The Barnstable Patriot : Deconstructing Pilgrim

The Barnstable Patriot  Deconstructing Pilgrim  Written by Diane Turco

February 12, 2015

We can’t wait for another storm  The Cape Cod blizzard on Jan. 26 provided yet another scary warning. The real danger during the automatic emergency shutdown, or scram, which occurred at Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station on Jan. 27, had more to do with multiple equipment malfunctions than with the loss of offsite power caused by the storm. What transpired at Pilgrim was a series of failures that highlights the lack of oversight by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the hubris of Entergy Corporation while our state government downplayed the unfolding events.  The morning of the scram, Entergy quickly put out a press release stating that “All safety systems worked as designed.” Governor Baker and Secretary of Energy Beaton repeated the upbeat announcement and reported there was “no threat to public health or safety.” But what was described primarily as a loss of offsite power by the downing of transmission wires was not the whole case. Hours after the loss of electricity, a primary emergency cooling system, a safety relief valve and an air compressor failed. Two days later preliminary notification was sent by the NRC to state officials, an early notice of “events of possible safety or public interest significance.” That announcement didn’t make it into the public venue. If the following sequence does not inspire the state government to act on behalf of public safety, we are all in real trouble.  On the day before the storm, Jan. 26, the NRC released their 2014 assessment of Entergy, owner of the reactor. The findings are alarming. Entergy will remain under federal oversight and Pilgrim on the NRC list of the worst operating reactors in the country. Citing the lack of implementation of corrective actions related to inadequate safety performance, Entergy management was effectively told to “try again.” The follow-up plan allows Entergy to contact the NRC when the plant is ready to be inspected again.  The fact that the corporation is in charge of the timeline for following through with NRC recommendations throws a spotlight on the cozy relationship between the industry and the regulator. Essentially, Entergy can fix problems at the nuclear reactor at their convenience, while public health and safety can be ignored. Heightened attention from the NRC should not be the only consequence for a corporation left to complete corrective actions. On Feb. 4, the NRC released a second report on the 2014 investigation at Pilgrim. The cooling system that failed to function as the primary safety system during the blizzard shutdown was evaluated by the NRC staff just two months ago. With “no findings identified,” that same equipment passed inspection with flying colors only to malfunction weeks later. Eight days after the storm, yet another equipment failure was reported. Water level measuring instruments had failed due to the loss of the air compressor during the storm. The resulting assessment revealed there were no clear emergency procedures in place to fix this problem. This situation was serious enough for the NRC to determine it was reportable because it is considered that the event “results in a major loss of emergency assessment capability.” After 12 days of reviewing the problems, the NRC inspectors left town without reporting preliminary findings or holding a public hearing. Why should we, the public, be expected to trust Entergy Corp. with our health and safety? Isn’t it the job of the government to step in to stop this ongoing threat to all of us? Once again, Entergy pushes aside public safety for profit, ignoring activist requests and prior serious plant problems for a precautionary shutdown prior to the blizzard. This was reasonably predicable event. The storm has proven that Pilgrim is a failed design run by a failed corporation regulated by failed oversight. It is time for Governor Baker and the state Legislature to demand on behalf of the citizens of Massachusetts that the NRC withdraw the operating license for Pilgrim and begin its decommissioning. Enough is enough. We can’t wait for another storm.