these questions might be the epitome of naivete but i am going to risk ridicule and ask them anyway.

one of the issues being bandied about, by the fourth estate as well as those at high levels of government, is the fragility of our water supply and the *acute* possibility of serious disruption.

i abruptly left that train of thought when i realized that our nuclear facilities require a large amount of water.

how much do they need, how is it replenished, and would the interruption of water impact negatively on the operation of the facility while it was generating power or conversely when it was shut down? also, do we store additional water in the event of a disruption if an uninterrupted flow is indeed necessary?

these are not questions designed with malice aforethought, i genuinely don't know the answers and i don't remember the issue being addressed.

any enlightenment would be most appreciated.

marianne

-- Anonymous, June 01, 1999

Answers

The water supplies for most sites is a river or lake, which are always nearby. The sites have what's called an ultimate heat sink, or source of water required for safe shutdown and prolonged shut down (28 days if I remember correctly). The UHS is designed to withstand both the 100 year flood scenario and the 100 year drought scenario at most plants. I can't speak for everyone. The site also has a supply of water in a refuel water storage tank, which is enough to flood the reactor for defuel/refuel during an outage (which last anywhere from 17 days to 60 days for a normal defuel/ refuel outage) this amount of water also provides a barrier against radiation for the fuel handlers who ride atop the bridge crane which moves th fuel.

-- Anonymous, June 02, 1999