Minutes - 12-06-2000 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Commissioner Jacobs introduced Dr. Gordon Thompson. Dr. Thompson received an undergraduate education in Science and Mechanical Engineering in Australia and later studied at Oxford University and received a doctorate in Philosophy and Mathematics in 1973. During his professional career, Dr. Thompson has performed technical and policy analyses on a range of issues related to international security, energy supply, environmental protection, and the sustainable use of natural resources. Since 1977, a significant part of his work has consisted of technical analyses and of safety and environmental issues related to nuclear facilities. Dr. Thompson has a substantial record of experience in addressing the hazards posed by high-density spent fuel pools. Recently, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff agreed with Dr. Thompson's findings about the implications of residual water for heat transfer if water is lost from ahigh-density fuel pool. The staff had previously disputed those findings. Dr. Thompson has been instrumental in crafting three technical and seven environmental contentions, which are the basis of the actions that Orange County has taken. 3. REPORT BY DR. GORDON THOMPSON Dr. Gordon Thompson made a presentation using overheads. He showed a nuclear fuel assembly, the kind that is used at the Shearon Harris plant. The fuel is in pellets, in long, thin tubes made of zirconium metal. Zirconium metal does not corrode ar deteriorate. However, it is a combustible metal and, if exposed to air at high temperatures, it will catch fire and burn vigorously. It also reacts vigorously with steam and will produce hydrogen. He showed the fuel storage building at the Shearon Harris plant and said that there were water-filled pools about 40 feet deep in the building, in which spent fuel is stored. The reason for storing the fuel in the deep pools is to shield workers from the intense radiation that is being emitted from the fuel. Secondly, the fuel is stared in the deep pools to coal the fuel to prevent deterioration. There are pumps circulating the water constantly to keep the water cool. The fuel sits in racks inside the pools. The tubes surrounding the fuel are made of neutron absorbing materials to stop the spent fuel from going critical. If water is lost, the fuel cannot lose its heat and eventually it ignites. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and CP&L, when he first began talking about this issue in early 1999, initially denied that this could occur. Both parties now agree that if water is lost the fuel will ignite and release radioactivity. He showed a chart of the area of land that would be affected by cesium contamination in the case of an accident. The area of contaminated land would be about 4,000- 5,000 square kilometers. The quantity that could be released from fire in the pools at the Harris plant, could be up to 70 million curies of cesium or higher. A release of 70 million curies would contaminate a land area of about 150,000 square kilometers, which is slightly greater than the land area of North Carolina. This would render the land area uninhabitable for a century or longer. He gave the example of Chernobyl. Dr. Thompson spoke about how water could be lost from the pools at the Shearon Harris plant. One scenario would be an extreme earthquake, causing a cracking of the concrete structure and the drainage of water. Secondly, there could be a drop of a shipping cask. Thirdly, someone could cause a breach in the pool with an explosive charge or could siphon water out of the pool. This would be categorized as an act of sabotage or terrorism. The Atomic Safety and Licensing Board has declined to hear evidence on any of these scenarios. They have committed him to discuss one scenario only - an accident occurring at the Harris reactor and some of the radioactivity escaping from the containment. The question is whether the distributed radioactivity around the site will preclude actions necessary to maintain cooling and makeup of water to the pools. This is the scenario that will be discussed tomorrow at the hearing in the McKimmon Center. Lawyers will be talking about this issue based on papers that technical experts have provided. The experts will not be able to speak. There are three parties, Carolina Power and Light, the staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Orange County. CP&L and the NRC say that the probability of the last scenario is sa low that it is not worth discussing. Orange County's position is that it should proceed to an evidentiary hearing and have a detailed cross- examination in an open court setting.