Preparations to Transport, Receive and Store the Damage TMI-2 Core: Lessons Learned

Abstract

The initiation of fuel debris shipments in July 1986 marked a significant milestone in the cleanup of the March 1979 accident which damaged the Unit 2 reactor of the Three Mile Island (TMI-2) Nuclear Power Station near Harrisburg (PA). Preparations to transport, receive, and store the TMI-2 fuel debris required solutions to notable technical challenges and institutional issues. Solving those challenges and resolving issues were, and continue to be, high priority objectives of many diverse private and federal organizations. This paper summarizes those challenges and issues, summarizes the transportation program, and discusses lessons learned from the TMI-2 Program, all of which should be of value to the nuclear industry.