Shuttered nuclear plant marks retirement milestone

Fuel Fix ^ | July 25, 2013 | Associated Press

[thackney]

Workers at the San Onofre nuclear power plant have finished removing highly radioactive fuel from its Unit 2 reactor...

Southern California Edison announced last month it was closing the twin-reactor plant between Los Angeles and San Diego. That ended a long and costly battle with environmentalists over whether it was safe to operate.

Removing the fuel clears the way for operator Edison to formally surrender the plant’s operating license to federal regulators.

[thackney]

excerpted for AP content

The had already removed the fuel from the first unit.

[thackney]

[Truth29]

That picture looks like someone could photoshop in Charlton Heston in a dystopian future beach scene.

[henkster]

Well California doesn’t need any nuclear reactors or other power plants. Electricity is magically created by flying unicorns “somewhere else” in unlimited quantities and delivered to electrical outlets for free.

Every California democrat knows this.

[allendale]

Soon California will be importing electricity from Mexico. The Mexicans will build coal and oil fired plants where the prevailing winds will blow North.

[DoughtyOne]

Excellent. Now we can burn more oil and coal. Cool.

Thank you environmentalists.

Job well done. /s

[thackney]

Soon California will be importing electricity from Mexico.

- - - - - - - - -

They have for years and it is growing.

http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=11311

Mexico has been a very small net exporter of electricity to the United States since 2006. Power sales from Mexico to California more than offset exports from Texas to Mexico in 2010, although 2012 data suggest that Mexico has begun to import more electricity from the United States. The flow of electricity from Mexico to the United States could increase, as the Department of Energy recently issued a presidential permit to a subsidiary of Sempra International for construction, operation, maintenance, and connection of a 230-kilovolt (kV) transmission line across the U.S.-Mexico border. When completed, the transmission line will supply electricity from a Mexican wind farm to the California market.

[thackney]

Coal and Natural Gas, but I don’t think you will see an increase of Oil being burned. Most of what oil is burned is the bottom of the crude barrel leftover after refineries have removed all the transportation type fuel. Residual oil (which has to be heater to flow decently) or Petroleum Coke (that is more like coal) is most of the “oil” used to generate power in the US.

[anoldafvet]

One of the places where the flying unicorns reside is Utah (Intermountain Power Project), which provides power for Southern California. Used to be able to use Utah coal until Oba$tard became president.

[FreeAtlanta]

Supposedly, we are supposed to start building new reactors at two existing facilities in the US.... next year. Remember when Baraka said he was going to step up and support building of new Nukes???? What a sham. Nearly everyone on the planet are building nuke power plants except us. We just keep shutting them down. When I was in the industry, we had over 120 units across the country. Now we are down to around 100 and falling. The units are all very old and we haven't built a new one from ground breaking to completion in 30 years. The LEFT (America's Enemies) has really done a number on us. Changes in Nuclear Power The IAEA site is fascinating.

[FreeAtlanta]

States need to start telling the Federal Government to pound sand. They need to just start doing what is right for themselves and their citizens.

[thackney]

New Reactor Licensing Applications
http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/new-licensing-files/new-rx-licensing-app-legend.pdf

Location of Projected New Nuclear Power Reactors
http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-reactors/col/new-reactor-map.html

[ArrogantBustard]

For background:

1) I am pro-nuke. Big time.
2) I am somewhat ignorant of the geology around San Onofre.

Question:

How geologically unstable is that area? Historically, is it subject to tsunami (or other) flooding?

[thackney]

The power plant is included in the areas for tsunami inundation.

http://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/geologic_hazards/Tsunami/Inundation_Maps/SanDiego/Documents/Tsunami_Inundation_SanOnofreBluff_Quad_SanDiego.pdf

[thackney]

Southern California Edison states the station was “built to withstand a 7.0 magnitude earthquake directly under the plant”. Additionally, there is a 25-foot tsunami wall to protect the plant from a rogue wave that could be potentially generated by the active fault 5 miles offshore. The closest tectonic fault line is the Christianitos fault, which is considered inactive or “dead”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Onofre_Nuclear_Generating_Station

The wall can be seen in the enlarged photo below:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Aerial_San_Onofre_Generating_Station_May_2012.JPG

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Here’s a better view;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5OQMoSCrqw

[ArrogantBustard]

Thanks. Withstand 7.0 is good. The wall is good, but it looks like they carved out a spot to build it down in the flood zone, instead of building above it. That seems odd.

[ArrogantBustard]

LOL!

[BBell]

That’s what I first thought of. “Everywhere I look something reminds me of her”.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

But I thought that the unicorns were busy defecating unlimited cash on Washington DC.