An August incident in which a spent fuel canister nearly took a 20-foot free fall at a retired nuclear power plant in California will be the subject of a Nov. 29 meeting of the San Onofre Community Engagement Panel (CEP).
The meeting will include two public comment periods in addition to a presentation on spent fuel handling at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has found multiple performance problems figured into the Aug. 3 mishap where a precariously placed storage container was susceptible to a long drop.
The majority owner of SONGS, Southern California Edison (SCE), had shortcomings in gear, training, and oversight, according to NRC’ preliminary report issued in October. The electric utility is responsible for work at the site although Holtec International, the maker of the canisters, is also working for SCE on spent fuel handling at the site.
The 5:30 p.m. meeting is open to the public. Individuals can also submit questions in advance at the panel’s website. The panel, which meets four times per year, has more than a dozen members representing local and tribal governments, state agencies, the American Nuclear Society, labor, and environmental groups. The panel was formed by SCC to get input from stakeholders in the decommissioning process.
The nuclear plant in San Diego County, Calif., was permanently shut down in 2013. In 2014 SCE contracted Holtec to construct a storage pad for the spent fuel from reactor Units 2 and 3.
The canister was being placed into a below-ground space at the storage pad when problems developed with the canisters rigging. It appears the canister suffered only paint scrapes and wear marks, NRC has said, although its analysis is not complete.
Editor’s note, 11/20/2018, 9:20 a.m. Eastern: the story was corrected to show the canister did not fall, but could have fallen.
