Newly Released Report reveals - US nuclear chain-reaction accident spill-in '06

[IChing]

By DUNCAN MANSFIELD, Associated Press
May 9, 2007

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission revealed in a new report to Congress that a nuclear chain-reaction accident nearly occurred 14 months ago at a nuclear fuels processing plant in Tennessee.

About 35 liters, or just over 9 gallons, of highly enriched uranium solution spilled March 6, 2006, at the Nuclear Fuel Services Inc. facility in Erwin, about 15 miles south of Johnson City, the NRC said in a report published Friday in the Federal Register.

The incident might never have been disclosed publicly if not for laws requiring the NRC to annually report "abnormal occurrences" of its license-holders to Congress.

By definition, abnormal occurrences are considered "significant from the standpoint of public health and safety," NRC Chairman Dale Klein wrote in the 35-page report, which covered fiscal 2006 and was addressed to Vice President Dick Cheney.

The incident at Nuclear Fuel Services was one of three mentioned in the report.

"The commission decided a few years ago in the wake of 9/11 that operational details at this facility would be treated as sensitive, official use-only information," McIntyre said. "So we don't publicly discuss the operational details of NFS."

edited for link: http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_5527305,00.html

[tom_paine]

1. Here's a story that will not see the light of day on Corporate TV Pravda

Along with Ohio well on it's way to confirming the 2004 election was stolen there through felony convictions and re-audits.

But all of these things, hell even the Ohio Recount Felony Convictions, were jumped on like a fizzing grenade by the prosecutors, "It wasn't politically motivated. It wasn't politically motivated. It wasn't politically motivated."

Because if the truth came out about THAT, then there is a good chance it's anything goes...

This one, too, for different reasons. In either case, just from the point of view that it makes THe Bushevik Imperial Gouvernment looks bad.

So it may flash by reeeealllll quick on the CNN ticker, but don't expect the bloviators to discuss this topic forbidden to be discussed on BushPutinist Airwaves.

[merh]

2. I hope the good ole boys (& gals) of Tennessee that love this

admin appreciate their policy of "no information".

When will this ever stop? :banghead:

[Turbineguy]

3. In a normal government

I would have no problem with this statement:

"The commission decided a few years ago in the wake of 9/11 that operational details at this facility would be treated as sensitive, official use-only information," McIntyre said. "So we don't publicly discuss the operational details of NFS."

But then again, had a normal government been working on Sept 11, 2001 the reason for not disclosing would have been moot.

[nealmhughes]

4. Look Mom! There's a reactor in the basement!

Holy moley. Submarine nuclear fuel is very highly enriched. That is why they can go years without refueling. . .
Water and enriched U235 do not go well together. The water acts as a moderator which then "slows down" the free neutrons which result from fission, making them the right "speed" to absorb another U235 and continue the cycle. When the shape, reflection, and moderation are just right, the cycle can go "critical" that is self sustaining. The "good news" is that if it did achieve criticality, then the water would have boiled away and thus the moderation lost, and thus criticality.

But the bad news: it would produce fission particles through out its life cycle.

It would not be like a bomb, but an uncontained release of fission particles, the nastiest of whom are Cs and Rb, along with N17 being produced. The Cesium and Ribidium are initially emitted as gases and then decay into a solid and the body thinks they are calcium and that is why all the cows around Chernobyl had to be slaughtered: Cesium getting into the milk.

Admiral Rickover would be proud of me: I remember all of it from back in the day!

[hedgehog]

5. Whatever happened to the crazy story last year about truckers

showing up in the middle of the night at a nuclear plant with a bag full of money?