ML20234A830

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Comments Opposing Util Application for Const & Operation of Atomic Plant at Bodega Bay,Ca.Related Info Encl
ML20234A830
Person / Time
Site: 05000000, Bodega Bay
Issue date: 04/11/1963
From: Hansen C
AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
To:
US ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION (AEC)
Shared Package
ML20234A767 List: ... further results
References
FOIA-85-665 NUDOCS 8709180145
Download: ML20234A830 (8)
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Q. Who are the men who will op.

erate the Bodega plant? What kind Q

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' f j!.? f4,, of qualifications will they have?

A. They will be PG&E veterans 6 % 7.i .;; f., M#

' f .9 with years of experience in conven-

>y tional power plants plus specialized I training and experience in reactor

, 4, / operation. They will be examined i and licensed by the AEC. They will i Hearings will be held soon by the Atomic Energy Commission on a have had on-the-job training at Val-j request by PG&E to construct a 330,000-kilowatt atomic plant at Bodega lec tos, Dresden or Humboldt Bay Bay,45 miles north of San Francisco. Because some misinformation has --or perhaps all three.

i been circulated in protest against building this plant the following infor. Q. Concern has been shown by

mation is presented some people about the " hot water" I' Q. Will the Bodega atomic plant the accident and never has released that will be discharged from the be " experimental"? the results of an investigation it con. plant's cooling system. What will A. No. It will be a permanent, ducted. What are the factsy the temperature of the water be? )

l A. Cooling water will be taken full-sized plant adding 330,000 kilo- A. Briefly, the story is this:

I watts to the PG&E system. There was an accident in the AEC's from Bodega Harbor, which has a mean temperature of about 55 F.,

l Q. Will Sonoma County rest. SL1 reactor at Arco on January 3, dents find their lives and welfare in 1961. Three men were killed in the pumped through the plant a con- )

{ feopardy because of the atomic accident, the only one with fatalities densers and discharged into the  !

plant, as some opponents of the in the history of U.S. reactor opera. pen sea,at abou,t 73, F. The ocean j

! project claimr tion. On September 24,1962, the will dissipate this difference withm  ;

i A. No. Millions of Araericans AEC issued a final report supple- a very short distance of the outfall. {

l live in the vicinity of nuclear re. menting three interim reports. Q. Will the warm water affect <

actors in other parts of the nation. The report clearly indimtes that marine Ufe?

l Just for one example, Consolidated the accident was caused by human A. No. This is based on extensive Edison's Indian Point Pitnt (275,- failure, not the failure of the reactor - . -n - -

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000 kw) is Just 24 miles north of system. Further, the SL-1 reactor 1: 3

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New York City. cannot be compared in any way - J

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Q. Is it true that the PG&E re. with the Bodega reactor. The SL-1 g_d,$d i^

actor will use a safety system "that was designed as a low-power reactor has never been tested on a working to be used by the Armed Forces in reactor" as some crities have remote locations. Thus, it incorpo- [~Ka L p( F"TG I l

claimed? ra,ted few of the safeguards con-A. No. The Bodega safety system tamed in the design of a large cen- Hum,,bohit--Newest

,,, ,, p.,,, g,,;i;,y PG&E consists of instruments to detect po. tral station such as Bodega. The de-tentially hazardous conditions and sign of the Bodega reactor will make operating experience at PG&E's devices to control such conditions. it unpossible for an individual oper- conventional power plants and on It will be similar to the system in. ator to make the mistake which oc- testimony of Dr. Ernest Salo, chair-stalled in the PG&E nuclear unit at curred in the SL-1* man of the Division of Natural Re-Humboldt Bay. The Humboldt Bay Q. One letter to a newspaper said sourms at Humboldt State College.

designs were examined in detail that "over 500 known accidents He said: "It is a generally accepted during the licensing of that plant have occurred,43 of which were ma- fact that the discharge of warm af-and components based on these de- for"in the operation of U.S. atomic fluent waters into the open ocean

signs have been tested in working reactors. Are these figures correctf does not create a temperature prob. .

