Courtesy: pilgrimpower.com
PLYMOUTH – The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant in Plymouth has been placed under increased oversight by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission based on a new inspection finding.
And a spokesman for the NRC said the Entergy-owned plant could face the possibility of being shut down if they don’t fix problems listed in the latest review.
Pilgrim was under additional oversight by the NRC until the end of June as a result of two earlier shutdowns. NRC inspectors found that the plant had addressed the areas of weakness responsible for the unplanned shutdowns during winter storms in January.
But the review of an apparent violation that was issued to Pilgrim on May 27 has resulted in the latest ruling that requires increased oversight.
“If the plant is not able to rectify these problems, they could be in danger of a shutdown,” said NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan.
“Pilgrim has previously addressed all of the issues with our safety relief valves since the NRC first issued its preliminary white finding to us,” said Entergy Spokeswoman Lauren Burm. “The plant is operating safely and always has, and there were no safely consequences as a result of the safety relief valve issues that we had.”
“Over the coming days, Entergy, along with Pilgrim, will review the details of the NRC’s decision to consider what actions we need to take to enable Pilgrim station can return to normal NRC oversight” Burm said. “We’re confident that Pilgrim continues to be a safely operated plant”
The most recent inspection in May stemmed from a determination that Pilgrim could have prevented a January 27, 2015 problem involving safety relief valves at the plant by identifying, evaluating and correcting a condition that caused one of the valves to fail to operate correctly after a plant shutdown in 2013.
The NRC said that failure to identify and correct the valve condition constituted a violation of their regulations.
“The plant will now get a much higher level of oversight from the NRC and that will involve another team inspection and will also be looking at the safety culture of the plant and many other areas,” said Sheehan.
Entergy told the NRC during their review process that two of the safety relief valves remained fully operable during the January event, while two others would have functioned at high pressure levels. The company said there was also redundant safety equipment to provide other means of achieving the function of the valves.
But after considering all available information, the NRC determined that due to a “degradation” of the valves, there was an increased likelihood that the valves would not properly function when needed.
All of the safety relief valves were replaced with valves of a different design during a refueling and maintenance outage at the plant this spring.
Senator Ed Markey (D) was critical of the plant based on the NRC’s latest finding.
“Pilgrim has had long-standing and repetitive safety problems and unplanned shutdowns that require this an increased level of NRC oversight, especially since it is the same design as the reactors that melted down during the Fukushima nuclear disaster,” said Markey. “NRC must continue this aggressive oversight until Entergy can prove unequivocally that it has dedicated the resources, manpower and training to guarantee the safe and secure operation of this reactor.”
“This office has long called for increased safety measures at the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant, including the implementation of long-term storage solutions for spent nuclear fuel,” said Attorney General Healey.
“Today’s decision is a disturbing development, and my primary concern is with the safety and well-being of the residents of Massachusetts, particularly those who live near Pilgrim. Entergy must act swiftly and decisively to correct these issues and restore the public’s trust in its ability to safely operate this plant.”
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