Removal of U.S. reactor

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33712, 9 December 1974, Page 2

Removal of U.S. reactor

C.V.Z.P.A. Staff Correspondent SCOTT BASE, Dec. 8.

The reactor vessel which held the core of the nuclear power plant at McMurdo Sound is expected to be shipped back to the United States this summer. According to American sources at McMurdo Sound, the vessel, surrounded by protective depleted uranium and encased in a “coffin” of concrete, will probably leave the Antarctic in a cargo ship next month.

It will be taken back to the eastern United States for disposal in a nuclear-waste area.

The vessel and its concrete box weigh about 50 tons, and if it is too heavy to be hoisted by ship’s gear, it might have to stay in the Antarctic for another vear.

According to American sources, this would pose no health hazard. ! The McMurdo nuclear) power plant, producing 1800) kilowatts, generated for 10; years before being shut down in October, 1972, after the discovery of leaks of shield water surrounding the reactor vessel.

The possibility of repairs was investigated, but the cost and possible dangers to workmen in a high-radiation area led to the decision to shut down the plant. The removal of the parts is costing less than SUSI million and is being spread over three summers.