byron nuclear power plant in Illinois.

An “open phase event,” in short, involves dysfunction in a nuclear power plant’s electrical systems, structures, and components essential for running vital safety and cooling systems, such as the Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS). In certain circumstances, the ECCS is the last line of defense against reactor core meltdown, and catastrophic radioactivity release.

Reuters, Syracuse.com, EcoWatch, and Utility Dive have reported on this story.

http://www.beyondnuclear.org/safety/2016/3/4/ucss-lochbaum-the-nrc-seven-petitioning-the-nrc-over-safety.html

Got KI? Campaign to distribute potassium iodide (KI)

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From Beyond Nuclear

Protect you and your family during a nuclear emergency with potassium iodide (KI).

Beyond Nuclear is campaigning to have state and federal authorities adopt the recommendations of the American Thyroid Association’s “Nuclear Radiation and the Thyroid” calling for the pre-distribution and stockpiling of KI in and around Emergency Planning Zones at all U.S. nuclear power plants:

  • 0 to 50 miles            Pre-distribution by direct delivery of KI to all residents
  • 50 to 200 miles        Stockpile KI in schools, hospitals, police and fire stations
  • >200 miles               Make KI available through the HHS National stockpile

Read more on why KI needs to be incorporated more effectively into emergency planning around U.S. nuclear power plants.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Monday
Oct 26 2015

Canada begins direct delivery of KI to residents around Darlington and Pickering

DateOctober 26, 2015

In September 2015, the Canadaian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) began delivering KI directly to the homes of every resident within 10 kilometers of nuclear power plants like Darlington nuclear generating station. Greenpeace Canada wants direct delivery to extend farther beyond this six mile radius. The American Thyroid Association is calling for direct delivery of KI to every resident within 50 miles of U.S. reactors.

Judge halts Takahama nuclear reactors

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From Bloomberg
Japanese utilities plunge after court injunction on reactors
by sstapczynski and
March 2016
Kansai Electric Power shares decline most since October 1987
  • Power company prevented from running two reactors in Takahama

Kansai Electric Power Co. fell by the most in more than 28 years, leading Japanese utilities lower after a court injunction prevented the company from operating two nuclear reactors, threatening the country’s return to atomic power five years after the Fukushima disaster.

Kansai Electric, Japan’s second-largest power utility, closed down 15 percent at 1,047 yen in Tokyo on Thursday, the biggest drop since October 1987. The 20-member Topix Electronic Power & Gas Index slumped 3.1 percent, compared with a 1.5 percent rise in the broader index.

The Otsu District Court cited safety concerns in issuing the injunction Wednesday in a decision that applies to the plant’s No. 3 and No. 4 reactors at its Takahama plant, according to court documents. The utility said it will begin shutting its No. 3 unit on Thursday.

The ruling is a setback for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who has backed the return of atomic power after the 2011 Fukushima disaster led to the shutdown of the country’s entire nuclear fleet. Kansai resumed operations at its Takahama No. 3 unit in January and the No. 4 unit in February before the latter was placed in cold shutdown on March 2 after an alarm.

“This is a reminder that there is still a long way to go to restore public trust in the nuclear industry following Fukushima,” James Taverner, a Tokyo-based analyst at consultant IHS Inc. said in an e-mail. “The success of this injunction (even if temporary) will likely encourage other groups of local residents to seek similar injunctions for other nuclear plants.”

Kyushu Electric Power Co., which restarted two of its nuclear reactors last year, fell 8 percent to 1,063 yen, the biggest decline since June 2013.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-10/kansai-electric-plunges-after-court-injunction-on-takahama

Fires at two U.S. nuclear plants; emergency declarations by NRC

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Oconee Nuclear Plant in North Carolina — March 7, 2016
Watts Bar Nuclear Plant in Tennessee — March 9, 2016

From ENE News

ALERT: Emergency at US nuclear plant after “massive” fire and multiple explosions — “All of a sudden we heard this loud boom and the whole ground started shaking” — “Intense Flames… Heavy Black Smoke… Chaos” — 100s of fire personnel called in — “We ask that the public stay away from the area” (VIDEOS)

3-8-16

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mar 7, 2016 (emphasis added): [Oconee Nuclear Station, SC] EMERGENCY DECLARATION DUE TO FIRE/EXPLOSION IN THE MAIN TRANSFORMER… At 1520 EST, the licensee declared a Notification of Unusual Event… personnel were applying additional foam to prevent a re-flash… Offsite assistance was requested with three local fire departments… At 1658 EST, the licensee declared an Alert [when] the fire damaged an overhead power line that supplies emergency power to all three units at Oconee.