reactors in large part. Features A. The figure 43 perhaps comes tem of biological significance, and I [

' which have not yet undergone ac- from t.n AEC report which lists, for believe the proposed discharge at i tual test in a reactor have been ex- the period November 1,1960, to Bodega Head is no exception."

tensively pre-tested. November 30,1961, 43 " reportable Q. Will the plant interfere with Q. Opponents of Ihe Bodega accidents." Aside from the Arco ac- the marine biologicallaboratory the plant frequently mention a reactor cident, nearly all the "43 major acci. U. of California plans to build?

accident at Arco,ldaho,in January, dents" were construction or indus- A. No. As the Commission said 1.061. Some cccounts claim that the trial accidents, such as fire in a in its decision," Spokesmen for both AEC never has learned the cause of instruction building, a head-on the U. ol' California's proposed bi-s - ..

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Here Are Answers to e Most Common Queries ology station and the State Division ments will continue. Should there About Atomic Power

. A. Several important considera-of thatBeaches they are and Parks made not opposing it clear ever be a significant increase above tions led to the selection of the Bo-the nu.

i the amout of natural radioactivity, dega site. First, the region to the

, clear plant and that it will not inter. PG&E will immediately take action north of San Francisco Bay will un-fere with their respective plans for to correct this situation. A similar dergo great growth in the next few operations Head." and land use on Bodega procedure will be followed in the years. Thousands of new homes and

'. Q. A recent " Letter to the Edi-Bodega Bay area.

Industries must be assured adequate I Q. How valid is the concern of

  • suppliesof electricity. For the great.

tor" referred to " enormous subsidies someSonoma County residents that est eiliciency, reliability and econ.

' paid for by ordinary taxpayers" in the plant might emit radioactive omy, a new generating plant is helping PG&Elinance Bodega. Will gases inlandt required within the area. Features

! any Government funds be used in l

I building the plantf A. All gases from the plant's which led to the selection of Bodega

! stack will be controlled A. No. As with every PG&E de- uously monitored by automatic at other possible and contin- Head as the site cannot be found

' locations in the re-I velopment, the company itself will equipment. If there ever is radioac- gi n the plant must serve. These finance Bodega in the free market. Livity in the gases in excess of ac- technical and economic considera-l i

AEC charges PG&E for the use of ceptable limits, a valve would close tions include a reliable coolmg water i

the uranium fuel at its cost and al. automatically and stop any further . system, good foundah,on conditions

' lows credit for the value of the plu- discharge from the stack. and harbor facilities for receivmg tonium created in the fission reac. .-. and shippmg heavy loads.

tion, all to the end that such charges '

Q. Will the Bodega reactor be and credits should not contain any U.S. subsidy.

T4e ;t  !**y?d pr b k,, built

- @Q o. on the San Andreas Fault? ,

I Q. How much of Bodega Head W, f A. No. It will be built on solid l

will the plant require 1 r

. @y w granite bedrock foundation some a,,,

Q. distance to the west of the western

+f]h A. PG&E owns 225 acres at the tip of the Head. About 25 acres will b. ==m c'

bMs edge of the fault zone. The Bodega jbs. site foundation has been verified l be required for the atomic unit and van.ch_p;oneer PGAE and confirmed by expert consultants switchyard. Additional PG&E land ' oucl. r power plan, will be used during construction. in geology and seismology. Dr.

The Head proper-the elevated George W. Housner, professor of ap-l Q. Can a boiling-water reactor plied mechanics at the California land at the south end of the penin- blow up like a bomb 7 Institute of Technology and a reo.

' sula-amounta to about 300 acres. A. No. A power reactor is de. 0.gnized expert in earthquake de-The remainder of the peninsula is about 1,000 acres. signed quite differently and uses sign, has advised PG&E that the different fuel. The Atomic Energy plant can be built there safely.

