andrshaw_3
03-16-2011, 11:22 PM
Staff are working overtime to fix a leak at the Pickering A Nuclear station that allowed 73,000 litres of demineralized water to seep into Lake Ontario Monday.
The leak caught the attention of Toronto-area residents who are focused on the damaged nuclear power plants and radioactive leak in tsunami-rocked Japan.
Ted Gruetzner, of Ontario Power Generation, said the leak stemmed from a faulty pump seal.
"It was a low level event with only negligible effect to the environment and no public health implications," Gruetzner said Wednesday. "The release was stopped on discovery and the pump seal is being replaced."
He said workers at the massive facility are making the repairs. Gruetzner said the demineralized water, which has had minerals removed and is cleaner than lake water, contained trace amounts of tritium that was far below regulatory limits.
The content of tritium in water at local treatment plants is between six and 10 becquerels per litre. The provincial standard for tritium in drinking water is 7,000 becqerels per litre. Gruetzner said the appropriate regulatory agencies and stakeholders were notified of the leak, including civic leaders and school principals.
"Members of the community know we run a safe plant," he said. "We are now trying to find out what happened and why."
The nuclear plant, along with its sister plant Pickering B, produce enough energy for a city of 1.5 million people.
source..hxxp://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3030354
The leak caught the attention of Toronto-area residents who are focused on the damaged nuclear power plants and radioactive leak in tsunami-rocked Japan.
Ted Gruetzner, of Ontario Power Generation, said the leak stemmed from a faulty pump seal.
"It was a low level event with only negligible effect to the environment and no public health implications," Gruetzner said Wednesday. "The release was stopped on discovery and the pump seal is being replaced."
He said workers at the massive facility are making the repairs. Gruetzner said the demineralized water, which has had minerals removed and is cleaner than lake water, contained trace amounts of tritium that was far below regulatory limits.
The content of tritium in water at local treatment plants is between six and 10 becquerels per litre. The provincial standard for tritium in drinking water is 7,000 becqerels per litre. Gruetzner said the appropriate regulatory agencies and stakeholders were notified of the leak, including civic leaders and school principals.
"Members of the community know we run a safe plant," he said. "We are now trying to find out what happened and why."
The nuclear plant, along with its sister plant Pickering B, produce enough energy for a city of 1.5 million people.
source..hxxp://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3030354