Incident in a Areva workshop in Cadarache

[Targol]

A short brief without comment:

A faulty weighing scale and "out of procedure" instructions are the cause of an incident - without consequences for the environment or health - which occurred on November 6, 2006 at the Plutonium Technology Workshop (ATPu). This Areva NC facility is located on the site of the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), in Cadarache (Bouches-du-Rhône).

"The accumulation of human errors and the failures observed in the quality assurance processes highlight major shortcomings in the operator's safety culture", judges the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN). This is why ASN announced on Tuesday 9 January that it had classified the incident at level 2 on the international scale of nuclear events, which goes from 1 to 7. The CEA, which had made the incident public on 10 November, proposed to classify it at level 1 of this scale.

A handling error led employees of Areva NC, operational manager of ATPu, to load a shredder twice with scrap MOX fuel pellets (mixture of plutonium and uranium oxides). An ASN inspection, carried out on November 16, showed that the scale used to control the loading of the shredder had been broken since March 2006.

NO "CRITICAL MASS"

Fortunately, the "critical mass" - of about 16 kg of fissile material -, from which a nuclear reaction can start spontaneously, has not been reached. Instead of the 8 kg authorized, the mill contained 13 kg of pellets, corresponding to 3,9 kg of fissile material.

ATPu had experienced a contamination incident in 2004: a human error had caused slight contamination of the premises and of an operator. Opened in 1964, this workshop, where the first MOX assemblies were produced, is now in the renovation phase. ASN hopes to see the operation completed at the end of 2007, and is preparing a decree relating to the final shutdown of the installation.

Placed under the responsibility of the CEA, ATPu has long been the bane of environmental associations. As early as 1995, the Nuclear Safety Authority had asked for its closure due to a reassessment of the seismic risk. It was not until July 2003 that Areva, the real operator of the installation, complied.

source: the Monde.fr

[Christophe]

Mdr we "came close" to the nuclear explosion ...

the scale to control the loading of the shredder had been broken since March 2006.

I love!!

[Targol]

Ehh yes. After that, we get out of speeches that it is not dangerous to privatize EDF because the private sector take as much precaution as the public authorities: with AREVA, we have glaring confirmation

[Colmant]

+1

Next to (Cadarache) they will build ITER

hello investment,

With that alone they will keep a close watch

Targoll don't worry too much about security,

avoids reflections by CGTistes officials

[Targol]

Targoll don't worry too much about security,

I am delighted with your optimism, but personally, as soon as we touch radioactive stuff, I worry. "Do not worry" is what the French authorities said in 1986 during the Chernobyl disaster.
Well, those who did not listen to these soothing words may have avoided Thyroid cancer.

There is such opacity and such a desire to hide the risks when it comes to nuclear power in France that I believe that, on the contrary, "worrying" and being vigilant is the most responsible option.
Now, I am not preventing you from preferring the option "confident bliss"

avoids reflections by CGTistes officials

Rhoooo the fat : Lol:

[Chuwee]

I am delighted with your optimism, but personally, as soon as we touch radioactive stuff, I worry. "Do not worry" is what the French authorities said in 1986 during the Chernobyl disaster.
Well, those who did not listen to these soothing words may have avoided Thyroid cancer.

There is such opacity and such a desire to hide the risks when it comes to nuclear power in France that I believe that, on the contrary, "worrying" and being vigilant is the most responsible option.
Now, I am not preventing you from preferring the option "confident bliss"

On Chernobyl, I fully agree with you, Targol, they took us for idiots (almost as much as the green ones) ).
Since then, things have nevertheless evolved, have the same remark in this article with the passage on ASN (with whom you can contact if you want more information).

Avoid worrying too much, there is potassium 40 in everything you eat, radon in your home (up to 4000Bq / m3 depending on your region and your lifestyle), so on. others like carbon 14, etc ...
I almost forgot the sun, a sunburn, it's 3 Gray on the skin and in no time ...

In this regard, I would like to know your "nuclear culture" ...

Do you know the effects of ionizing radiation and their thresholds?
The differences between stochastic and deterministic effects?
The harmfulness (internal / external?) Of radioelements like 60Co, 137Cs, radon?
The relationship between dose and activity of these radioelements?

[Christophe]

In this regard, I would like to know your "nuclear culture" ...

Do you know the effects of ionizing radiation and their thresholds?
The differences between stochastic and deterministic effects?
The harmfulness (internal / external?) Of radioelements like 60Co, 137Cs, radon?
The relationship between dose and activity of these radioelements?

Good questions!

I know ... that I don't know! But on the other hand ... I'm not an anti nuclear activist ...

Personally I would add one (a little more sneaky to ask the anti nuke): what do you heat yourself up to?

[Targol]

In this regard, I would like to know your "nuclear culture" ...

Do you know the effects of ionizing radiation and their thresholds?
The differences between stochastic and deterministic effects?
The harmfulness (internal / external?) Of radioelements like 60Co, 137Cs, radon?
The relationship between dose and activity of these radioelements?

Good questions!

I know ... that I don't know! But on the other hand ... I'm not an anti nuclear activist ...

I am anti nuclear and I can not answer any of your questions Chuwee. Now, I don't think that not knowing all the details about a danger dispenses with being wary of it. To use your concrete example, I am unable to tell you precisely how the sun will attack my skin and make me risk cancer, that does not prevent me from paying attention.
We cannot specialize in everything, 10 lives would not be enough. At times, you have to know how to be content with the main lines.

Avoid worrying too much, there is potassium 40 in everything you eat, radon in your home (up to 4000Bq / m3 depending on your region and your lifestyle), so on. others like carbon 14, etc ...

Obviously there is natural radioactivity (although, at home, built on sand, I don't think there are masses of it) and that it is dangerous. From there to saying "since there is naturally, let's add a layer" (by the power plants and the waste they produce or by irradiating the fruits to stop their ripening process), there is a step that I refuse to cross.

Personally I would add one (a little more sneaky to ask the anti nuke): what do you heat yourself up to?

I heat myself with gas. Choice that I made a little before my "awakening" to ecology and that I regret today. If I had to make a choice today, it would be by solar thermal collectors and wood. Unfortunately, I'm still paying for the installation and can't afford to change everything

[antoinet111]

you make a digester and you run your boiler on biomethane.
www.eden-enr.org/spip/article.php?id_article=37

[Targol]

you make a digester and you run your boiler on biomethane.
www.eden-enr.org/spip/article.php?id_article=37

It is indeed a very good idea.

The only - BIG - problem is that I do not have pigs at home (the docs found on the link relate to slurry digesters) and I doubt that the little organic waste that we produce at 4 (and that currently, I compost) are enough to produce enough biomethane to cover the family's heating, hot water and cooking needs

Or maybe by unplugging my toilets from the sewer and putting them on a digester ....
Although, this brings up a few questions:

• organic materials from the kitchen + from the toilets sufficient to cover our needs? I doubt.
• What to do with "sludge" after they "spit out" their methane? compost them?
• Are there digesters allowing easy sludge emptying?

In short, if I am very interested in the idea, its implementation does not seem very realistic to me. I'm going to take a look at the "biomethane" site to see if I find any answers ...