Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Ohio nuclear plant owner: Weather caused cracks

TOLEDO, Ohio—The owner of an Ohio nuclear plant along Lake Erie says a lack of exterior weatherproofing coating caused concrete to crack in the outer shell protecting the plant.

FirstEnergy Corp. told the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that the exterior cracking at the Davis-Besse (BEHS'-ee) plant near Toledo traces back to a 1978 blizzard when wind, rain and a drastic temperature drop caused moisture to penetrate the concrete. The Blade newspaper ( http://bit.ly/woM18U) reports the utility says the moisture caused the concrete to freeze and expand, prompting the cracks found in October.

FirstEnergy is proposing it could apply a weatherproofing coating and make sure the cracks haven't spread. It also proposes a long-term monitoring plan.

The NRC allowed the plant to begin producing electricity again in December after the first cracks were found.

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