Nuclear Power Plant Emergencies in the USA

Nuclear Power Plant Emergencies in the USA

Dean Kyne Nuclear Power Plant Emergencies in the USA Managing Risks, Demographics and Response 123

Dean Kyne Department of Sociology and Anthropology The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Edinburg, TX USA ISBN 978-3-319-50342-4 ISBN 978-3-319-50343-1 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-50343-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2016959403 Springer International Publishing AG 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland

To my parents, my father U Moe Kyaw and my late mother Daw Thein Thein Tin. To my family, my wife Herina Miyamoto, and my two sons, Marc and Will.

Preface There are currently 99 commercial reactors, operating at 61 nuclear power plant sites in the USA. Nuclear power plants (NPPs) are associated with potential core meltdown accidents, which could ultimately lead to catastrophic events. The three main nuclear disasters with the most significant historic and catastrophic impacts are as follows: Three Mile Island in the USA, which occurred in 1979; Chernobyl, Ukraine, in 1986; and Fukushima Daiichi, Japan, in 2011. The Fukushima Daiichi accident, the most recent disaster of the three, demonstrates that the risks of nuclear core meltdown accidents could be magnified by a natural disaster event such as an earthquake, tsunami, or similar natural events. The immediate impacts from nuclear power core meltdown accidents is the release of high-level radioactive materials into the air which could be carried away for several hundreds of miles away, depending on the geographical location of an NPP, the size of the population living in areas around the facility, wind speed and directions, and weather conditions on the day the event is taking place. The Chernobyl accident caused hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate, and additionally, millions of people were exposed to radioactive radiation. The larger areas near the nuclear power plants were radiation-contaminated, and some areas were permanently restricted for habitation due to high level of radiative contamination. According to Perrow (1992), accidents related to NPPs are normal because the operating systems are coupled, and failure in one of the systems will have impact on other parts of the system, leading to the failure of an entire nuclear system. Given that accidents are considered to be normal for nuclear power plants, the risks of such accidents are inevitable. There are three options to manage such inevitable risks: shutting down all NPPs, transforming inevitable risks to evitable ones, and effectively managing future nuclear power emergencies. The first option of shutting down all NPPs is not a currently feasible option, for a number of political and economic reasons. The second option involves the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which has initiated reactor oversight framework which emphasise on three performance areas: reactor, radiation, and safeguards. However, the agency faces challenges of human errors and the nature of the inevitable accident (Perrow s Normal Accident Theory) vii

viii Preface in its efforts to transform the inevitable risks. The last option presents opportunities to minimize the negative impacts associated with the NPPs. Managing the nuclear power emergencies is significantly different from managing those of other disasters such as fire or flood emergencies. For example, in the case of a fire emergency, as soon as the 911 call center alerts the fire department, firemen are dispatched to the place the fire is taking place, usually within minutes of the initial call. However, managing nuclear power emergencies requires certain procedures and protocol to go through, prior to an initial announcement of evacuation could take place. To effectively manage nuclear power emergencies, it is necessary to understand the problems in the previous nuclear power accidents, as well as demographic data of the populations prone to high-level radiation doses, living in areas surrounding the NPPs. Critically important in nuclear disaster management plans are the places the radioactive plume will disperse, and the individuals under the plume path at risks of exposure to the high-level radiation dose, and the challenges faced in evacuating individuals living in the areas with high-level radiation doses. The development of commercial NPPs in the USA, the impacts of the three historic nuclear power core meltdown accidents, and the problems associated with response and evacuation are discussed in Chap. 1. The impacts of the three nuclear core meltdown accidents are analyzed, coupled with addressing the problems with response and evacuation, from a disaster and emergency management point of view. Chapter 2 captures the geographical locations of the 61 nuclear power plants within the USA and the communities exposed to the potential risks of core meltdown accident associated with the NPPs. In an event of a nuclear emergency, it is vital to carry out evacuation activities immediately so that the people living around the NPPs could be protected from the potential high-level doses of radiation. Chapter 3 examines the current radiological emergency plan and carefully investigates the process and potential problems that could lead to undermining the effectiveness of immediate response and evacuation. To evacuate people, it is imperative to know where the radioactive plume will go, given the weather conditions on the day the event takes place. Chapter 4 demonstrates utilization of powerful computer code, namely Radiological Assessment Systems for Consequence Analysis (RASCAL) to estimate the places the radioactive plume could be carried away by the given weather conditions during a nuclear core meltdown accident. The chapter provides two simulation exercises at two NPPs, namely the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station in Arizona, and the Indian Point Nuclear Generating Station in New York. The simulation exercises utilizing the RASCAL computer code with step-by-step procedures provides fundamental understanding and special technical skills needed to carry out a part of the effective nuclear power emergency management process. Chapter 5 examines the issues related to the nuclear power emergency plan in place. The discussion focuses on issues in terms of policy, priorities, process, participation, evacuation, and recovery. Chapter 6 proposes the three options for minimizing the risks associated with NPPs, suggesting the elimination of all NPPs in operation in USA, transforming inevitable

Preface ix risks to evitable risks, and transforming the current radiological plan into an effective emergency management plan. This book would not have been made possible without the comments from my former academic advisors, for whom I have the outmost respect for, including Prof. Bob Bolin, Arizona State University; Prof. Christopher Boone, Arizona State University; and Prof. Dawid Pijawaka, Arizona State University. All three have been instrumental and extremely helpful in shaping my research skills and strengthening my work in nuclear emergency management. I would also like to express immense gratitude to two anonymous reviewers who provided me with very helpful comments and feedback in my work. Additionally, many thanks go to the instructors of the RASCAL course, Lou Brandon, PMT and RASCAL Program Manager, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), George F. Athey, of Athey Consulting, and James Van Ramsdell, of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. My heartfelt appreciation goes to Edlira Kuka, who edited my entire book manuscript, in multiple editing phases and providing invaluable feedback from inception to completion. Significant gratitude and appreciation is also extended to Dr. Robert Doe, Editor, Springer International Publishing, and Ms. Naomi Portnoy, project production coordinator, for their kind support throughout the publishing process. This book is considered a first-of-its-kind in providing a comprehensive understating of how to effectively manage nuclear power emergencies in the USA. Edinburg, TX, USA Dean Kyne