WHNS transcript, Mar 7, 2016: People fishing on the lake… reported hearing a loud boom and seeing black smoke, and then steam… Witnesses say there were two explosions… This afternoon [was] chaos… Fire crews [were] all on scene at the Oconee nuclear plant after a massive electrical fire… Fire Official: “It’s also in very close proximity to the buildings… I know they worked on… preventing the transformer from impinging on any of the other structures”… People in the area were very concerned when they saw heavy black smoke… Witness: “All of a sudden we heard this loud boom and the whole ground started shaking.”… It’s a scary situation… [An official] said it was a very rare problem.

Loudspeaker at Oconee Nuclear Station: “Attention all site personnel… This is an emergency message… An unusual event has been declared for Unit 1… TSC – OSC [Technical Support Center – Onsite Operational Support Center] activation is necessary and the TSC – OSC has not yet been activated. Activate the TSC – OSC — I repeat, activate the TSC – OSC.”

WYFF, Mar 7, 2016: Scott Batson, site vice president [said] the intense flames and smoke came from oil burning… Batson said because a cable burned in the fire fell and caused other equipment to be affected, which led to the “unusual event” to be upgraded to an alert.

FOX Carolina, Mar 7, 2016: Hundreds of fire personnel sprang into action after a fire started at the Oconee Nuclear Plant.

WSPA transcript, Mar 7, 2016: Nearby Resident: “I freaked out – you see a fire, smoke at a a power plant”… Fire Chief: “When you’re responding to a call, and you can see it when you leave the station like that, it really kind of gets your adrenaline going.”

Oconee County Emergency Management, Mar 7, 2016: “We ask that the public stay away from the area as emergency personnel and Duke Energy staff work.”

Greenville News, Mar 6, 2016: The alert was necessary because the problem could have affected operations of the plant itself… The transformer is 25 to 30 feet from the turbine building that serves Unit 1 and about 100 yards from the reactor building…

WLOS, Mar 6, 2016: A transformer burst into flames at an Upstate nuclear power station…. Officials did ask the public to stay away from the area… The fire chief also said crews are continuing to work with on-site personnel to ensure… there is no further extension.

From last month: ALERT: Fire/explosion at North Carolina nuclear plant (VIDEO)

Watch broadcasts: WHNS | WSPA | Loudspeaker Announcement

EMERGENCY: Fire breaks out at another US nuclear plant — Blaze ignites in turbine building — “It took so long to put out” — Alert issued to government officials (VIDEO)

March 10, 2016

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Mar 9, 2016 (emphasis added): WATTS BAR [Tennessee]… Emergency Class: UNUSUAL EVENT… EMERGENCY DECLARED… UNUSUAL EVENT DECLARED DUE TO A FIRE GREATER THAN 15 MINUTES… Watts Bar Unit 2 declared an Unusual Event at 0342 EST based on a fire greater than 15 minutes in the turbine building – 2B Hotwell pump motor… Notified DHS… DOE, FEMA… and Nuclear SSA…

WBIR, Mar 9, 2016: An electrical fire overnight at TVA’s Watts Bar Nuclear Plant in southeast Tennessee triggered an alert… It took about 29 minutes from the time the fire was discovered until it was extinguished by the Watts Bar Fire Brigade. The pump was in a part of the plant that is hard to access, and that’s why it took so long to put out. Because the fire burned longer than 15 minutes, a Notice of Unusual Event (NUE) was declared. The NUE triggered an alert to TEMA and other agencies… Unit 2 is fueled but is non-operational. The hot well is where the steam from power generation ends up after being condensed back into water.

WTVC, Mar 9, 2016: TVA spokesman Scott Brooks says the fire broke out at 3:45 a.m. in one of the pump motors, one that received an operating license back in October.

Power Engineering, Mar 9, 2016: Watts Bar 2 Shut Down After Turbine Building Fire — Workers with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) declared an Unusual Event at Watts Bar Unit 2 in Tennessee due to a fire inside the turbine building… The cause is under investigation.

Chattanooga Times Free Press, Mar 10, 2016: Fire at Watts Bar… triggers emergency event

Chattanooga Times Free Press, Mar 9, 2016: Fire in Watts Bar pump motor on Thursday declared an emergency… fire ignited early Wednesday in one of the pump motors for TVA’s newest reactors, forcing the federal utility to declare the lowest of emergency classifications at the plant even before it has produced any power… The Watts Bar Unit 2 reactor will be the first new nuclear reactor added to America’s nuclear grid since the other Watts Bar unit started up in 1996. TVA has spent more than $5 billion to build the unit through a series of starts and stops in construction since the project began in 1973.

