TMI Update: Jan 14, 2024

Did you catch "The Meltdown: Three Mile Island" on Netflix?
TMI remains a danger and TMIA is working hard to ensure the safety of our communities and the surrounding areas.
Learn more on this site and support our efforts. Join TMIA. To contact the TMIA office, call 717-233-7897.

    

NRC Issues License to Rare Element Resources Inc. for Rare Earth Extraction Pilot Project in Wyoming

Nuclear Regulatory Commission - News Release
No: 23-046 July 27, 2023
CONTACT: David McIntyre, 301-415-8200
 
NRC Issues License to Rare Element Resources Inc. for Rare Earth Extraction Pilot Project in Wyoming
 
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a license to Rare Element Resources Inc. for a proposed pilot project in Wyoming to demonstrate a proprietary process to extract rare earth elements from ore.
 
Rare earth elements are essential in many applications, including electric automobiles, smart phones, advanced wind turbines, computer hard drives, magnets, and military systems.
 
RER’s Upton Pilot Project, sponsored in part by the U.S. Department of Energy, involves a mined pile of about 1,000 tons of ore to be transported from the Black Hills National Forest in northeastern Wyoming to a rare earth element processing plant in Upton, Wyoming. Extracting the rare earth elements from the ore will produce waste streams including thorium and some uranium, requiring a source material license from the NRC.
 
Under the NRC license, RER will treat and stabilize the process wastes before sending them to a licensed low-level waste disposal facility.
 
The NRC’s review of the license application included a technical safety review and an environmental assessment. The agency published a notice of opportunity in May to request a hearing. No petitions were filed.
 
RER intends to start processing the ore pile in April 2024. The project is expected to take a year, followed by two years to decommission. The license is valid through April 30, 2027.
 
By admin at Sun, 07/30/2023 - 13:11

NRC Names New Senior Resident Inspector at Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant

Nuclear Regulatory Commission - News Release
No: I-23-009 July 26, 2023
CONTACT: Diane Screnci, 610-337-5330
Neil Sheehan, 610-337-5331
 
NRC Names New Senior Resident Inspector at Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant
 
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has selected Neil Day as the senior resident inspector at the Beaver Valley nuclear power plant in Shippingport, Pennsylvania. He joins resident inspector Ron Rolph at the two-unit site, which is operated by Energy Harbor.
 
“Neil Day’s broad experience in both the reactor and nuclear materials realms means he is well-positioned to take on this new role,” said NRC Region I Administrator Ray Lorson. “The skills he has acquired will help the NRC maintain a strong onsite presence at Beaver Valley.”
 
Day joined the NRC in 2008 as a structural engineer in the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards at the agency’s headquarters in Rockville, Maryland. He subsequently worked as a project engineer in the Division of Reactor Projects in the NRC’s Region I Office, and later as a resident inspector at the Grand Gulf nuclear power plant in Mississippi and the Comanche Peak nuclear power plant in Texas.
 
Day holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Pennsylvania State University.
 
Each operating U.S. commercial nuclear power plant has at least two NRC resident inspectors who serve as the agency’s eyes and ears at the facility, conducting inspections, monitoring safety-significant projects and interacting with plant workers and the public. Resident inspectors can serve at a reactor site for up to seven years.
 
By admin at Thu, 07/27/2023 - 11:58

NRC Names Thomas G. Ashley Jr. Director of Office of Investigations

Nuclear Regulatory Commission - News Release
No: 23-044 July 24, 2023
CONTACT: Office of Public Affairs, 301-415-8200
 
NRC Names Thomas G. Ashley Jr. Director of Office of Investigations
 
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has named Thomas G. Ashley Jr. as Director of the Office of Investigations, effective July 30, 2023. Ashley has been acting in the position since the retirement in February of the previous director, Tracy Higgs.
 