Contents 1 The US Commercial Nuclear Power Plants and Their Potential Risks.... 1 1.1 U.S. Nuclear Power Development... 1 1.1.1 Discovery of Fission... 1 1.1.2 Self-sustaining Chain Reaction... 5 1.1.3 Peaceful Applications of Atoms... 5 1.1.4 Nuclear Power Reactor with Fission Technology... 6 1.2 U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power Plants in Operation... 8 1.2.1 Operating License Requirement... 8 1.2.2 Operating License Process... 10 1.2.3 License Renewal... 12 1.2.4 Current Reactors in Operation.... 12 1.3 U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power Plants and Their Potential Risks... 16 1.3.1 Core-Meltdown Risks... 16 1.3.2 Contamination Risks... 30 1.3.3 Nuclear Radiation Risks... 32 1.3.4 Terrorist Attack Risks... 33 1.3.5 Inevitable Risks.... 33 References.... 34 2 Communities Hosting US Commercial Nuclear Power Plants... 39 2.1 Setting Boundaries in Host Communities... 39 2.2 Invisible Risks and Unknown Consequences... 40 2.2.1 Nuclear Power Plant Siting and Environmental Justice... 40 2.2.2 Embracing the Low-Level Radiation.... 42 2.2.3 Consequence of Constant Exposure to Low-Level Radiation.... 43 2.2.4 Incomplete Knowledge of Low-Level Radiation Consequences... 44 xi

xii Contents 2.2.5 Nuclear Power Facilities Living Longer Than Human Average Longevity... 46 2.3 Data and Research Methods... 47 2.3.1 Study Questions... 47 2.3.2 Study Variables.... 47 2.3.3 Study Data... 48 2.3.4 Study Methods... 49 2.4 Overall Demographic Composition by Distance... 50 2.5 Hosting Communities in Urban and Non-urban Areas... 58 2.6 Hosting Communities at Individual Nuclear Power Plants... 58 2.7 Demographic Changes in 1990 2000 and 2000 2010... 66 2.8 Conclusion... 72 References.... 73 3 Nuclear Power Emergencies and Their Management Process... 75 3.1 Disaster and Emergency Management Process... 75 3.2 Nuclear Power Emergency Management Process... 77 3.3 Nuclear Power Emergency and Response... 79 3.4 Projection of Plume Path Dispersion... 82 3.4.1 RASCAL Computer Code.... 82 3.4.2 Obtaining RASCAL Computer Code... 83 3.4.3 Installing RASCAL.... 84 3.4.4 RASCAL Tools.... 86 3.4.5 Projecting Source to Term Dose... 88 3.4.6 Exporting to Shapefile.... 96 3.4.7 Overlaying on Other Map Layers... 96 3.5 Protective Action Recommendation (PAR)... 99 3.6 Protective Action Decisions (PADs)... 101 3.7 Evacuation... 101 3.8 Conclusions... 103 References.... 103 4 Simulation of Nuclear Power Plant Core-Meltdown Accidents... 105 4.1 Nuclear Power Plant Core-Meltdown Accidents... 105 4.2 Radioactive Plume Dispersion... 105 4.3 A Scenario of a Core-Meltdown Accident at the Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant... 106 4.3.1 Palo Verde Nuclear Generation Station (PVNGS).... 106 4.3.2 Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) Core-Damage Accident... 106 4.3.3 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 1.... 108 4.3.4 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 2.... 112 4.3.5 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 3.... 113 4.3.6 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 4.... 115

Contents xiii 4.4 A Scenario of Core-Meltdown Accident at the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant... 118 4.4.1 Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant... 118 4.4.2 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 1.... 118 4.4.3 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 2.... 124 4.4.4 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 3.... 125 4.4.5 Projected Plume Path for Quarter 4.... 128 4.5 Projection Limitations.... 130 4.6 Conclusion... 132 References.... 133 5 Issues Associated with the Nuclear Power Emergency... 135 5.1 Policy Issues Associated with Nuclear Power Emergency Response... 135 5.2 Issues Associated with the Process... 142 5.3 Issues Associated with the Priorities... 143 5.4 Issues Associated with the Stakeholders Participation... 146 5.5 Issues Associated with the Evacuation... 147 5.6 Issues Associated with the Recovery... 149 5.7 Conclusion... 150 References.... 152 6 Conclusions... 155 6.1 Dealing with the Inevitable Risks of NPPs.... 155 6.2 Eliminating the Inevitable Risks... 156 6.3 Transforming the Inevitable Risks... 159 6.4 Minimizing the Inevitable Risks... 160 6.5 Revisiting Radiological Emergency Planning... 162 References.... 166 Appendix A... 169 Appendix B: Descriptive Analyses... 173 Index... 357

About the Author Dean Kyne is assistant professor of environmental sociology at the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, College of Liberal Arts, at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. 1 Being an environmental social scientist and geographer, he has conducted research studies covering the issues related to nuclear power plants, disaster and emergency management, environmental justice, social capital index, and siting controversial facilities. 1 He graduated with a Ph.D. in Environmental Social Science from Arizona State University. xv