It was an evening of mixed messages from the federal watchdog of the nation’s nuclear plants. Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials admitted during a “webinar” that the metal surrounding the main reactor at the Palisades plant near Covert is some of the most fragile among such commercial facilities in the nation, and that it will exceed standards for brittleness by 2017. The issue came up as the agency discussed the effects of pressurized thermal shock, in which a heated reactor is filled with cold water due to an emergency or accident. However, the NRC concurred with plant operator Entergy in saying that Palisades is currently operating safely within present federal regulations. Chair of the Energy and Commerce Committee Congressman Fed Upton says the NRC won't tolerate facilities that are unsafe.
Activists have been pressuring the NRC to close Palisades due to its age and a number of shutdowns in recent years. Another webinar on radioactive releases is set for July.
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Activists have been pressuring the NRC to close Palisades due to its age and a number of shutdowns in recent years. Another webinar on radioactive releases is set for July.
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