[NukeNet] QUERY RE CRACKS IN PIPES AT NUKE SITES ACROSS COUNTRY

[Bill Smirnow]

   Dear All,
                  I was going through some stored
material and ran into the following [below]. Does
anyone know anything about  cracks in pipes
anywhere in the USA and/or outside the USA?

    -Bill Smirnow



    >Federal regulators, nuclear safety advocates
and atomic power
 >executives have been watching the Sumner plant
closely. Cracks could
 >indicate similar problems in plants across the
country. A 27-inch crack was
 >found in October.

      > Investigators also are reviewing the type
of testing done to examine
 >the safety of pipes.


    http://www.mothersalert/jackshannon.html

    GE Reactors In USA Have Cracked Shrouds, Other
Problems

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bill Smirnow" <smirnowb at ix.netcom.com>
To: "World Watch Institute"
<worldwatch at igc.apc.org>; "Nukenet"
<nukenet at envirolink.org>; "Nucnews List"
<Nucnews at egroups.com>; "Indian Point List"
<westcan at egroups.com>; "Greenpeace/USA"
<greenpeace.usa at wdc.greenpeace.org>; "Earth Island
Institute" <earthisland at igc.apc.org>; "Earth
First" <earthfirst at igc.org>; "Bulletin Of The
Atomic Scientists" <bulletin at bullatomsci.org>;
"No-Nukes Asia List" <japan at NoNukesAsiaForum.org>;
"Downwinders List" <downwinders at egroups.com>;
"DOE-Watch List" <doewatch at egroups.com>;
"Abolition-Caucus" <Abolition-Caucus at egroups.com>
Cc: "ENS/Environment News Service"
<news at ens-news.com>; "Ecologist, The"
<ecologist at gn.apc.org>
Sent: Tuesday, December 26, 2000 3:03 AM
Subject: DISASTROUS PIPE CRACKS IN NUKE POWER
PLANTS ACROSS USA?

   I shouldn't be but I am still ASTOUNDED  at the
absolute arrogance that
 the nuclear industry shows to every citizen in
the United States & many
 throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Please note
that the utility is being
quoted when
 it's stated that it would take 3 years to cause
concern. Concern? What kind
 of concern[s]??? Why isn't the utility stating
what kind of concern[s]?
What
 if they're lying or have made an honest mistake
and it takes less than 3
 years? Note that the company plans to examine the
cracks in 2003- what if
 they change their minds or "forget"? They're
suppossed to examine THEIR OWN
 PIPES?

   And we're suppossed to believe them? This
should be a front page story on
 newspapers across the country.

 Why isn't a group like NIRS
[http://www.nirs.org], Critical Mass
 [http://www.citizen.org] or Greenpeace
[http://www.greenpeace.org]  being
 quoted?

 Do people in and around all reactor communitties
[thousands of miles &
 dozens of countries in the Northern Hemisphere]
know that these cracks
might
 cause a nuclear CATASTROPHE anywhere, possibly at
any time and that
 nuclear power executives have been CLOSELY
watching this situation?

  What ramifications might this have for nuclear
power plants throughout the
 rest of the world?

   If anyone knows what the ramifications are or
might be for NPPs around
the
 world I'd love to hear from them.



http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/ajc/epaper/editions/friday/local_news_
a3245faf15e871400020.html




       Cracks in pipes found at S.C. nuclear power
plant
       Associated Press
       Friday, December 22, 2000


       Columbia, S.C. --- More tiny cracks have
been found in pipes that
 carry contaminated water through a Fairfield
County nuclear power plant,
but
 officials say the problem should not delay
restarting its V.C. Sumner plant
 next month as scheduled.

       It would take three years for any newly
discovered cracks to grow big
 enough to cause concern, according to a report by
South Carolina Electric &
 Gas Co., presented to federal regulators
Wednesday.

       ''We're still anticipating starting up in
the first or second week of
 January,'' said Steve Byrne, vice president of
nuclear operations for
SCE&G.

       The company plans to examine the cracks in
2003 to see if they have
 grown, Byrne said.

       The plant has been closed since October,
when inspectors found a
major
 pipe leaking boric acid near the power station's
radioactive core.
 Regulators say the leaking pipe did not pose a
threat to the public because
 the plant has adequate containment areas and
controls.

       The discovery of the cracks prompted
further testing last month that
 uncovered additional cracks along weld seams on
other pipes, the company
 said Wednesday. Seven possible cracks were found
on a section of pipe
 repaired since October. Eleven others are on
other pipes, according to the
 company's report.

       The cause of the cracks is unclear. SCE&G
officials say the initial
 crack could have come from an outdated weld
repair technique.

       Nuclear safety advocates say the crack
discovered in October could
 have led to a pipe break that would have required
the plant to rely on
 emergency systems to keep the reactor cool.

       Some of the possible cracks discovered last
month were on pipes that
 carry water from a reactor core.

       Federal regulators, nuclear safety
advocates and atomic power
 executives have been watching the Sumner plant
closely. Cracks could
 indicate similar problems in plants across the
country. A 27-inch crack was
 found in October.

       Investigators also are reviewing the type
of testing done to examine
 the safety of pipes.



http://www.geocities.com/mothersalert/jackshannon.html

    GE Reactors In USA Have Cracked Shrouds, Other
Problems