FURTHER UPDATES WILL BE GIVEN
AS COMMENTS BELOW THIS BLOG.AGAIN, LOOK IN COMMENTS TO THE BLOG FOR UPDATES.
WIPP remains closed indefinitely and will cost more than $500 million to clean up.
Originally scheduled to reopen in 2016, the site will be unable to take new shipments of waste until at least 2018, said the Energy Department and Nuclear Waste Partnership, the contractor running the federal repository, last week.
WIPP CONTINUES TO LEAK.
At WIPP, 489% MORE PLUTONIUM THAN AMERICUM WAS RELEASED.
TOTAL VOLUME OF PLUTONIUM CLOUD WAS 550,000 CUBIC METERS.
THE RELEASE CONTINUED FOR 33 MINUTES BEFORE HEPA FILTERS WERE APPLIED, ALLOWING 33 MINUTES OF COMPLETELY UNCONTROLLED RELEASE OF PLUTONIUM AND AMERICUM.
WIPP'S OWN DOCUMENTS SHOWED ALMOST 600 MILLION BEQUERELS OF THE TWO PLUTONIUMS AND THE AMERICUM WERE RELEASED INITIALLY!
BUT THERE'S A BIG PROBLEM WITH EVEN WIPP'S "OFFICIAL ESTIMATES":
"The sampling equipment used by DOE WIPP was basically designed to estimate how much (SOLID) radioactive material (but not gases) a human could have inhaled had that person been standing inside the exhaust vent. "
WIPP did not report on any radioactive gases released, despite them being part of the mix. This is another lie foisted on a gullible public.
THERE ARE STRICT GUIDELINES FOR FILTRATION SYSTEMS.
"RADIOACTIVE NOBLE GASES from high-velocity gas streams must be diluted to 'PERMISSIBLE' concentrations before release into the atmosphere."
"RADIOACTIVE NOBLE GASES" ... RELEASE INTO THE ATMOSPHERE..."
REMEMBER THE VIDEOS FROM LOCAL NEWS SHOWING BLACK SMOKE, BLACK SMOKE, POURING OUT OF THE WIPP FACILITY?
IF THE HEPA FILTERS HAD BEEN ON AT THAT TIME, ARE WE SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THEY COULDN'T FILTER OUT PARTICLES OF SOOT?
IF THEY WEREN'T FILTERING OUT SUCH LARGE PARTICLES, WHAT DOES THAT TELL US ABOUT THE FILTERING OF RADIOACTIVE PARTICLES?
THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY HAS SUED ON BEHALF OF WIPP SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO PAY ASSESSED FINES TO THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO FOR FAILURE TO CLEAN UP THE FACILITY.
The DOE disputes some of the state’s findings and said the fines were excessive, according to the Albuquerque Journal. New Mexico’s environmental department said its conclusions were based on the DOE’s own data, the newspaper said.
The situation at WIPP seems to be like a murder in plain sight, which no one sees.
All of the information is there.
Not only was it designed to fail due to salt creep slowly closing up the rooms, which would eventually crush the containers and increase any gas pressures because less volume is greater pressure, but the problems have also been known for over a quarter of a century!
THE NUCLEAR EMERGENCY TRACKING CENTER SHOWS ABOVE "NORMAL"RADIATION LEVELS TODAY AT THE CARLSBAD, NEW MEXICO AREA, AS WELL AS CITIES SOME DISTANCE FROM THE WIPP FACILITY THAT IS STILL LEAKING RADIOACTIVE WASTE [BECAUSE THE SOURCE OF THE LEAKS ARE STILL NOT FOUND NOR HAS CLEANUP BEGUN] .
THESE ARE SUMMARIES OF TODAY'S READINGS, HIGHS/LOWS.
