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The AREVA-Siemens consortium that is building the Olkiluoto 3 nuclear reactor in Finland, and the plant’s owner, Finnish utility Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO), have again increased claims and counterclaims for billions of dollars in costs and losses, which they say are caused by delays afflicting the world’s first EPR project. At the end of 2003, TVO […]

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled on Oct. 23 that the EPA can move forward with implementation of the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) following the April ruling from the Supreme Court upholding most of the rule. The D.C. Circuit had previously voided the rule in December 2011, but […]

The holidays are starting early at Hach and that means it’s time to start making your wishlist!

A comparison of amperometric and optical dissolved oxygen sensors in power and industrial water applications at low oxygen levels.

Meeting in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 23–24, the European Council (EC) agreed on the 2030 climate and energy policy framework for the European Union (EU), calling on all countries to come forward with ambitious targets and policies. The EC endorsed a binding EU target of at least a 40% reduction in domestic greenhouse gas emissions by […]

Compliance cost estimates for a revised ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) soon to be proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “will be little better than guesses,” the Congressional Research Service (CRS) says in a recent document.  The NAAQS does not directly impose emission controls on industry, “but it sets in motion a process […]

Japanese imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) have remained at record levels during 2014 as its entire fleet of nuclear power plants remains offline, according to recent data from the Japanese government. Japan’s reliance on fossil fuels for power generation—particularly LNG—jumped substantially after the March 2011 disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, which led […]

Xcel Energy formally notified state regulators and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator that it plans to close the two remaining coal-fired units at its Black Dog Generating Station in Burnsville, Minn., by April 2015. The Black Dog plant has 232 MW of coal-fired generation in its Units 3 and 4, which have been operating since […]

Allison M. Macfarlane, chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), announced on Oct. 21 that she will leave the NRC effective Jan. 1, 2015, to take a position at George Washington University. Macfarlane took over the chair in July 2012—completing the last year of Dr. Gregory Jaczko’s term—and was confirmed for a second term in […]

Decommissioning the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant will cost up to $1.24 billion, owner Entergy Corp. said in a study submitted to Vermont regulators on Friday.  Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee (ENVY) plans to shutter the reactor in late 2014. The decision to close the plant stems from a settlement agreement negotiated by several Vermont state agencies […]