ML19249B100
| ML19249B100 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Rancho Seco |
| Issue date: | 06/14/1979 |
| From: | Wrinkle H AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED |
| To: | Harold Denton Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| Shared Package | |
| ML19249B098 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 7908300273 | |
| Download: ML19249B100 (4) | |
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?arold d. Denton, Director of uffice of Nuclo.ir Reactor Ibyulation, I-f U.S. Nuclear negulatory Couni4sion, nauhington, D.C. 20555.
Dear Alr. Denton,
I uu writing to you this urgent appeal to give the Go Ahead for the Sacr tuento Municipal Utility District to pt.t the Unneho Seco plant back i::to opera t ion a t the earliest possible nocent.
The reason-- Northern California is having the start of what the weather people say will be one of the hottest summers in neny ;. cars---here in the Central Valley the teuperatures have clinbed
'50ite days over 100 degrees and we uay have noue going as high as 112 degrees---
and we are voefully short of po.;er.
Under the leadership of Bomt President Willia 1 11, Baird, a hard noead, no :mnsenm businesa ui.n who has lived in Sacramento for uany years
' A hads up cae of the larcent lunbe r coup.u:ies ; \\.illiau ialbridge, t':e Genera l Mtuap r of the District; and John W ttinoe, a very ca;'able electrical engineer, M'D hu made all the changes respiired by your connicsion, and so.u not equired, to make this plant as safe as those on our nuclear power 2d subnarines, cruisera and aircraft carri2rs and instituted an euployee tf aining progran tha t will guard a$ainst huuan error in the operation of the plant.
Your Co*:miss ion also ha s a nuclear engineer on the site. With tina runaing out on Power Sources in Northern California,Itancho Seco is needed like never before.
All over California and particularly here in the Capital City o f Cal 4f ornia thousands of new houes, office buildings, stores and c.2ny other types of convercial buildings have been built in the la s t three years, not to cention updating :any older ones, all adding a: drain'.on the already overtaxed power supp=
- lies, l'nless llancho Seco ar.d Mount Diablo are allow 2d to crecate, a fcceze anat be put on all new buildings and hones---a bud blow to the econcuy 2nd joba.
Before bec., ming a General Building Contrac tor here, I worked for than 24 years with Pacific Gas ec Elec. Co. in the Sacrauento Div aion.
Carly more in the 1930's we switched from crude oil to natural gas for the fuel to fire the furnaces in the power plants that provided back-up power to the big hydro power plants of PGAE.
Then came the natural gas
'rtage and back to oil again.
Now oil is expensive and hard to come by and en-barrel not used for making elec-Short supplies of all fac1 cay tricity can be used to make diesel or gaeot[line.
that started in 1929 bring on a depression that cay be as disastrous as the one and did not end.until just before the start of riorld Tar II.
The old USS Nautilus slid.into San Francisco Bay last week to be decocuissioned af6er 30 more or less accident free of its nuclear power plant.
Itenton, Washington, has a nuclear p), ant with a lot of years of accident free ser-Vice behind it.
With the changes that have been ende and with care a good train-threa-ing and top supervision of all personnel llancho Seco should pose none of the to humans as clained by the "kukes" who streauad here from the Cappuses at U.C.
Davis, berkeley.
Thousanda of permits, red tape, " hearings" no coal or oil plant-have even gotten off the ground in Califordia----solar power is still not an affor<
able al te rna tive----so only nucl ear is left.
Blackouts, brounouts, job losses, losses in spsiled meats and produce, cakes it iuperative that Itancho Seco, now read to go, be turned loose to operate.
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.31 k yl to Cos Enor Jerry a.n's t'ne r;;y S a r r e t a ry
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uA ta!d him tha t Aero J. t Genern't i.coration's ; ct: t "1,nt '
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- ave anken sanples of the l '.,
.. s t e fron-
.. ;cne '.ander Call in ch.irga, M.1 i
nuclita r power plants and reducad it to a dry powder, in appear m e not unlike your f avorite laundry detergent, It is perfectly dry, von' t s '
rb coisture, vill not burn or explede, has a ltto', t no de t ec ta ble rays, and can he stored safe-17 in steel containers, the stuff not eating into the metal, H
said he would relay this information to Governor Brown who has been riaking a " big thing" of this lionid waste ntterial, Vander iall said any sanples your "in residence" nulcar engineet at Itancho Seco,(he was sure) could send him would be processed to ahuw yonr Cormtaaion that the way to make nuclear uaste safe can be acco:plishe aero Jet hppes to sell t'io proces s to all of the nitclear power plants in t h e 1:a-tion and perhaps averseas. No charge would be cade for the test.