201 CPM
NETC.COM © 2014
Station ID 5:635 Carlsbad, NM, US
CPM: current 201 Low 123 High 290
Average 163, Deviation 27.2
(CPM of Gamma in energy range 600-800keV)
Last updated: 2014-04-25 12:24:00 GMT+0000
414 CPM
NETC.COM © 2014
Station ID 5:637 South Valley, NM, US
CPM: current 414 Low 251 High 548
Average 319, Deviation 41.6
(CPM of Gamma in energy range 600-800keV)
Last updated: 2014-04-25 12:20:00 GMT+0000
278 CPM
NETC.COM © 2014
Station ID 5:621 San Angelo, TX, US
CPM: current 278 Low 125 High 403
Average 188, Deviation 37.8
(CPM of Gamma in energy range 600-800keV)
Last updated: 2014-04-25 08:10:00 GMT+0000
New tests show plutonium reached millions of times "normal" levels at WIPP site — Concern that air filters at plant may not have worked — Government accused of purposely lying about radiation leak .
Broken roof bolts directly above WIPP nuclear waste were reported the day before radiation event — Cracks seen in nearby wall!
KRQE, Apr. 24, 2014:
This is a photo of the actual leak area from February just before the
contamination escaped. There were loose roof bolts spotted so one theory
is a falling bolt may have punctured a container, or perhaps something
else caused a container to burst.
WHAT BETTER PROOF THAN A PHOTO taken by WIPP employees?
[NOTE:PLEASE REFER TO MY PREVIOUS BLOG FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
http://havacuppahemlock1.blogspot.com/2014/04/radiation-leak-in-new-mexico-is.html]
NEW DISCLOSURES JUST KEEP COMING AND THEY ARE ALL VERY ALARMING ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED AND WHAT IS STILL HAPPENING NOW AT THE WIPP FACILITY IN NEW MEXICO.
FROM "GREEN FLASHES" TO POPPING NOISES, ORANGE-TINTED FILTERS TO NONFUNCTIONAL FANS, WE SLOWLY SEE WHAT MAY HAVE HAPPENED, AND WHAT IS HAPPENING STILL AS THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY HAS RELEASED A FIRST REPORT.
Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management, April 2014:
Chronology of the Radiological Release — 2/14/2014
- 22:50 – Security reported “green burst” and arcing noise at the utility yard
- 22:52 – FSM investigated, saw no lights but heard clicking and had CMRO notify Xcel
- 23:10 – Xcel Energy reported to CMRO normal indications on WIPP utility yard
- 23:13 – “HI RAD” alarm received in CMR on the CMS from CAM-151 in U/G at Panel 7
At 2250, security reported to the CMR [Central Monitoring Room] that they had observed a “green burst” and heard arcing noises at the utility substation.
The acting Facility Shift Manager (FSM) responded to the east fence line and heard a “popping noise” from the alternate B feed lines but did not observe any glow. He instructed the Central Monitoring Room Operator (CMRO) to contact Xcel Energy and inform them of the situation. At 2310, the CMRO called Xcel Energy which reported all normal indications on the WIPP utility yard. All Central Monitoring System (CMS) indications were normal at this time and there was no indication of seismic or other unusual activity.
The response to the green burst and noise placed the acting FSM in the field near the ventilation system at the time of the accident.
On February 14, 2014, at 2313, a “HI RAD” alarm from CAM-151 (U/G, monitoring the Panel 7 exhaust drift) was received on the CMS. The “HI RAD” setpoint for this CAM is 30 Derived Air Concentration (DAC) for alpha and beta contamination. Approximately one minute later, a “HI-HI RAD” alarm from CAM-151was received on the CMS. The “HI-HI RAD” setpoint is 50 DAC. The CMS indicated that the CAM reading was 332 DAC. Figure 7
[SEE THAT Figure 7 HERE http://enenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/img_738-Apr.-24-15.39-300x228.jpg] provides a graphical representation of CAM readings during the event.[…]
At 2342, the CMRO disabled CAM-151 due to a malfunction indication.
THEY DISABLED IT, IT DID NOT STOP FUNCTIONING!
WHAT GIVES OFF SUCH A GLOW?
I CAN THINK OF TWO THING QUICKLY...PLUTONIUM AND URANIUM.
"Plutonium spontaneously burning in contact with air, causes it to glow like an ember."
[SOURCE: Haschke, Allen, Morales (2000). "Surface and Corrosion Chemistry of Plutonium". Los Alamos Science.]
URANIUM ALSO GETS A GLOW WHEN EXPOSED TO AIR.
