Two weeks left for Indian Point to meet new siren deadline
By GREG CLARYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: August 9, 2007)
BUCHANAN - Two weeks from tomorrow is the deadline for Indian Point to have its new emergency warning system working, and plant officials remain hopeful they can deliver on time despite regulatory questions that remain unanswered.
Federal officials expect the notification system to be loud enough to be heard in each of the 150 areas covered by individual sirens and are requiring Entergy Nuclear, Indian Point's owner and operator, to ensure that.
The sirens are spread across the parts of Westchester, Putnam, Rockland and Orange counties that fall within a 10-mile radius of the nuclear power plant.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's top regional official on the project said yesterday that the agency must be able to verify that minimum sound levels are reached or it won't approve the project by the Aug. 24 deadline.
"They have not proven to us that the siren system can meet our basic regulations and guidance for siren sound coverage throughout the emergency planning zone," Rebecca Thomson, branch chief for FEMA's radiological emergency planning group, said yesterday.
"They haven't provided us with any data to prove that," Thomson said. "What they provided is outdated and no good anymore because it was projected based on how the sirens were supposed to sound."
FEMA is acting on behalf of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which oversees Indian Point's operation, including emergency planning.
Entergy officials said they were working to deliver the data FEMA needs in time to make the deadline and have moved ahead with local emergency staff training and other requirements as quickly as possible.
Training started this week, company officials said, and is expected to be finished by Aug. 21.
Entergy is up against its third deadline since agreeing to install a $15 million alert system in the fall of 2005.
The company asked for and received a 75-day extension from the NRC after regulators agreed that the project needed more time than the Jan. 30, 2007, deadline allowed.
The agency wasn't as forgiving after the company missed an April 15 deadline, fining Entergy $130,000 and requiring a plan to finish the project within a reasonable amount of time - Aug. 24 became the new target.
"I think we can resolve the issues that need to be resolved by then," Entergy spokesman Jim Steets said.
"We're certainly driving toward that."
At least one county official involved in the project is skeptical that the latest deadline will be met.
"I suspect that they will not resolve it by the 24th," said Anthony Sutton, Westchester County's commissioner of emergency services. "We didn't want to be in this place as we go toward the deadline."
One of the main questions is whether the sirens must meet a minimum of 70 decibels in louder areas and 60 decibels in quieter areas - or whether all sirens must be at least 10 decibels louder than background noise in each area.
Residents in the emergency planning zone have complained during months of siren testing that they can't hear the new sirens as well as they can hear the existing sirens.
Thomson said yesterday that field tests showed that some of the sound coverage falls as much as 44 percent short of what was designed.
NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said the agency was aware of the remaining obstacles and was in daily contact with the nuclear plant about the sirens. He said NRC officials would continue to monitor the project's progress.
Thomson was complimentary of the new system, saying it would be one of the best of its kind in the country once it's installed properly. The current system will remain in operation until the new system is approved.
"The system is complex," Thomson said. "It's going to have a lot of bugs. We just can't say 'turn it on and make it the primary system' until we're convinced that the sound coverage is adequate."
Reach Greg Clary at gclary@lohud.com or 914-696-8566.
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Progress Energy Wins Ruling Associated With Shearon Harris Relicensing. Administrative Law Judges affiliated with the Atomic Safety & Licensing Board have rejected an effort by the North Carolina Waste Awareness & Reduction Network of Durham, N.C., and Nuclear Information & Resource Service, a Maryland organization, to include safety concerns in the consideration of a 20-year license extension for Progress Energy's Shearon Harris nuclear plant, the Raleigh News & Observer reported. The groups were expected to appeal the ruling. In the ruling, the judges declared that they could not consider the concerns in reviewing Progress Energy's relicensing application. Plant critics asserted that vulnerability to an airplane attack, fire safety failures, and a flawed emergency evacuation plan all needed to be considered as part of the review. This looks good for Indian Point. This precedent will invariably influence attempts by the enviro-nazis to intervene in the IPEC license extension effort. Have a great day! nuclear environmentalist
Posted by: nuclear environmentalist on Thu Aug 09, 2007 4:54 pm
Just a quick reminder, if you disagree with the previous anti-Hispanic, racist rant posted here by a member of PEON ( PRO ENTERGY and OPENLY NUCLEAR )
J WAYNE LEONARD C.E.O.