Q. Will the public have access to Commission has conducted exten. Q. Why will PG&E build transmis-l Bodega Head after the plant is sive tests in which a reactor was de. sion lines from the plant overhead built?

iiberately allowed to "run away" instead of underground A. Yes-and it will be the first uncontrolled, but an atomic explo' A. Undergrounding here would time the public has ever enjoyed sion did not occur. It couldn't. q free access to Bodega Head, pri. be unreliable and hazardous be-Q. Did the public have adequate cause the conduits would have to vately owned in the past. Under the opportunity to express its views cross the San Andreas Fault. A Public Utilities Commission permit about the location of the Bodega major earth movement at the fault PG&E will provide public access to planff as much of Bodega Head as is con- could rupture the conduits, releap l ,

sistent with public safety. A. The California Public Utilities ing thousands of gallons of inflam-

, Q. Why has PG&B installed in- Commission as required bylaw, held mable insulating oil contained in l open public hearings on PG&E's them. Restoration would take sev.

struments to measure radioactivity application. Hearings.were held in eral weeks. An overhead line is un.

at boldt and Bayinatomic the vicinity plantf of the Hum. San Francisco on March 7-8 9, May likely to be affected and could 4122 and June 6 7-8, 1962, a total restored within hours if it were. In '

A. There is some radioactivity in of eight full days. Time and place creased costs, which would neces-the air everywhere, regardless of were well publicized in newspapers

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' proximity to a reactor. The instru. and as many as 200 people attended sarily be reflected in customers' electric bills, are also a factor-un.

ments around the Eureka area are some sessions. Under CPUC ndes, derground installations are esti-to measure the natural radioactivity it was easy for anyone to express his in the air there before the plant be- views or cross-examine witnesses. mated to cost $4.4 million compared gins operating. During the life of with an estimated $240,000 for over.

Q. lan't there some otherplace to head construction of the 2.18 miles the Humboldt plant, daily measure. locate the plantf i of line involved. .l APRIL,1963 7 -

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               .r . L ACTION NECESSARY Q   CONCURRENCE ]                 DATE ANSWEREDs l            .

CLAASIT.s NO ACTION NECESSART O COMMENT - O aTs l POST OTT2CE TILE CODES b REG. NO 

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S.e eld. f.ncucred bv letter dnmed 5/16/63 ENCIOSUmES' signed by Eber U. Price. 1 c; PGE Progress - am 

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m 7 l t I CEMAREss z 1 1 fr U. S. Covernment Prinung CIEce: 1982 437308 u.s.arourcrnzaar comassion MAIL CONTROL FORM rCRM AEC.aus 1 " " * * ' 

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                                                                                                                      .         V16/63                               3061 LTR.                            MEMO:                 REPORTS                   OTHERs I

To, ORIG.s CC: OTHER: ATOMIC ENERGY COMM. I l ACTION NECESSARY g CONCURREN::E Q DATE ANSWEREDs NO ACTION NECESSARY C COMMENT O sT ._ CLASSIT.s POST Ol'TICC TILE CODES U REC.NO: DESCRIPTION: (Must Se Unclass15ed) REFERRED TO DATE RECE!YED 3Y DATE RE TO ATOMIC POWER PIANT AT BODEGA BAT y7" i - RDtPC 97 

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               .                                                                                                                               j NOTHERN CALITOLNIA ASSOCIATION                                            ;

l TO PRESERVE 'l BCDEGA HEAD AND HARBOt 2731 Durant Avenue Berkeley 4,. California l Telephone: THornwall 1-6399 l (Area Code 415) rot IMMEDIATE RELEAFE 1 l Monday, May 6 1963- q 

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PG&E CHARGED WIT'1 GIVING TALCE ' TESTIMCNY CN BG)EGA EARTHQUAKE HAZARDS J San Trancisco, May 6---Detailed charges that PG&E has given the State Public Utilities Commission falso testimony and the Atomic Energy Commission false and 1 altered documents in applying for permission to build the Bodega Bay atomic power-plant were levelled today by the conservation gn>up which has been fighting the 1 project for nearly a year. . . 