The Office of Investigations develops policy, procedures and standards for conducting NRC investigations of alleged wrongdoing by licensees and other entities. The office conducts and supervises investigations within the scope of NRC authority except those of NRC employees and contractors. The office also maintains liaison with other agencies and organizations to ensure the timely exchange of information and makes appropriate referrals to the Department of Justice for prosecution of criminal violations.
 
“Tom brings an impressive body of work to this appointment with his significant leadership in highly technical and sensitive positions in the Department of Defense and the U.S. Navy,” said NRC Executive Director for Operations Daniel H. Dorman. “His leadership has proven invaluable while he was in an acting capacity, and I am pleased he has been selected for this important position.”
 
Ashley joined the NRC in March 2020 as director of the Information Technology Services Development and Operations Division in the Office of the Chief Information Officer. Prior to joining the NRC, Thomas was director of IT Transformation at the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency. Previously, he served as deputy assistant director for information technology at the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. In that role he led a team of roughly 120 federal civilian, uniformed military, and contractor personnel, servicing 160 locations around the globe.
 
Ashley started his civilian federal service in 2009 at the Defense Security Service, where he served as the IT lead for the Defense Security Service Defense Industrial Security Clearance Office in Columbus, Ohio, overseeing daily operations from an IT/communications perspective.
 
His federal career began in the U.S. Navy, where he served 12 years providing afloat and land base telecommunications, satellite communications, and information technology support.
 
He is the recipient of a Joint Service Commendation medal, a Navy/Marine Corps Commendation medal, four Navy/Marine Corps Achievement medals, and three Flag Letters of Commendation.
 
Ashley holds a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity from The George Washington University and is a graduate of the Naval Senior Leadership Academy (Naval Postgraduate School) and the NRC Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program.
 
By admin at Thu, 07/27/2023 - 11:55

"Simply Wall Street" update on NuScale stock

Simply Wall Street, July 12, 2023,  "Shareholders Can't Ignore U.S.$4.5 M of Sales by NuScale Power Insiders" 
 
Authors note some financial choppy water for NuScale with more sales than buying in the last three months from insider trading.  "While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price." 
 
By admin at Sun, 07/23/2023 - 06:33

Response to Disputed Non-Cited Violation Documented in Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station, Units 2 and 3, Inspection Report 05000277/2022004 and 05000278/2022004

Response to Disputed Non-Cited Violation Documented in Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station, Units 2 and 3, Inspection Report 05000277/2022004 and 05000278/2022004
 
ADAMS Accession No. ML23186A127
 
By admin at Tue, 07/11/2023 - 09:08

US nuclear energy consumption dips

JUNE 29, 2023
 
Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review
Primary energy consumption in the United States was 100.4 quadrillion British thermal units (quads) in 2022, a 3% increase from 2021. About 21% of U.S. energy consumption in 2022 came from nonfossil fuel sources such as renewables and nuclear—a tie with 2020 as the highest share since the early 1900s, according to data in our Monthly Energy Review. Fossil fuels—petroleum, natural gas, and coal—accounted for 79% of total U.S. energy consumption in 2022. 
 
Renewable energy consumption in the United States increased slightly from 12.1 quads in 2021 to a record-high 13.2 quads in 2022. Increased use of renewables for electricity generation, particularly wind and solar energy, largely drove the rise in renewable energy consumption. Wind remained the largest source of renewable energy in 2022; it first surpassed hydroelectricity, the second-largest renewable source, in 2019. 
 
Consumption of nuclear energy totaled 8.0 quads in the United States in 2022, down slightly from 8.1 quads in 2021. The small decrease was driven by the closure of the Palisades nuclear power plant in May 2022, nine years before its operating license would have expired. 
 
Petroleum has been the most-consumed energy source in the United States since surpassing coal in 1950. U.S. petroleum consumption remains below its 2005 peak, and in 2022, it totaled 35.8 quads. The transportation sector accounted for most of the petroleum-fueled energy consumption. Although the share of electric vehicles on the country’s roads has increased, petroleum remains the dominant fuel source for cars, trucks, and planes. 
 