ENTERGY HEADQUATERS NEW ORLEANS La 70113
PHONE: 504-576-4000 fax: 504-576-4428
Posted by: ball on Thu Aug 09, 2007 1:45 pm
Mohammed El Baradei, nobel laureate, and acknowleged nuclear authority (head of IAEA) has written that in the matter of nuclear safety, we have to concentrate on doing what makes a difference, and not squander resources on things that only help marginally (or not at all). Now let us leave the world of knowlegeable nuclear expertise, and enter the universe of Hudson Valley politics, a world where it is of the utmost importance to replace a 100% functional siren system , with one that has batteries. It is estimated that a meltdown at Indian Point is a near certainty, once in every 20,000 years. For that great event, the old sirens will be entirely sufficient, except in the case of a national or regional blackout happening simultaneously with the meltdown. A regional blackout has happened in 1965, 1977, and 2003, for 3 in 42 years, or 7% chance of happening. Therefore adding the batteries ups our safety by a factor of 14, making it a near certainty that a (blackout + meltdown) will happen no more than once in the next 280,000 years. Whew! I feel so much better now! Thanks, Senator Hillary!
Posted by: VP_VP on Thu Aug 09, 2007 12:30 pm
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Indian Point safety under close watch
Tuesday, August 7, 2007 Letters to the editor
Indian Point safety under close watch
Regarding your editorial ("Nuke plant needs broader review," July 29) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission already looks at safety and terrorism prevention constantly - pre-9/11, post-9/11, during license renewal and with or without an Independent Safety Assessment. It is one of the main reasons why independent experts on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff are stationed at Indian Point daily. If the commission found the plants to be unsafe at any time, they would be closed immediately.
There is a popular misconception that an Independent Safety Assessment would be more rigorous than the process already in place. Indian Point is already the most intensely inspected plant in the country, with more than 14,000 inspection hours last year as compared to approximately 9,000 for facilities of comparable size. The assessment would be redundant, to the point of being distracting.
Your editorial makes a very important point: "State and federal governments are in dire need of comprehensive and realistic energy solutions." We do indeed need to increase the state's energy supply through a diverse mix of sources including renewables such as wind and solar.
We also need to maintain 24/7 baseload sources of power, like Indian Point, especially because they emit practically zero carbon emissions or toxic chemicals.
Replacing Indian Point's power with the mix of other sources serving New York would increase carbon emissions by 14 million tons annually. It would also further degrade the state's air quality, which is among the worst in the country.
Arthur J. Kremer, Advisory Board Chairman,
New York Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance (New York AREA), New York City
Indian Point safety under close watch
Regarding your editorial ("Nuke plant needs broader review," July 29) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission already looks at safety and terrorism prevention constantly - pre-9/11, post-9/11, during license renewal and with or without an Independent Safety Assessment. It is one of the main reasons why independent experts on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff are stationed at Indian Point daily. If the commission found the plants to be unsafe at any time, they would be closed immediately.
There is a popular misconception that an Independent Safety Assessment would be more rigorous than the process already in place. Indian Point is already the most intensely inspected plant in the country, with more than 14,000 inspection hours last year as compared to approximately 9,000 for facilities of comparable size. The assessment would be redundant, to the point of being distracting.
Your editorial makes a very important point: "State and federal governments are in dire need of comprehensive and realistic energy solutions." We do indeed need to increase the state's energy supply through a diverse mix of sources including renewables such as wind and solar.
We also need to maintain 24/7 baseload sources of power, like Indian Point, especially because they emit practically zero carbon emissions or toxic chemicals.
Replacing Indian Point's power with the mix of other sources serving New York would increase carbon emissions by 14 million tons annually. It would also further degrade the state's air quality, which is among the worst in the country.
Arthur J. Kremer, Advisory Board Chairman,
New York Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance (New York AREA), New York City
Indian Point debate
Indian Point debate
(Original publication: August 6, 2007)
Criticism hurts plant's employees
I was shocked to read Rep. Nita Lowey's comments about Indian Point in the July 24 article, "Nuclear regulators want updated inventory of uranium 235 at Indian Point." Rep. Lowey falsely describes Indian Point as having "loosey-goosey security measures." I have worked at numerous nuclear facilities on the East Coast and I can tell you that Indian Point's security is second to none.
As someone who has worked at the Indian Point power plants for many years, as well as being the person responsible for sending men and women into a safe work environment, it is always distressing when local gadfly types promote misinformation about nuclear power and Indian Point.
Even more irresponsible was Rep. Lowey's comment that "the incompetence at Indian Point imperils an entire region." In one swift stroke Rep. Lowey managed to insult and malign the more than 1,200 workers who labor every day to make sure her lights are on.
