Final hearings this week precede VY uprate report to feds

By Kathryn Casa | Vermont Guardian

Posted December 6, 2005

A federal nuclear advisory panel wraps up deliberations near Washington this week, before making a key recommendation to the five Nuclear Regulatory Commission members on whether Entergy Corp. should be allowed to increase power at Vermont Yankee by 20 percent.

The Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS) is a prestigious 11-member board comprised of some of the nation’s top nuclear, chemistry, metallurgy, thermal hydraulic and risk-assessment experts. Although they are appointed by the NRC to advise the five commissioners on the safety of the nation’s nuclear reactors, they deliberate independent of NRC staff.

Their review of the Vermont Yankee uprate shifted into high gear last month, when a subcommittee met for two days in Brattleboro to hear industry and public testimony on the proposal.

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