Saint-Laurent A-2 Nuclear Power Plant
Location: St. Laurent-Nouan, Loir-et-Cher, Centre, France.
Reactor Type: Gas-cooled, graphite moderated.
Power: 1690 MWt; 465 MWe, up-rated to 530 MWe.
Melt Down Occurred: Heat excursion caused partial fuel melt March 13, 1980.
http://energy.about.com/od/nuclear/a/12-Nuclear-Reactors-That-Have-Had-Meltdowns_2.htm
On March 13, 1980 there was some annealing that occurred in the graphite of one of the reactors, causing a brief heat excursion. This was also classified as 4 on the INES and has been called the worst nuclear accident in France. Much later, the Institute of Marine Biochemistry at the École normale supérieure de Montrouge claimed that they found traces of plutonium in the river which they believed was released in the 1980 or 1969 accident many years ago.[4]
Location: St. Laurent-Nouan, Loir-et-Cher, Centre, France.
Reactor Type: Gas-cooled, graphite moderated.
Power: 1690 MWt; 465 MWe, up-rated to 530 MWe.
Melt Down Occurred: Heat excursion caused partial fuel melt March 13, 1980.
http://energy.about.com/od/nuclear/a/12-Nuclear-Reactors-That-Have-Had-Meltdowns_2.htm
On March 13, 1980 there was some annealing that occurred in the graphite of one of the reactors, causing a brief heat excursion. This was also classified as 4 on the INES and has been called the worst nuclear accident in France. Much later, the Institute of Marine Biochemistry at the École normale supérieure de Montrouge claimed that they found traces of plutonium in the river which they believed was released in the 1980 or 1969 accident many years ago.[4]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Laurent_Nuclear_Power_Plant
The video below is about a different nuclear power plant, but serves to make the point about how the above description of a nuclear plant melt down or any other spill or accident is minimized, and any harm to the public is covered up. This minimization and cover up happens after ever nuclear power accident, no matter how large or small.
FRANCE NUCLEAR ACCIDENT with Moe Seager
"They do not want public panic and they are playing a hide-and-seek game about the actual cause and the damage of the radiation and the exposure to the community surrounding the accident," Seager stated.
There has been the first recorded death at a nuclear facility in France in 50 years. The authorities say there is little to fear and there is no risk, but considering nuclear power provides the vast majority of France's energy, such a response is hardly surprising. "They say it is a safe, well-regulated and well-managed industry but the facts speak differently. Records show that in the 59 nuclear plants that operate currently in France, since 1969 there have been 41 nuclear accidents and 51 [other] nuclear incidents reported officially. The French people have been receiving a restricted and limited amount of information about nuclear accidents," he explained.
There has been the first recorded death at a nuclear facility in France in 50 years. The authorities say there is little to fear and there is no risk, but considering nuclear power provides the vast majority of France's energy, such a response is hardly surprising. "They say it is a safe, well-regulated and well-managed industry but the facts speak differently. Records show that in the 59 nuclear plants that operate currently in France, since 1969 there have been 41 nuclear accidents and 51 [other] nuclear incidents reported officially. The French people have been receiving a restricted and limited amount of information about nuclear accidents," he explained.
Seager stated that since Fukushima the French public has woken up and decided that maybe nuclear energy is not safe and can be dangerous.
"A plant can go from an energy plant to a weapon of mass destruction. The public is waking up, but right now there is no mass movement and no organized oppositional leadership to confront the government," he said.
With about 75% of its energy needs coming from nuclear power stations, it is going to take a long time for France to develop alternatives. But according to Seager, nuclear power plants do not have to remain indefinitely. "There is a way out, and that is a compromise on consumers' will to accept true research and development in the solar and wind and other forms of energy," he concluded.
Source; video above description
SHIP CARRYING NUCLEAR FUEL LEAVES FRANCE FOR JAPAN
A ship loaded with nuclear fuel has left a French port for Japan, carrying the first delivery since the March 2011 accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. The cargo ship left the port of Cherbourg in northwestern France on Wednesday, after the fuel was loaded onto the ship under tight security. Japan's Kansai Electric Power Company had ordered the MOX fuel from the French energy firm Areva. MOX fuel is a mixture of plutonium extracted from spent nuclear fuel and uranium. The utility firm plans to use the fuel at its Takahama plant in Fukui Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast. The plant is currently offline. Dozens of French activists staged a protest at the port ahead of the ship's departure. They criticized the shipment at a time when most Japanese nuclear plants remain offline. It is not clear whether the nuclear recycling power generation project which uses the MOX fuel will be able to resume. Areva officials say the ship will arrive in Japan in about 2 months.