Since Rep. Lowey is adamant about closing Indian Point, perhaps she could share with us what she intends to do about replacing the 2000 megawatts of energy that Indian Point produces for the region. Will she allow approximately 800 windmills to be built in her back yard? Will she supply everyone with candles?
Rep. Lowey is wrong and her extreme comments, inserted into an otherwise informative story, are insulting to the legions of individuals who have worked at Indian Point over the years.
Bob Seeger
Hopewell Junction
The writer is business manager of Millwwright & Machinery Erectors, Local 740.
Indian Point review is needed
In response to Jerry Kremer's July 30 letter, "Extra Indian Point review unnecessary," it is worth noting that Indian Point is among the most scrutinized plants in the country because it has had more problems than others, including multiple and continuing unplanned releases of radioactivity, being the only plant in the U.S. that is known to be leaking strontium 90, cesium and other radioactive elements into the environment. The plant has had more unplanned outages than others, which resulted in a lowered safety rating. This plant also has an evacuation plan that was thoroughly studied by a former director of FEMA and declared to be inadequate and largely unfixable. And their efforts to install a workable siren system are like a long running soap opera. Indian Point is also built on top of a seismic fault.
And Mr. Kremer's assessment of the relicensing review is a horrible joke since it includes only non-moving parts of the plant, such as the extensive and leaking pipe system, which is largely inaccessible to inspection because it is buried or imbedded in concrete. The only way the Nuclear Regulatory Commission can check the integrity of the pipes is by digging wells and saying "not leaking yet." It is also worth noting that the existing leaks were found by accident during construction work and not because of the NRC's presence at the plant.
Mr. Kremer should state that his organization has been founded and highly funded by Entergy. Paid spokesmen should be more forthright.
Gary Shaw
Croton-on-Hudson
Please note NYAREA is funded by Entergy
Thank you for your continuing coverage of the Indian Point. It is important to present various views. However, it is also important not to allow Entergy to mislead the public into believing that a group established by Entergy to promote Indian Point, the New York Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance (NYAREA), is some sort of independent grassroots organization. The July 30 letter by NYAREA chairman Jerry Kremer, "Extra Indian Point review unnecessary," describes NYAREA as "a nonprofit organization advocating for reliable, affordable and clean energy solutions."
I would hope that The Journal News is, by now, aware that NYAREA is a prime example of an industry front group. The Center for Media and Democracy did an expose of nuclear industry front groups which focused specifically on Entergy and NYAREA. Note, in particular, that in Massachusetts there is a pro-nuke group called MassAREA which - by amazing coincidence - also has Entergy as a member and funder!
Given the millions of dollars Entergy has expended in its ongoing PR campaign, I think it is critically important that articles mentioning NYAREA give recognition to - at the very least - the fact that Entergy has been a funding source. Entergy has admitted to having funded NYAREA, but has been very cutesy about the degree of such funding; nevertheless, The Journal News can simply note the financial connection.
Michel Lee
White Plains
The writer is a member of the Steering Committee on Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition and chairman for the Council on Intelligent Energy & Conservation Policy.
Letters to the editor
Post a Comment View All Comments
Gary Shaw, Michel Lee, Kali Fasteau, and Stephen Filler ARE IPSEC. (Bill Smirnow lives in L.I.) That's it. Half a dozen neo-communist plotters, who sit there and write, and email, and post, and organize, for ten over years. 6 people. But lately, they do have some success. UFO cultist Remy Chevalier has now joined them! WHOOOPIE!
Posted by: pepe on Tue Aug 07, 2007 4:47 am
Here are some sites that everybody can check out on Google. 1 Living on Earth: 3 MILE ISLAND TWENTY YEARS LATER. 2 Living on Earth: A NUCLEAR INCIDENT WORSE THAN 3 MILE ISLAND. 3 PENNSYLVANIA HIGHWAY: THREE MILE ISLAND 4 CHERNOBYL 5 TEN YEARS AFTER CHERNOBYL : PHOTO ARCHIVE 6 B.B.C. NEWS IN PICTURES : CHERNOBYLS LOST CITY How would you like to explain to your children why they look like THAT! Why they won't live very long. Why they'll never have children of their own. Some people sell their souls to live the good life. I guess they have the answers. They have paid a high price for them.
