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Nebraska Nuclear Plant Flood Defenses Tested
mdsolar tips an article at the NY Times which begins:
"Pictures of the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant north of Omaha, Neb., show it encircled by the swollen waters of the Missouri River, which reached a height of nearly 1,007 feet above sea level at the plant yesterday. The plant's defenses include new steel gates and other hard barriers protecting an auxiliary building with vital reactor controls, and a water-filled berm 8 feet tall that encircles other parts of the plant. Both systems are designed to hold back floodwaters reaching 1,014 feet above sea level. Additional concrete barriers and permanent berms, more sandbags and another power line into the plant have been added. The plant was shut down in April for refueling and will remain so until the flood threat is passed. 'Today the plant is well positioned to ride out the current extreme Missouri River flooding while keeping the public safe,' Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesman Victor Dricks said on an agency blog this week. But a year ago, those new defenses were not in place, and the plant's hard barriers could have failed against a 1,010-foot flood, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission contends in a yearlong inspection and enforcement action against the plant's operator, the Omaha Public Power District."
Woot mdsolar is posting another article about nuclear power to spread more FUD!!!
Don't you mean a flood 1010 ft above sea level?
you don't want to hear the truth doesn't mean the rest of us want to make it easy for you to stick your head into the sand. We are still busy trying to clean up from the last few "perfectly safe" disasters
I am definitely a child of the cold war. Every time I read nuclear regulatory commission, I see it as nuclear retaliatory commission.
Showing the Japanese how its done right and safely.
Yah, yah, its just a slow flood not an earthquake and tsunami, but at least they planned.
You know, if I made the decisions at any of the major power companies in the U.S., I think I would just tell my techs and engineers to shut down every single nuclear power plant on my portion of the grid. Don't demolish them or anything, but just take them off line for a little while. I would let the activists and nuclear power opponents see what life in the U.S. is like without a real, modern, green energy source available for a little while. They might learn something.
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Two weeks ago people on the Internets here (in other forums) were talking about how the plant had basically already melted down and that Obama had ordered a news blackout of the plant to conceal mass evacuations that apparently had already begun! All of this to protect his "green jobs" initiative.
Well, guess what? I live in Omaha. There's no meltdown. No evacuation. No flooding at the site.
OPPD's official rumor control page:
http://www.oppd.com/AboutUs/22_007105
OPPD flood blog:
http://www.oppdstorminfo.blogspot.com/
OPPD's Twitter page:
http://twitter.com/#!/oppdcares
That's a bit of a bizarre measurement for river waters, no? Makes it sound at first glance that it's under 1,007 feet of water. Why not the height above the normal crest? It would make it a bit easier to visualize that's for sure.
It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
This from nrc.gov: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2011/11-025.iv.pdf
That entire area is over 1,000 feet above sea level. What is the big deal? It is a 7 food flood.
There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
Is this press release just a response to a rather damning report last week released by Pakistan's The Nation?
Granted, I understand that most people here would view a newspaper in Pakistan as not the most credible source for news, but I believe this newspaper to be a credible one, and they do not appear to be in the business of conspiracy theories. Putting that issue aside, why has this report not received more discussion?
Sure doesn't put the power station in as nearly a glowing light as the NY Times article does.
designing a power plant that fails because grid power is down, with no automated method of switchover to internally generated power.
Eyeroll please!
Please do not read this sig. Thank you.
When I want reliable news, I go to nation.com.pk
As I understand it, the issue in Japan was that, while the reactor scrammed automatically when the earthquake was detected, the rods still need time to cool down before they cool enough to no longer require power to cool.
How long does that cooldown process take? Or do even "cool" rods still require power to remain cool?
--
$tar -xvf
Nuclear power is scary. QQ. Make it go away. QQ I rather we burn wood again than take a chance at getting radiation poisoning. QQ.
Enter Sorcha Fall, whom the Pakistani paper quotes verbatim...
http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/
But, but, how can you trust the official page of the power companies? Don't you know that they all conspire to hide the truth about how evil electricity actually is while simultaneously using the profits they reap from us poor, victimized sheeple to purchase gallons of children's tears to wash their baby seal skinned boots in?
