Owner admits leak found at VY in 2005

From the Brattleboro Reformer:

In 2005, Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant had a steam leak in the same system that is under investigation as the possible source of a leak of tritiated water into the environment.

"The licensee has acknowledged that there was a leakage they repaired in 2005," said Don Jackson, the NRC's branch chief for Region 1. "They reported that today. We are not aware that it was reported in 2005. "

Whether this is the same leak described by an alleged employee of the power plant in an anonymous phone call to a member of Yankee's Public Oversight Panel is under investigation, he said.

"We haven't confirmed this," said Jackson. "But it sounds like the story the individual is talking about."

The NRC is investigating why it took Entergy five years to report the leak, but for it to have been reportable, it has to meet certain offsite dose limits. It is also investigating how Entergy responded to the problem.

"We are determining whether the repair was in accordance with procedures," said Jackson.

Read more