Posted by: ball on Tue Aug 07, 2007 2:29 am
HUNTINGTON, Utah - Six miners were trapped in a coal mine Monday by a cave-in so powerful that authorities initially thought it was small earthquake. The miners were believed to be 1,500 feet below ground, about four miles from the entrance to the mine, which is 140 miles south of Salt Lake City. University of Utah seismograph stations recorded a seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude early Monday, causing speculation that a minor earthquake had caused the cave-in. Scientists later realized the collapse at the Genwal mine had caused the disturbance. "There is no evidence that the earthquake triggered the mine collapse," said Walter Arabasz, director of the seismography stations. At least a half-dozen other mine collapses since 1995 have caused similar seismic waves, including one in southwestern Wyoming that caused readings as high as 5.4 on the Richter scale. Indian Point was designed to withstand an earthquake of greater than 4 magnitude richter scale. Number of deaths attributable to nuclear power operations in the United States since the first plant became operational in 1960: ZERO. Number of deaths due to coal mining this week? Or how about this Year? Or how about since 1960? Now which technology is dangerous and which is safe?
Posted by: nuclear environmentalist on Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:31 pm
Cheers to Nita Lowey. Did she mention CANCER? A plant that has trouble installing a siren system shouldn't worry about robots or Mars rovers. Sure NYAREA is funded by Entergy. Just go to their website. NYAREA is co- chaired by Christine Todd Whitman . Remember her from post 911 clean up fame? Need any more reasons to doubt Entergies competence? Now let's hear some more about those HUD grants.
Posted by: ball on Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:20 pm
And we are not to believe that IPSEC is nothing more than 200 x-hippies who are a front group for riverkeeper? Open a can of worms lately? If I told you the sky is green would you believe it without proof? BTW who pays for you to "STEER"? I don't think Gary Shaw has ever heard of robots. How can we send 2 rovers to Mars and not be able to inspect pipes.
Posted by: big bad bill on Mon Aug 06, 2007 10:00 am
(Original publication: August 6, 2007)
Criticism hurts plant's employees
I was shocked to read Rep. Nita Lowey's comments about Indian Point in the July 24 article, "Nuclear regulators want updated inventory of uranium 235 at Indian Point." Rep. Lowey falsely describes Indian Point as having "loosey-goosey security measures." I have worked at numerous nuclear facilities on the East Coast and I can tell you that Indian Point's security is second to none.
As someone who has worked at the Indian Point power plants for many years, as well as being the person responsible for sending men and women into a safe work environment, it is always distressing when local gadfly types promote misinformation about nuclear power and Indian Point.
Even more irresponsible was Rep. Lowey's comment that "the incompetence at Indian Point imperils an entire region." In one swift stroke Rep. Lowey managed to insult and malign the more than 1,200 workers who labor every day to make sure her lights are on.
Since Rep. Lowey is adamant about closing Indian Point, perhaps she could share with us what she intends to do about replacing the 2000 megawatts of energy that Indian Point produces for the region. Will she allow approximately 800 windmills to be built in her back yard? Will she supply everyone with candles?
Rep. Lowey is wrong and her extreme comments, inserted into an otherwise informative story, are insulting to the legions of individuals who have worked at Indian Point over the years.
Bob Seeger
Hopewell Junction
The writer is business manager of Millwwright & Machinery Erectors, Local 740.
Indian Point review is needed
In response to Jerry Kremer's July 30 letter, "Extra Indian Point review unnecessary," it is worth noting that Indian Point is among the most scrutinized plants in the country because it has had more problems than others, including multiple and continuing unplanned releases of radioactivity, being the only plant in the U.S. that is known to be leaking strontium 90, cesium and other radioactive elements into the environment. The plant has had more unplanned outages than others, which resulted in a lowered safety rating. This plant also has an evacuation plan that was thoroughly studied by a former director of FEMA and declared to be inadequate and largely unfixable. And their efforts to install a workable siren system are like a long running soap opera. Indian Point is also built on top of a seismic fault.
And Mr. Kremer's assessment of the relicensing review is a horrible joke since it includes only non-moving parts of the plant, such as the extensive and leaking pipe system, which is largely inaccessible to inspection because it is buried or imbedded in concrete. The only way the Nuclear Regulatory Commission can check the integrity of the pipes is by digging wells and saying "not leaking yet." It is also worth noting that the existing leaks were found by accident during construction work and not because of the NRC's presence at the plant.
Mr. Kremer should state that his organization has been founded and highly funded by Entergy. Paid spokesmen should be more forthright.
