Tag Archives: Safety

Moody can’t get onto site for Moody Family Housing –Michael Noll @ LCC 2013-08-27


Dr. Michael G. Noll of VSU said representatives of
Moody Air Force Base for the second time could not
get permission to go on the site for the Moody Family Housing
the Commission

approved rezoning for two weeks before
,
at

the 27 August 2013 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission
.

He also handed the Commission and interested parties copies of

a public comment

he and VSU professors Don Thieme and Can Denizman
had sent to USAF.

Michael G. Noll handouts

Plus the developer still refused to
provide a copy of
the geotechnical report

the Air Force’s Environmental Assessment

says the developer is required to send to the Air Force.

If there is nothing to hide,
if there are no problems with possible developments of the area,
why not share the report?



Two different people report seeing Commissioner Richard Raines
catch Dr. Noll on the way out of the building and ask him
what would be involved in doing the geophysical survey Dr. Noll
has

repeatedly asked to do
.

See also Continue reading

Japanese government forced to take over Fukushima nuclear crisis

This is not the type of “crisis” or “leak” that ends quickly even with the Japanese government now taking over from TEPCO:
radioactive water has been seeping into groundwater and the Pacific
Ocean for two years, many of those tanks
holding radioactive water,

built with rubber seams only meant to last five years
,
are leaking,
and the containment wall next to the ocean is making groundwater rise behind it,

spreading into the aquifer
and spilling over it into the ocean,
with

every tuna caught off California bearing radioactive signatures from Fukushima
.
The radioactive uranium cores are somewhere in

or under

their containment buildings, with no known way to extract them,
still requiring cooling water poured over them for some unknown number of years,
and continuing to be radioactive for thousands of years.
Remember, the Fukushima reactors are the same GE Mark I model as Plant Hatch
on the Altamaha River.

Why are we building more nuclear reactors in Georgia
when

ten U.S. nukes have been cancelled or will never be built in the past year
?

Google already installed on time and on budget

almost as much solar and wind as both new Plant Vogtle
nukes would produce and for less than what has already been spent on them,
plus solar panels and wind farms don’t leak radioactivity.




Photograph by Kyodo/Reuters


Latest Radioactive Leak at Fukushima: How Is It Different?
by Patrick J. Kiger
for National Geographic 21 August 2013,

The water from the leaking tank is so heavily contaminated with
strontium-90, cesium-137, and other radioactive substances that a
person standing less than two feet away would receive, in an hour’s
time, a radiation dose equivalent to five times the acceptable
exposure for nuclear workers, Reuters reported. Within ten hours,
the exposed person would develop radiation sickness, with symptoms
such as nausea and a drop in white blood cells.

Mari Yamaguchi wrote for AP 28 August 2013,

Fukushima Leak Upgraded To Level 3 Severity
, Continue reading

Importance of transparency, due diligence, and communication –Michael G. Noll @ LCC 2013-08-27

Received yesterday on

VSU professors write to USAF consultant about Moody Family Housing @ LCC 2013-08-27
. -jsq



Thanks for posting this John.

One should note that the VDT was absent at

the LCBOC meeting on
August 13
, when the

county commissioners approved the rezoning
request
. This approval came after

we presented our concerns
and
before


the period given by AFCEC for public comments

in regard to the

Environmental Assessment (EA)
expired. No mention in the VDT on
August 14 about any of it, since no VDT reporter was present.



In regard to the EA and the possibilities to submit comments, it
should also be noted that

the phone number listed in the public announcement was incorrect
.
Thus, any attempts to contact Mr. Allen
Richmond, the AFCEC representative, with this published phone number
were unsuccessful. We eventually received the correct phone number
with the help of Moody AFB personnel. While we were able to speak
once with Mr. Richmond and establish email contact, his ability (or
willingness?) to communicate was limited.

Moreover, we asked Mr. Allen Richmond on August 12 if we Continue reading

VSU professors write to USAF consultant about Moody Family Housing @ LCC 2013-08-27

Presented to the Lowndes County Commission yesterday
by Dr. Noll; video to come. I’ve added a few links and illustrations. -jsq



AFCEC/CZN

2261 Hughes Ave.

Lackland AFB

TX 78236-9853
ATTN: Mr. Allan Richmond

Thursday, August 15, 2013

PUBLIC COMMENT_

RE: Military Housing Privatization Initiative (MHPI), Moody
AFB, Georgia



This letter is written in response to the

Environmental Assessment (EA)

of the

proposed Military Housing Privatization Initiative
(MHPI)
northwest of Valdosta, Georgia, on Val Del Road (also
referred to as the “Val Del parcel”).

After a careful analysis of the report, we have come to the
conclusion that the current EA of the proposed site for military
family housing


does not address a number of

potential issues
commonly found in areas of karst topography
. Such areas display
unique geophysical conditions, including the presence of sinkholes
and the potential for future sinkhole formation, as well as
geohydrological conditions that need to be studied more carefully
and in a larger geographical context than currently given in the EA.



