Oil fires from Bakken Oil train derailments pose a dangerous threat to nearby nuclear plants. This presentation examines the threat potential at Three Mile Island near Harrisburg PA.
1. Scott Portzline
Three Mile Island Alert
Security Consultant
Harrisburg PA
April 2, 2015
Bakken Oil Trains – Potential External Threat to the
Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station
Presented to Harrisburg PA
City Council
2. • Shortly after 9-11, the City of Harrisburg requested
TMIA to perform a “security needs” analysis of Three
Mile Island for a Homeland Security program.
• I participated in U.S. Coast Guard rulemaking for
protection from water craft attacks at nuclear plants.
• We warned about the terrorism threat at TMI prior
to the revelation of the nearby training camp of men
associated with Ramsey Yousef.
3. • Created a rulemaking docket so that the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission would
require guards at entrances.
• Maintained a database on lost and stolen
nuclear materials in the U.S.
• Had a document removed from the U.S.
Department of Energy website which
revealed the best angle to attack a nuclear
plant with an aircraft.
4. • Caused the NRC to remove sensitive
documents which reveal the exact location of
dangerous radioisotopes used at industrial,
educational and medical facilities. These
documents also revealed security measures or
lack thereof.
5. July, 2013, a Bakken oil train derailed at Lac-Mégantic,
Quebec Canada and exploded, killing 47 and burning
down a quarter of the town.
6. Six months later, another crude-bearing train derailed
and exploded in Casselton, North Dakota, prompting
the evacuation of most of the town's 2,300 residents.
7. Feb. 16, 2015 -- Mount Carbon, WV
• An hour after this video was taken, this
train crashed causing an explosion and
burned into the night.
• Two nearby towns were evacuated
• Governor declared a state of emergency
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcguIfLO3Ls
16. “The licensee is currently
sheltering its employees on
site and is turning away people
from the site who are
reporting to work.”
“Five licensee people who
reported to work passed
through the ammonia cloud on
their way to work. The
individuals complained of
nausea and have been
transported to a hospital via
an ambulance.”
Toxic cloud
impact event
18. Loss of Offsite Power is the single greatest
concern for contributing to reactor core
damage.
FUKUSHIMA is a station blackout catastrophe.
19. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is re-
examining external hazard threats like floods,
fires, earthquakes etc..
I do not have faith in NRC’s analysis.
Examples:
• Truck Bomb set back distances were too small
• Control of the Emergency Responders Routes
• My entrance guard rulemaking vanished
20. “Approaches: Particular emphasis must be placed on main and
alternate entry routes for law-enforcement or other offsite
support agencies and the location of control points
for marshalling and coordinating response activities.”
NRC dropped this portion of a proposed rule
TMI’s North Bridge
The main entrance for Emergency Responders
21. Control of TMI’s two Bridges
• Without control of the bridges at TMI,
many aspects of the planned emergency
responses are severely compromised.
• Currently, the bridges are
not controlled by security
forces.
• The NRC made my docketed
proposed rule for entrance
guards disappear.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission broke more than forty of its
own rules and guidelines in the handling of my docketed petition
for rulemaking for entrance guards.
http://tinyurl.com/qj2mn3d
23. Communications is a problem with every
Homeland Security Drill – first responders will
be effected as well as citizens.
24. Security vs. Safety creates debatable conditions of
vulnerability and risks.
The need for secrecy will trump the need for prior
knowledge of dangerous shipments.
BEST Recommendation: Harrisburg should get assurances
from the Dept. of Transportation that communication of a
dangerous transportation accident will occur within 10
minutes.
25. Dangerous shipments should not occur on days of
extreme weather.
I saw a high level nuclear waste train traveling (8 miles
north of Hbg.) at 45 miles per hour on a 96 degree day.
It was the third day in a row of 95+ degree temperatures
and a train had derailed in Washington D.C. due to
tracks warping from the extreme heat.
The speed of trains should be slowed where extra safety
is appropriate.
26. Geiger counters should be activated
as first responders approach any
emergency situation.
end
Editor's Notes
Toxic cloud
1 hour before crash and burn Gov. declared a state of emergency
as much as 30,000 gallons of crude oil in each car
Tracks are yellow – reactor, fuel pools and control room
The NRC withdrew this portion of a proposed rule when I stated that TMI would have to be required to protect the bridges.