FirstEnergy Nuclear intends to file License Amendment Request on Shield Building cracking; environmental opponents vow legal action
September 24, 2015 A 38-year old atomic reactor, that has had more close calls with catastrophe than any other in the U.S., that can't compete, with a concrete containment that is literally at risk of falling apart, wants a multi-billion dollar ratepayer bailout, in order to keep operating for 22 more years?!
Oak Harbor, OH and Washington, DC—At a meeting of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS), held at the agency’s Rockville, MD HQ yesterday, FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC) and NRC Staff revealed that the nuclear utility plans to submit a License Amendment Request (LAR), in order to restore its Davis-Besse atomic reactor’s Current Licensing Basis and Design Basis in the aftermath of severe Shield Building cracking first discovered four years ago. Representatives from environmental groups, comprising multiple coalitions opposing the 20-year license extension sought by FENOC, as well as current operations, have vowed to legally intervene in opposition to the LAR.
At the meeting, responding to pointed ACRS questioning, FENOC spokesmen confirmed that, if the cracking grows badly enough, large chunks of concrete could detach from the Shield Building, and plummet onto safety-significant structures below, such as the auxiliary building and borated water storage tank.
See the full press release, with quotes from environmental coalition attorney Terry Lodge; Michael Keegan of Don't Waste MI; Patricia Marida of the Ohio Sierra Club Nuclear-Free Committee; and Kevin Kamps of Beyond Nuclear.