ML19225A656

Summary of Intervenor Fankhauser-prepared Testimony for June 1979 Hearing Re Contention 6 Relating to Spent Fuel Pool at Facility

ML19225A656
Person / Time
Site:	Zimmer
Issue date:	06/01/1979
From:	Fankhauser D AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
To:
References
NUDOCS 7907190748
Download: ML19225A656 (7)

Text

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. WTED CORRESPONDENCE

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T.TC DOrIBENT E00M 5EEEf k,_.

t JUti 5 1973 > f-j UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ce= dy Q NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION h/ A td In the Matter of )

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CINCINNATI GAS AND ELECTRIC ) Docket No. 50-358 Co., et al. )

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INTERVENOR FANKHAUSER'S TESTIMONY FOR JUNE HEARING The attached is a summarv of Intervenor Fankhauser's prepared testimony concerning Contention No. 6.

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f Eohn Woliver Attorney for Intervenor Fankhaus Legal Aid Society P.O. Box 47 550 New Street Eatavia, Ohio 45103 513 732-2422 q3otj 401 Certificate of Service I heret:> certify that copies of the foreguing were serve uper the parties to this action b- regular U.S. Mail this

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6/1/79 Notes for Testimony on Spent Fuel Pocl of the Zimmer Nuclear Power S ta tion, Moscow, Ohio by ur. David B. Fankhauser University of Cincinnati Clermont Colleg Batavia, Ohio $e5103 Moscow Elementary School, K thrcugh 6, only 800 meters from Spent Fr 'l Pool (SFP) .

Sensitivity of humans to radiation varies by aL=ost 10 fold, the younger the individual, the more sensitive. (1,2,3,4)

ALARA requires that exposures to population be kept to a minimum achievable, a requirement which will not be met if fuel is stored for extended periods of time.

Indeed, there will be no off site storage facilities in the foreseeable future, not before 1992, according to DOE officials. (5,6).

In the meantime, numerous plants have been faced with a variety of difficulties as a result of large accum-ulatioc.s of spent fuel:

1973, AEC said two plants would ha te to be closed due to inadequa:e stcrage space. (7) 1976, EaDA claimed five plants would have to be shut by 1973 vithout additional storage. (P).

1978, a nuclear plant in I a England got permission for compaction, increasing # of fuel assemblies fr 880 to 2320 , using Boron carbide fuel racks. (9) 1978. Due to a leak in the recirculating syster, the reactor had to be emptied of fuel assemblies, but could no t do so due to inadequate space in SFP. ( 0)

To?n, Re:}uests vere made by several utilitics to shuffle arcund(spent fuel assemblias from plants w-ich were saturated to never plants with some space to c, rare.

(11, 12).

qqq eggypy n In each cf these cases, crucial degrees of fr I h Sh sacrificed due to accumulation of spent fu el, limiting the ability of the s ta tiorr in ques ticn to react to 401 013-

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(cont) abnonzal occurances.

Such inability to react in emergency situations dramatically increases the probability that off site radiation levels will increase. Since adequate storage facilities off site would ease t .is problem, ALARA requirements are clearly being violated, particularly since claims are repeatedly being ade that storage problems are salvable.

At the very least, Zimmer's license should be restricted such that at tha t point when the to tol amount of fuel on site is equal to the captcity of the SFP, no additional fuel should be permitted to be shipped on site.

A consideration of the Zimmer SFP reveals a number of short comings:

Since radioactive decay continues to produce heat af ter removal from the core, cooling is crucial to the safe storage of SF.

Yet the cooling and clean-up functions of the SF handing sys tem are considered non-essential, and have been subjected to no inspection or testing. ( 13 )

The fuel racks in the Zimmer design are fabricated from alumin um, yet the recent developements in the field of spent fuel storage suggest that boron carbide is a more appropriate substance due to increased absorbtion of neutrons. (9)

Yelld mass curves show that Kr-85 cnd Xe-133 figure prominantly in the composition of qpent fuel. (14)

These two fission products are particularly difficult to control due to their non-reactiuness.

early According to AEC data, 99.9% of these fission products can be removed prior to release of gaseous waste.