WE ALSO NOW KNOW THIS FROM THE DOE REPORT:
<< Emergency personnel needed for
‘reddish-brown vapors’ observed after ‘unplanned, excessive exothermic
reaction’ — ‘Filters had an orange tint’ when changed hours after
radiation release began>>
At 0014, on Saturday, February 15, the [Central Monitoring Room
Operator] attempted to notify the on-call Radiological Control
Technician (RCT) but was unable to reach him. The effluent sample
Station A, Skid A- 2 and Station D shutdown due to low air flow or
clogged filter paper. [...] Station A skid A-2 filters upstream of the
HEPA filters in the Exhaust Filter Building, were changed out at 0637 by
the [Radiological Control Manager]. It was noted during the change out
that the filters had an orange tint. [...]
The Board had other concerns with the quality of [...] responses related to a potential exothermic
reaction due to a foaming process upset that could result in a fire and
subsequent failure of contaminated HEPA filters in the U/G
ventilation system due to the fire soot combined with the observed
particulate loading on the Mod filters, and this event was not
considered in response to Question 5 regarding creating the possibility
of an accident of a different type than previously analyzed.
Although the safety basis includes a fire involving the Waste Handling Building contaminated HEPA filters [...] these hazard scenarios were not addressed as bounding or representative for a fire release from the U/G HEPA filters.
An unplanned exothermic accident that could have led to a fire occurred on March 8, 2014, when “reddish-brown” vapors were observed coming from the open ports in the duct [...]
WE ALSO NOW KNOW, FROM PAGE 233 OF THE DOE REPORT THAT 153 WORKERS WERE ON-SITE AT THE FACILITY WHEN THIS WAS ALL BEGINNING.
HOW ARE THE 132 WHOM WE HAVE NOT BEEN READING ABOUT?
Pg. 233, LINE C3..of document.Facility operations assumed the alarm was due to a CAM malfunction.
Did not believe indications.
Delay in response potential exposure to 153 personnel.
Pg.234, LINE C5:
Did not have filter count results until Radcon arrived early on February 15.
LINE C6: Airborne contamination leaks past the ventilation isolation dampers 413-HD-056-003A and 413-HD-056-003B.
THE REPORT GOES ON AND ON SHOWING THE MULTITUDE OF ERRORS, WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE, WHAT THE RESULTS WERE THAT ERRORS WERE MADE.
LINE C16 SUMS IT UP NICELY:
Airborne contamination was released to the environment.
LINE C7: CMS display indicates flow through 700B fan exhaust with fan shutdown
Potential unmonitored leak path direct to the environment.
LINE C14, Pg. 236: Did not recognize the release and implement
the Emergency Plan (including the RCRA Contingency Plan).
{This} Delayed implementation of the emergency plan and implementing
protective actions. [AND ALSO DELAYED] Activating the EOC/AEOC.
Restricting site access,Invoking sheltering-in-place.
THE REPORT GOES ON AND ON SHOWING THE MULTITUDE OF ERRORS, WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE, WHAT THE RESULTS WERE THAT ERRORS WERE MADE.
LINE C16 SUMS IT UP NICELY:
C16. Program is adequately defined in site
procedures, however:
Failed to believe indicators
Desensitization;
Inadequate procedures and compliance;
Insufficient logs;
No staffing plan;
Inadequate equipment and system
status (CMS);
No operational drills;
Inadequate communication of
information; and inadequate on-shift training.
THE REPORT FINDS THAT:
There is insufficient qualified staffing available (FRs, ABSTA, Deputy, rotating
staff positions.) There is insufficient qualified staffing available (FRs, ABSTA, Deputy, rotating
C24. There is a lack of line management responsibility and follow through.
There was failure to enforce and ensure that issues are corrected.
There is a lack of effectiveness in issue resolution in several
areas, e.g., emergency management, radiological protection,
nuclear safety, maintenance, work control,ISMS.
Many of these issues were identified in past assessments.
Many of these issues were identified in past assessments.
Resources have been reduced over last several years (FTEs, travel money, etc.).
Roles and responsibilities are not clearly understood.
