Nuclear Power and Public Safety
Emergency Planning for the Nine Mile Point and James A. FitzPatrick Area
Special plans have already been developed to protect the public in the event of a nuclear incident in your area. These plans give specific attention to people who – like you – live, work or visit within 10 miles of a nuclear power plant. Procedures are in place to help protect you and other members of the public in the unlikely event of a nuclear emergency. If necessary, area officials would declare an emergency and take measures to ensure public safety.
This site addresses procedures for the Nine Mile Point and James A. FitzPatrick Emergency Planning Zone. Please read and keep this material for future reference. Although it specifically addresses a potential nuclear emergency, much of the information is useful in any emergency.
Warning Sirens
Communities across the United States may use outdoor warning sirens for many purposes. Sirens are not exclusive to nuclear power facilities. Sirens are designed to warn the public of many hazards, including fires, flooding, and other events that warrant public notifications. The warning sirens for the Nine Mile Point and James A. FitzPatrick Emergency Planning Zone, when activated, emit a three-minute steady sound.
If you hear a siren, you should tune to one of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) stations listed on this site for official information. Click here to see the EAS stations.
Siren Testing
Warning sirens surrounding the Nine Mile Point and James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Stations are routinely tested weekly on Tuesdays at 1:00 pm. Full sound testing is conducted on the first Tuesday of June and December.
Siren Malfunction Contact Number
Report siren malfunctions to Oswego County Emergency Management at 315.591.9150 during normal working hours and off-hours by dialing 911.
Public Inquiry Telephone Number (During Emergencies Only)
800.285.6811
Shelter-in-Place or Evacuation
Officials might recommend that people either take shelter indoors or evacuate an area. It is critically important that you follow the recommended course of action. Staying home when instructed to evacuate or driving around when urged to stay indoors could expose you to danger unnecessarily.
NOTE: If you or someone you know might not respond to warning sirens or TV or radio broadcasts due to impaired hearing or other factors, please contact your County Emergency Management Agencies to register.
Potassium Iodide (KI)
Potassium iodide (KI) is an additional protective action to sheltering or evacuation. Following an EAS message, State and local officials will announce when the public should take KI in news broadcasts on radio and TV and at www.oswegocounty.com/emo website. KI is a nonprescription medication that blocks the uptake of radioactive iodine by the thyroid gland. KI does not protect a person or the thyroid from direct exposure to radiation. Taking KI only saturates the thyroid with nonradioactive iodine. For most individuals, taking KI is safe; however, adverse reactions are possible in persons having existing thyroid conditions and those with an allergy to iodine. Consult your physician if you have concerns about the safety of KI for your child or yourself. Follow the directions for storage and use that were provided with the product. Remember, taking KI is not an alternative to evacuating the area. The current allotment of KI expires on 10/31/2029. Residents living within the 10-mile radius may obtain more information about KI by contacting:
Oswego County Emergency Management Office at 315.591.9150
Classification of Accidents
There are four accident classifications used to describe nuclear emergencies. We contact federal, state and local authorities in each of the following situations:
Unusual Event — A situation is in progress or already completed which could potentially degrade the plant’s level of safety or indicate a security threat to the facility. No releases of radioactive material requiring offsite actions are expected unless safety systems degrade further.
Alert — Events are in progress or have occurred which have (or could) substantially degrade the plant safety; or, a security event that could threaten site personnel or damage to site equipment is in progress. Any offsite releases of radioactive material that could occur are expected to be minimal and far below limits established by the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) protective action guides (PAGs).
Site Area Emergency — Events are in progress or have occurred which have caused (or likely will cause) major failures of plant functions that protect the public, or involve security events with intentional damage or malicious acts that could lead to the likely failure of (or prevent effective access to) equipment needed to protect the public. Any offsite releases of radioactive material are expected to remain below EPA PAG exposure levels beyond the site boundary.
General Emergency — Events are in progress or have occurred which: a) have caused (or shortly will cause) substantial reactor core damage, with the potential for uncontrolled releases of radioactive material; or, b) involve security events that deny plant staff physical control of the facility. Offsite releases can be reasonably expected to exceed EPA PAG exposure levels beyond the plant site.
What You Need to Know About Nuclear Power Plants and Radiation
How Do Nuclear Plants Work?
Power plants create electricity by running steam turbines, which are powered either by fossil fuels – coal, oil, natural gas – or by nuclear power. Nuclear technology produces energy by splitting uranium atoms in a process called fission. Fission generates heat that boils water for the steam that runs the turbines, which produce the electricity that we all use.
In a nuclear power plant, pea-sized uranium pellets are stacked inside long, thin fuel rods, which are grouped in “assemblies” inside a reactor “core”. The core is encased in a very thick steel capsule, and the entire reactor is further protected by an airtight steel and concrete building called a “containment”. This complex structure is designed to help ensure the safe utilization of nuclear power.
How Do We All Benefit from Nuclear Power?
Any fuel used to produce energy also produces waste. By-products of coal-burning include smoke, ashes and slag. Even with the latest technologies, it is impossible to prevent some of this waste from reaching the environment outside the power plant. Nuclear power generation, on the other hand, produces waste primarily in the form of spent fuel, which is not released into the environment. Besides helping to protect the environment, nuclear energy is also highly efficient, producing vastly more energy for its weight than coal or oil. We would have to burn more than 120 gallons of oil or up to a ton of coal to produce the same amount of energy as that found in a single pellet of uranium.
What Are the Potential Risks of Nuclear Power?
Used properly, nuclear fission (the “splitting” of uranium atoms) is a safe, dependable source of electricity. It is reasonable, though, to be concerned about what might happen in the event of a serious incident at a nuclear power plant.
A nuclear power plant reactor cannot produce a nuclear explosion. The uranium fuel contains very little fissionable material. The complex structure of a nuclear power plant is designed to prevent the release of radiation. A serious incident, however, could allow some radiation to escape, most likely as a cloud, or “plume,” of radioactive material that would be carried away from the plant by the wind. The degree of risk to the public would depend on the size of the plume, the direction and speed of the wind, and other factors.
What Is Radiation?
Radiation is energy in the form of rays or particles. Some atoms – the ones we call radioactive – are unstable. As they go through a natural process called “decay” in which they change into a stable atom, they emit rays or particles called radiation. Radiation is exactly the same, whether from nature, or medical or industrial activities.
Radiation is measured in millirems. On average, a person receives about 300 millirem of radiation annually from natural sources and another 300 millirem or so from X-rays and other medical procedures. It takes more than 35 times this much — over 25,000 millirem in a single day — to produce identifiable effects in the body. Federal regulations allow workers to receive up to 5,000 millirem of radiation in the course of a year’s work.