Source: Reuters
Date:
Editor's Note: There is a more recent update, the NRC says don't freak out about this alert.
(Reuters) -
Exelon Corp declared an "alert" at its New Jersey Oyster Creek nuclear
power plant due to a record storm surge, the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission said on Monday, warning that a further rise in water levels
could force operators to use emergency water supplies from a fire hose
to cool spent uranium fuel rods.
The alert -- the second lowest
of four NRC action levels -- came after water levels at the plant rose
by more than 6.5 feet, potentially affecting the pumps that circulate
water through the plant, an NRC spokesman said.
Those
pumps are not essential since the plant is shut for planned refueling
at the moment. However a further rise to 7 feet could submerge the
service water pump motor that is used to cool the water in the spent
fuel pool.
The spokesman said the
company could use water from a fire hose to cool the pool if necessary.
The used uranium rods in the pool could cause the water to boil within
25 hours without additional coolant; in an extreme scenario the rods
could overheat, risking the eventual release of radiation.
The NRC said in a statement that it expected water levels would begin to abate within the next several hours.
Sandy
made landfall earlier in the evening as the most powerful Atlantic
storm to hit the United States, bringing an over 13-foot storm surge.
There
have been about a dozen instances of alert-level nuclear incidents in
the past four years, according to NRC press releases. An alert-level
incident means there is a "potential substantial degradation in the
level of safety" at a reactor.
The
concerns over the status of the spent fuel pool at Oyster Creek were
reminiscent of the fears that followed the Fukushima disaster in Japan last year, when helicopters and fire hoses were enlisted to ensure the pools remained filled with fresh, cool water.
The nuclear industry has said that the spent fuel rods at Fukushima were never exposed to the air.
(Reporting by Scott DiSavino; Editing by Ed Davies)
Provide radiation related news regarding the Japan Fukushima nuclear plant disaster and global radiation levels and environmental contamination.
Salvation Army Japan Disaster Relief
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Tuesday, October 30, 2012
10/30/2012 Nuclear plant shuts down unit, another put on alert as Sandy pounds East Coast
Source: The Washington Post
Date:
One of the units at Indian Point, a plant about 45 miles north of New York City, was shut down around 10:45 p.m. because of external electrical grid issues said Entergy Corp., which operates the plant. The company said there was no risk to employees or the public, and the plant was not at risk due to water levels from the Hudson River, which reached 9 feet 8 inches and was subsiding. Another unit at the plant was still operating at full power.
...
Read the rest here
Date:
One of the units at Indian Point, a plant about 45 miles north of New York City, was shut down around 10:45 p.m. because of external electrical grid issues said Entergy Corp., which operates the plant. The company said there was no risk to employees or the public, and the plant was not at risk due to water levels from the Hudson River, which reached 9 feet 8 inches and was subsiding. Another unit at the plant was still operating at full power.
...
Read the rest here
Monday, October 29, 2012
10/29/2012 Nuclear Power Plants from Virginia to Vermont Could Be Impacted from Massive Hurricane Sandy
Source: Democracy Now
Date: 10/29/2012
by: Amy Goodman, Arnie Gunderson
Video Description
Date: 10/29/2012
by: Amy Goodman, Arnie Gunderson
Video Description
Visit http://www.democracynow.org
for the complete transcript, additional reports on this topic, and more
information. Watch the independent, global news hour live weekdays
8-9am ET.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has acknowledged the massive Sandy storm could impact both coastal and inland nuclear power plants. At least 16 reactors are in the storm's projected path, including North Anna and Surry in Virginia; Calvert Cliffs in Maryland; Oyster Creek, Hope Creek and Salem in New Jersey; Indian Point in New York; Millstone in Connecticut; and Vermont Yankee. So far there have been no reports of reactors shutting down, despite operating under licenses that require them to do so if weather conditions are too severe. "The biggest problem, as I see it right now, is the Oyster Creek plant, which is on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey," says former nuclear executive Arnie Gunderson, noting it lies in the project eye of the storm. "Oyster Creek is the same design design, but even older, than Fukushima Daichii unit one. It's in a refueling outage. That means that all the nuclear fuel is not in the nuclear reactor, but it's over in the spent fuel pool. And in that condition, there's no back-up power for the spent fuel pools. So, if Oyster Creek were to lose its offsite power, and frankly that's really likely, there would be no way cool that nuclear fuel thats in the fuel pool until they get the power reestablished. ... The most important lesson we can take out of Fukushima Daiichi and climate change, and especially with Hurricane Sandy, is that we can't expect to cool these fueling pools."