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Of course, the Paki report is based on authoritative Russian news sources. I mean, "Pravda" MEANS "Truth", so you have to believe it!
In other related news, I'm posting from the Afterlife, because I live under the radioactive plume of that awful nuclear release event that the horrible government covered up so well. I died an agonizing death of acute radiation poisoning.
The good news? You atheists were WRONG. XD
The aquadams are cool. And they were probably filled by using the plant's own electricity to pump the water's own water from the river's own river to negate the flood's flooding ability.
Nuclear power FTW!
I live within 15 miles of the plant. Nothing to see here. Move along. Omaha TV said last night that the NRC chief would be out today to visit the Ft. Calhoun plant run by OPPD and the Brownsville plant run by Nebraska Public Power District. (NPPD). If he starts shouting and waving his arms, then you'll have a story.
Bluestrain (who can't get his login reset)
While I tend to agree normally, you must be aware that Pakistan is pretty pissed at us about that whole Osama thing. This would be precisely the type of FUD that I expect.
Yep. Doesn't worry me in the least.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Those are the only kind of boots that fit the reptilians, what do you want them to do?
While I expect they have the flood thing handled, what gives me pause is when I looked up how many nuclear sites there are (440 roughly) and how many major disasters have occurred (chernoble, TMI and now Fukishima). So a quick calculation says if I have a plant within a few miles of me, there is roughly a 1% chance in a typical lifetime that my home will be un-inhabitable for the next 100 years or so. I'm not a big pro or anti nuke guy. Actually I was sort of positive on them until I considered the probabilities. I mean, some people may be NIMBY about turbines, but man, I am definitely NIMBY for a nuke plant now.
Just sayin'
"people on the Internets" have said a lot of things. Who cares? I didn't read that the plant had meted down and I have been following this closely.
I am as assured by OPPD's public face as I am by TEPCO.
"The world is a construct of forceful imagination. Those who don't know walk around in the reailties of those who do"
hmmm. I didn't see any pictures on that NY Times page.
Wansu, th' chinese sailor
... using the plant's own electricity ...
Actually the plant was already shut down for re-fueling.
Granted, I understand that most people here would view a newspaper in Pakistan as not the most credible source for news, but I believe this newspaper to be a credible one, and they do not appear to be in the business of conspiracy theories.
âoeIf youâ(TM)re still living under the delusion that the TSA is just restricted to airports then think again. A joint VIPR âoesecurity exerciseâ involving military personnel has Transportation Security Administration workers covering 5,000 miles and three states, illustrating once again how the TSA is turning into a literal occupying army for domestic repression in America."
"But, with an already documented 35% increase in the infant mortality rate for American mothers living in the western coastal regions of the US caused by radiation blowing onto them from Japan being ignored by these people there doesnâ(TM)t seem to be much hope for them."
No they aren't paranoid, they just think the TSA is an occupying military force *cough splutter laugh* and that infant mortality is secretly up 35% in the US.
Not paranoid at all.
I desperately hope I was missing your sarcasm.
RTFA: "reached a height of nearly 1,007 feet above sea level at the plant yesterday." Is it just me or is this a really confusing way to describe the height of the flood water? It's way more useful to know how much higher the water is than normal or where it is in proximity to the design limits of the plant... but measuring it against sea level is just a total non-sequitur.
Wow. I had no idea that the reactor had been melting down for almost a decade! This "media blackout" must have be super effective!
BTW, nuclear plants have been no-fly zones since 9/11.
I wonder about the soil turning to soup and oozing up under the water berm if this goes on for months. Will they hoist the fire truck over there and attach a mud pump or what?
soulskill posted this completely pro-nuke and idiotic thing about a thorium reactor: http://science.slashdot.org/story/10/01/02/1330245/Thorium-the-Next-Nuclear-Fuel The last one never worked right and had a hugely expensive clean up. You are just being silly complaining about the editors. Better to complain about the NYT paywall....
That was traced to some kinda pakistani page quoting the russians or something...