U.S. natural gas consumption totaled 33.4 quads in 2022, the most natural gas consumption in the United States on record. Growth in U.S. natural gas consumption has largely been driven by increased use of natural gas in the electric power sector, which has consumed more natural gas than any other sector every year for the past five years. 
 
U.S. coal consumption fell to 9.8 quads in 2022, the second-lowest level in 60 years. U.S. coal consumption has fallen by more than half since its peak in 2005. Reduced coal use in the electric power sector has driven much of this decline.
 
Early energy consumption using water to power grist, lumber, and other milling operations is not well quantified, although such mills were a common feature throughout the early history of the United States. 
 
Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review
Our Monthly Energy Review's pre-1949 estimates of U.S. energy consumption are based on two sources: Sam Schurr and Bruce Netschert’s Energy in the American Economy, 1850–1975: Its History and Prospects and the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s Circular No. 641, Fuel Wood Used in the United States 1630–1930. 
 
Appendix D of our Monthly Energy Review compiles these estimates of U.S. energy consumption in 10-year increments from 1635 through 1845 and 5-year increments from 1845 through 1945. Data for 1949 through the present day are available in the latest Monthly Energy Review. 
 
Principal contributors: Owen Comstock, Elesia Fasching
 
By admin at Sun, 07/02/2023 - 08:07

"Ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder gets maximum 20 years in prison for largest bribery scandal in state history; nuclear power bail out" - cleveland.com

Larry Householder sentenced.

Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder was sentenced on Thursday to 20 years in prison. (Albert Cesare, Cincinnati Enquirer via AP)

Subscribe to the Wake Up, cleveland.com’s free morning newsletter, delivered to your inbox weekdays at 5:30 a.m.

In closing arguments at trial in March, Larry Householder’s attorney called the racketeering case against his client “a nothing-burger.”
The former Ohio House speaker believed in House Bill 6 – the FirstEnergy nuclear bailout – on its own merits, the lawyer said. That predated the creation of Generation Now, the nonprofit used to accept bribes from FirstEnergy.

Jurors didn’t buy the argument. A jury found Householder guilty of racketeering alongside FirstEnergy Solutions lobbyist Matt Borges, a former chairman of the Ohio Republican Party.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Timothy Black called the former speaker a “bully with a lust for power.” He said Householder of all people would know how much $1.3 billion could do for Ohio’s citizens.

“How many peoples’ lives could have been improved?” Black said. “And you handed it over to a bunch of suits with private jets.”

Then Black sentenced Householder to the maximum 20 years.

Reporter Adam Ferrise was in the courtroom when Householder, who offered no apology in his statement, was taken into custody. Federal marshals slapped handcuffs on his wrists and led him from the courtroom.

Borges is set to be sentenced today.

-- Laura

By admin at Fri, 06/30/2023 - 15:16

BREAKING: WHISTLEBLOWER DOCUMENT PROVES IAEA/JAPAN COLLUSION OVER FUKUSHIMA RADIOACTIVE WATER RELEASE

Image

BREAKING:
WHISTLEBLOWER RELEASES INTERNAL IAEA DOCUMENT PROVING COLLUSION
WITH JAPAN OVER FUKUSHIMA RADIOACTIVE WATER RELEASE

Hi Steve:

 

A whistleblower-released document created by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on June 1, 2023, shows that "the fix is in" - IAEA is not only is planning to approve the release of 1.3 million tons of radioactive water from Fukushima but to manipulate their communication to the world in support Japan's position despite facts showing otherwise.  This includes information 
 

This is outrageous and dangerous for the entire world.  Japan, with the IAEA's support - NOT protection - Here is a LINK to the IAEA DOCUMENT, provided through Nuclear-News.net.  We've suspected and accused the IAEA and Japan of working together in the past, and now we have the proof.  

Please, do what you can to get this word out - not just to our echo chamber, but to media.  More information will be available on today's Nuclear Hotseat #627, posting later today, Wednesday, June 27, 2023.
 