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The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has acknowledged the massive Sandy storm could impact both coastal and inland nuclear power plants. At least 16 reactors are in the storm's projected path, including North Anna and Surry in Virginia; Calvert Cliffs in Maryland; Oyster Creek, Hope Creek and Salem in New Jersey; Indian Point in New York; Millstone in Connecticut; and Vermont Yankee. So far there have been no reports of reactors shutting down, despite operating under licenses that require them to do so if weather conditions are too severe. "The biggest problem, as I see it right now, is the Oyster Creek plant, which is on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey," says former nuclear executive Arnie Gunderson, noting it lies in the project eye of the storm. "Oyster Creek is the same design design, but even older, than Fukushima Daichii unit one. It's in a refueling outage. That means that all the nuclear fuel is not in the nuclear reactor, but it's over in the spent fuel pool. And in that condition, there's no back-up power for the spent fuel pools. So, if Oyster Creek were to lose its offsite power, and frankly that's really likely, there would be no way cool that nuclear fuel thats in the fuel pool until they get the power reestablished. ... The most important lesson we can take out of Fukushima Daiichi and climate change, and especially with Hurricane Sandy, is that we can't expect to cool these fueling pools."
Tune in to Democracy Now! for our upcoming Election Night broadcast on November 6: http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2012/10/10/expanding_the_debate_upcoming_dem...
To watch the entire weekday independent news hour, read the transcript, download the podcast, search our vast archive, or to find more information about Democracy Now! and Amy Goodman, visit http://www.democracynow.org.
FOLLOW DEMOCRACY NOW! ONLINE:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/democracynow
Twitter: @democracynow
Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/democracynow
Listen on SoundCloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/democracynow
Daily Email News Digest: http://www.democracynow.org/subscribe
Please consider supporting independent media by making a donation to Democracy Now! today, visit http://www.democracynow.org/donate/YT
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
10/24/2012 115 CPM reading from Frederick, WI on Radiation Network
Source: Nokaoi Traverse (from Facebook Radiation Watch group)
Date: 10/24/2012 9:30 PM CST (approximate)
Editor's Note: A second Geiger Counter up North in the general area as the Grand Rapids, Minnesota meter from Radiation Network with high readings decreases the probability that the Grand Rapids meter (which is offline as of this moment) 100+CPM alert level reading was a fluke. Note that the Frederic, WI meter has technically exceeded the alerting level but has not shown up in the alerts section of Radiation Network (yet).
Date: 10/24/2012 9:30 PM CST (approximate)
Editor's Note: A second Geiger Counter up North in the general area as the Grand Rapids, Minnesota meter from Radiation Network with high readings decreases the probability that the Grand Rapids meter (which is offline as of this moment) 100+CPM alert level reading was a fluke. Note that the Frederic, WI meter has technically exceeded the alerting level but has not shown up in the alerts section of Radiation Network (yet).
Monday, October 22, 2012
RadiationNetwork shows 110 CPM in Grand Rapids, Minnesota
Source: RadiationNetwork.com
Date: 10/22/2012
Here is a copy and paste the Alerts section of RadiationNetwork.com:
Update: 10/22/12,
5:00 P.M. - Radiation Alert in Minnesota
The Radiation Network has a contributing Monitoring Station located in Grand Rapids, Minnesota that is triggering Radiation Alerts as I write this, since about 1:00 P.M. local time. Until we receive feedback from the station operator, we have no reason to believe this is not a genuine detection of elevated radiation levels, and so as with our policy, this will be allowed to play out for the time being.
The graph shows steadily rising radiation from a normal background level of about 40 CPM, eventually exceeding the 100 CPM alert level on our network. We know Grand Rapids operates the PRM-9000 Geiger counter which is built around the same ultra-sensitive pancake style Geiger-Mueller tube as in the Inspector line of instruments. Without yet knowing the source or nature of the Grand Rapids radiation, I can say that particular model of GM tube has demonstrated at other times and across other monitoring stations how sensitive it is to passing radioactive weather patterns, even from an indoor monitoring posture. When we obtain more information, we will provide a follow-up report.
For future posterity, here is a video by MissingSky101 of the high reading:
Date: 10/22/2012
Here is a copy and paste the Alerts section of RadiationNetwork.com:
Update: 10/22/12,
5:00 P.M. - Radiation Alert in MinnesotaThe Radiation Network has a contributing Monitoring Station located in Grand Rapids, Minnesota that is triggering Radiation Alerts as I write this, since about 1:00 P.M. local time. Until we receive feedback from the station operator, we have no reason to believe this is not a genuine detection of elevated radiation levels, and so as with our policy, this will be allowed to play out for the time being.