Indications are that the Zimmer design will not beet such retention criteria. (15)

These isotopes pose a problem in spent Puel because, although their formation doen not continue af ter removal ;' rom the reactor, their release frc= dae fuel rod ^must be expected to con tinue.

Indeed, ant, releases of these gas. es are generally traced to d efects in the cladding. Clo)

One must therefore expec t tha t leakage of these gases from spent amount fuel stored of spent will be fuel stored andproportional the length ofto thry 4 } Q}4 storage. "Some of the gaseous produc ts diffuse out of (the) pellets and remain trappeu in the plenam in in each fuel tube." (17)

page 3 Zimmer S pent Fuel Fool C nsiderations cont) .

spent Once large numbers of fuel assemblies are in place, it will be impossible to determine which may be the source of any leakage into the pool.

While krypton is a Hoble gas, there are indica tions that it can form associations with hemoglobin, and perhaps fatty tissues (18) and therefore cannot be entirely ruled out as an internal source.

Upon decay, it yeilds beta, and occasionally gamma rays.

Generally i=nersion is considered to be the p: ominant pathway of exposure (19).

Importance of storing Spent Fuel on site:

There is no argument that it is safer to store SF on site for a period of up to 6 months. Levels of radioactivity are significantly reduced during such a cooling period, (20) as indicated by the heat content decay curve. -

Levels of short lived radionuclides will drop during such storage periods. (21)

Constipation of Nuclear Industry as result of difficulty in disposing of highly radioactive waste.

currel -ly Each year 3 million lbs of spent fuel are beinz r cumulated on site at the nations nuclear power plants. (22)

A total of 16 nillion lbs are presently being stored.

By 1992, when completion of the federal storage site mieht be realized, assuming any state will pemit establishment of such a nuclear dump, there will be 24 to 30 million pounds. (6) construction of California has already passed a law which prevents new nuclear plants until ade techniqueshave been Deen demons tratedP3)quate disposal Such laws are under consideration in a number of states, including Ohio (24)

Rather than slow down the front end of the cycle, tne cou-se action being approved by the NRC is one of co= tion, thereby exacerbating the problem, and in _ easing the danger of contamina tion at each plant sU,e. (26) Obviously, the danger of spillage is proportional to the quantities of toxic substances being stored.

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page 4 Furthermore, it is therefore clear that the danger of exposing Moscow, Ohio residents in general, and the Elementary School children in particular will be increased by the inevitable requests that will come from the Utility to allow ccupaction at Zimmer. Since it is not the func '. ion of the Utility to provide for storage, to allow such an accumulation of spent fuel on site would be in violation of the " As Low As Reasonably Acheivable" regulation.

Senator Gary Hart, Dem. from Colorado, and Chairman of the Senate Subconcittee on Nuclear Regulation, has la beled as" scandalous"the accumulation of two decades worth of nuclear vaste in the absence of any means of safe dis-posal. He asks if we do not have a moral obligation to future generations. (25)

If a safety margin is preserved in the Zinner operation such that no more fuel is permitted on site than a total of two core loads, then we must expect that op era tions there will have to be shut down in seven to eight years.

Since the demand for electricity has been dramatically slower in its yearly increase than the 10% sited b;-

the utility in its early releases regarding the necessity of the Zincer station, and since on the coldest d ay in the history of the region, on'y 1+4% of the generating capacity was being used, it is clear that this plant is not urgently needed at this current juncture.

A prudent course for the ASLB utuld be to disallow start-up of the Zimmer station until the need for additional electricity 4.s clearly defined, thereby preserving that seven to eight years worth of electricity for a genuine emergency.

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page 5 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Stewart et al, Br Med J 1:1495-1508, (1958).

2. , Lancet, 17118i,11970).

3 MacMahon, J Nat Canegr, 28:1173-1191, (1962).

4. Sagan, Human and Ecological Effects of Nuclear Power Plants, (1974). p. 487 5 Morning Advocate (Baton Rouge), July 21, 1978.

