On October 13, 2015, the plant's owners announced that it would close by June 1, 2019, citing "market conditions and increased costs," which would have included tens of millions of dollars of necessary safety upgrades. Following closure, decommissioning is expected to take decades for radiation to decay.[4]
History
Built at a cost of $231 million in 1972 by Boston Edison, the plant was sold in 1999 to the Louisiana-based Entergy Corporation, part of a complex deal that was the result of deregulation of the electrical utility industry.
On April 11, 1986, a recurring equipment problem forced an emergency shutdown of the plant. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) called it ″one of the worst-run″ nuclear plants in the country.[5]
Pilgrim kept its spent nuclear fuel in an on-site storage pool, waiting for federal direction on the correct disposal process. The Yucca Mountain site in Nevada was being considered for this purpose until its deselection in 2009.
Pilgrim's original license to operate would have expired in 2012. In 2006, Entergy filed an application for an extended operating license (until 2032) with the NRC.[6] In May 2012, the NRC approved the 20-year extension, with chairman Gregory Jaczko the lone dissenting vote.[7]
Opposition to Pilgrim's license extension came mainly from Pilgrim Watch, a local group which filed numerous legal and procedural challenges. The state attorney general also raised questions about, among other issues, the dangers posed by the onsite storage of spent nuclear fuel.[8]
In July 2013, the plant had to reduce output during a heat wave despite very high electricity demand, because the temperature of water drawn from Cape Cod Bay exceeded 75°F, the limit set by the NRC.[10]
On August 22, 2013, with the plant online at 98% power, two of the plant's main feedwater pumps tripped, causing a drop of the reactor water level. Operators inserted a manual SCRAM to shutdown the reactor prior to the third feedwater pump subsequently tripping. The loss of feedwater and sudden trip from the high power level caused the reactor water level to drop below -46 inches. After passing this point, the emergency core cooling system automatically activated. Operators using the RCIC and HPCI systems promptly restored the reactor water level to normal. Ironically, it was found that the pumps tripped due to a design flaw in a recent SCRAM reduction program intended to make the pumps less likely to trip.[11] Quick action by the operators prevented a more serious low-water incident. It was the first time in the station's history that reactor water level reached a low-low condition and activated emergency core cooling systems.
On January 27, 2015, the plant underwent a storm-induced unplanned shutdown.[12]
The plant was shut down May 31, 2019 and began the process of decommissioning.[13]
Electricity Production
Generation (MWh) of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station[14]
Year
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Annual (Total)
2001
491,137
449,547
490,652
315,658
149,753
455,358
491,576
411,345
475,870
497,586
484,169
431,382
5,144,033
2002
497,784
452,918
492,733
481,927
493,183
460,816
466,456
493,256
461,774
496,480
480,311
491,128
5,768,766
2003
497,165
316,163
464,668
283,436
181,530
435,051
508,524
498,276
456,319
337,364
491,003
508,456
4,977,955
2004
512,970
479,839
455,553
494,514
510,344
489,062
502,238
507,669
480,302
506,741
487,798
511,570
5,938,600
2005
507,583
453,958
495,507
242,596
291,667
488,551
506,701
502,668
491,688
496,574
486,613
510,951
5,475,057
2006
475,558
461,696
417,109
492,887
508,402
479,200
507,333
498,435
487,899
501,301
491,784
508,054
5,829,658
2007
496,378
434,146
382,851
73,456
345,315
491,401
443,982
500,238
487,024
503,198
494,987
466,813
5,119,789
2008
511,679
478,576
510,487
448,398
506,841
484,157
507,534
496,811
487,785
502,739
492,357
441,275
5,868,639
2009
510,067
451,656
507,752
263,007
185,075
488,015
499,073
499,942
487,629
503,203
491,784
508,818
5,396,021
2010
509,476
460,217
505,149
492,103
496,145
489,418
496,441
497,437
485,461
497,636
485,472
502,858
5,917,813
2011
507,453
394,924
482,848
235,351
200,811
486,064
497,546
500,808
480,965
502,863
354,234
441,353
5,085,220
2012
506,958
468,256
504,978
489,186
442,317
477,496
491,625
497,598
485,638
505,011
483,192
507,285
5,859,540
2013
352,154
315,145
469,668
189,221
7,788
473,949
499,580
380,750
327,986
386,722
486,474
441,206
4,330,643
2014
508,677
459,371
502,304
491,227
413,473
482,972
506,160
426,297
486,567
499,872
492,016
500,218
5,769,154
2015
429,392
252,653
505,736
302,697
107,757
475,870
503,035
442,078
485,608
497,922
490,691
501,367
4,994,806
2016
508,090
402,912
498,382
489,091
495,025
471,322
501,420
397,177
297,304
490,224
488,314
375,057
5,414,318
2017
505,324
344,134
496,099
134,928
126,473
482,305
501,875
494,508
476,799
