EU Commission hauls UK to court over nuclear plant

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@EARTHLINK.NET>]

Index:



EU Commission hauls UK to court over nuclear plant

Radioactive substance found in crashed U.S. helicopter

Westinghouse awaits govt OK on China nuclear plants

Kansai Elec to restart two nuke reactors on Sunday

CMS Energy Announces Plan to Seek License Renewal for Nuclear Plant

=================================



EU Commission hauls UK to court over nuclear plant



BRUSSELS, Sept 3 (Reuters) - The European Union's executive will drag 

Britain to court in coming weeks for failing to grant EU inspectors 

full access to part of its Sellafield nuclear site that stores highly 

radioactive waste.



The European Commission said on Friday it would refer Britain to the 

European Court of Justice for its lack of a sufficient plan that 

would allow inspectors to account for highly-radioactive materials at 

the controversial plant.



"We are taking this action to demand that British authorities comply 

with their responsibilities," Energy Commissioner Loyola de Palacio 

told a news conference.



"We have to ensure that EU citizens are appropriately protected, that 

they are informed, that they have a guarantee that all nuclear power 

stations within the EU are functioning appropriately," she said.



The problem centres on B30, a subdivided concrete pool that is filled 

with radioactive waste, corroded fuel elements and sludge. The EU 

executive wanted a plan by June 1 that guaranteed the nuclear 

materials stored in he pool would be "properly accounted for" by UK 

operator British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL).



The Commission, which policies nuclear safety across the 25-nation 

bloc, also wanted guarantees the site would be completely accessible 

to Commission safety inspectors.



De Palacio said the information provided was not enough and had not 

been formally approved by the relevant UK authorities.



But she said she was confident that Britain now would respond to the 

increased pressure. Talks between the two sides could lead the 

Commission to withdraw its court case.



"I am confident the UK will put forward the adequate commitments and 

plans," de Palacio said.



A PROBLEM OF ACCOUNTING



A spokeswoman at Britain's EU representation in Brussels emphasised 

the Commission's concerns were related to accounting for what is done 

with the material in the pond -- not environmental risks.



"We recognize that this is a problem," said Emma Lockwood. "It's not 

about security and it's not about the environment. It's about 

accounting for what's in the pond."



The Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament welcomed the decision 

but said it was overdue.



"Although inspection visits have been conducted on an annual basis 

for 15 years, the problem remains the same: inspectors appear to be 

in the dark over exactly what is in the B30 pond," said Member of 

Parliament Caroline Lucas in a statement.



"As a result, nobody can be sure whether plutonium or uranium has 

been diverted for weapons use. This is particularly worrying given 

that it only takes a few kilograms of plutonium to make a nuclear 

bomb."



De Palacio also said she did not believe the plant posed any danger 

to EU citizens because British authorities were carrying out 

inspections.



This is the first time the EU executive has taken a member country to 

the European Court of Justice over a nuclear safety issue. No other 

nuclear plants in the 25-nation bloc posed similar concerns, de 

Palacio said.



The UK Department of Trade and Industry said in a statement that 

Commission inspectors had not been denied access to the plant. A 

spokesman for the plant also said access had not been denied but said 

it was difficult to get full access because of outdated equipment and 

high amounts of radiation.

-----------------



Radioactive substance found in crashed U.S. helicopter



NAHA, Japan, Sept. 3 (Kyodo) - A low-level radioactive substance was 

found in a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter that crashed at a university 

campus in Okinawa Prefecture on Aug. 13, university officials said 

Friday.  



The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo later said there are no traces of 

radioactive contamination at the crash site.



The U.S. military has told officials of the Okinawa International 

University, adjacent to the U.S. Marine Corps Futemma Air Station in 

Ginowan, the radioactive substance, which generates beta rays, was in 

a safety device aboard the CH-53D Sea Stallion helicopter. Three U.S. 

servicemen on board were injured in the incident.



The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo said in a statement, "Preliminary findings 

suggest...that there is no trace of radioactive contamination at the 

crash site."