6. Wichitq Eagle, Nov. 15. 1978.

7.

Olson,)Unaccentable (197o . p 158. Risk, The Nucl. ear, Power Controversv,

8. Nader and Abbotts, The Menace of Ator.ic Enerrv, (1977).

p. 146.

9. Boston Globe, July 2, 1973.

10. Omaha World Hearld, July 16, 1978.

11. Charlotte Observer, Jan 13 1979.

12. Cincinnati Enquirer, Feb 4,1979.

13 Zimmer FSAR, 9.1.2.

14. Sagan p. 9.

15. A BC ,~ yrundamental Nuclear Enerry Research, (1968). pp.

18-19. (As quoted in Sagan.)

16. Sagan, p 23

17. Ibid, p. 161.

18. Ibid, p. 529.

19. Ibid, p. 529.

20. Ibid, p. 196.

21. Ibid, p. 193

22. State Journal (Lansing Mich. ,) July 20, 1978.

23 San Deigo Union, July 12, 1978.

24. Ohio House Bill 527.

25 Sen. Gary Hart, in a speech before the National Press Club, May 8, 1979.

26. Robert Pollard, Union of Concerned Scientists, pers.

comm., May 29, 1979 u

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$1' . E dvi d h . 7.= u h .' L a '.C r Zorn Rovester M,1%1. s Graduated b'ich cencol frc:a Ciney Friende Ecarding schocl. Ec.rcesville.

Chio,1959 Graduated fra. hrlham College., iiictroed. Indiana, in 1963 it'_ a E .3.. 'in Che ictry.

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herked as c. research techni:. inn in the Dept, cf Eierobiology3 U.C.

!4edice.1 Schr cl frca 1963 to 196,5 c Pa. ticipated in the Dactc-rir.1 Virucas cou se r_t C,cid S7:ing Harbor 3

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in z.utcsen6ais Cociucted recce;chnin the 1scoratory of 6 ErUce h: Dept. of 2 Eicchemistry., Uni';crsity of California at Earhelcy during the suaner of 1969_ (Isr. free has received videcpread rec cenition for the develo,0 cunt of the c,ost sensitive test for cutagendsief carcino2etesis to date.)

Iicccived a iShD in Diclogy frc:' the Johas.,P.cphin: Uni'Iereit: Ealtitore.

M r."1 land ia 1971. Eis thesie, " % &ctet0r=0ce retor Nion 0 - _ ----

of th', t.ir Oraren in Sc1rionelle typ. murict" w =.E rs ser_- ched and sritten under tis adviscrship of Dr. Philip E. Eartre_n. It ccreerne the of fect of mutationu which clter the re2ulat100 -)f a- cet of getan responsible for the synthe:ir of -- c:;ico acid ilictidice. -

Conducted rcrearch in htrun eco-biology rele. ting to 1.ifestylee .'.cnich

, have :rinic.un adverte effecte on the envirccra frcc 1971 tc procent.

Inic recca: ch us car. ducted cn a sa.e.il 11 acre f ar: :. n Cler cat Cotaty. dcy featuros of the en.ccritantatica iurelve heet;na uith uccc. selfcufficiency in ruilk (Ecat),rm ecs. cad certain vegetable prcduction. C&zicur, nutritica fro:n sittple foodstuffs. reduction of '

dependelnce on utilities, etc. The Fankhausers, have delivered cll thr9 cf tiroir cut Idren (Cabriel -

gg , Cho narrud Jilf te.unroe in l' y&. Silvic ) 111ce and .W!cen) at .

Carrently teaching biolc.37 at Clerccat Ccilece, Univerni i;y of Cir.cinnati, IZtaTius Chic cir.ce 1973 Lotabla e.c ti vi to a there ir.clud e a r uiy uncovering crossly i nadecc::,tc cow:.gc tre t. cont f acilites it at r.eny of Glcrc.cu; counties treatuent platts e bic.gaa pneratica,

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