WRCB, Mar 9, 2016: Fire in Watts Bar pump motor today brings emergency declaration

WJHL, Mar 9, 2016: TVA: Watts Bar Dam generating unit caught on fire… Tennessee Valley Authority was alerted of an “usual event” [and] was able to extinguish the fire after the alert.

Watch WBIR’s broadcast here

 

http://enenews.com/alert-emergency-nuclear-plant-after-massive-fire-multiple-explosions-all-sudden-heard-loud-boom-ground-started-shaking-videos

http://enenews.com/fire-breaks-another-nuclear-plant-emergency-event-declared-long-put-alert-issued-government-officials-video

Leaking beachfront nuclear reactor near Miami threatening Florida everglades

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Posted on Zero Hedge
3-10-16

Submitted by Claire Bernish via TheAntiMedia.org,

According to a study released by Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez on Monday, the waters of Biscayne Bay measured 215 times the level of radioactive tritium as is found in normal ocean water.

Tritium is a radioactive isotope traceable to nuclear plant cooling tower operations. In this case, the leak appears to be emanating from the aging canals in the Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station located nearby.

“This is one of several things we were very worried about,” said South Miami Mayor and biological sciences professor, Philip Stoddard, as the Miami New Times reported. “You would have to work hard to find a worse place to put a nuclear plant, right between two national parks and subject to hurricanes and storm surge.”

Biscayne Bay harbors one of the largest coral reefs on the planet and is situated near the Everglades. Hot, salty water from the canals appears to be flowing back into both national parks, which has caused concern among environmentalists and others from the time Turkey Point planned to expand its reactors in 2013.

“They argued the canals were a closed system, but that’s not how water works in South Florida,” Stoddard remarked.

“How much damage is that cooling canal system causing the bay is a question to be answered,” Everglades Law Center Attorney Julie Dick told the Miami Herald prior to reviewing the report. “There are a lot more unknowns than knowns and it just shows how much more attention we need to be paying to that cooling canal system.”

Tritium, a hydrogen isotope, is considered a precursor indication of leaks from nuclear plants, as it ‘travels’ or spreads faster than, and often precedes, other radioactive agents.

“While the tritium levels far fall below levels experts consider dangerous, the telltale tracer provided the critical link that high levels of ammonia and phosphorus in sections of bay bottom — pollution that is more damaging to marine life — likely came from the canals,” the Herald explained. Samples for the county monitoring study were gathered during December and January — and the tritium levels seem to show Florida Power & Light in violation of both local water laws and federal operating permits.

FPL, which operates Turkey Point, will likely receive another violation due to the leak — the county issued a citation in October for tainted groundwater — to force FPL to bring the plant into compliance, the Herald reported Tuesday.

After news of the report made headlines, critics, including environmentalists, nearby rock miners, and Rep. Jose Javier Rodriguez, came forward in full force calling for the Environmental Protection Agency to intervene in the matter.

“For years our state regulators have failed to take seriously the threat to our public safety, to our drinking water, and to our environment posed by FP&L’s actions at Turkey Point,” Rodriguez asserted, according to the New Times.“Evidence revealed this week of radioactive material in Biscayne Bay is the last straw and I join those calling on the U.S. EPA to step in and do what our state regulators have so far refused to do — protect the public.”

The leak also serves as possible confirmation for environmentalists who have suspected radioactive leaks from Turkey Point as the cause of algae blooms appearing in the bay for years.

“Biscayne Bay has not traditionally had algae blooms,” explained executive director for Miami Waterkeeper Rachel Silverstein, reported the Herald. “That’s from pollution. From sewers, septic tanks and now we know, cooling canals.”

Indeed, though FPL claims it continues to protect the health of the bay, as the Herald noted, Turkey Point has created issues for the waterways since the facility began producing more energy three years ago. “When you look at the big picture,” FPL environmental director, Matt Raffenberg, insisted, the canals “are not impacting Biscayne Bay.”

At a meeting on Tuesday, county commissioners discussed the imperative need to bring FPL and Turkey point into compliance with the law.

“We’ve had stop gap measures we’ve approved,” Gimenez said. “So far they’ve not proved to be the solution.”

Referencing the last time FPL was forced to implement changes following a lawsuit in the 1970s, he added, “It’s time we enter the 21st century.”

FPL’s continued problems with Turkey Point might have finally crossed the legal line by violating the federal Clean Water Act.

“There’s a certain validation to critics in seeing this result in the study,” Stoddard said. “But more important, it’s now crossed the threshold of federal law here.”

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-03-10/leaking-beachfront-nuclear-reactor-near-miami-threatening-florida-everglades

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Experts had long criticized potential weakness in GE Mark 1 design of Fukushima reactors — 23 reactors of same design in U.S.