[Download the entire 302 pages pdf report by clicking here]ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS YOU WILL READ IN THAT REPORT IS THAT NO ONE IS GOING TO BE CONSIDERED LIABLE.
<< This Phase 1 report neither determines nor implies liability. >>
LIE-ABLE MAYBE, BECAUSE THE LIES JUST KEEP ON COMING, BUT LIABLE, AS IN A LIBEL LAWSUIT, NO!
EVEN CONGRESSMEN ARE GETTING ANGRY OVER THE WITHHOLDING OF FINDINGS AFTER THIS 70-DAYS OLD LEAK HAS OBVIOUSLY NOT BEEN FOUND AND REPAIRED.
AFTER 4 TRIPS DOWN INTO THE SALT MINES WHERE THE NUCLEAR WASTE IS STORED AND WHERE THE LEAKS HAVE TO BE COMING FROM, THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ANNOUNCES NO CONCRETE DATA, ONLY SAYS "THE SOURCE OR SOURCES ARE AS YET UNDETERMINED".
THEY ALSO ADMIT, FINALLY, THAT NEW (OR ONGOING) LEAKS INTO THE LOCAL ENVIRONMENT ARE INEVITABLE UNTIL THE CAUSE OF THE LEAK CAN BE DETERMINED.
“Truly an operational nightmare” at WIPP — Radiation level doubles
at location far from leak; Carlsbad monitor jumps around 40% — Residents
plead for more information amid concerns over safety.
U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., says getting the rest of the waste off the mesa before wildfire season begins is “paramount,” but that it is too soon to know if a temporary alternative site for storing the waste needs to be found.
[OR CAN BE FOUND???]
Also on hold are tests to see if the dump can expand its mission to take MORE than so-called lower level transuranic waste from the nation’s research facilities, including hopes by DOE that it can ship hotter, liquid waste from leaking tanks at Washington state’s Hanford nuclear waste site, THE MOST POLLUTED AND TOXIC SITE IN AMERICA.
Watchdog Don Hancock of the Southwest Research and Information Center
says WIPP has FAILED in its long-stated mission “to start clean,
stay clean.”
"The government has not been accurate in what it has said... The
information flow has been bad. I know of nobody that thinks the
information flow has been good. I was just on the phone in the last half
hour with the New Mexico secretary of the environment department, the
state official who is most responsible for the State’s activities at the
WIPP site, and he was saying he is still totally unsatisfied with the
lack of information the DoE is giving him and his regulatory agency —
not to mention the further lack of information that the public is
getting."
WHAT CAN THEY BE HIDING?
AND WHY?
IT READS JUST LIKE THE YEARS-LONG FUKUSHIMA, JAPAN COVER-UP AND ALL THE MISINFORMATION THE NUCLEAR COMMUNITY FED US FOR FAR TOO LONG ABOUT HOW BAD THAT DISASTER IS.
Carlsbad Current-Argus, Mar. 9, 2014
RESIDENTS ARE NOT SATISFIED WITH NOT KNOWING!
"How hard can it be for the WIPP wizards to check the plume charts put
out by NOAA to learn exactly where and how much of this toxic hell was
released?"
KRQE,
Mar. 6, 2014: Many left Thursday night’s meeting with the Department of
Energy uneasy. They pleaded for more information about the underground
radiation leak last month that seeped outside, but many remain
frustrated and concerned for their safety.“There are signs they’re playing keep-away with data,” nuclear radiation specialist and engineer, Arnie Gundersen speculated. “We need to know what they measured for. They’re only giving us half the numbers”
He said officials are likely conducting a LOT of tests that they are not disclosing to the public. He said the fact that radiation is being detected even 3,000 feet away from the site suggests the leak is large.
HOW WE KNOW THE PLUTONIUM LEAKS WERE MILLIONS OF TIMES LARGER THAN REPORTED:
" Pu239+240: 0.115 Bq per sample [39 times the highest activity ever detected since testing began in 1997, which was 0.004 Bq per sample]
Pu238: 0.004 Bq per sample [Never detected since testing began in 1997]
Am241: 1.3 Bq per sample [2600 times the highest activity ever detected since testing began in 1997, which was 0.0005 Bq per sample]
HOLD ON! WE KNOW THERE WERE 2 OTHER TYPES OF PLUTONIUM RADIOISOTOPES RELEASED THAT FIRST DAY!
