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Thousands of underground nuclear pipes may be failing

“Under current regulations, miles and miles of buried pipes within nuclear reactors have never been inspected and will likely never be inspected,”

Nuclear plant pipe failures can threaten safety | The Orange County Register January 15, 2010   By TERI SFORZA

A rash of recent failures in the buried piping systems of nuclear reactors – including one at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station – has prompted three congressmen to ask the Government Accountability Office to investigate “the integrity, safety, inspection, maintenance, regulations and enforcement issues surrounding buried piping at our nation’s nuclear power plants,” according to a public statement Thursday.

“Under current regulations, miles and miles of buried pipes within nuclear reactors have never been inspected and will likely never be inspected,” said Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass. (who chairs the Energy and Environment Subcommittee) in the statement. “This is simply unacceptable. As it stands, the NRC requires – at most – a single, spot inspection of the buried piping systems no more than once every 10 years. This cannot possibly be sufficient to ensure the safety of both the public and the plant.”

Nuclear plant pipe failures can threaten safety | threaten, failures, nuclear – News – The Orange County Register

January 18, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radioactive