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May 19, 2007 New this week from NRC Public Document Room * [2007-05-15] 2/23/07 Ltr to J Connell re: Maine Yankee - Approval of Quality Assurance Program Changes (TAC No. L24046). ML070570160 2007-02-23 6 2007-02-23 2007-05-14 * [2007-05-15] Transmittal of Maine Yankee Monthly Statistical Report, November 1988. ML040860743 1988-12-09 1 1988-12-09 2007-05-14 Recent NRC inspection reports * (released October 8) Maine Yankee inspection rept 309-2005-2 * (released October 8) Maine Yankee inspection rept 309-2005-1 * Maine Yankee report 50-309-2003-3 * 2005-05-08: Maine Yankee says long goodbye * 2005-05-04: Maine Yankee Allows Woolwich Railcar Check * 2005-04-29: Maine Yankee Resumes Shipment Of Nuclear Waste * 2005-04-27: Maine Yankee Resumes Dumping at Utah Site * 2005-04-20: NOTICES Environmental statements; availability, etc.: Maine Yankee Atomic Power Co., 20607Ð20608 [E5Ð1854] * 2005-04-08: Maine Yankee Deal May Be Imminent * 2005-04-08: Maine Yankee, Wiscasset end property-tax dispute * 2005-04-06: Maine Yankee Tax Case Settlement Expected * 2005-03-25: Maine Yankee to donate 200 acres in settlement * 2005-03-02: Maine Yankee Pursues Utah Nuke Disposal September 18, 2004 Maine Yankee decommissioning prompts reflections Steve Ward (Maine's public advocate for utility issues) was one of about 500 folks who witnessed yesterday's explosive toppling of the Maine Yankee containment dome. The 150-foot-tall structure served as the most visible symbol of the 900-megawatt plant during 24 years of operation. It was the first time explosives have been used to knock down a commercial reactor containment building. An Associated Press reporter quotes Mr. Ward as having mixed feelings at the sight: Maine Yankee provided low-cost energy without producing greenhouse gases, but the problem of long-term storage of the nuclear fuel assemblies has never been resolved, Ward reportedly said. "The federal government has utterly failed to deal with the spent fuel issue. It's like building a wonderful, livable mansion that has no septic system. It doesn't even have an outhouse." Of course, it wasn't spent fuel issues that prompted the Maine Yankee board to vote to close the plant permanently in August 1997. Another witness quoted in the article was Dudley Leavitt Sr., who helped build the dome. He reportedly watched its destruction with a tinge of sadness, and said he thought the plant had a lot more life left in it. "It's a shame that they shut this down. There are plants that are older that are still in operation across the country," said Leavitt, 66, of Topsham, who oversaw the steel reinforcement of the dome. About 1,100 pounds of explosives were placed in holes drilled into the structure to topple the reinforced concrete dome that was designed to withstand earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricane-force winds. Its walls are 4 1/2 feet thick at the base and 2 1/2 feet thick at the top. The explosives were not designed to reduce the dome to rubble. The idea was simply to lower the dome so it could be reached by heavy equipment that would complete the job of picking apart the structure. The explosives caused the legs supporting the dome to buckle and the structure came down in one piece as planned. Witnesses were required to stay 1,000 feet from the dome. The crowd broke into applause as the cloud of dust rose. About 20 million pounds of rubble from the building will be hauled by rail to a low-level radioactive waste repository in Utah. The decommissioning work is expected to end next year. The cost of decommissioning is projected to end up at about $500 million. [Source: David Sharp (AP writer), "Explosives bring down dome of Maine Yankee nuclear plant", The Associated Press, September 17, 2004] Older and wiser, now, a former anti-nuclear demonstrator regrets that Maine Yankee shut down early Don Schuman, the owner of a bed and breakfast in Edgecomb, Maine, was one of the approximately 200 folks who witnessed the toppling of Maine Yankee's reactor containment building dome. For [Mr. Schuman], the demolition was bittersweet. When he worked as a school teacher in Connecticut, he participated in demonstrations against the Connecticut Yankee nuclear power plant. He also opposed a state plan to require that he post evacuation procedures in his guest rooms at Cod Cove Farm Bed and Breakfast. Schuman, 62, says he has become more appreciative of nuclear power. He is a member of the Community Advisory Panel that was formed in 1997 to disseminate information about the plant's decommissioning. "I feel it's a shame that this plant was shut down early," Schuman said. "I think the anti-nuclear groups made so much noise that Maine Yankee just decided to pack it in." [Source: Dennis Hoey (Portland Press Herald), "A blast, and dome is down; The demolition is one of the final major steps in the costly decommissioning of Maine's only nuclear plant", Portland Press Herald (Maine), September 18, 2004, p. A1] May 23, 2003 * Maine Yankee's Reactor Vessel's Barge Stuck in High River Water near Savannah * Barge Route to Barnwell for Reactor Vessel - Feds Allow Docking at Savannah River Site
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