WHAT ABOUT THE BETA AND PU241 ISOTOPES?
Only the all-time highest activity levels DETECTED were provided.
TESTING DID NOT BEGIN UNTIL 1997, AND INSPECTIONS HAVE NOT BEEN PERFORMED ON SCHEDULE SINCE THE FACILITY OPENED!
CEMRC director Russell Hardy discussed the normal levels during the resident meeting earlier this week in Carlsbad:
'I just want to reiterate, normally we do see ‘0’. For my radio-chemists, ‘0’ is not good enough. I don’t know how they balance a check book, because they don’t stop until they get to eight zeroes past the decimal point — that’s normally what we see.'
This means a normal reading is at most 0.000000009 Bq per sample — making the recent Pu239+240 sample equal to 12,777,778 times higher than normal, and the Am241 sample 144,444,444 times normal levels."
REMEMBER, WIPP IS AN "EXPERIMENTAL FACILITY" AND SO IS EXEMPT FROM MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION'S RULES AND INSPECTIONS!A WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLE EXPLAINS THE ABSOLUTE HEALTH DANGER OF SMALL AMOUNTS OF THE RELEASED SUBSTANCES.
"Plutonium and americium particles can lodge into bones or muscle tissue, affecting cellular structures and DNA, experts say. “When it gets into your body it can do a lot of damage,” said Edwin Lyman, a senior scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, D.C. “Even very small amounts are a potential concern.”
AP, Mar. 28, 2014
"Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Chairman Peter Winokur said that for six days after the fire, no underground air monitors were operational, meaning that if the system failed when the leak occurred Feb. 14.
The DOE (DEPT. OF ENERGY) said it will expand its environmental monitoring to 10 more stations that will test air, soil and vegetation around Hobbs [50 miles from WIPP], Artesia [50 miles from WIPP], Loving [20 miles from WIPP], Eunice [40 miles from WIPP] and other nearby communities."
THERE ARE CALLS FOR MONITORING OF CITIES 100 MILES AWAY BECAUSE OF THE RADIOACTIVE PLUME AND WIND DIRECTIONS DURING THE INITIAL LEAKS AND THOSE ONGOING.
WIPP OFFICIALS NOW ADMIT THAT THESE LEAKS MAY BE ONGOING FOR QUITE SOME TIME UNTIL THE SOURCES OF THE LEAKS CAN BE DETERMINED AND REPAIRS AND CLEANUP DONE.
PREVIOUSLY, THE AP REPORTED:
AP, Mar. 19, 2014
New air sampling data from southeastern New Mexico’s troubled nuclear waste dump indicates there has been another small radiation release.
Officials say occasional low-level releases are anticipated, but they should be well within safe limits.
Carlsbad Current-Argus, Mar. 27, 2014
"The information about missed safety inspections was revealed in the Department of Energy’s accident report on the Feb. 5 fire at WIPP. By law, MSHA is required to inspect WIPP four times a year.
The accident report said the inspections had been performed twice in the last three years."
MANDATORY INSPECTIONS 4 TIMES A YEAR, BUT ONLY 2 INSPECTIONS IN 3 YEARS?
THEY'RE 10 INSPECTIONS BEHIND!
WHY DID THE GOVERNMENT FAIL TO INSPECT WIPP AS IT SHOULD HAVE?
SOME SAY BECAUSE THERE WERE SO MANY PROBLEMS AND VIOLATIONS THAT THEY WOULD HAVE HAD TO SHUT IT DOWN, AND THEY HAVE NOWHERE ELSE TO PUT THE MATERIALS RIGHT NOW THAT ONLY THIS ONE FACILITY IS ALLOWED TO ACCEPT.
MAYBE WE NEED TO SHUT IT DOWN NOW, WHILE WE STILL HAVE A LITTLE HOPE THAT WE CAN SHUT IT DOWN!