To a better world,

Libbe.

 

Libbe HaLevy

Producer/Host, Nuclear Hotseat Podcast/Broadcast

www.NuclearHotseat.com

info@NuclearHotseat.com 

Now in its 13th year, downloaded in 124 countries, 
syndicated by Pacifica.

 

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CLICK HERE to make a Tax Deductible Donation via Paypal 

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By admin at Fri, 06/30/2023 - 15:00

CCNS and NMED Negotiate Settlement Agreement for the WIPP Hazardous Waste Renewal Permit

CCNS and NMED Negotiate Settlement Agreement for the WIPP Hazardous Waste Renewal Permit
 
CCNS and five other non-governmental organizations and one individual successfully negotiated a settlement agreement last week to revise the draft ten-year hazardous waste renewal permit for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).  Also at the table were the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) https://www.env.nm.gov/ and the co-Permittees, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Salado Isolation Mining Contractors, LLC (SIMCO).  https://wipp.energy.gov/
 
The NGOs are Citizens for Alternatives to Radioactive Dumping (CARD) https://www.cardnm.org/ , Concerned Citizens for Nuclear Safety (CCNS) http://nuclearactive.org/ , Conservation Voters New Mexico (CVNM) https://cvnm.org/ , Nuclear Watch New Mexico (NWNM) https://nukewatch.org/ , Southwest Alliance for a Safe Future (SAFE) https://www.swalliance.org/ , and Southwest Research and Information Center (SRIC) http://www.sric.org/ .  The individual is Steve Zappe, a grandfather and former NMED WIPP Program Manager.  
 
In April, the NGOs and the individual requested a public hearing because they opposed portions of the draft renewal permit.  The four days of successful negotiations resulted in changes to the renewal permit and the withdrawal of the requests for a public hearing.  https://www.env.nm.gov/hazardous-waste/wipp/     
 
The NGOs claimed victory that DOE is now required to provide an annual report about establishing another repository for plutonium-contaminated radioactive waste in a state other than New Mexico.  WIPP
was never supposed to be the only repository for this waste, called transuranic, or TRU, generated by the production of nuclear weapons. 
 
Additional protective conditions include the Environment Department exercising its power to revoke and require closing the site if the volume of waste disposed of at WIPP is increased or the types of waste are changed.  
 
The permit requires the Permittees to implement a new plan with a full inventory of legacy waste around the U.S. for disposal at WIPP.  This should be the first definition of legacy waste generated by the first 55 years of nuclear weapons production. 
 
It includes additional public notice and participation opportunities.
By admin at Fri, 06/30/2023 - 14:44

NRC Begins Special Inspection at Honeywell Uranium Conversion Facility

Nuclear Regulatory Commission - News Release
No: II-23-022 June 28, 2023
Contact: Dave Gasperson, 404-997-4417
 
NRC Begins Special Inspection at Honeywell Uranium Conversion Facility
 
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun a special inspection at the Honeywell uranium conversion facility in Metropolis, Illinois, to assess a June 21 event where safety equipment failed to function during cylinder-filling operations.
 
Plant workers were filling a cylinder with uranium hexafluoride – known as UF6 – when they noticed a small amount of material escaping from a connection point. The workers followed plant procedures to remotely activate the valve closing device to stop the operation. When one of the remote valves failed to close, a worker closed it manually.
 
Honeywell reported the event as required by the NRC and suspended all UF6 cylinder filling while it investigates the incident. Honeywell also reported that plant personnel were wearing appropriate protective equipment during the event.
 
The NRC special inspection, which began June 28, will focus on how Honeywell inspects and maintains the safety controls associated with its cylinder-filling operations. Inspectors also will review the facts surrounding the event, the company’s response, and the corrective actions taken to prevent a similar safety equipment failure.
 
The inspection team will document its findings and conclusions in a public report that will be issued within 45 days of completing the inspection.
 
By admin at Fri, 06/30/2023 - 14:39

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