Latest News
Holtec’s PSDAR and DCE for Palisades; NRC public comment meeting Sept. 22, in-person and virtual/teleconference
Holtec International’s Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report and Decommissioning Cost Estimate for the Palisades atomic reactor in Covert, Michigan, on the Lake Michigan shoreline, was published on December 23, 2020. The document is 98 pages long. The PSDAR begins on page 1 of 98, while the DCE begins on page 48 of 98, on the PDF…
Read MoreLast Zaporizhzhia reactor closes with power restored
Offsite power has been restored to the embattled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant site for now, but as a necessary precaution, the last of the six reactors has now been shut down, according to news reports. While safety concerns tend to focus on the reactors themselves and the necessity for cooling, the offloaded fuel in the…
Read MoreDiablo disaster
When the California legislature voted on August 31, 2022 to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility open for a minimum of another 5 years, this setback wasn’t for lack of evidence as to why this was a bad idea. Activists from around the state, with national support, put forth compelling talking points, created petitions, made…
Read MoreLoss of control?
Even before Russia invaded Ukraine, Beyond Nuclear was one of the first to point out the risks of nuclear reactors embroiled in a war zone. After the February 24 invasion, and as the dangers to Ukraine’s nuclear power plants became ever more evident, media attention focused on what would happen if a reactor was shelled…
Read MoreBlackout at Zaporizhzhia
Fears are growing about a nuclear catastrophe at the 6-reactor Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with all offsite power now apparently lost. Even if the last of the six reactors is shut down, power is still needed to cool the fuel. The nearby town of Enerhodar is in a state of complete blackout. This is also…
Read MoreNuclear alarm bells at Zaporizhzhia
Beyond Nuclear is in Common Dreams today with an article about the high risks at Zaporizhzhia. Here is an excerpt: What are the odds of [a missile strike leading to a meltdown] happening at Zaporizhzhia? Assessments vary. Some experts allege that the reactor containment buildings are robust enough to withstand shelling or even bunker-busting missile…
Read MoreYouth protest walk against SMRs
A group of youth members of the Welsh Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND Cymru) are leading a walk from Trawsfynydd to Wylfa to protest plans for small modular reactors at the two now closed reactor sites in Wales. The approximately 55-mile walk began on September 4 and will conclude on September 10 with rallies along…
Read More“No shelling”? How about “No nukes”!
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors who visited Ukraine’s 6-reactor Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant last week, along with their chief, Rafael Grossi (pictured during the post-inspection press conference), and the UN have called for a security zone around the plant, embroiled in the war in Ukraine, with the invading Russians occupying the site since early…
Read MoreDiablo Canyon gets extension option
Acting on California Governor Gavin Newsom legislative proposal to extend the life of the Diablo Canyon nuclear facility (Units 1 and 2), state lawmakers voted on September 1, 2022, the last day of the legislative session, to provide Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) the option to extend the nuclear power station’s operations by another five…
Read MoreAlarm in Ukraine, march in Wales
This week on Nuclear Hotseat: Arnie Gundersen of Fairewinds Energy Education explains the latest rounds of nuclear Russian roulette – what dangers got ramped up at Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine over the past week. Last week, for Episode #583, he predicted much of what could go wrong at the six-reactor site… and then it did. Here,…
Read More