_____________________________________________
Related NEWS ARTICLES:
- TV:
US Senators want federal agents near WIPP to check if safe; “A lot more
people could have been hurt a lot worse” — Public “skeptical whole
truth about environmental risks shared” — Report: “It will shut WIPP
down for a year or more, and now everyone is talking about maybe WIPP is
no good” (VIDEO) March 27, 2014
- AP:
Crews retreat after nuclear material found at WIPP — Officials: Correct
to turn back, contamination was increasing — Robots brought to site for
radiation levels too high for humans — ‘Significant amount of
information’ will be revealed to public in next few days (VIDEOS) April 18, 2014
- Official:
4.4 mil disintegration of alpha radiation detected at leaking U.S.
nuclear site, includes Plutonium; Highest recorded level — Santa Fe
Briefing: “Serious incident involving radiation at the WIPP site” —
Gov’t “reaching out to employees who are worried” about exposure February 24, 2014
4. Truly an operational nightmare” at WIPP — Radiation level doubles at location far from leak; Carlsbad monitor jumps around 40% — Residents plead for more info, concerns over safety (MAP) March 9, 2014xicans concerned, anxious about WIPP radiation release — City of 2.5 million nearly 200 miles away “within transnational evacuation zone in event of a nuclear disaster” — Local officials meeting with U.S. gov’t — Whistleblower: If plutonium released “surrounding population should take precautions” March 26, 2014
5. Mexicans concerned, anxious about WIPP radiation release — City of 2.5 million nearly 200 miles away “within transnational evacuation zone in event of a nuclear disaster” — Local officials meeting with U.S. gov’t — Whistleblower: If plutonium released “surrounding population should take precautions” March 26, 2014
UPDATE APRIL 30, 2015;
ReplyDeletehttp://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/wipp-investigator-can-t-rule-out-more-radioactive-leaks/article_b6f187a1-07d9-5dcc-9771-13e47a92ae99.html
Ted Wyka, head of a team of federal investigators who spent a year reviewing the Feb. 14, 2014, radiation leak at WIPP, NM, says he cannot assure the public that there will not be other radiation leaks.
With hundreds of drums containing organic materials and nitrate salts at Los Alamos, WIPP and at Waste Control Specialists, a storage site in West Texas, the passage of 14 months since a rupture does not equal an assurance than other breaches won’t follow, Wyka said.
The Energy Department expects to spend at least a half-billion dollars on repairs to WIPP before it can reopen. Preliminary operations are expected to resume next year, but full resumption of work at WIPP could take another two to three years.
The Accident Investigation Board’s report found a series of lapses in the handling of the problematic waste at Los Alamos.
UPDATE, AUGUST 31, 2015.
ReplyDeleteTHERE WERE ALARMS AT WIPP ON AUGUST 5, BUT WIPP OFFICIALS HAVE NOW SAID THEY WERE CAUSED BY HUMAN ERROR AND THERE WERE NO LEAKS AFTER ALL.
http://www.currentargus.com/carlsbad-news/ci_28592453/human-error-prompts-emergency
A radiological control technician detected what was believed to be elevated radiological readings on a filter from an air particulate sampler located where air is exhausted from the WIPP underground," a news release said.
The elevated levels were eventually found to be the result of a bad calculation, but the false reading sent a notification to the Central Monitoring room and activated the emergency operations.
The false alarm came less than a week after WIPP officials announced it would not reopen in March, as it had originally planned.
Russell Hardy, director of the Carlsbad Environmental Monitoring Research Center, said the center would start to perform its own calculations of the area.
Hardy said that CEMRC should have the results of its own radiological analyses by Saturday or Sunday.
IMPORTANT NOTE: THERE HAS BEEN NO SUCH RELEASE OF INDEPENDENT TESTING AND TWO OFFICIALS HAVE SINCE ANNOUNCED THEIR RESIGNATIONS.
http://www.currentargus.com/carlsbad-news/ci_28721534/another-wipp-official-announces-departure
BAD, BAD NEWS, NEW MEXICO FOLKS...THE NEW DIRECTOR OF FIELD OFFICES THERE COMES TO YOU FROM HANFORD!
http://www.currentargus.com/wipp/ci_28734726/doe-new-field-office-manager-announced