SCRAP ZIRCONIUM RODS SHIPPED TO RECYCLER IN CANADA CONTAINING U-235 FUEL PELLETS

Nuclear Regulatory Agency ^ | July 30, 2003 | NRC

[LurkedLongEnough]

CITY: HEMATITE REGION: 3
COUNTY: JEFFERSON STATE: MO
10 CFR SECTION: PAAB 74.11(a) LOST/STOLEN SNM

SCRAP ZIRCONIUM RODS SHIPPED TO RECYCLER IN CANADA CONTAINING U-235 FUEL PELLETS

Between 3-4 weeks ago Westinghouse Hematite shipped approximately 18,000 scrap zirconium rods to Mississauga Metals and Alloys, Inc. in Brampton, Ontario, Canada for recycling. Scrap zirconium rods require a 100% visual inspection prior to shipment offsite to ensure that they do not contain any fuel pellets. Last Thursday on 7/24/03, the recycler discovered thirty-six (36) U-235 pellets (4.2 w/o) after processing about 25% of the scrap rods.

The individual at Mississauga responsible for contacting Westinghouse did not return to work until Monday and, thus, Westinghouse was not informed until 0730 CDT on 7/28/03. The pellets contain a total of six (6) grams U-235. Westinghouse is dispatching staff to the recycling facility to assist in determining appropriate corrective actions.

[NonValueAdded]

After sitting around drinking Molson beer for a few days, Joseph Wilson concluded that the Jack Welsh's agents did not sell uranium to Canada.

[shadowman99]

OK, I'll raise my hand and ask - what is the significance of this?

I can only guess the risk is this is scrap metal that eventually has other uses... and the presence of these pellets means that 1) some level of contamination has taken place 2) our inspections suck

[Eric in the Ozarks]

There's no fuel like an old fool.

[IvanT]

We've got tonnes of uranium up here, it probably originated in Canada in the first place.

[Tolik]

The half-life for U-235 is 713 million years.

For that material to be "lost" is a BIG deal. Detonating an Oklahoma style bomb with that much of radioactive material in the middle of any city would make that city unlivable forever.

Side note: any self-respecting recycling facility, especially dealing with stuff like zirconium must have radiation detection equipment. Material as hot as this would be discovered on receiving using the worst possible equipment. It took them a few weeks to discover it. Everybody in this chain of events screwed up. Its good it was finally found.

[Rebel_Ace]

"...For that material to be "lost" is a BIG deal. Detonating an Oklahoma style bomb with that much of radioactive material in the middle of any city would make that city unlivable forever..."

Please, no hysterical exaggerations. We blew a heck of a lot more than "6 grams" over Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, and the last time I checked, there were people living there today. (1945 - 2003 being considerably shorter than "forever")

[Tolik]

The difference is that you are talking about a nuclear bomb. I am talking about a dirty bomb, where contamination is the main goal: just to spread radioactive material around. 10x10 blocks in the middle of any city is not much, but will render the place unlivable. The clean up is possible but hugely expensive. If the DC sniper story is of any indication, the panic factor is huge as well. I don't imply any terrorism here in the story of the lost U235. But this is what warries me personally the most: its very cheap for terrorists-to-be to create very costly damage using relatively low-tech means. I am relieved but surprised it has not happened already.

You are making a good point of people living in Hiroshima and Nagasaki: I need to read on it, I don't know what that did for clean up.

[from occupied ga]

For that material to be "lost" is a BIG deal. Detonating an Oklahoma style bomb with that much of radioactive material in the middle of any city would make that city unlivable forever.

Nope - wrong. U235 because of its very long half life is not very radioactive. Now Sr90 or Pu is another story.

[Tolik]

OK, thanks