The Holtec nuclear waste storage canisters at San Onofre are lemons and must be replaced with thick-wall casks.

11/29/2018 Oceanside:   The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) admits in their November 28, 2018 NRC Inspection Report and Notice of Violation, ML18332A357 (page 8 and 9) every Holtec canister downloaded into the storage holes is damaged due to inadequate clearance between the canister and the divider shell in the storage hole (vault).  The NRC states canister walls are already “worn”.  This results in cracks. Once cracks start, they continue to grow through the wall.

The NRC stated Southern California Edison (and Holtec) knew about this since January 2018, but continued to load 29 canisters anyway.  Edison’s August 24, 2018 press release states they plan to finish loading mid 2019.

The NRC states Edison must stop loading canisters until this issue is resolved.  However, there is no method to inspect or repair cracking canisters and the NRC knows this.

Instead, the NRC should admit the Holtec system is a lemon — a significant defective engineering design — and revoke both San Onofre and Holtec dry storage system licenses.

The NRC should require all San Onofre thin-wall canisters be replaced with thick-wall transportable storage casks.  These are the only proven dry storage systems that can be inspected, maintained, repaired and monitored in a manner to prevent major radiological releases and explosions.

California state agencies should revoke San Onofre permits and withhold Decommissioning Trust Funds until these issues are resolved.

The Navy should consider revoking the San Onofre Camp Pendleton lease until Edison agrees to replace thin-wall canisters with proven thick-wall transportable storage casks.  This is a national security issue. If the NRC cannot do their job, maybe it’s time to bring in the Marines. The Navy has nuclear experts.

Sign petition to recall and replace San Onofre defective thin-wall canisters with proven thick-wall casks

Attend November 29th SONGS Community Engagement Panel meeting. Tell the NRC and Edison:
The Holtec thin canister system is a lemon and must be replaced. Demand they replace all thin-wall canisters with proven thick-wall casks before it’s too late. Ratepayers didn’t pay for lemons.  

• QLN Conference Center, 1938 Avenida Del Oro, Oceanside, CA 92056
• November 29, 2018 5:30 PM – 8:30 PM
• More meeting details at songscommunity.com website

The San Onofre beachside nuclear waste storage systems are defective and must be replaced to prevent nuclear disaster in Southern California and beyond.  This and the other thin-wall canister storage system at San Onofre pose a clear and imminent danger to the health and lives of the citizens, and pose potential financial, security and ecological disaster for the state of California, and beyond. State and federal elected officials and commissioners need to take immediate action to ensure Southern California Edison:

1. STOPS loading highly radioactive fuel waste into the defective Holtec storage system and REJECTS Holtec nuclear storage system.  It’s a lemon and cannot be fixed with procedures and training.
2. REPACKAGES all San Onofre nuclear fuel waste into proven maintainable thick-wall transportable storage casks in order to avoid major radiological disasters in Southern California.
3. MOVES the new thick-wall casks to higher ground, away from coastal flood hazards, and stores them in reinforced buildings.
   Step 2 must be done BEFORE Step 3.

The current storage system puts the public at risk. Nuclear waste stored in thin-wall steel canisters (only 5/8″ thick) cannot be inspected, repaired or safely transported. Thin-wall canisters crack, but technology does not exist to inspect for cracks or repair cracks once canisters are filled with highly radioactive nuclear fuel waste.

The President of Holtec has stated a through-wall crack will release millions of curies of radionuclides and it’s not practical to repair them, even if you could find the cracks. 

Camp Fire smoke spread with the wind across the country. Radioactive particles will do the same, but are invisible.

Yet, they have no plan in place  to stop or contain a cracking, radiation-leaking, and potentially exploding canister.

Each canister contains roughly a Chernobyl nuclear disaster.  Once canisters explode, the radionuclides will travel with the wind, similar to how smoke traveled with the California Camp Fire.
NOAA Camp Fire Map Video.

San Onofre Wind Rose Chart (wind directions – annual frequency). Source data: San Diego Nuclear Power Plant Emergency Response Plan 2011 Draft

SanOnofreSafety.org

Contacts:
Donna Gilmore  949-204-7794  donnagilmore@gmail.com
Torgen Johnson  858-342-1664 torgenjohnson@hotmail.com

Handout:  NRC admits San Onofre Holtec nuclear waste canisters are all damaged, November 29, 2018