It said the safety and rescue personnel of the U.S. Marine Corps have 

used a "Geiger Counter" radiation detector to check the strength of 

the radiation.



The embassy said the CH-53D helicopter is equipped with a rotor 

safety device and an ice detector that contains a low level 

radioactive isotope, Strontium-90.



The embassy said the rotor safety device is called an In-Flight Blade 

Inspection System (IBIS), a sensor attached to helicopter rotor 

blades that alerts the pilot to any cracks or weakness in the blades.



The IBIS safety device includes six sources in separate cases. The 

casings are located on the root of the blades attached to the rotor 

and each casing contains approximately 500 microcuries of Strontium-

90, encased in a tiny stainless steel protective cylinder about the 

size of a push button on a ballpoint pen, the embassy said in its 

statement. A microcurie is a millionth of a curie.



Five of the six cases were recovered from the crash site. The embassy 

said evidence shows one of the cases was vaporized in the wreckage 

and is no longer identifiable.



"The amount of Strontium-90 consumed in the fire poses no risk to 

humans. This amount equates to an exposure much less than a normal 

chest X-ray or a flight across the Pacific, " the statement said, 

adding the ice detector contains approximately 50 microcuries of 

Strontium 90, which was recovered at the site.



The IBIS is the same as those used on commercial aircraft, the U.S. 

said earlier.



The embassy said the U.S. Marines, in coordination with a private 

Japanese company, will conduct an environmental impact study and 

release the results as soon as possible, adding they will check for 

any kind of materials still at the site, including Strontium-90, 

fuel, other composite materials and any other potential contaminants.



The university officials earlier said U.S. authorities initially did 

not reveal the exact nature of the substance or the amount, only 

saying that it is very small.



The university has asked the U.S. authorities whether depleted 

uranium was also used to balance the aircraft, but were told by 

officials that tungsten, not depleted uranium, was used.



The university said it has asked the U.S. military to submit a list 

of all materials used in the helicopter, adding it has decided to 

conduct a joint examination of the soil at the crash site with the 

prefectural government.



Meanwhile, Katsuya Okada, president of Japan's main opposition 

Democratic Party of Japan, visited the crash site Friday.



He told reporters, "The helicopter crashed into a densely builtup 

residential area. It is nothing short of a miracle that there was no 

loss of life. The DPJ has pledged to move the Futemma Air Station 

outside Japan."



Japan and the United States agreed in 1996 to relocate Futemma base 

to a new site off the northern Okinawa city of Nago. Construction of 

an off-shore airport in Nago for use by the U.S. Marines has yet to 

begin, due primarily to opposition by local citizens.



Okada also met with Okinawa Gov. Keiichi Inamine to discuss the Japan-

U.S. Status of Forces Agreement.



After the crash, the U.S. military, invoking the agreement, sealed 

off the site and barred Japanese police from conducting an 

investigation on the university premises.



The incident prompted protests from Okinawa residents and intensified 

calls for the revision of the Status of Forces Agreement. The 

Japanese government seeks improved enforcement of the accord, rather 

than revision.



The SOFA governs the management and operation of the U.S. military in 

Japan. It requires Japanese authorities to seek permission from U.S. 

forces for investigations on U.S. military property.

-------------------



Westinghouse awaits govt OK on China nuclear plants



BOSTON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Westinghouse Electric Co. said on Thursday 

it expects a decision from the U.S. government by the end of this 

year or early next year on its application to build nuclear reactors 

in China.



Westinghouse Electric, a wholly-owned subsidiary of state-run British 

Nuclear Fuels, is awaiting approval from the U.S. State Department, 

which reviews applications to sell nuclear technology, reactors, fuel 

and components to China.



If it wins approval, the Pittsburgh-based company aims to place 

formal bids with the Chinese government to build two 1,100 megawatt 

nuclear power plants that could bring in as much as $2.7 billion in 

revenue for the company.



"It's a very large market, and we have already started to pursue that 

market," said Vaughn Gilbert, a spokesman at Westinghouse.