I was with PGLE in l')47 when we sold the bl!UD the lines and equipnent in Sacrauento County which now makes up the SlTD area for about 011,000,000, SMCD to buy nost of ita pou r fran the U.S. Central Valleys Project and PGil pr a-was viding a back-up, Pep'ilation zooned in California, especiallj here, and SLUD had to hiild a couple of ;Iydro Planta ihich have done very well, Piis still was not enough and at the ur;;ing of the U.S. Goverunent, fhe State Governnent of Calif the Iecal newspapers, local political entities, etc., the District (SMUD) was pushed into building the " Thing That b'as The Ileal McCoy", the power of the future, an atomic pouer plant, Now SMUD cues about One Billion Dollars---not a big acoiuit to the Federal People, but a hell of a lot for a district of about 750,00') people ta pay off through the revenue that must come from their power billa.
It can catily be paid off in Itanco Seco runa---and it did very well a nucber of years----so the figurea on the ledgers of tha Utility District were nice black ones----now the red fi;; urea to the tune of 0"O,000 a day in wages and other expense such as 1;'wrds, etc., as personnel draws its pay in full, even thou;;h shut down,are showing up.
Loss of power revuue from the plant exceeds 375,00i) a day.
.111 the protestors who want a " hearing" (there have been plenty of hearings far) are the ones who want to shut down all nuclear plants, Practically none ao live in the S'. IUD area and are from dissident atudent groups and left wing teachers who have little of nonntary interest.
Thousands of illegal iu.uigrants and
" boat people" are being dunped iato California every year, all using elec tricity, A moratorium on all building will soon have to be enacted if nuclear plants, asfe though they are and getting safer all the t i a:e, aren't allowed to operate.
The State of Cal 6fornia has thousands in local offices without opening windows that can' t operato if the brownouts and blackouts cone.
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THERE WU.L probably be times to be counted on for this summer,
+ Began contacting mdmberyef this summer w hen you will be PG&E began negotiating to buy all the Westem Systems Coordinating asked to use less electricity than availab!c power from neighboring Council, a voluntary league of 46 you 'd like.
utilitics, principa!!y in Southem utilities in 14 westem states and PG&E is deing es erything it can California.
British Columbia, to explore *pos-to see that you have all you really In April, sith the possibility of a sibilities for assistance.
need, but as this was w ritten in Rancho Seco shutdown, PG&E Stres:ed again to regulatory
'mid-N!ay there were a great many took new steps:
agene.es D.ineid f3r' app'rovals df '
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question marks, and only one thing
- Arranged with the Benneville new generating capacity so that the seemed really clear:
Power Administratica to get a summertime energy-emergency Power supply this summer will major block of Northwest power pattem of recent years will not be tight, and everyone's help in capacity in N!ay, a month earlier continue.
saving energy will be necessary. (It Question marks remain:
.s will also help hold down summer
,. A J,s PG&E's incoming president and utility bills, the highest of the year
/$~
d chief operating officer, Barten W.
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jj M.6., ]4_. i.. \\ power this Shackelferd, wamed that many fac-for many customers.)
-y.'N, tors ceuld affect the supp!y of 5
Tu o important things you can
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o do to help:
u / 10 y
( time Rancho Seco would be cut of c
. Don't use electric appliances M b I'
' $e. d'[ 3 li 0
k 'k l service was a prime question, but during the hours of peak use be-(
far from the only one.
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tween noon and 6 p.m. unless o
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' absolutely necessary.
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- d. i. y "As in the past," Shackelford o
+ If you feel you need an air con-N.
7 said, "in face of an emergency, all Y ~~ h utilities have voluntarily gone the ditioner, set the thermostat at 78* or
' Qh,p,j.7 extra mile to help each other.
higher'and as far as possible avoid those haurs of noon to 6.
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"The availability of Rancho Some background:
than already planned. In Afay ad-Seco during the summer months w..~The possibility of not having,....ditional Pacific Northwest supplies would belp a great deal to a!!eviate_.
enough power to meet summer's became ava'itable, as did additional the tight supply picture in Northem peak demands was raised in earnest capacity from the Ca3 tate pumped Califemia this year. But the picture in late April.'
storage project of the Los Angeles will depend also on what type of At that time the big Rancho Seco Department of Water and Power.
summer weatl.er we have, the ac-nuclear power plant belonging to With these developments, reserve tion of our customers voluntarily the Sacramento Afunicipal Utility margins of generating capacity to curtail the use of air conditioners District was shut down in com-should be about 10 percent in June, and other appliances during the pliance with instmetiens from the July and August-tight but proba-peak time, and the absence of Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
bly manageable margins. (Reserve major generating plant failures.
(Rancho Seco power is an impor-margins are explained laterin this "To the maximum extent possi-tant part of the total Northern and story.)
ble, how ever," he said, "PG&E Central California supply.)
+ Formed an ad-hoc committee and every major Califemia utility But before this happened PG&E of chief operating officers of the are detennined to provide uninter-had already been busy.
five major Califomia utilities, to rupted electric service."
