Pilgrim nuclear plant is back online
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station was brought back online Wednesday morning, two days after the Plymouth plant was shut down because of a leaky valve.
The plant was returned to service at 11:21 a.m. when it was reconnected to the region's electric transmission grid, according to an email from Carol Wightman, spokeswoman for Entergy Nuclear, which owns the plant.
"The plant was manually shut down Monday to investigate a minor leak associated with a pilot valve on one of the plant's four safety relief valves," Wightman wrote. "Plant technicians replaced the pilot valve and operators began the process of restarting Pilgrim station early Wednesday."
The unplanned shutdown Monday was the second this month and the sixth in the past two years. On Jan. 10 recirculation pumps at the facility were tripped off as technicians performed tests on electronics that control the plant's low-pressure coolant injection system.
Plant officials have said that the shutdowns do not pose a danger to the public, but Pilgrim's critics argue the plant's age, the storage of spent fuel on the property and security issues threaten the surrounding environment and populations, including communities on Cape Cod.
The 40-year-old facility currently exceeds the industry averages for automatic shutdowns and unplanned power changes, according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The NRC in May 2012 approved a 20-year extension of Entergy's license to operate Pilgrim.
PATRICK CASSIDY
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