March 21, 2013

NRC Plays Keep Away...

March 21, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Critical safety documents are continuously withheld from the public with a total lack of openness and transparency. Fairewinds founder Maggie Gundersen and Enformable.com editor Lucas Hixson discuss the difficulties the public has in obtaining information from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and from reactor owners. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) has been a failure in allowing the public to have access to information that affects the safety of their communities

March 06, 2013

Follow The Money

March 06, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

This week's show is all about money. We look at how some utility owned U.S. nuclear power plants continue to drain the public's pocketbook, sometimes to the tune of fifty million dollars a month, without generating a single watt of electricity.

February 24, 2013

Forgotten Fukushima - Japan Two Years After the Daiichi Accident

February 24, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Dr. Caldicott details the impressive credentials of the international scientists who will be presenting their evidence at an important Scientific Symposium at the The New York Academy of Medicine in New York City. Entitled: the Medical and Ecological Consequences of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident, the symposium is being held on March 11th and 12th on the second anniversary of the Fukushima Daiichi accident.

February 17, 2013

Are Whistleblowers Being Protected By The NRC? Not Really!

February 17, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Fairewinds Chief Engineer Arnie Gundersen and special guest David Lochbaum, the Director of Nuclear Safety for the Union of Concerned Scientists, compare experiences about how nuclear whistleblowers are NOT protected by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission if they bring safety concerns forward. They will also discuss examples citing instances of the NRC failing to support the legitimate concerns of whistleblowers in the nuclear industry, including inside the NRC itself.

February 10, 2013

Not Returning to Normal

February 10, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

What Is Life Like In Northeastern Japan After the Fukushima Daiichi Disaster? Arnie talks with Fairewinds board member Chiho Kaneko to discuss her recent trip to northeastern Japan. Ms. Kaneko discusses the difficulties of trying to live there surrounded by radioactive contamination, and the psychological pressure people experience as the try to reestablish their lives after the accident.

February 07, 2013

Sen. Boxer Believes that San Onofre Knew About Problems Years Earlier

February 07, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

In this special edition, Fairewinds analyzes a letter from Senator Boxer and Representative Markey that indicates that the problems at San Onofre were known to its owner, Southern California Edison, years before the steam generators were installed and rapidly failed. This statement by Boxer and Markey supports Fairewinds analysis of one year ago that indicates Edison took shortcuts to avoid public participation in a license amendment for San Onofre.

February 03, 2013

Nuclear Industry Double Standards

February 03, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Fairewinds Maggie Gundersen and Arnie Gundersen share this podcast to discuss the recent internet attack against the Fairewinds website. Maggie and Arnie also discuss the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's double standard of allowing Nuclear Senior managers off the hook for significant violations while strongly reprimanding, firing, or filing criminal charges against its technicians and engineers. Lastly, Arnie Gundersen then discusses saltwater intrusions and what that means for Japan's Hamaoka nuclear plant and how nuke speak is used to confuse the general public and press.

January 20, 2013

The Games People Play

January 20, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

In this week's podcast, Fairewinds looks at how difficult it is for the public to meaningfully participate in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's licensing process. Arnie Gundersen was retained by Friends of the Earth to assess major problems at the San Onofre nuclear plant in California that have caused a year long shutdown. Arnie met with the NRC this week concerning his analysis of what went wrong and how the problems were foreseeable. In this podcast, Arnie discusses how Southern California Edison deliberately withheld information to make his technical analysis more difficult to accomplish. Fairewinds taped the meeting, so our podcast listeners can hear for themselves the difficulties Arnie encountered and the games the nuclear industry plays to prevent public participation.

January 13, 2013

Repairs at Four Nuclear Reactors Are So Expensive That They Should Not Be Restarted

January 13, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Fairewinds examines continuing problems at four US nuclear reactors, each of which have been shutdown for more than two years. Upstream dam failures continue to plague Ft. Calhoun, steam generator tube failures at San Onofre jeopardized Los Angeles. Crystal River's containment repairs burden Floridians with excessive costs. Finally, Arnie examines a new proposal by the Department of Energy to melt radioactive scrap metal and reuse it in consumer goods like knives and forks.

January 06, 2013

Happy New Year, 2013

January 06, 2013/ Arnie Gundersen

Thanks to our listeners and viewers, Fairewinds' fundraiser was a success. Thank you to all our donors who helped us to reach our goal. It's a new year, and 2013 has already kicked off a repeat of the same safety and engineering issues that plagued the nuclear industry in 2012. The two, eye opening nuclear safety issues we discuss in today's Fairewinds' Podcast are: a radiation scandal in Japan and a major safety problem in the US at Fort Calhoun. Arnie Gundersen alerts us to the fact that radiation exposure cover-ups did not occur only in Japan, and have occurred repeatedly in the US as well as in many other countries. Finally, we discuss Wall Street's financial worries over US reactors.

December 23, 2012

NRC Fails to Enforce its own Regulation

December 23, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

In this week's Fairewinds podcast Arnie Gundersen discusses recent problems at two nuclear reactors and how the NRC is failing to enforce its own laws governing those reactors. Gundersen discusses nuclear containment problems at the Ft. Calhoun reactor near Omaha and accident release rates at the San Onofre nuclear plant south of Los Angeles. In both cases, the NRC seems willing to ignore its own regulations and allow these two damaged reactors to restart.

