Palisades nuclear reactor restart continues despite work environment safety findings
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has granted permission to Holtec International, owner of the Palisades nuclear reactor , to retrieve a recently tipped fuel assembly, although the plant received a warning about its work environment. On August 30, as new fuel was being lowered into the reactor, one of the fuel assemblies tipped, causing the plant's planned restart to be placed on hold. If…
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has given Holtec International, the operator of the Palisades nuclear reactor, permission to retrieve a fuel assembly that was accidentally tipped on August 30. This incident led the plant's restart to be put on hold. Following the inspection, the NRC highlighted a "chilled work environment" in the plant's supply chain and quality assurance departments, suggesting that employees were hesitant to report safety concerns without fear of retribution.
Despite the NRC's assurance that no radiation was released during the August incident, concerns remain among critics about restarting the "zombie reactor" near the Great Lakes shoreline, drinking water supply for 40 million Americans, and numerous Indigenous nations. Kevin Kamps, an environmental advocate, described restarting the reactor as potentially risking a "Chernobyl or Fukushima-scale catastrophe".
The NRC, however, maintains that the plant is maintaining a safety-conscious work environment and will continue to oversee the fuel assembly retrieval process. Holtec, the plant's owner, confirmed that they will proceed with the fuel assembly retrieval, subject to the NRC's monitoring, and hopes to resume operations by March 2027.
Written by urgent.news from The National UAE's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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