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1 A lengthy " memorandum of action" filed today with the CPUC by the Northern California Association to Preserve Bodega Head and Harbor was based on two public q documents: (1) a late-filed exhibit on earthquake hazards filed by PG&E after the . I close of hearings before the Public Utilities Commis sion test Spring; and (2) the 

                           Preliminary Hazards Summary," subraitted by 'PG&E to the Atomic Energy Comamission.                                  1 It seeks to prove four main points:                                                                    .

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1. PG&E testified that the San Andreas fault is more than one-quarter mile from , '

the atomic reactor while knowing that it was less than that (Tederal. regulations state that a reactor must be more than one-fourth mile from a known active earthquake i fault.)

2. The borings into the, foundations show that there is no soli,d rock at the reactor  ;

1 site. The reactor will be founded on badly decomposed " quartz-diorite" which is - i mostly clay and that the associated structures will be founded on more than 50 feet 

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3. The reports of PG&E's earthquake harlsrd r!onsultant showed the site to be 7>

so unsuitable that the company has tried to suppress the reports, has altered some 3 of their conclusions and 5ss failed to submit the most recent and damaging information- 

                            ' to the /tomic Energy Commission.
4. Outside experts brought in by the Assocbtion have found evidence of an l

active earthquake fault right through the proposed reactor site. i U At the close of the CPUC hearings last Spring, PG&E was required by the Comm-t is sion to file a late exhibit containing all the reports of the company's experts who had consulted on the earthquake hazards of the plant. The memorendum fPed by the i Association shows that the Commission failed to give the late filed exhibit a close' reading. 

                                     "The Commission appears to have relied on a summary of the exhibit prepared by PG6E's engineers--without looking at the actual reports," said David Pesonen, Executive Secretary of the Association.
                                     "In addition," he said, "the conclusions of Dr. Tocher from the University of
                                                                                                                              ,         (

California have been altered in PG&E's report to the AEC to make th~c site look more 4, 

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suitable than Tocher said it was. "  : Pesonen said that he and others were et first misled into behe.ving that the 1 

                          " bedrock" on Bodega ficad was simiPr to "the stuff you see in the Sierra. " ' But, he added. "we now know tha,t'it's much older, badly fractured and crushed, and                                   1
     .                    deeply weathered' "      .

4 The memorandum asks the CPUC to " retrace its steps" in grenting' a permit' to 

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PG&E last November on the grounds that it was obtained through knowingly false testimony. 

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3-L-3-3-3 - - L , 1 > . The Association memorandum traces chronologically how three reports on the q 

                . Bodega foundations by the firm of Dames and Moore of San Trancisco, came up w:th progressively less favorable results. "The last Dames and Moore report,"

Pe: sori:n said, " indicated that a quirk of geology had crea ted 'the case of the l missing layer (of rock)'." 

                        "Thesrs are Dames and Moores words," he said, "and this last report was only made available to the PG6E while the CPUC hearings'were going on."             By this tame e " fierce momentum" had built up behind the project. The memorandum notes j

t1at "PG&E was then faced with two unsavory alternatives." (1) They could pull il aut and admit a gross error in planning, or (2) they could go ahead-"and hope they , f3 didn't get caught," Pesonen said: "obviously they took the second alternative." Tae action in filing the memorandum is unrelated to the lawsuit brought by the ' Association to overturn the permit granted three years ago by Sonoma County. The Association won the first round in that suit on Friday when Superior Judge Littari Gibson struck down the three objections raised last Wednesday by the I 

                                                                                                                           -l Senoma County Board of Supervisors.
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