During a conference call today, NOAA officials described the impacts of the “historic winter storm” that is due to hit eastern Massachusetts starting Friday, February 8, 2013. NOAA’s slides are here: NOAA Analysis Feb 6 2013
Entergy’s Pilgrim nuclear reactor in Plymouth, Massachusetts presents an unacceptable risk to the public and the environment during this storm. NOAA is predicting prolonged power outages, coastal flooding and erosion, and hurricane force winds.
Entergy stores high level radioactive waste at Pilgrim in “wet pools.” These “spent fuel pools” require water to be constantly circulating to keep them cool. During a prolonged power outage, the pools could lose power, causing a fire. This would result in a massive release of radioactive materials that would be devastating to the environmental and the public. According to an expert for the Massachusetts Attorney General, such a fire could cause $488 billion in damages. Read more here. Spent Fuel Article For more information on the consequences of a spent fuel fire at Pilgrim: Thompson Report 2011Thompson Affidavit 2011
Coastal flooding and high tides could also cause Pilgrim’s pumps and cooling water intake system to malfunction.
Read more at Pilgrim Nuclear in Path of Historic Winter Storm