Not sure what the hell you were reading.
The next nuke down the river is still operating at full capacity. But many roads have been cut by the flood and there may not be an adequate escape plan should there be an accident. Should we only be looking at what the flood does to the nuke or is the way it affects the surrounding infrastructure important as well?
One article.
Another.
The story from the plant operator
The root cause of Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt - especially in this case is the lack of information. The reactor is apparently on level 4 alert (accident with local consequences - this alone should have made the news at least in Nebraska), has had a fire, has had a no-fly zone extended over it since June 6 - the reason given is "the flooding". The first I heard of this was on June 17th - stumbled across it by chance while looking up information on nuclear plants and was suspicious of it (Russian source so WTF would they know was my first thought). Found lots of youtube stuff, people screaming "why haven't we been told". It has only recently hit slashdot and mainstream news - this has been going on since June 6 (the fire was June 7).
Knowledge stops FUD and builds confidence, the authorities should have at least informed people instead of people calling in ("by the hundreds" as on shock jock put it) and complaining that something is wrong.
Instead of being "condescending", it would help the nuclear cause if facts were given to counter the shock jocks - before they get a foot hold.
It wasn't until June 17 that the plant operator actually deemed to give any information (the answers look a little shaky imo - the water level does not constitute an accident with local consequences). I hope they are truthful because this should have been a story of conservative precautions - see, FUD is working - I doubt them.
BM3
get away with changing the subject in order to avoid answering embarrassing questions. why should I let a supposed adult do the same?
I respond well to well reasoned arguments. Blind loyalty to nuclear power and crap about uranium in coal ash does not count as reasoning.
Cooper Nuclear Station is less than 75 miles down the river, and was operating at 100% today. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooper_Nuclear_Station
What about water (or mud) under the berm? This flood seems like it wants to stay around all summer. Could be a problem if the soil saturates and then becomes soup.
You claimed soulskill would never post a pro-nuke article. You were wrong. Why do you want to censor slashdot?
The NRC chair will be inspecting both flood affected plants on Monday: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304569504576406163159603654.html Perhaps there is something to fear. The situation is uncertain and doubts about the safety of nuclear power are justified.
Nuclear Plant Food?
Ohhhhh, Nuclear Plant *Flood*.
So, what you're saying is that, no matter what it says, you won't read any article which mdsolar links to, and anything which doesn't fit your view of the world must be FUD?
The first is the fallacy of Ad Hominem, while the second is the error of Confirmation Bias.
I'm basically pro-nuclear, but as a nuclear supporters, I think it's important for nuclear supporters to be the nuclear industry's biggest critics. Nuclear power can only be a good thing for mankind and the rest of the environment if we have a healthy respect for the dangers it holds for us, and if we always hold the nuclear industry to the highest levels of accountability.
If we're not going to do that, then I don't want nuclear power, because we're not yet evolved enough as a species to do it safely over the long term (hundreds, even thousands of years).
Only when we can be brutally honest, calling a spade a spade, and have a high level of transparency in the regulation of the nuclear plants, can we hope to have a safe nuclear industry.
I do not know whether the current high of 1014 feet is high enough or not. I readily admit I do not have the expertise. What I do see from that article is that the experts at the NRC who *should* have the expertise, had to force the power co to improve their flood defenses, and it appears it's a dam good thing they did (hey, did you see what I did there?), and that they did it just in the nick of time.
I'm not so much afraid of nuclear power, as afraid of an industry that fights every safety requirement right up till the moment they're proven wrong.
If the plant designs are such that they can't be made both safe *and* affordable at the same time, then those designs are fundamentally flawed, and need to be resigned to the dustbin of history, replaced by newer designs which can be both safe and affordable.
I would believe a 35% increase. The current estimate is 6.06 deaths per 1000 births. A 35% increase from there would amount to 8.18 deaths per 1000 births.
The bit about the TSA, I chalk up to idiotic-sloppy misuse of the word "literal". The TSA is certainly a tool for domestic repression.
"The plant was shut down in April for refueling and will remain so until the flood threat is passed."
Talk about a classic straw man.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
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