Without a more thorough environmental analysis and planning of the
construction phases, the danger exists Continue reading

Entergy shutting down Vermont Yankee nuke: tenth down or never to be built in past year

As Entergy

has been preparing to do for some time
,
it’s down forever for Vermont Yankee.
That’s at least ten (10) down forever
(Vermont Yankee,
Kewaunee,
Crystal River 3,
San Onofre 2 and 3)
or never to be built
(Calvert Cliffs 3,

South Texas Nuclear Project 3 and 4
,
Bellefonte,
and

Levy County
)
in the past year.
How many will it take before Southern Company (or more likely GA PSC
or even the Georgia legislature)
realizes

new nukes make no financial sense

and terminates the Plant Vogtle 3 and 4 boondoggle on the Savannah River?

Entergy blamed Vermont Yankee on shale gas, but you ain’t seen nothing yet, as

Moore’s Law for solar really kicks in
.
Next one to go: I say
Entergy’s often-down Pilgrim 1 in Massachusetts
;
everything Entergy said about Vermont Yankee applies in spades to Pilgrim 1.
Or maybe

ten-times-down-this-year Palisades
.
Or bouncy man-killer

Arkansas Nuclear One
.
So many to choose from!

Entergy PR on Market Watch today,

Entergy to Close, Decommission Vermont Yankee
–Decision driven by sustained low power prices, high cost structure and wholesale electricity market design flaws for Vermont Yankee plant –Focus to remain on safety during remaining operation and after shutdown
,

NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — Entergy


Corporation ETR -0.21% today said it plans to close and decommission
its Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station in Vernon, Vt. The station
is expected to cease power production after its current fuel cycle
and move to safe shutdown in the fourth quarter of 2014. The station
will remain under the oversight of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
throughout the decommissioning process.

“This was an agonizing decision and Continue reading

Getting our road fixed after garbage trucks –Anita Armstrong @ LCC 2013-08-13



Yet another side effect of that

exclusive franchise to Veolia (excuse me, ADS)
:
dirt roads being damaged by garbage trucks,
came up
at the

13 August 2013 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission
.

County resident and taxpayer Anita Armstrong
said now that garbage trucks are coming
down her road it’s in bad shape and they need help.
Commissioners seemed to think that was comical.

Here’s

the video:



Getting our road fixed after garbage trucks –Anita Armstrong

Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),

Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 13 August 2013.

-jsq

No-bid contract for Alapaha Water Treatment Plant @ LCC 2013-08-13



A no-bid contract for the engineering firm that already wrote a letter
to GA EPD on behalf of the county, this one for upgrading the
Alapaha Plantation Water Treatment Plant, at the

13 August 2013 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission
.

7.b.

Engineering for the Alapaha Water Treatment Upgrade


Alapaha Water Treatment Plant Parcel 0261 057


Timeline --Demarcus Marshall

Utilities Director Mike Allen said the
engineering agreement with Lovell Engineering

(presented at the previous morning’s Work Session

was ready for the board to approve in a no-bid agreement with Lovell Engineering.

County Commissioner Demarcus Marshall wanted to know Continue reading

Fourth or fifth flooding at Valdosta’s Withlacoochee Wastewater plant this year?

So many I’ve lost track; somebody help me….

Valdosta City PR Friday,

Public Notice for Permit Violation at WWTP
,



Due to continued heavy rains in Valdosta and surrounding areas in
recent days, moderate flooding of the Little and Withlacoochee
Rivers caused a hydraulic overload at the Withlacoochee Wastewater
Treatment Plant. As a result of a peak hourly flow of 15.58 million
gallons, the incident led to a discharge of total suspended solids
in excess of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES) permit limit.

The total suspended solids result for the effluent sample collected
August 22, 2013 was 203 milligrams per liter. This is greater than Continue reading

Salem 1 nuke back up in NJ

No, that can’t be: NRC hasn’t said it’s up
after

Salem 1 was scrammed down last week
..
Of course, NRC never posts

events
or

status
on weekends, no matter
what’s down, up, or on fire.

Bill Gallo Jr. wrote for the South Jersey Times yesterday,

Salem 1 nuclear reactor returns to service after faulty valve is repaired
,



The Salem 1 nuclear reactor was returned to service today, less than
48 hours after a leaking valve caused the plant to be shut down.

The plant began sending electricity out over the regional power grid
at 4:47 p.m. today, according to Joe Delmar, spokesman for the
reactor’s operator, PSEG Nuclear….

On Thursday, operators became aware Continue reading

Pilgrim and Salem nukes scrammed down

Two nukes down Friday:
“lowering reactor water level was due to the trip of all three Feedwater Pumps”
(Pilgrim 1 in Massachusetts) and “unidentified leakage” (Salem 1 in New Jersey).
That’s the fifth downtime for Entergy’s Pilgrim 1 this year:

cold, heat, leak
, and now feedwater pumps.
Remind me about the reliability and safety of big baseload nuclear?


Pilgrim 1 and Salem 1 down 23 August 2013


Event Number: 49296 Facility: PILGRIM
,

REACTOR PROTECTION ACTUATION (SCRAM)

“On Thursday, August 22, 2013 at 0755 hours [EDT], with the reactor
critical at approximately 98% core thermal power, and the mode
switch in RUN, a manual reactor scram was inserted due to lowering
reactor water level. The cause of the lowering reactor water level
was due to the trip of all three Feedwater Pumps. The cause of the
Feedwater Pump trip event is currently under investigation.

“Following the reactor scram, Continue reading