Gary Shaw
Croton-on-Hudson
Please note NYAREA is funded by Entergy
Thank you for your continuing coverage of the Indian Point. It is important to present various views. However, it is also important not to allow Entergy to mislead the public into believing that a group established by Entergy to promote Indian Point, the New York Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance (NYAREA), is some sort of independent grassroots organization. The July 30 letter by NYAREA chairman Jerry Kremer, "Extra Indian Point review unnecessary," describes NYAREA as "a nonprofit organization advocating for reliable, affordable and clean energy solutions."
I would hope that The Journal News is, by now, aware that NYAREA is a prime example of an industry front group. The Center for Media and Democracy did an expose of nuclear industry front groups which focused specifically on Entergy and NYAREA. Note, in particular, that in Massachusetts there is a pro-nuke group called MassAREA which - by amazing coincidence - also has Entergy as a member and funder!
Given the millions of dollars Entergy has expended in its ongoing PR campaign, I think it is critically important that articles mentioning NYAREA give recognition to - at the very least - the fact that Entergy has been a funding source. Entergy has admitted to having funded NYAREA, but has been very cutesy about the degree of such funding; nevertheless, The Journal News can simply note the financial connection.
Michel Lee
White Plains
The writer is a member of the Steering Committee on Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition and chairman for the Council on Intelligent Energy & Conservation Policy.
Letters to the editor
Post a Comment View All Comments
Gary Shaw, Michel Lee, Kali Fasteau, and Stephen Filler ARE IPSEC. (Bill Smirnow lives in L.I.) That's it. Half a dozen neo-communist plotters, who sit there and write, and email, and post, and organize, for ten over years. 6 people. But lately, they do have some success. UFO cultist Remy Chevalier has now joined them! WHOOOPIE!
Posted by: pepe on Tue Aug 07, 2007 4:47 am
Here are some sites that everybody can check out on Google. 1 Living on Earth: 3 MILE ISLAND TWENTY YEARS LATER. 2 Living on Earth: A NUCLEAR INCIDENT WORSE THAN 3 MILE ISLAND. 3 PENNSYLVANIA HIGHWAY: THREE MILE ISLAND 4 CHERNOBYL 5 TEN YEARS AFTER CHERNOBYL : PHOTO ARCHIVE 6 B.B.C. NEWS IN PICTURES : CHERNOBYLS LOST CITY How would you like to explain to your children why they look like THAT! Why they won't live very long. Why they'll never have children of their own. Some people sell their souls to live the good life. I guess they have the answers. They have paid a high price for them.
Posted by: ball on Tue Aug 07, 2007 2:29 am
HUNTINGTON, Utah - Six miners were trapped in a coal mine Monday by a cave-in so powerful that authorities initially thought it was small earthquake. The miners were believed to be 1,500 feet below ground, about four miles from the entrance to the mine, which is 140 miles south of Salt Lake City. University of Utah seismograph stations recorded a seismic waves of 3.9 magnitude early Monday, causing speculation that a minor earthquake had caused the cave-in. Scientists later realized the collapse at the Genwal mine had caused the disturbance. "There is no evidence that the earthquake triggered the mine collapse," said Walter Arabasz, director of the seismography stations. At least a half-dozen other mine collapses since 1995 have caused similar seismic waves, including one in southwestern Wyoming that caused readings as high as 5.4 on the Richter scale. Indian Point was designed to withstand an earthquake of greater than 4 magnitude richter scale. Number of deaths attributable to nuclear power operations in the United States since the first plant became operational in 1960: ZERO. Number of deaths due to coal mining this week? Or how about this Year? Or how about since 1960? Now which technology is dangerous and which is safe?
Posted by: nuclear environmentalist on Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:31 pm
Cheers to Nita Lowey. Did she mention CANCER? A plant that has trouble installing a siren system shouldn't worry about robots or Mars rovers. Sure NYAREA is funded by Entergy. Just go to their website. NYAREA is co- chaired by Christine Todd Whitman . Remember her from post 911 clean up fame? Need any more reasons to doubt Entergies competence? Now let's hear some more about those HUD grants.
Posted by: ball on Mon Aug 06, 2007 2:20 pm
And we are not to believe that IPSEC is nothing more than 200 x-hippies who are a front group for riverkeeper? Open a can of worms lately? If I told you the sky is green would you believe it without proof? BTW who pays for you to "STEER"? I don't think Gary Shaw has ever heard of robots. How can we send 2 rovers to Mars and not be able to inspect pipes.
Posted by: big bad bill on Mon Aug 06, 2007 10:00 am
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