The schedule for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Safety Evaluation Report for NextEra Energy Seabrook nuclear power plant's license renewal and extension application has been pushed back about a year.
According to information released yesterday by the NRC, a new estimated date of December 2012 has been assigned for the report's completion.
Neil Sheehan, spokesman for the NRC's Region 1, said the delay is due primarily to the discovery that groundwater has negatively affected part of a concrete wall of an underground tunnel, weakening it by 22 percent. The problem is attributed to an alkali-silica reaction within the concrete due to the water.
The underground electrical tunnel involved is built into a bedrock foundation, Sheehan said. At the time of construction, the concrete foundation was wrapped in a waterproof membrane that didn't work as well as it was supposed to, he said. Although the concrete lost strength, it still meets all federal design standards and is still able to maintain support, with steel-reinforced rebar within the concrete providing a high degree of structural support, he said.
The NRC issued a "non-cited" violation on the alkali-silica reaction problem, a low-level violation on the NRC's scale. But, more investigation still must be completed by the plant and information compiled before the NRC can complete the final Safety Evaluation Report, required for the license renewal application.
"(Seabrook power plant officials) have more work to do on this," Sheehan said. "They have to take more core sample borings samples and have them analyzed."
Sheehan said the information obtained will go into the development of a plan on how NextEra Energy Seabrook manages the affects of aging on its plant and how it gets the concrete degradation issue under control.
After operating for 20 years, Seabrook nuclear power plant last June qualified to, and applied for, a 20-year extension of its operating license that would extend its life from 2030 to 2050. The lengthy process takes at least 20 months, often longer, and in some instances requires three or more years.
Prior to the concrete degradation issues, the NRC's schedule to produce a final Safety Evaluation Report was January 2012, Sheehan said. The new target date for the final Safety Evaluation Report is Dec. 20, 2012.
• • •
Due to a critical shortage of blood, Trinity United Church, in conjunction with the American Red Cross, will hold a blood drive Monday from 1 to 6 p.m. at the church Parish House across from Town Hall, at the corner of New Zealand and Lafayette roads.
Donors and volunteers are needed.
• • •
China will be the topic of conversation at Seabrook Library on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m., when Desiree Wong of the Chinese Cultural Center brings her snapshot of China to share with children and others.
For more information or to sign up, call the library at 603-474-2044 or email lmichaud@sealib.org.
• • •
Seabrook's Happy Senior Citizens will host their annual Lobster Bake on Saturday, July 30, at the American Legion Hall on Walton Road.
The cost for lobster is $25. A steak dinner can be substituted for $20.
Reservations are required and can be made by calling Irene at 603-474-3274.
• • •
Angeljean Chiaramida covers Seabrook for The Daily News. She can be reached at 978-462-6666, ext. 3271, or at achiaramida@newburyportnews.com.
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
CEO Salaries Become Sore Issue in Labor Disputes
Raw Video: Fight Erupts in Ukrainian Parliament
Texan Ranchers Remain Wary of Drought
Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington
Police: Man Arrested in Etan Patz Disappearance
NYC Protests: the Revolution Will Be Scripted
Chicago U.S. Attorney Fitzgerald Resigns
Neighbors of Etan Patz's Suspect: It's Shocking
Gulf Fishermen Reel From Seafood Troubles
Stuntman Makes Skydive Without Parachute in UK
Raw Video: Bride Who Faked Cancer Released
