Penn State Reports Minor Reactor Leak - AP

[Eugene]

Penn State Reports Minor Reactor Leak

Friday October 12, 2007 1:01 AM

By GENARO C. ARMAS

Associated Press Writer

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - Penn State University
reported a minor leak of “slightly radioactive water” at
its nuclear research reactor but said Thursday that the
leak poses no risk to workers, the community or the
environment.

Workers discovered water leaking Tuesday from the pool
in which the reactor sits into the ground beneath on
the Penn State campus. State and federal officials were
notified, and the reactor was shut down and will remain
out of service until the source of the leak is found,
the university said.

“There's no impact on the community. It's just something
that, now that we know what's going on, we are telling
the community and continuing to look for the leak,”
A'ndrea Elyse Messer, the university's senior science
and research spokeswoman, said Thursday night.

Staff at the Breazeale nuclear research reactor noticed
“a small reduction of several hundred gallons over the
past several days” from the 71,000-gallon pool, which
shields the core's radiation and cools the reactor,
the university said. The leak rate is about 10 gallons
per hour, and the water can be easily replenished,
officials said.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6990265,00.html

[robinlynne]

1. well, that's just what you want to hear, minor reactor leak.

[Massacure]

2. Too bad coal plants don't notify the public when they leak mercury or arsenic.

Oh wait, nobody cares about THAT. :eyes:

[NMDemDist2]

3. several hundred gallons?

glad it wasn't a BIG leak

:banghead: