A Note from Larry Smith at Vermont Yankee

March 8, 2010

Vermont Yankee engineers and technicians continue their investigation into the source of tritium in the plant's groundwater. The Vermont Department of Health and Nuclear Regulatory Commission personnel are monitoring the investigation.

Remote Operated Vehicle (ROV) inspection of the Advanced Off Gas (AOG) pipe tunnel and the AOG drain pipe identified to be leaking water continues today, with completion expected tomorrow. The inspection will allow engineers to determine the source for the small amount of leakage remaining internal to the tunnel and develop additional remediation steps that can be taken to completely eliminate the leak. As previously reported, water coming from the pipe is not reaching the environment. The water is being collected in a sump for processing through plant systems as designed.

Preliminary planning for both soil and groundwater remediation actions has commenced.

The installation of a new groundwater monitoring well is expected to be completed today. This well will help to further characterize groundwater flow at the site.

While this investigation continues, it is important to note that there has been no detectable tritium levels found in any samples taken from drinking water wells or the river.

For more details on the tritium investigation, the Vermont Department of Health has a thorough status report on the investigation at this web link: http://healthvermont.gov/enviro/rad/yankee/tritium.aspx