Michele Kearney's Nuclear Wire

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Brussels bombings: Terror group 'were planning to attack nuclear power station', surveillance suggests | Europe | News | The Independent

Post-Fukushima safety updates made at Spain’s nuclear power stations | Olive Press News Spain

Nuclear Power: Is Smaller Better? SMRs to the Rescue.

San Onofre and Steam Generator Design

http://atomicpowerreview.blogspot.com/2012/04/san-onofre-and-steam-generator-design.html

Fukushima Update 3/24/16

Fukushima Update 3/24/16 –

Muon detection to be used in unit #2 later this month… Kansai Electric’s chief is blasted for comments concerning the Takahama injunction… Japan presses China to lift Fukushima-based import bans… Tepco apologizes to Niigata Prefecture for delaying meltdown announcement… The new “311 Thyroid Cancer Family Group”… Numerous Fukushima evacuees complain of deteriorated health… Shikoku Electric will seek a July restart for Ikata unit #3.

http://www.hiroshimasyndrome.com/fukushima-accident-updates.html

NRC Seeks Comment On Lowering Fees - News - Nuclear Power News - Nuclear Street - Nuclear Power Plant News, Jobs, and Careers

Progress continues at Vogtle nuclear expansion

As Pilgrim plant nears closure, concerns rise over future of the site - The Boston Globe

Do Nuclear Plant Leaks Endanger Drinking Water? : Discovery News

How China needs to improve its legal framework on nuclear security | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

V.C. Summer Nuclear Station Prepares Emergency | wltx.com

Closing Pilgrim nuke plant won't be easy, experts say - News - The Enterprise, Brockton, MA - Brockton, MA

NRC suggests TVA discouraging Watts Bar employees from reporting safety concerns | News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News | WTVC

Email Conn. energy committee to hold hearing on nuclear energy's profitability

Conn. energy committee to hold hearing on nuclear energy's profitability

A public hearing to discuss methods for boosting nuclear power's profitability in Connecticut will be held by the state legislature's Energy and Technology Committee today. Millstone nuclear plant owner Dominion Resources showed interest in a hearing amid economic struggles for US nuclear plants in deregulated markets. The plant's operating licenses expire in 2035 and 2045, and without Millstone's contributions, Connecticut's carbon emissions would increase by 27%, according to a state assessment.

CTMirror.org (Connecticut) (3/23) http://ctmirror.org/2016/03/23/nuclear-powers-future-in-connecticut-is-on-the-table/

Haley to feds: Stop sending plutonium to SC

S.C. governor asks Energy Dept. to stop plutonium shipment to SRS

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has asked Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz to keep a Japanese plutonium shipment from arriving at the Savannah River Site. In a letter to Moniz, Haley told him to either stop or reroute the shipment, which contains 331 kilograms of plutonium.

The Post and Courier (Charleston, S.C.) (free registration)/The Associated Press
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20160323/PC1603/160329767/1031/haley-to-feds-stop-sending-plutonium-to-sc

NRC Blog Update: A Chilling Effect is Not Cool

A Chilling Effect is Not Cool

by Moderator

Roger Hannah
Senior Public Affairs Officer
Region II

The NRC Region II office issued a “chilling effect” letter to the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Watts Bar nuclear plant this week, but what exactly does that mean?

The “chilling” has nothing to do with weather, but rather refers to a workplace environment where employees may be hesitant to raise safety concerns for fear of retaliation or because previously raised concerns were not adequately addressed.

In the Watts Bar case and several others before it, the NRC identified situations where some employees told the NRC they might be reluctant to talk to their supervisors, managers or even the NRC about safety issues because they were afraid of potential effects on their jobs. At Watts Bar, these concerns arose in the operations department, but the NRC takes those concerns very seriously whether they are isolated or more widespread.

When the NRC issues a “chilling effect” letter to a nuclear plant or any other licensed facility, it is designed to ensure that those organizations are taking appropriate actions to foster a workplace environment that encourages workers at all levels to raise safety concerns without the fear of retaliation and management to promptly and effectively address the concerns.

The NRC met with TVA officials March 22 to discuss the work environment concerns and the letter issued the following day simply puts into writing the expectations that the NRC has for TVA to address the concerns at the Watts Bar plant.

TVA officials are being asked to provide a plan that describes how work environment issues at the Watts Bar plant will be addressed and then attend another public meeting to discuss both that plan and how the NRC will monitor and inspect any corrective actions.

The NRC is confident that most workers at the Watts Bar plant and throughout the nuclear industry feel safe in raising safety concerns within their own organizations or directly to the NRC. That ability is an important supplement to the NRC inspection program in ensuring the safety of the facilities the agency regulates.

Any attempt to influence that ability will not be tolerated by the NRC and there are other similar letters in the past showing just how uncool the NRC finds any workplace chilling effect.

Moderator | March 24, 2016 at 2:30 pm | Tags: NRC, nuclear power plant, safety issues, Tennessee Valley Authority, Watts Bar | Categories: Operating Reactors | URL: http://wp.me/p1fSSY-1OZ

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U.S. Nuclear Energy Industry Has A Clean Bill Of Health And Says Its Plants Deserve A Life Extension

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kensilverstein/2016/03/23/nuclear-energy-industry-has-a-clean-bill-of-health-and-says-its-plants-deserve-a-life-extension/#4e09fdd027c3