Early in the year, when licensing insure fullest coordination of con-of PG&E's own Diablo Canyon servation programs and of all Reserve margins-what and why Power Plant [ story on page 4] did power resources available to Cal-Turbine generators may mal-not conclude in time for its output ifornia.
function. Boilers may have tube l
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-'. buy of :ac qn-3y Leo Rennert rena of the pian: as early as w.
s Ba Washa:;'cn Sarcat. ru -
Tunday.This means Rancho Seca
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"' ucmento M-o could be back in business 'cnq bc-
- n dy Divict ta ccer-0 g 04' GIN.l'nex#ASI!!NGTON,
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s of de fxc cr: tics would get a chance to r%.
'. si:. lcin in ce law su:t.
Earth plan 5 :o go into federal ecurt quest an at a puMic hear:n; wheih-
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- ers 3:30 333 r;?ed a t week in an attempt to prevent er safety measures have teen surfi-dh th; commission scck-
!xt.::cn 3 Me rcepening cf the Rancho Seco ciently tightencd at ec E:0&k:o-n; a nublic heartn;; en the safety nuc! car plant near Sacramen'.o.
watt fae iity in li;ht of 2e Three pe$n befcre restart is ;crd-The Eee :carned Friday.
31ile Island accid:nt in Pennsylva-
.cd.
The emircnmental ""rw asked ma.
. Dncho -
been c!csea.
smcc.'eril'b,cco has,e caramisacn c
the U.S.
Nuclear Re.;ulatory "Te're defici:eIy centemplating when t..
Cammisncn fast mo:::S to hcid a fi:in; an injunctica," Andrew 3al.
p:.b?ic hearin; en the plant's safety dwin. legal direc:ct of Fr:enis of ordrea 3 13'C!c3r ' di wah tge li!32/ U S2?'d C**3*grec.m same reacter des:;;n as T.
' fore 0!'e dn ; cpcratiens to re.
the Earth,:cid The Bee.
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au m e.
"It's irrespensO!2 to aI:n a
'0* 'X 0 9'nant chan;;es, new The commission Thursday restart of Rando Seco and then 7'. J,0fj rei 'd N20d gered the d;x ;r a public hear-have a hearing later ca mcder
"--"i-n; but rcM'ed de request dat hat was a proper mwe in 2e f:rs' la.cb S.:a ;; kcpt c.csed in the p' ace."
The com A in ~ if has cc -
meantime.
Baldwin dec:Na :o s.ve fader ckcm aa: SI:LD h.:s c'apied The hear:n; probab:y wculd be de: ails aScut his ;roup's :c;al ud %e cuncewns and that add in Sacramento in a few weeks gra:cgy. lie ain:ed, however. h.it.
3ar.do Seco can be safe!y re-but the commissica may approve a ciscussians are under way with two opened.
3 PG&2 p!sdges studies to assure sefaty of.C!E.t.'o CEnycn w
(Thefollowing is based on re-mission, the Nue! car Regulatory in :he design of our Dir.b.o Canyon marks made by PGdE President Commission, the Adsisory Com- '
plant and the Three hii:e Island r
John F. Bonner cr the company's mittee on Reactor Safeguards, the plant. Based on the information we annualmeeting Apnl13.)
E!cctric Power Research Institute, have to date, we be!! eve that these other utilities, equipment suppliers, differences would prevent the Three OCR -MILLION kilowatt Dir.blo and, of course, our own experts are Stile Is!and sequence of events from Canyon Nuc!ca. Plant is me <ing intensively investigating it as it re-occurring at Diablo Canyon.
closer to operation. IIcari:.gs before lates to Diablo Canyon.
A!$ough it dces net now appear the Nu:! car Regulatory Commis-De company is com.:itted to that any substantial changes in de-sion's Atomic Safety and Licensing assuring the safety of rny nuclear sign or operating procedures for the Board for issuance of an operating power plant it operates. We do not Diablo plant are necessary,if ad-I
- license concluded in February. ~
intend w operate any nuclear plant ditional facts show that changes in-It is still too early to te!! what ef-unless we are satisfied with its the Diablo plant or its cperating feut the Dree Stile Island accident safety features. Diablo Canyon has procedures are necessary, we will in Pennsylvania wi!! have on the been subjec:cd to the mo>t rigorous make them.
licensing procedure's for Diablo design review in history, and its The Three Stile Island accident.
Cany on. De facts on the accident operaters have been intensively was serious and regrettabk. but we are still not completely known.
trained for several years and tested will ! carn from wh2t happened there Rey are being thoroughly investi-repeatedly, anJ even further improve th: sakty
. gated now by a Presidential Com-
' There are substantial differences of nue':ar pow er p!1nt opentions.
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