Sep 29, 2024: The case against restarting Three Mile Island’s Unit-1

PEACH BOTTOM ATOMIC POWER STATION:  NRC INTEGRATED INSPECTION REPORT 05000277/2014004 AND 05000278/2014004

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Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station: Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation Security Inspection Report No. 07200029/2014008 and Notice of Violation

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NRC Extends Construction Deadline for MOX Fuel Fabrication Plant

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission signed an order Nov. 13 extending the completion deadline for a mixed-oxide fuel fabrication facility in South Carolina. Shaw AREVA MOX Services will have an additional 10 years, or until March 30, 2025, to finish building the facility at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in Aiken.

MOX Services asked for the extension in May after a number of factors delayed construction, including lower than requested annual funding from Congress and delays in the delivery of components and key construction activities. The NRC issued the original 10-year construction authorization March 30, 2005. The extension does not expand the scope of work.

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Department of Health to Offer Free Potassium Iodide on Nov. 20 for Pennsylvanians who have Tablets Expiring in December 2014

HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Health will provide free potassium iodide, or KI, Thursday, Nov. 20, to Pennsylvanians who currently have tablets with a December 2014 expiration date who live within 10-miles of one of the state's five nuclear power plants. The department will properly dispose of expired KI that residents bring with them to the distribution sites.

KI can help protect the thyroid gland against harmful radioactive iodine when taken as directed during radiological emergencies. Individuals should only take KI when told to do so by state health officials or the governor.

Each adult will receive four 65-milligram tablets. Children will be given smaller doses based on their age. Individuals can pick up KI tablets for other family members or those who are unable to pick them up on their own. Directions detailing when to take the tablets and how to store them will be provided with the KI.

Anyone can take the tablets as long as they are not allergic to KI. They are safe for pregnant women and those who are breastfeeding, people on thyroid medicine, children and infants. Individuals who are unsure if they should take KI should ask a healthcare provider.

KI tablets are also available throughout the year at county and municipal health departments or state health centers.

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BEFORE THE UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
                                  _____________
Douglas B. Ritter’s
Request for a Public Hearing on the Application for Approval of the
Indirect License Transfer of Susquehanna Steam Electric Station, Units 1 and 2
Facility Operating License No’s. NPF-14 and NPF-22;
NRC Docket No’s. 50-387,  50-388, and 72-28
                      __________________________

October 24, 2014

Secretary of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Attn: Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555-0001

Dear Secretary:

Enclosed please find for filing an original of “Douglas B. Ritter’s Request for a Public Hearing on the Application for Approval of the Indirect License Transfer of Susquehanna Steam Electric Station Station, Units 1 and 2, Facility Operating License No’s. NPF-14 and NPF-22, NRC Docket No’s. 50-387,  50-388, and 72-28” pursuant to 52 Pa. Code S 5.71, to intervene under the 10 CFR NRC, Section 50: 80 § 2.309.

Respectfully submitted,

Douglas B. Ritter

DATED: October 24, 2014

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Friends and colleagues -

The Penn State Institutes of Energy and Environment, The Office of Physical Plant, and the Sustainability Institute are excited to announce that Lisa P. Jackson, Vice President of Environmental Initiatives at Apple Inc., will be the keynote speaker at the annual Colloquium on the Environment, Thursday November 6 at 6 p.m. in Schwab Auditorium on the University Park campus.

This event is free and open to the public, doors open at 5:30. More details, directions, etc. are at www.psiee.psu.edu.

A flyer is attached. You can also share the event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/754045444631385/

For any questions, please contact Amanda Snyder at ajs52@psu.edu.

Thank you, and we hope to see you there!

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Bell Bend Nuclear Power Plant Combined License Application Environment Review Schedule Revision

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Eiko: A Body in Fukushima
October 3, 2014 - April 5, 2015

Location:
Maguire Gallery, Samuel M.V. Hamilton Building

The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts is pleased to present Part I of A Body in Places by Eiko, which consists of two related works: A Body in a Station and A Body in Fukushima. A Body in a Station is a series of four three-hour durational performances created by Eiko to be performed alone in the North Waiting Room of Amtrak 30th Street Station in Philadelphia. A Body in Fukushima is an exhibition of still photographs by William Johnston of Eiko alone in a radically different terminal, the abandoned rail station in Fukushima, Japan.

A Body in Fukushima recounts a visit made by Eiko and William Johnston, photographer and Wesleyan University Professor of Japanese history, to the irradiated communities that were evacuated in March 2011 after the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plants in Japan suffered massive damage in the wake of an earthquake and tsunami. The resulting explosions caused a wide swath of the countryside to be evacuated. The plants continue to emit radiation and the cleaning process is slow and difficult leaving the residents in temporary housing while entire towns are left desolate. Eiko and Johnston traveled through areas that have only recently been opened to visitors, following the path of a train line where the service has been discontinued.  Many of the stations were partially or completely destroyed or contaminated by radiation, the buildings crumbled and the tracks overgrown with dried vines and weeds. By walking into each station and placing her body within, Eiko sought to remember the people and day-to-day lives that passed through the stations and towns before the disaster.

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No: I-14-040                                                                          October 23, 2014

NRC Issues Security-related Inspection Finding for Limerick Nuclear Plant, Resulting in Increase in Agency’s Oversight at Facility

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will increase its level of oversight at the Limerick nuclear power plant following the finalization of a security-related inspection finding that has been classified as “greater than green.” The twin-reactor plant is located in Limerick (Montgomery County), Pa., and is operated by Exelon.

The NRC uses a color-coded assessment system for inspection findings and performance indicators. The colors range from “green,” for very low safety or security significance, to “white,” “yellow” or “red,” for high safety or security significance. In the case of security-related inspection findings or performance indicators, the NRC notifies the public when the “greater than green” threshold has been crossed. However, the agency does not provide specifics because of the sensitivity associated with such findings and indicators.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the third edition of a report, ‘Climate Change Indicators in the United States.’ The report pulls together observed data on key measures of our environment, including U.S. and global temperature and precipitation, ocean heat and ocean acidity, sea level, length of growing season, and many others. With 30 indicators that include over 80 maps and graphs showing long-term trends, the report demonstrates that climate change is already affecting our environment and our society.
 
The third edition of the Indicators report, which was last published in 2012, adds additional years of data and four new indicators: Lyme disease, heating and cooling degree days, wildfires, and water level and temperature in the Great Lakes. In addition, the report adds four new features that connect observed data records to local communities and areas of interest, including cherry blossom bloom dates in Washington D.C., timing of ice breakup in two Alaskan rivers, temperature and drought in the Southwest, and land loss along the mid-Atlantic coast.
 
EPA compiles decades of observed data in cooperation with a range of federal government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, universities, and other institutions. The Indicators report focuses on long-term trends for key measures of our environment for which high-quality data exist. Each indicator and the report itself were peer-reviewed by independent experts, and extensive technical documentation accompanies the report.
 
To order a FREE copy of the report, send a request with your mailing address included toclimateindicators@epa.gov  
 
More information about the Climate Change Indicators report: http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/indicators.html 
 
Kevin Rosseel
Climate Change Division
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Washington, DC