December 08, 2012

What Are The Consequences Of Siting A Nuclear Plant In a Seismically Active Area?

December 08, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

In today's Fairewinds' podcast with Arnie Gundersen, we examine the effect of the recent earthquakes on both the Fukushima Daiichi and Daini sites, as well as potential damage from other quakes still to come. Arnie discusses Japan's previous large quakes and the impact on Japanese society. Finally, we discuss future problems with removing the spent fuel from the fuel racks in Daiichi Units 3 and 4.

December 02, 2012

Nuclear Power's 70th Anniversary: Then and Now

December 02, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the first man-made self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction. In this edition Arnie Gundersen discusses this first "atomic pile", the decades of secrecy that followed, and the birth of what has become known as the "nuclear priesthood". Also in this episode we discuss nuclear subsidies, water usage, and the problem of nuclear waste.

November 21, 2012

Financial Pressures are Affecting Safety Decisions in the Nation's Nuclear Plants

November 21, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

Arnie explains that Oyster Creek is the only nuclear plant in the US that lacks a modern High Pressure Safety Injection System. This means that the recently discovered pipe crack in a 3 inch pipe at Oyster Creek would create a serious safety threat if it were to completely break. Arnie also discusses the cost of operating nuclear plants, and how many nuclear plants around the country are no longer a low cost electric producer. Finally, Arnie looks at the three nuclear plants with extended shutdowns (Ft. Calhoun, San Onofre and Crystal River) and concludes that the cost of maintaining large staffs when no electricity is being produced is not in the best interests of the ratepayers.

November 18, 2012

Unit 3 Fuel Pool Repairs Support "Detonation" and More Contamination Found in Fish and Tokyo Suburb

November 18, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

Events in Japan begin the Fairewinds weekly podcast this week. Gundersen analyzes TEPCO's recently released plans to install a protective cover over Unit 3 and discovers more proof that a detonation (not deflagration) did indeed occur in Unit 3 back in March 2011. Gundersen then analyzes recent radiation readings in Japan and concludes that the contamination is not abating.

November 11, 2012

Possible Sabotage at Southern California Nuclear Plant

November 11, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

Yet more problems for San Onofre: According to Southern California Edison, a possible case of sabotage at the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant is being investigated. Gundersen and KH discuss how coolant liquid at the plant may have found its way into an unrelated system and threatened the backup power supply. - San Onofre has a long history of employee concerns, and recent layoffs may have exacerbated their employee problems. - The nation's oldest running Nuclear Plant, Oyster Creek, may remain shut down for longer than expected following the discovery of a crack in the reactor head. - The NRC to back a new study which will re-evaluate earthquake risks and probabilities at U.S. nuclear plants.

November 04, 2012

Learning Lessons

November 04, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

In this edition, we'll discuss the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and what lessons must be learned including the breakdown in emergency preparedness. - Nuclear power plants are built to a "design basis" in an effort to prepare them for Mother Nature's worst events. Are these design bases still sufficient? - Containment Venting has long been a concern associated with Mark 1 BWR containment systems. Now, NRC staff has recommended that these filtered vents be hardened. - Looking at industry wide changes, we discuss the new Vogtle nuclear power plant, under construction in Georgia, that will cost billions of dollars for ratepayers and US taxpayers. Finally, in response to reader questions, we discuss what other radioactive isotopes in addition to cesium were released into the environment from the Fukushima Daiichi triple meltdown.

October 30, 2012

Special Edition Podcast: After Hurricane Sandy - Questions and Answers About What Happened

October 30, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

In this special edition question & answer podcast, Gundersen and KH discuss what effects Hurricane Sandy had on U.S. nuclear power plants, especially Oyster Creek. Gundersen explains how spent fuel pools are not configured to be cooled with diesel power in the event of a loss of offsite power. Oyster Creek and several other nuclear power plants did lose offsite power and Thomson Reuters reports that they may use fire pumps to cool the pools.

October 28, 2012

Discussion of Hurricane Sandy and its potential impact on U.S. Nuclear Plants, the Woods Hole Report, Kudankulam, and the Shutdown of the Kewaunee Nuclear Plant

October 28, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

In this week's podcast Arnie Gundersen discusses with KH what effect we can expect Hurricane Sandy to have on operating U.S. nuclear plants. Nuclear power plants rely on off-site power to cool the reactors, but in the event of a "loss of off-site power" (which is likely in a hurricane,) plants rely entirely on backup diesel generators. A new report from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution finds Fukushima Daiichi accident released more radiation into the Pacific Ocean than any other nuclear event. Massive protests in India, at the site of the new Kudankulam nuclear plant, are met a harsh response by the Indian government. The U.S. Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant is about to shut down for good. Gundersen discusses the costs of operating a nuclear power plant and suggests that other single-unit nuclear plants may soon follow suit.

October 21, 2012

Unit 4 and TEPCO

October 21, 2012/ Arnie Gundersen

Arnie Gundersen and KH discuss the deteriorating status of Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4, the ramifications of a recent TEPCO announcement, and how it all relates to nuclear reactors in the United States.

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