Regulators OK Ohio nuke plant’s report on cracks
Jun 21, 2012, 11:06 PM
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) – Federal regulators say they agree with an Ohio utility company’s assessment that cracks found in the concrete shell of a nuclear plant along Lake Erie can be traced to a blizzard nearly 35 years ago.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says it accepts findings from FirstEnergy Corp. that say a lack of exterior weatherproofing coating at the plant caused the concrete to crack.
Regulators said Thursday they also approve of FirstEnergy’s plan for the shell’s continuing safety that involves applying a new coating and performing additional tests at the Davis-Besse (BEHS’-ee) nuclear plant near Toledo.
The plant reopened in December after a shutdown following the cracks’ discovery last fall.
Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich (koo-SIN’-ich), a longtime opponent of the plant, says he doesn’t believe that weather caused the cracks.
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