[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

more Davis Besse problems; and Db looks for re-start date



Hi all,

More on Davis-Besse



Please note the key line in this story:



> The Akron utility

>

>   has acknowledged that its concerns about profit, not safety, led to the damage.

>



All along we at Unplug Salem have said that too often the nuke industry

puts short-term profits ahead of safety. We get poo-poo-ed by the

"pro-nukers" for saying that, but here, like at Indian Point, is a

perfect example. For a few more months of operaiton, DB officials risked

a LOCA, or worse.



Norm





"Dr. Bill Corcoran at NSRC" wrote:



> Colleague, Please scroll down for an article that may give you some

> insights. Admittedly one robin does not make a spring, but one wonders

> if robins fly alone. Ask yourself the assessment question: What's

> wrong with this picture? OBTW: The Akron Beacon-Journal, the Cleveland

> Plain Dealer, and the Toledo Blade should be rated "exceeds

> expectations" on their coverage. Best Regards, Bill Corcoran W. R.

> Corcoran, Ph.D., P.E.

> Nuclear Safety Review Concepts

> 21 Broadleaf Circle

> Windsor, CT 06095-1634

> 860-285-8779 Fax: 702-993-2408

> Mission: Saving lives, pain, assets, and careers through thoughtful

> inquiry. Check out our e-groups  at

> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Root_Cause_State_of_the_Practice/

> where you will find all back issues of "The Firebird Forum" and at

> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DBRVH_LTBL/

> where you will find a dialogue on the Davis-Besse near miss LOCA.,

> including photos, polls, files, tables, and links. For a complimentary

> subscription to our e-newsletter on root cause, organizational

> learning, and safety send a message to firebird.one@alum.MIT.edu

> Visit our web site at

> http://pages.prodigy.net/corcoran.nsrc/index.html

> _______________________________________________________________________________________Ohio

> Energy Company, Regulators to Discuss Date to Reopen Nuclear Plant

> -----------------------------------------------------------------------

> By Jim Mackinnon, Akron Beacon Journal, Ohio -- Sept. 18 FirstEnergy

> hopes to restart its Davis-Besse nuclear power plant as soon as Dec.

> 7, but it is again being forced to explain shoddy workmanship, this

> time regarding the crane used to lift a huge replacement part into

> place.

>

>

> Meeting with FirstEnergy managers Tuesday at Oak Harbor High School,

> Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials said they still have many

> questions about the plant and its work force, including management.

>

> In particular, NRC officials questioned why plant managers and

> supervisors did not prevent slipshod workmanship on the large crane

> inside the reactor. The upgrade was started after the crane had been

> used to help remove the old vessel head and install the new one.

>

> The NRC and FirstEnergy are scheduled to meet this morning to discuss

> how the Akron utility is working to correct management and work force

> deficiencies at the power plant.

>

> "It's clear that in at least one work activity you haven't addressed

> the issues," Jack Grobe, an NRC official, said. "It's critical those

> expectations come to life in the plant."

>

> NRC permission is necessary before the plant can restart, but he said

> more work needs to be done. "The important thing is, we are not

> committed to restart," said Grobe, chairman of a panel checking into

> the readiness of Davis-Besse. "We are committed to safety."

>

> Mike Stevens, director of maintenance at Davis-Besse, said he

> discovered during an inspection of work on the interior crane that

> screws were missing on some panels, light bulbs were out, metal

> shavings were left behind and other parts of the project did not meet

> standards. The crane was being upgraded by a contractor, he said.

>

> A contractor's employee working on the crane was more concerned about

> meeting a schedule than replacing light bulbs or making sure all the

> panel screws were filled in, Stevens said. While work on the crane has

> been halted, he and others have used the opportunity to emphasize to

> plant employees and contractors the need to meet quality goals, not

> schedules, he said.

