Report Suggests Palisades Could Close

There is a report the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is warning Entergy that the Palisades nuclear plant could be shut down in four years. Reuters reports the NRC says the metal in the reactor vessel is approaching the limit for handling what it calls "pressurized thermal shock." An NRC spokeswoman told our newsroom last week that the issue is rare, and happens when large amounts of water is pumped in to rapidly cool the reactor. The commission says it's not a current safety problem at Palisades, but rather is a phenomenon they're aware of with nuclear power plants and have safety requirements to ensure it's not a problem. Entergy has to provide evidence to the government that the vessel would stay safe past 2017 if it wants to keep Palisades operating. The NRC is holding a webinar a week from today from 5 to 6 p.m. online to discuss the issue. We have reached out to the NRC to comment on the Reuters report.

Additionally, the Union of Concerned Scientists has recently criticized Palisades for being among the top three nuclear power plants in the country with what it calls "near-misses" over the past three years. The UCS is a critic of the nuclear industry and says Palisades has had three issues in the past three years. The NRC has been working with Palisades on all of those, and to improve what it calls the safety culture at the plant. Both the federal agency and plant management say significant progress has been made over the past year and the plant is safe.