China has embarked on a plan to add two to three nuclear power plants 

a year for roughly the next 15 years so that nuclear power will 

account for about 4 percent of the country's power mix by 2020, Zhang 

Huazhu, chairman of the China Atomic Energy Authority, said on 

Wednesday.



Westinghouse, which faces competition for the project from France's 

Areva and Atomic Energy Canada Ltd., said it would build the AP1000 

model, a 1,100 megawatt plant which can provide energy to a city of 

nearly one million people.

-----------------



Kansai Elec to restart two nuke reactors on Sunday



TOKYO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Japan's Kansai Electric Power Co. said on 

Friday it would restart two nuclear reactors on Sept. 5, following 

their closure last month for checks in the wake of a deadly accident 

at one of its plants.



The firm, the country's second-biggest utility, said the No. 2 unit 

at its Takahama plant and the No. 4 unit at Ohi would be restarted as 

it had received approval from the central government and the local 

government in Fukui prefecture, western Japan.



Kansai Electric said it would begin to shut the Takahama No. 1, Ohi 

No. 2 and the No. 1 unit at its Mihama plant from Tuesday as part of 

a plan to close all of its nuclear reactors gradually for safety 

checks.



Superheated steam and water leaked from a broken pipe at the No. 3 

unit in Mihama on Aug. 9, killing five people and prompting that 

reactor's immediate closure. On Aug. 13, the Mihama No. 2, Ohi No. 4 

and Takahama No. 2 units were also shut for checks.



The restart of Mihama No. 2 will be delayed as Kansai Electric needs 

to replace two of its pipes, a company spokesman said.



"We will start the repairs as soon as we have shut the No. 1 unit (in 

Mihama), and it will take about two weeks from that point to restart 

No. 2," the spokesman said.



All of Kansai Electric's 11 nuclear units at its three nuclear 

plants, Mihama, Takahama and Ohi, are located in Fukui.

-------------------



CMS Energy Announces Plan to Seek License Renewal for Nuclear Plant



JACKSON, Mich., Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CMS Energy 

announced today that it will seek a license renewal for Consumers 

Energy's Palisades nuclear power plant.



The plant's current license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission 

(NRC) expires in 2011. Consumers Energy owns the facility, which is 

operated by the Nuclear Management Company (NMC). NMC will apply for 

a 20-year license renewal for the plant on behalf of Consumers 

Energy, which is the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS).



The NRC has approved license renewals for 26 nuclear generating units 

and is reviewing the applications submitted for 18 others. The United 

States has 103 licensed nuclear power plants, which generate about 20 

percent of the nation's electricity.



The Palisades plant can produce up to 789 megawatts, enough to serve 

a community of 500,000. The plant, which employs about 600, is 

located near South Haven.



Robert Fenech, Consumers Energy's senior vice president of nuclear, 

fossil and hydro operations, said the Palisades renewal application 

is scheduled to be filed in the first quarter of 2005.



"Palisades has been providing safe, low-cost energy to Consumers 

Energy's customers since 1971. A proactive maintenance program, major 

capital investments, and continuous training have contributed to the 

safe and reliable operation of the plant," Fenech said. "License 

renewal will allow the plant to continue to operate in the same 

manner that it does today, with continued stringent regulatory 

monitoring and oversight by the NRC."



Fenech noted the plant claimed the continuous generating record for 

Consumers Energy and CMS Energy power plants this summer, operating 

for 478 days straight.



"Palisades provides about 18 percent of Consumers Energy's generating 

capacity and it makes economic sense to keep the plant running and 

serving the utility's 1.7 million electric customers beyond 2011," 

Fenech said.







-------------------------------------

Sandy Perle

Senior Vice President, Technical Operations

Global Dosimetry Solutions, Inc.

2652 McGaw Avenue

Irvine, CA 92614 



Tel: (949) 296-2306 / (888) 437-1714  Extension 2306

Fax:(949) 296-1902 



E-Mail: sperle@dosimetry.com

E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net 



Global Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com/ 

Personal Website: http://sandy-travels.com/





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