NEI Nuclear Notes

The title of the Akron Beacon-Journal’s editorial is “A Compromising Position for FirstEnergy and Ohio.” Uh-oh – what could this be about ? As it turns out, nothing bad at all: Too many environmentalists have a blind-spot for nuclear power. Yet, if the problem of climate change is dire — and it is — how reckless to cast aside a clean power source capable of generating an ample and steady supply. Those who applaud the Obama White House for preparing to issue limits on carbon emissions also should cheer plans to keep Davis-Besse in operation. FirstEnergy wants to charge ratepayers a bit extra to keep Davis-Besse and a coal plant afloat while natural gas remains inexpensive. You might expect the local newspaper to find fault with that – it could be made to sound like a greedy utility with its hand out - but it doesn’t. This is an exceptionally mature viewpoint, a recognition that what’s true now – low natural gas prices – won’t be true forever. What the newspaper does not point...

The following post was sent to us by Dominion’s Richard Hanson for NEI’s Powered by Our People promotion . Powered by Our People is part of the Future of Energy campaign that NEI launched earlier this year. This promotion aims to communicate innovation in our nation’s nuclear facilities in the voices of the people working at them. Richard Hanson Richard is the manager of protection services at North Anna Power Station in Louisa County in Central Virginia. He’s worked in the nuclear industry for 11 years. For more on this promotion, take a look at the featured content on our website and follow the #futureofenergy tag across our digital channels. Tell us about yourself, and how long you’ve been in the nuclear energy industry. I am the manager of protection services at North Anna Power Station . We’re owned by Dominion Virginia Power and I’ve been in the nuclear industry for approximately 11 years. Why do you enjoy what you do? I enjoy what I do because I get a sense of a...

Scott Peterson The following is a guest post by Scott Peterson, NEI's Senior Vice President of Communications. Companies that operate America’s nuclear energy facilities today will submit new information regarding seismic safety as part of a series of actions the industry is taking to implement lessons learned from the 2011 Fukushima accident . This comes at a time of heightened interest in earthquakes given the Los Angeles-area temblors this past weekend . However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2012 required energy companies to reevaluate potential seismic hazards for each of America’s 100 reactors. Nuclear energy facilities were designed and built with extra safety margin, in part to be able to withstand an earthquake even beyond the strongest ever at each site . Nonetheless, over the past decades, the industry has re-evaluated the seismic safety of its facilities. Each time new seismic information became available, plant operators have confirmed, and in many ca...

Dominion Virginia's North Anna Power Station We're coming up on the first anniversary of the 2011 earthquake that jolted the East Coast of the U.S. While the quake did little damage -- other than fraying the nerves of millions who never experienced even a tremor that small all of their lives -- plenty of folks were moved to ask questions about the safety of nuclear energy facilities, especially as the quake came just months after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi. As it turned out, virtually all of the plants on the East Coast endured the event without missing a beat . The only exception was Dominion Virginia Power 's North Anna Power Station . North Anna was the nuclear facility closest to the epicenter of the quake in Mineral, Virginia. When the quake struck, the facility shut down safely and automatically, just as it was designed to do. Just ahead of the anniversary of the quake, the team at Dominion Virginia has published a video recounting how its team respond...

If you happen to be in Washington DC tonight, check out a new film called Under Control at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum. If you’re not familiar with the Hirshhorn, it’s the modern art museum where your cranky aunt will point out that children could make art as good as that on display. And Under Control sounds as though it adopts an aesthetic rather than documentary approach. Hirshhorn associate curator Kelly Gordon first saw the piece at the Berlin Film Festival this past February and came away impressed. “It is a mind-blowing study of the haunting elegance of the hardware of the industry,” she says. “The film meditates on the poetry of technology but also the echo of mass destruction.” I imagine for some, including your cranky aunt, that says, “Poison. Stay away.” After all, it’s not just a film, it’s a “piece.” And it “meditates.” And it does seem to want to at least imply a connection between constructive and destructive uses of energy. Hollow, echoing sounds...

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission held a public meeting yesterday to discuss its team’s preliminary inspection results on how the North Anna nuclear plant withstood the August 23 earthquake that rippled throughout the East Coast and the adequacy of the plant’s response. What did they find? David Heacock, Dominion’s president and chief nu clear officer, explains in a short video clip at the meeting: The plant operated as designed with a few minor equipment problems and the people did a fantastic job operating the plant and safely shutting it down. Each nuclear plant in the United States is built to safely withstand an earthquake—North Anna is no exception. But Heacock explains how having an additional safety margin helped the plant when the unexpected quake struck. These plants were designed for a seismic event about the size of this seismic event, but for a much longer duration. Duration is very important. As duration gets longer, more and more energy gets impart...