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Written at the beginning of the disaster.

From New York Times

By TOM ZELLER Jr.
MARCH 15, 2011

The warnings were stark and issued repeatedly as far back as 1972: If the cooling systems ever failed at a “Mark 1” nuclear reactor, the primary containment vessel surrounding the reactor would probably burst as the fuel rods inside overheated. Dangerous radiation would spew into the environment.

Now, with one Mark 1 containment vessel damaged at the embattled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and other vessels there under severe strain, the weaknesses of the design — developed in the 1960s by General Electric — could be contributing to the unfolding catastrophe.

A fuel storage pool in the Fukushima plant reactor building. Surrounding this and reactors like it is a containment vessel, the last line of defense if cooling fails. Jiji Press/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

When the ability to cool a reactor is compromised, the containment vessel is the last line of defense. Typically made of steel and concrete, it is designed to prevent — for a time — melting fuel rods from spewing radiation into the environment if cooling efforts completely fail.

In some reactors, known as pressurized water reactors, the system is sealed inside a thick steel-and-cement tomb. Most nuclear reactors around the world are of this type.

But the type of containment vessel and pressure suppression system used in the failing reactors at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi plant is physically less robust, and it has long been thought to be more susceptible to failure in an emergency than competing designs. In the United States, 23 reactors at 16 locations use the Mark 1 design, including the Oyster Creek plant in central New Jersey, the Dresden plant near Chicago and the Monticello plant near Minneapolis.

G.E. began making the Mark 1 boiling-water reactors in the 1960s, marketing them as cheaper and easier to build — in part because they used a comparatively smaller and less expensive containment structure.

American regulators began identifying weaknesses very early on.

In 1972, Stephen H. Hanauer, then a safety official with the Atomic Energy Commission, recommended that the Mark 1 system be discontinued because it presented unacceptable safety risks. Among the concerns cited was the smaller containment design, which was more susceptible to explosion and rupture from a buildup in hydrogen — a situation that may have unfolded at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Later that same year, Joseph Hendrie, who would later become chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a successor agency to the atomic commission, said the idea of a ban on such systems was attractive. But the technology had been so widely accepted by the industry and regulatory officials, he said, that “reversal of this hallowed policy, particularly at this time, could well be the end of nuclear power.”

In an e-mail on Tuesday, David Lochbaum, director of the Nuclear Safety Program at the Union for Concerned Scientists, said those words seemed ironic now, given the potential global ripples from the Japanese accident.

“Not banning them might be the end of nuclear power,” said Mr. Lochbaum, a nuclear engineer who spent 17 years working in nuclear facilities, including three that used the G.E. design.

Questions about the design escalated in the mid-1980s, when Harold Denton, an official with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, asserted that Mark 1 reactors had a 90 percent probability of bursting should the fuel rods overheat and melt in an accident.

Industry officials disputed that assessment, saying the chance of failure was only about 10 percent.

Michael Tetuan, a spokesman for G.E.’s water and power division, staunchly defended the technology this week, calling it “the industry’s workhorse with a proven track record of safety and reliability for more than 40 years.”

Mr. Tetuan said there are currently 32 Mark 1 boiling-water reactors operating safely around the globe.

“There has never been a breach of a Mark 1 containment system,” he said.

Several utilities and plant operators also threatened to sue G.E. in the late 1980s after the disclosure of internal company documents dating back to 1975 that suggested that the containment vessel designs were either insufficiently tested or had flaws that could compromise safety.

The Mark 1 reactors in the United States have undergone a variety of modifications since the initial concerns were raised. Among these, according to Mr. Lochbaum, were changes to the torus — a water-filled vessel encircling the primary containment vessel that is used to reduce pressure in the reactor. In early iterations, steam rushing from the primary vessel into the torus under high pressure could cause the vessel to jump off the floor.

In the late 1980s, all Mark 1 reactors in the United States were also retrofitted with venting systems to help reduce pressure in an overheating situation.

It is not clear precisely what modifications were made to the Japanese boiling-water reactors now failing, but James Klapproth, the chief nuclear engineer for General Electric Hitachi, said a venting system was in place at the Fukushima plants to help relieve pressure.

The specific role of the G.E. design in the Fukushima crisis is likely to be a matter of debate, and it is possible that any reactor design could succumb to the one-two punch of an earthquake and tsunami like those that occurred last week in Japan.

Although G.E.’s liability would seem limited in Japan — largely because the regulatory system in that country places most liability on the plant operator — the company’s stock fell 31 cents to $19.61 in trading Tuesday.

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