Midwest floods heighten nuclear power plant crisis

Ft Calhoun Spent Fuel In Ground Pools, Flooded Already?

By Tom Burnett
Rense.com

Ft. Calhoun is the designated spent fuel storage facility for the entire state of Nebraska…and maybe for more than one state.*

Calhoun stores its spent fuel in ground-level pools which are underwater anyway – but they are open at the top. When the Missouri river pours in there, it’s going to make Fukushima look like an x-ray. But that’s not all. There are a LOT of nuclear plants on both the Missouri and Mississippi and they can all go to hell fast.

BTW, US plants hold about four times OVER capacity in their spent fuel pools PLUS all the new and recently removed fuel from Calhoun…the plant was officially being refueled.

Be aware that Ft Calhoun isn’t a BWR like Fukushima – it’s a PWR. But that doesn’t matter, because the fuel is all sitting OUTSIDE the reactor waiting to wash away or explode – which will destroy about 15,000 square miles of what used to be the corn belt. That’s all being washed away by the flood waters anyway.

Calhoun may already be spewing radiation into the flooding Missouri…the public will be the last to be told. Therefore, everything the river water touches on its way downstream will or could become contaminated.

This could be nothing…or, it could wipe out the middle of America.

Disclosed nuclear power plants, with a seismic hazard overlay. (Image)

Note the following:

The Fort Calhoun Nuclear Generating Station is a nuclear power plant located on 660 acres (270 ha) between Fort Calhoun, Nebraska, and Blair, Nebraska adjacent to the Missouri River. This plant has one Combustion Engineering pressurized water reactor generating 500 megawatts of electricity. In 2003, the plant had its operating license renewed for an additional twenty years, expiring in 2033.

The report states:

“During identification and evaluation of flood barriers, unsealed through wall penetrations in the outside wall of the intake, auxiliary and chemistry and radiation protection buildings were identified that are below the licensing basis flood elevation. A summary of the root causes included: a weak procedure revision process; insufficient oversight of work activities associated with external flood matters; ineffective identification, evaluation and resolution of performance deficiencies related to external flooding; and “safe as is” mindsets relative to external flooding events.”

As a result of a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) inspection conducted from January 1 to June 21, 2010, the NRC determined that Fort Calhoun Station (FCS) did not have adequate procedures to protect the intake structure and auxiliary building against external flooding events. Specifically, contrary to Technical Specification 5.8.1.a, the station failed to maintain procedures for combating a significant flood as recommended by Regulatory Guide 1.33, Appendix A, section 6.w, “Acts of Nature.”

There is a supplemental report to be filed by August 30th 2011 to update the situation as reported.

* Source: http://www.nrc.gov/waste/spent-fuel-storage/locations.html

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Related: Midwest Floods: Both Nebraska Nuke Stations Threatened