The following press release was just issued by NRC. NRC CONFIRMS POST-EARTHQUAKE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE NORTH ANNA NUCLEAR POWER PLANT The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has informed Dominion Generation, operator of the two-reactor North Anna nuclear power plant near Louisa, Va., of actions that must be completed before the agency will authorize the restart of the plant. The plant shut down safely following the Aug. 23 earthquake near Louisa. “We’re reviewing Dominion’s information to ensure North Anna’s systems will be able to keep the public safe and the plant won’t start up again until we’re satisfied on that point,” said Eric Leeds, director of the NRC’s Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. “We’re working diligently on coming to a technically sound decision.” The NRC has issued Dominion a Confirmatory Action Letter, which reiterates that since the Aug. 23 earthquake exceeded design parameters for North Anna, the plant will remain shut down until Dominion demonstrates “to the Commiss...

How serious was the earthquake the hit the east coast last month. Consider: These fine folk are starting at the top of the Washington Monument and rappelling down to check out the structure. In the meantime, the monument is closed to the public. Here’s some detail : The team [two men and two women] plans to climb up and down the monument to check each stone for cracks, chips and other damage caused by the 5.8-magnitude quake that shook the nation's capital Aug. 23. They will take breaks as needed by making a descent that can take 12 to 15 minutes without stops, and resume work by riding the elevator back to the top. Presumably, the fourth team member is on the dark side of the monument. Happily, these aren’t just daredevils without portfolio. [Team member Erik] Sohn is part of a team from a private firm that's certified with a rare combination of climbing and engineering skills. and: Each team member is carrying several items, including a digital camer...

This morning's edition of the Richmond Times-Dispatch has a short piece reporting that the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League is moving to block the construction of a third reactor at North Anna in Virginia in the wake of the August earthquake on the East coast. Here's what the folks at Dominion Virginia Power have to say about the action: Dominion Virginia Power, owner of two nuclear reactors at the North Anna plant, said the earthquake has no bearing on the licensing of a third unit, which would be built to a seismic standard more than four times that of the existing units. "We have worked through the seismic requirements for Unit 3," utility spokesman Rick Zuercher said Thursday night. "They're stringent and would have well withstood what happened at North Anna with the existing units." While the ground vibration from the quake exceeded design limits for the two existing reactors, the utility said the plant suffered no significant damage. I c...

Just to cross a T from last week’s earthquake: Dominion, the plant's operator, notified the NRC Friday that its analysis of ground shaking showed the quake could have exceeded its design parameters. An independent analysis by the government also had determined that was likely. Oh? But since nuclear power plants are built with margins of safety beyond the maximum expected shaking, the damage detected so far has been minimal. Oh! The NRC had already sent a seismic expert and a structural expert out to the facility, in addition to its inspector onsite. Let’s keep on eye on this one and see how it shakes out. --- The Paducah (Ken.) Sun looks at both North Anna and Nebraska’s Fort Calhoun (which found itself in the middle of a swollen Missouri River during much of the summer) and notes that both came through their respective bouts with mother nature unscathed. Conclusion : With debate growing more intense over the safety of nuclear power as part of the ...

From NEI’s Response Center (this goes to members and Capitol Hill, but I asked to be able to share it with you): All 12 plants that declared unusual events in the wake of yesterday’s East Coast earthquake have exited emergency status. Dominion’s North Anna station declared an alert, as both reactors at the site shut down automatically upon the loss of off-site power, which the company reported late yesterday had been restored. North Anna remains in alert status. NEI will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available. --- Here’s your headline (from The Hill, which covers Capitol Hill) - Earthquake reignites debate over safety of nuclear power – and here’s your sample paragraph: While there were no reports of damage at the North Anna reactors [the ones nearest the epicenter] and plant operator Dominion said the cooling systems were working properly, nuclear opponents quickly pounced on the incident Tuesday. I’m almost absolutely sure The Hill isn’t t...