490,220
488,578
505,927
5,047,170
2018
393,142
455,535
82,968
114,483
443,221
436,915
491,071
390,998
308,016
372,125
448,844
504,245
4,441,563
2019
450,438
455,294
492,267
476,826
302,379
--
--
--
--
--
--
--
2,177,204
Surrounding population
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defined two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a 10 mile (16km) plume exposure pathway zone, concerned primarily with exposure to and inhalation of airborne radioactive contamination; and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity.[15]
In 2010, 75,835 people lived within 10 miles (16km) of Pilgrim, an increase of 40.5% in a decade (according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com). 4,737,792 people lived within 50 miles (80km), an increase of 10.2% since 2000. Cities within 50 miles included Boston (35 miles to city center).[16]
Environmental impacts on Cape Cod Bay
PNPS operated a single reactor unit with a boiling water reactor and a steam turbine generator. The cooling and service water systems operated as a once-through cooling system, with Cape Cod Bay being the water source. The water was circulated in the plant's heat exchanger in the same manner as any fossil-fuel powered power plant, using the seawater to remove heat from primary coolant away from sources of radioactive contamination. Approximately 480 million gallons of seawater were withdrawn daily from the bay through an intake embayment formed by two breakwaters, and then re-deposited into the bay causing a change in temperature at peak times (ΔT) of 3°C (5.4°F).[17]
During that process, the greatest environmental impact to the bay occurred through impingement and entrainment (I&E) of sea organisms and species. Entrainment occurs when small aquatic life forms are carried into and through the cooling system during water withdrawals. Impingement occurs when organisms are trapped against cooling water intake screens or racks by force of moving water.[17]
PNPS has been regularly monitoring I&E levels since 1974. They have reported I&E losses of millions of aquatic organisms each year. The EPA evaluated all species known to be impinged and entrained by the facility, including commercial, recreational, and forage fish species. Based on information provided in facility I&E monitoring reports, approximately 68 species have been identified in I&E collections since 1974, and 26 of these have commercial or recreational value.[18]
During the license renewal process, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found that the significance of the potential environmental impacts of renewal would be small, with the exception of marine aquatic resources. Due to I&E, the continued operation of the cooling water system would rarely have impact on the local winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) population, and the Jones River population of rainbow smelt, and cumulative impacts on other marine aquatic species would be small to moderate.[18]
After the aquatic organisms were impinged into the cooling system, they were discharged back into the bay as sediment. The resulting shadow effect killed plant and animal life around reactor discharge systems by curtailing the light and oxygen they need to survive;[19][bettersourceneeded] however, the intake and discharge canals remained a popular and lucrative local recreational fishing spot for local residents.[20]
Seismic risk
The NRC's estimate of the yearly risk of an earthquake strong enough to cause core damage to the Pilgrim reactor was 1 in 14,493, according to their study published in August 2010, making it the second-most-at-risk plant when it was still operating.[21][22]
Vermont Yankee was an electricity generating nuclear power plant, located in the town of Vernon, Vermont, in the northeastern United States. It generated 620 megawatts (MWe) of electricity at full power. The plant was a boiling water reactor (BWR), designed by General Electric. It operated from 1972 until December 29, 2014, when its owner Entergy shut down the plant. In 2008, the plant provided 71.8% of all electricity generated within Vermont, amounting to 35% of Vermont's electricity consumption. The plant is on the Connecticut River, upstream of the Vernon, Vermont Hydroelectric Dam and used the reservoir pool for its cooling water.
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The Byron Nuclear Generating Station is a nuclear power plant located in Ogle County, Illinois, 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the Rock River. The reactor buildings were constructed by Commonwealth Edison and house two Westinghouse Four-Loop pressurized water reactors, Unit 1 and Unit 2, which began operation in September 1985 and August 1987 respectively. The plant is owned and operated by Constellation Energy.
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