WSJ: NRC saw Fukushima danger early
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22 Feb 2012
In the days after Japan’s 2011 nuclear accident, the US surprised the world by ordering a 50-mile evacuation zone for US citizens, far larger than Japan’s own zone. That sowed fear and created tension with one of the US's closet allies.
Now, almost a year after the accident, newly released transcripts of discussions by US officials give the clearest picture yet of how that move was based at least in part on faulty information about whether spent fuel rods in one reactor had been exposed.
NRC to utilities, Westinghouse: Check nuclear plants for fuel overheating
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22 Feb 2012
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says it’s concerned that 11 reactors could become too hot in accident situations because some older nuclear fuel from Westinghouse Electric may not adequately conduct heat.
The commission on Friday asked companies including Duke Energy, Exelon, Dominion Resources, FirstEnergy, and American Electric Power to analyze their plants’ performance under conditions that could halt the normal cooling of reactors.
The NRC needs more information from the plants “to maintain that they can continue to operate safely,” Eric Leeds, director of the agency’s Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, said in a statement.
Read more: NRC to utilities, Westinghouse: Check nuclear plants for fuel overheating
BLM offers AZ acres for renewables
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22 Feb 2012
The Bureau of Land Management has recommended 237,100 acres of public land in Arizona are suitable for renewable energy development, part of an effort to speed up the process for clean-energy companies looking to set up shop in the state.
The agency Friday released a draft environmental impact statement for its Restoration Design Energy Project, recommending a middle course among six alternatives that ranged in size from 43,700 acres to 321,500 acres.
“Arizona has great potential to build a strong renewable energy economy,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a prepared statement.
Solons: Vt. will miss renewables goal
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22 Feb 2012
Two key lawmakers say Vermont won’t meet its goal of getting 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2017.
And the chairman and vice chairwoman of the House Natural Resources and Energy Committee say they’re scaling back a goal of 30 percent renewable by 2025 that had been outlined in legislation pending before the panel.
