Posted on 10/25/2005 10:44:19 AM PDT by Calpernia
The head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has pledged to boost oversight of the Indian Point nuclear plants after the apparent leak of a radioactive isotope, aides to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday.
Clinton, D-N.Y., met with NRC chairman Nils Diaz, who told her he would announce in coming days ``enhanced oversight ... with respect to both the leaks and the emergency notification system,'' said the senator's spokesman, Philippe Reines.
Diaz didn't spell out exactly what the enhancements would be, but they could include additional reporting requirements and closer monitoring of the site.
The NRC and Entergy Nuclear Northeast, which owns the plants in Buchanan, N.Y., said last week that low levels of tritium, a radioactive isotope, have been found in water at the bottom of six sampling wells on the Indian Point property.
The tritium may be the result of a leak from Indian Point 2's spent fuel pool, first detected in August.
In one of the wells, the amount of tritium found was slightly above the federal standard permitted for drinking water. However, none of the wells, which are 20 to 30 feet deep, are used for drinking water or for anything other than sampling groundwater.
The water is believed to have leaked from a 40-foot-deep pool, which holds the highly radioactive fuel assemblies that have been used in the nuclear reactor. Experts are not sure if there is a new leak or if the contaminated water could have come from a previous, already-repaired leak and just remained for years in the ground.
Tritium, which is used in a range of products from watch faces to nuclear bombs, is present in nature in tiny amounts and is also a byproduct of the reactors.
The company is also wrestling with the failure of emergency sirens meant to warn surrounding communities.
Last week, a majority of the sirens in Orange County did not work during a test, and a similar test last month in Rockland County also failed.
The sirens have been a near-constant headache for Entergy, which has pledged to replace the entire system within the next two years.
ping
It's going to take 2 years to repleace the sirens???
oops s/b replace
Well we now know that dear hilary follows the TV, as I understand that there was a program a few weeks ago on the nuclear plants.
Why does it take so long for the Gov. to take a look at the safety of the nuclear plants?
Ping.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.