The graph shows steadily rising radiation from a normal background level of about 40 CPM, eventually exceeding the 100 CPM alert level on our network. We know Grand Rapids operates the PRM-9000 Geiger counter which is built around the same ultra-sensitive pancake style Geiger-Mueller tube as in the Inspector line of instruments. Without yet knowing the source or nature of the Grand Rapids radiation, I can say that particular model of GM tube has demonstrated at other times and across other monitoring stations how sensitive it is to passing radioactive weather patterns, even from an indoor monitoring posture. When we obtain more information, we will provide a follow-up report.
For future posterity, here is a video by MissingSky101 of the high reading:
Monday, October 15, 2012
10/15/2012 Busby: Iraqi birth defects surge from US depleted uranium ammo
Source: Russia Today
Date: 10/15/2012
by: Dr. Christopher Busby
Video Description
Date: 10/15/2012
by: Dr. Christopher Busby
Video Description
A new study's revealed a staggering rise in birth defects among Iraqi children conceived in the aftermath of the US led war.
The findings were published by the Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology.
It's suggested American and British ammunition has caused high rates of miscarriages and birth defects - including in the heart and brain.
Professor Christopher Busby from the European Committee on Radiation Risks believes the invaders should take responsibility for what they did.
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RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.
The findings were published by the Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology.
It's suggested American and British ammunition has caused high rates of miscarriages and birth defects - including in the heart and brain.
Professor Christopher Busby from the European Committee on Radiation Risks believes the invaders should take responsibility for what they did.
RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air
Subscribe to RT! http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=RussiaToday
Like us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/RTnews
Follow us on Twitter http://twitter.com/RT_com
Follow us on Google+ http://plus.google.com/+RT
RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.
Saturday, October 6, 2012
10/4/2012 Top Nuclear Experts: Technology Doesn’t Yet Exist to Clean Up Fukushima
Source: Washington's Blog
Date: 10/4/2012
AP reports:
Date: 10/4/2012
Containing Fukushima Is Beyond Current Technology
World-renowned physicist Michio Kaku said recently:It will take years to invent a new generation of robots able to withstand the radiation.(The radiation inside the reactors is too hot even for robots.)
AP reports:
Hiroshi Tasaka, a nuclear engineer and professor at Tama University who advised the prime minister after the disaster … said the government target of removing all the rods by the end of next year may prove too optimistic because of many unknowns, the need to develop new technology and the risk of aftershocks.The world leader in decommissioning nuclear reactors, and one of the main contractors hired to clean up Fukushima – EnergySolutions – made a similar point in May:
Concerning the extraction of fuel debris [at Fukushima], which is considered the most challenging process, “There is no technology which may be directly applied,” said [top EnergySolutions executive] Morant.
10/3/2012 AMERICAN Government Forces Re-Start of Japanese Nuclear Reactors
Source: Washington's Blog
Date: 10/3/2012
After the Fukushima disaster – in an effort to protect the American nuclear industry – the U.S. has joined Japan in raising “acceptable” radiation levels. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also signed a pact with her counterpart in Japan agreeing that the U.S. will continue buying seafood from Japan, despite the fact that the FDA is refusing to test seafood for radiation in any meaningful fashion. So U.S. actions are helping to protect a pro-nuclear policy in Japan.
Indeed, mainstream Japanese newspaper Nikkei reports that it was President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton who have pressured the Japanese to re-start that country’s nuclear program after the Japanese government vowed to end all nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.
...
Read the rest here
Date: 10/3/2012
Americans Are Largely Responsible for Japan’s Ongoing Nuclear Policy
Archaic nuclear reactor designs such as those used at Fukushima – built by American company General Electric – were chosen because they were good for making nuclear bombs. The U.S. secretly helped Japan develop its nuclear weapons program starting in the the 1980s. Therefore, the U.S. played a large role in Japan’s development of nuclear energy. (See this).After the Fukushima disaster – in an effort to protect the American nuclear industry – the U.S. has joined Japan in raising “acceptable” radiation levels. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also signed a pact with her counterpart in Japan agreeing that the U.S. will continue buying seafood from Japan, despite the fact that the FDA is refusing to test seafood for radiation in any meaningful fashion. So U.S. actions are helping to protect a pro-nuclear policy in Japan.
Indeed, mainstream Japanese newspaper Nikkei reports that it was President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton who have pressured the Japanese to re-start that country’s nuclear program after the Japanese government vowed to end all nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster.
...
Read the rest here
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