Apr. 17, 2013 - Updated 20:17 UTC
FRENCH ACTIVISTS PROTEST ON NUCLEAR FUEL TO JAPAN
Dozens of French activists have staged a protest ahead of a nuclear fuel shipment to Japan. The shipping was halted after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident forced most of Japan's nuclear plants to shutdown. About 50 activists gathered at the northwestern port of Cherbourg on Monday. A French energy firm has been producing the MOX fuel, a mixture of plutonium and uranium. The Kansai Electric Power Company ordered it for use at its Takahama nuclear plant in Fukui Prefecture, Central Japan, which is currently off-line. A cargo ship loaded with the fuel is scheduled to leave the port as early as Wednesday. The activists wore headbands with the Japanese slogan saying "Stop MOX" and called for a halt to the delivery. A spokesperson for the activists said France is pressuring Japan by sending the fuel over when the country is trying to decide on new energy policies. The activists say the fuel would be brought from a facility about 20 kilometers away from the port and loaded onto 2 vessels.
Apr. 16, 2013 - Updated 02:18 UTC
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With 75% of the nation's electricity derived from nuclear power, France is the world's biggest user of atomic energy.Their nuclear plant construction boom was in the 1970s, which means that nearly 70% of France's turbines will soon reach the limit of their 40-year lifespan. Environmental activists worry that France's lack of preparation for the coming outages could lead them to try and squeeze more life out of their aging plants. By the end of the decade France will face some major choices regarding its almost exclusive commitment to nuclear energy. A decision to go green could reduce the militarism of France's foreign policy, but it could hurt their long-stagnant economy.
Many believe that, despite the claims of humanitarian intervention, French wars in Mali and the CAR are to safeguard the region's uranium deposits. Some believe that a switch to renewables could persuade France to reduce its military presence in Africa. Thanks in large part to this cheap African uranium, France's electricity bills are among the lowest in the EU.
Source; description under video
Communication by: Roland Desbordes (France), President of CRIIRAD
(Commission for Research and Independent Information on Radioactivity)
Title: Citizen Information: taking responsibility
CRIIRAD (Commission on Independent Research and Information on Radiation) was set up in 1986 in France in response to the lies told by the French authorities about the Chernobyl “cloud”. Not the first lie about the presence of the “cloud” over France. This has attracted much public attention, but in fact the truth was acknowledged by the authorities after 12 days. It is the second lie that is significant. “Yes, the cloud did pass over France but it deposited no radioactive contamination.” This explains the absence of information on contamination of food products, the failure to withdraw products from circulation, and the completely false maps of radioactive fallout. It has taken CRIIRAD 20 years to get the French authorities to acknowledge the true levels of fallout. Alas, for the victims, there will be no court case, as the justice system closed the case in September 2011. 26 years on, as the drama of Fukushima unfolds, we see how history repeats itself with the same actors in charge of disinformation, all this despite the struggles of associations and victims.
Communication by: Roland Desbordes (France), President of CRIIRAD
(Commission for Research and Independent Information on Radioactivity)
Title: Citizen Information: taking responsibility
CRIIRAD (Commission on Independent Research and Information on Radiation) was set up in 1986 in France in response to the lies told by the French authorities about the Chernobyl “cloud”. Not the first lie about the presence of the “cloud” over France. This has attracted much public attention, but in fact the truth was acknowledged by the authorities after 12 days. It is the second lie that is significant. “Yes, the cloud did pass over France but it deposited no radioactive contamination.” This explains the absence of information on contamination of food products, the failure to withdraw products from circulation, and the completely false maps of radioactive fallout. It has taken CRIIRAD 20 years to get the French authorities to acknowledge the true levels of fallout. Alas, for the victims, there will be no court case, as the justice system closed the case in September 2011. 26 years on, as the drama of Fukushima unfolds, we see how history repeats itself with the same actors in charge of disinformation, all this despite the struggles of associations and victims.
If the government authorities can lie so blatantly about Chernobyl radiation hitting France and killing people there, plus keep it hidden and covered up from then until now, what hope is there of getting the truth about a reactor melt down in France today?
End
1980 - St. Laurent-Nouan, Loir-et-Cher, Centre, France - Nuclear Power Plant Partial Melt Down; via @AGreenRoad
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2014/04/1980-saint-laurent-nuclear-power-plant.html
For a more complete list of all nuclear plant meltdowns globally, go to;
Nuclear Accidents, Recycling Nuclear Weapons/Fuel
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/p/nuclear-accidents-around-world.html
End
1980 - St. Laurent-Nouan, Loir-et-Cher, Centre, France - Nuclear Power Plant Partial Melt Down; via @AGreenRoad
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/2014/04/1980-saint-laurent-nuclear-power-plant.html
For a more complete list of all nuclear plant meltdowns globally, go to;
Nuclear Accidents, Recycling Nuclear Weapons/Fuel
http://agreenroad.blogspot.com/p/nuclear-accidents-around-world.html
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