>

> "The crane wasn't falling apart," said Lew Myers, chief operating

> officer for FirstEnergy's Nuclear Operating Co. "It just didn't meet

> our requirements."

>

> The crane work did not affect plant safety, Grobe said. He said his

> concern is that it took Stevens, a senior manager, to catch the

> workmanship problems.

>

> Work continues to progress at the plant, including major upgrades of

> some safety systems, FirstEnergy managers said. About 1,300

> contractors are on site working on repairs, upgrades and maintenance,

> Myers said. The plant has about 800 full-time employees as well.

>

> Davis-Besse has been kept shut down since early March after a safety

> inspection found two boric acid-created cavities on top of the plant's

> former reactor vessel head. The Akron utility

>

> has acknowledged that its concerns about profit, not safety, led to

> the damage. An inspection of the damaged vessel head in the past two

> weeks found tiny cracks on a thin stainless steel lining, all that was

> left to hold back high pressure, radioactive coolant at the location

> of the largest of the two cavities.

>

> The new vessel head is in place, and nuclear fuel could be installed

> as early as Oct. 30 as part of a testing process to bring the plant

> back up to full power and generating electricity by early December,

> FirstEnergy managers said. The NRC does not have to approve the

> refueling, Grobe said. A schedule unveiled at Tuesday's meeting showed

> that FirstEnergy hopes to get NRC approval to restart the nuclear

> plant on Nov. 18 and gradually bring it up to full power.

>

> "There's a lot that has to happen before then," Grobe said. Final

> authority on allowing Davis-Besse to restart rests with NRC regional

> administrator Jim Dyer, in consultation with NRC headquarters, Grobe

> said.

>

> A massive hole cut into the concrete and steel containment building

> that protects the nuclear reactor will be repaired in upcoming weeks.

> The hole was needed to remove the old vessel head and to install the

> new one, which came from an unused nuclear reactor in Michigan

>

> FirstEnergy will install a new sump system at Davis-Besse that will

> significantly improve plant safety if there is a loss of coolant

> accident inside the containment chamber, officials said. The sump

> would be used to recirculate water back into the reactor to keep it

> cool. The larger the sump, the better the safety margin, officials

> said. The Davis-Besse upgrade will enlarge the area of the sump from

> about 50 square feet to as much as 1,200 square feet.

>

> The company will also install a new, permanent seal around the reactor

> at a cost of several million dollars that will minimize coolant leaks

> that typically occur during the refueling process, Myers said. The

> company previously has used a series of temporary seals that were

> prone to leaks, he said.

>

> Cost of the repair project could hit as much as $300 million.

>

> To see more of the Akron Beacon Journal, or to subscribe to the

> newspaper, go to http://www.ohio.com/bj

>

> (c) 2002, Akron Beacon Journal, Ohio. Distributed by Knight

> Ridder/Tribune Business News. FE,

>

>

>                    Yahoo! Groups Sponsor

                        ADVERTISEMENT





>

> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:

> DBRVH_LTBL-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

>

>

>

> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.



--

Coalition for Peace and Justice and the UNPLUG Salem Campaign; 321 Barr

Ave., Linwood, NJ 08221; 609-601-8583 or 609-601-8537;

ncohen12@comcast.net  UNPLUG SALEM WEBSITE:

http://www.unplugsalem.org/  COALITION FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE WEBSITE:

http://www.coalitionforpeaceandjustice.org   The Coalition for Peace and

Justice is a chapter of Peace Action.

"First they ignore you; Then they laugh at you; Then they fight you;

Then you win. (Gandhi) "Why walk when you can fly?"  (Mary Chapin

Carpenter)





************************************************************************

You are currently subscribed to the Radsafe mailing list. To unsubscribe,

send an e-mail to Majordomo@list.vanderbilt.edu  Put the text "unsubscribe

radsafe" (no quote marks) in the body of the e-mail, with no subject line.

You can view the Radsafe archives at http://www.vanderbilt.edu/radsafe/