Those of us on the east coast have yet another major event to remember – a 5.8 earthquake that shook virtually the entire east coast. No one who doesn’t come from the west is used to such an event, so the level of surprise and mystified reaction was considerable. We won’t know for awhile if there was substantial damage or casualties. Let’s hope for little of the former and none of the latter. But we do know something about the nuclear facilities. Dominion Virginia Power shut down its two North Anna reactors  as a result of the earthquake, according to the  the company. The earthquake was felt at the North Anna Power Station and the reactor operators, following procedures, shut down the reactors," said company spokesman Jim Norvelle. "It was a manual shutdown." The plant declared an alert, the second lowest level of emergency declaration, a commission spokesman said. About what you’d expect. Virginia was at the epicenter of the quake. Domini...

"Well, who you gonna believe, me or your own eyes?" Chico Marx as "Chicolini", in the 1933 Marx brothers classic, Duck Soup. Olivier Kamanda posted an opinion piece on HuffingtonPost.com about impressions of nuclear power after visiting Virginia Dominion Power's North Anna nuclear power station. His positive reaction is not uncommon. U.S. nuclear power plants are, indeed, located in some of the most beautiful spots in the country, and they work hard to keep them that way. Environmental stewardship is taken very seriously by the nuclear industry and may help explain why public support for nuclear power is strongest among those living near an operating nuclear plant. Photo: North Anna nuclear power station at dusk

Tom Farrell appeared on CNBC's Squawk Box yesterday and said Dominion is "trying very hard" to build North Anna Unit 3. That alone was enough for me to gleefully revise my personal talking points on the subject but there was more. "I think our plant will be the first to come on line in more than 30 years." Asked when that would be, Farrell said 2016. Woohoo! A related article is in the Richmond Times-Dispatch .

Dang it, one expected special guest wasn't able to attend the press conference but maybe he/she will have a statement. I was looking forward to it. Regardless, my colleagues and I are pleased as punch that Dominion is maintaining a leadership position in the nuclear industry by submitting a full COL application for a third unit at the North Anna site. (Lisa's 401k watch--at last check D stock was up $0.63.) And while Dominion's CEO Tom Farrell said that getting the licenses does not obligate the company to build NAPS 3 it is clear from many of his other statements that he believes that it is likely that all of the variables will come together in such a way that it will make sense for the company and its customers to go ahead and build. For instance, he mentioned that in the next decade demand in Virginia will increase by at least 4000 MW and that the need must be supplied by a combination of conservation and efficiency, advanced technologies and reliable baseload. He also ...

JoAnn Sperber, NEI 's Director of Member Communications, was on the scene in Virginia last night for the latest in a series of meetings concerning the construction of a new nuclear reactor at North Anna. Her report follows: Virginians Discuss New Plant Plans at North Anna The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last night held another in a series of meetings detailing the licensing process for new nuclear power plants. This session focused on Dominion Generation’s plan to submit a combined construction and operating license application for a new reactor at its North Anna plant. After a series of presentations by NRC officials, the 130 people gathered at the meeting asked questions on a range of issues, including water use from Lake Anna, nuclear energy's role in addressing climate change, potential economic benefits of a new reactor, used fuel management and nuclear security. Although several opposition groups were present, including the People’s Alliance for Clean Energy and Beyon...

Recently, columnist Marc Fisher of the Washington Post took a visit to the North Anna Nuclear Station in Virginia to get a look at Dominion Virginia's possible plans to build a new reactor: "The nuclear issue has hardly even come up" in the local debate over expanding North Anna, says the Dominion executive who runs the plant, Dan Stoddard. "The only real issue was the impact on the lake. People who live here often say, 'We're not opposed to the plant as long as we can't see it, hear it or smell it.' " There is still great concern about the nation's failure to figure out what to do with the spent fuel rods that emerge from nuclear plants. But the path toward the new reactors seems relatively smooth. For now, all of the spent fuel ever produced at Lake Anna sits in rows of 14-foot-high concrete and steel canisters on an open-air concrete pad behind a barbed-wire fence near the power plant. That's just too obvious an environmental problem...

From the Daily Press (Hamptom Roads): A growing Virginia is demanding more electricity, and nuclear plants are a reasonable way to provide the power. And it's better that that juice should come from in-state than that Virginia should depend on out-of-state sources that may be less reliable or efficient than Dominion. Additional generation capacity at home will reduce the nation's reliance on imported natural gas. And anything that will reduce Virginia's reliance on dirty, noxious, coal-fired plants to meet its power needs is a blessing.