Safety Questioned at Nuclear Plant

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 Safety Questioned at Nuclear Plant
  .c The Associated Press
 
  By MELISSA B. ROBINSON
 
 WASHINGTON (AP) - Connecticut's Millstone nuclear power plant - shut down
more than two years ago and hit with a record $2.1 million fine - could soon
be producing power again. But critics say shoddy practices continue at the
plant, raising safety concerns.
 
 Northeast Utilities recently discovered a leaky valve while Unit 3, the first
reactor in line for restart, was being powered up for a federal inspection.
The valve, part of the system for cooling the nuclear reactor, won't be fixed
until the plant needs refueling almost a year after it starts running again.
Until then, it will be secured with a brace.
 
 Meanwhile, there is still no evacuation plan for nearby Long Island in New
York in the event of a nuclear accident. The plant also has a 20 percent
failure rate for fixing technical problems. Its critics also are concerned
that the utility will revert to punishing whistlelowers.
 
 ``They just don't have their act together,'' said James Riccio, a lawyer with
Public Citizen's Critical Mass Energy Project, a nuclear watchdog group.
 
 On Tuesday, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a final hearing
to review outstanding issues at Millstone, a three-reactor complex in
Waterford, Conn., shut down in 1996 after a whistleblower disclosed a pattern
of licensing violations. A vote on restarting Unit 3 could come anytime
afterward.
 
 NRC Chairwoman Shirley Jackson has stressed that approval won't be granted
until the utility proves that it has changed its old ways. Those included
regularly emptying the entire reactor core to speed up refueling, a process
that should have been used only in emergencies.
 
 ``I take very seriously that kind of concern,'' said Jackson recently in
response to a question about Millstone's neighbors' safety worries. ``That is
my job.''
 
 But nuclear critics and neighbors fear that the restart will come before
Millstone's new programs to ensure safe operations and the proper handling of
workers' concerns are well-established. Last week, NRC Inspector General
Hubert Bell found that Jackson and four other commissioners held private, one-
on-one meetings with utility executives at least 23 times since March 1997.
 
 ``We don't feel comfortable with them being on-line,'' said Rosemary
Bassilakis, who lives near Millstone, told the NRC in May.
 
 Adding pressure is the approach of summer, with its heightened demand for
electricity. Northeast Utilities, the biggest utility in New England, will
lose the right to charge Connecticut ratepayers for plant costs if Unit 3 is
not running by July 1.
 
 Already, it has cost the utility $1.3 billion to replace electricity, make
changes to prevent brownouts and work on Millstone. Millstone's fines have
totaled $3.6 million.
 
 From the utility's perspective, Unit 3 has been through plenty of evaluations
from outside engineers, consultants and federal regulators. The NRC itself has
determined that sufficient progress has been made in three areas: ensuring
quality and oversight, managing a backlog of work and creating a climate where
workers will voice safety concerns and managers will listen.
 
 ``The bulk of everything that had to be done and had to be checked has been
done,'' said Terrence McIntosh, a utility spokesman. ``We feel confident.''
 
 AP-NY-06-01-98 1451EDT