To the Editor:
Firstly, I would like to thank Mr. Miller for voicing his concerns about Bruce Power’s emergency preparedness (Letter: Reader concerned about back-up power at Bruce Power, Aug. 11). By doing so publicly he has opened a conversation I am always happy to take part in, to counter any misunderstandings about the nuclear industry and Bruce Power specifically.
Since the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, which crippled the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear facility, the Canadian nuclear industry has put our plants and protective systems under intense scrutiny. This included looking at worst-case scenarios, which for the Lake Huron shoreline isn’t likely to be an earthquake or tsunami due to being located in an area of low seismic activity (although our plants are seismically qualified), but most likely severe weather.
Mr. Miller’s letter cites an event similar to the 1998 ice storm, which left some people without power for three weeks due to downed tower lines, as a threat to safety at Bruce Power. This comparison, though, is not reflective of how power is produced and distributed from our site.
Conceivably, a storm could knock power out at homes across Grey and Bruce counties for days or weeks, but Bruce Power is different in that we don’t rely on the Bruce to Milton transmission lines to power our plants, safety systems and even office computers. We create our own power, and use it on site every day. What we don’t use for ourselves, we send down the transmission lines to the electricity users of Ontario.
In a loss-of-grid event, our multi-layered safety systems, which are regularly tested, immediately kick in, allowing the units to operate in a safe manner and provide the entire site with power as needed. In the meantime, our external partners would begin restoring the grid. This occurred during the 2003 blackout, when we spent only 14 hours on back-up power, while three of our four units played an integral role in restoring power across the province.
As Mr. Miller states, I openly told local media Bruce Power has the capability to self-power for three days should we lose connection to the province’s electrical grid. What I failed to clarify is that three days is the minimum required by our regulator – Bruce Power can actually self-power for weeks before we’d even have to refuel our back-up generators.
Our plants are designed to have layered safety systems, which feature numerous generators at both stations. Bruce A can be run on generators for six days, while Bruce B can run for eight, uninterrupted, ensuring the complete safety of our units before we even have to refuel.
As part of our emergency preparedness plans, we have nearly 35,000 litres of diesel continuously stored on site. We could draw from this extra diesel if necessary, and then would seek outside sources if this unprecedented storm raged for upwards of a month, cutting the site off from civilization for weeks on end. Although almost inconceivable, if we could no longer replenish our diesel tanks from our vast reserves, I’m confident our partners at the OPP and the Bruce County roads department, along with our own fleet of plows and sanders, would undoubtedly create access for fuelling trucks to reach site.
Contrary to what Mr. Miller suggests, we did not just discover our back-up capabilities after our regulator handed down its directives, post-Fukushima. This is how Bruce Power’s reactors were designed. Personally, I have always been comfortable with the great depth of our current capabilities as outlined above, but Fukushima has taught us we need to prepare for the worst-case scenario, and then prepare some more. That’s why we have conducted a review of our systems, processes, and people against a wide range of scenarios, and will increase our capabilities to self-sustain in every way possible.
I assure Mr. Miller and all residents in our area, Bruce Power has never been, nor never will be, complacent when it comes to the integrity of our safety systems and the health of our reactors and surrounding communities. I urge everyone to educate themselves by visiting our Fukushima Response page at www.brucepower.com.
Duncan Hawthorne
President and CEO, Bruce Power
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