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Peach Bottom Nuclear Generating Station

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The Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station is an American nuclear power plant that is located 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Harrisburg in Peach Bottom Township , York County, Pennsylvania . Situated close to the Susquehanna River , it is three miles north of the Maryland border.

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46-556: The Philadelphia Electric Company (later "PECO") was a pioneer in the commercial nuclear industry when it ordered Peach Bottom 1 in 1958. The U.S.'s first nuclear power plant (the Shippingport Reactor ) had gone on line a year earlier. Peach Bottom Unit 1 was an experimental helium -cooled, graphite -moderated reactor. It operated from 1966 to 1974. Peach Bottom 2 and 3, General Electric boiling water reactors , went on-line in 1974, and are still in operation on

92-634: A culture characterized by low morale and apathy prevailed. By April 1988, this emphasis on mismanagement contributed to the President of PECO resigning as well as to the retirement of the CEO. Robert P. Crosby became the primary Organization Development influence during the PECO Nuclear turnaround following the Peach Bottom shut down. He used The Interpersonal Gap model by John L. Wallen along with

138-606: A decision which made a list of the 101 "dumbest moments in business" in the January 16, 2008 issue of Fortune . The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's estimate of the risk each year of an earthquake intense enough to cause core damage to the reactor at Peach Bottom was 1 in 41,667; according to an NRC study published in August 2010. PECO Energy PECO , formerly the Philadelphia Electric Company ,

184-485: A gun to class. Also during his time as a trainee, a fellow trainee said he threatened to kill everyone at a barbecue after his hamburger touched a piece of pork, and he was escorted from the property. In 2010, Mateen was videotaped while working security for G4S at a site related to the BP oil spill . His cynical description of the work situation was included in the 2012 documentary, The Big Fix . Working with Mateen at

230-414: A jury of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole." In 2010 the parents of Janet Chandler contended that Wackenhut did not thoroughly check the employees' backgrounds and then failed to properly supervise them, ignoring problems that arose with the workers. The suit also alleged that the company helped conceal the involvement of their employees, who swore to

276-596: A lesson" by beating, sexually assaulting, and killing her). They acted on their plans sometime after midnight on January 31, 1979. The conspirators did not discuss the crimes over the years. Following the February 7, 2006 arrest of Wackenhut employee Robert Lynch, six people were charged with first-degree murder arising from Janet Chandler's death, five of whom were Wackenhut employees in 1979. Two persons pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and were sentenced to terms of years in prison. The other four persons were convicted by

322-724: A propane-air plant in Chester, PA . with storage capacity of 1,980,000 US gallons (7,500 m ). The company also owns 29 natural gas city gate stations at locations that link with various interstate pipelines. The Chester Waterside Station of the Philadelphia Electric Company was constructed in 1916 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. PECO supplies legacy two-phase electric power to sections of Philadelphia where infrastructure upgrades are impracticable. Philadelphia

368-417: A unique T-group method known as Conflict Management (and later as Tough Stuff in other business applications) to speed culture change, and applied his own version of Daryl Conner's Sponsor Agent Target model to improving and shortening outage management. By 1996, both Limerick and Peach Bottom were designated excellent by INPO, and given strong Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP) ratings by

414-679: A vow of secrecy, according to testimony in a 2007 trial. Fingers were pointed at Wackenhut when it was revealed that anti-nuclear protesters, including an 82-year-old nun, had managed to cut through fences of one of the United States’ most protected nuclear facilities at Oak Ridge in Tennessee in July 2012. Three activists broke into the US Government's only weapons grade storage facility to paint graffiti and throw what they claimed

460-401: Is an energy company founded in 1881 and incorporated in 1929. It became part of Exelon Corporation in 2000 when it merged with Commonwealth Edison 's holding company Unicom Corp . The company has approximately 2,300 employees; its call center and field craft personnel are members of IBEW Local 614. PECO serves about 1.6 million electric and over 511,000 natural gas customers; it is

506-412: Is currently operated by Constellation Energy (formerly a division of PECO's parent company, Exelon , and before that it was known as Baltimore Gas and Electric (BG&E), the oldest gas utility in the country) and is jointly owned by Constellation (50%) and Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) Power LLC (formerly Public Service Electric and Gas) (50%). Peach Bottom was one of the plants analyzed in

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552-539: Is in Jupiter, Florida . In 1966, George Wackenhut took his company public . In the mid-1960s, Florida Governor Claude Kirk commissioned the Wackenhut Corporation to help fight a "war on organized crime", awarding the company a $ 500,000 contract. The commission lasted about a year but led to more than 80 criminal indictments, including many for local politicians and government employees. Following

598-586: Is one of only two cities with in-service two-phase infrastructure. PECO's total assets are valued at $ 9.8 billion. The company delivered 87,700,000,000 cubic feet (2.5 × 10  m ) of natural gas and 39.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2008, generating $ 5.5 billion in revenue. PECO's utility business is capital intensive and requires significant investments for the electric and gas delivery systems to ensure adequate capacity and reliability for customers. PECO's anticipated capital expenditures for 2009 are estimated at $ 400 million—about three-fourths for

644-483: The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services fined G4S $ 151,400 for providing inaccurate psychological testing information after it found the psychologist whose opinion was necessary to permit Mateen to carry a weapon was not practicing as a screener. Between 2006 and 2016, 1,514 forms were submitted erroneously listing Nudelman's name. Mateen's form was among those investigated. The company

690-583: The NUREG-1150 safety analysis study. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a plume exposure pathway zone with a radius of 10 miles (16 km), concerned primarily with exposure to, and inhalation of, airborne radioactive contamination, and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80 km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity. The 2010 U.S. population within 10 miles (16 km) of Peach Bottom

736-908: The Peach Bottom Nuclear Generating Station sleeping while on duty. Beal had previously tried to notify supervisors at Wackenhut and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission about the breaches of security. Wackenhut's contract was terminated, ending its role guarding Peach Bottom and nine other nuclear plants. In 2003, the management of WCC, the wholly owned subsidiary of Wackenhut's prison business, raised funds to repurchase all common stock held by G4S since 2002, changing its name to The GEO Group, Inc. The GEO Group , Inc. now operates former Wackenhut facilities in 14 states, as well as in South Africa and Australia . Some facilities, such as

782-543: The 620-acre (2.5 km) site today. Both Units 2 and 3, originally rated at 3,514  megawatts thermal (MW th ), equivalent to about 1,180 megawatts of electricity (MW e ) each, were uprated to 4,016 megawatts thermal (MW th ), equivalent to about 1,382 megawatts net of electricity (MW e ) each in 2018. Units 2 and 3 were originally licensed to operate until 2013 and 2014, respectively. Their licenses were extended until 2033 and 2034 and then, in 2020 they were extended to 2053 and 2054. Peach Bottom

828-493: The Blue Mill Inn where plaintiff's daughter, Janet Chandler, worked as the overnight front desk clerk. Plaintiff alleges that some of the guards and motel staff had sexual relationships with each other, relationships that "bred jealousy and anger, much of it directed at Janet Chandler," for reasons not clear from the pleadings. Plaintiff alleges that several of the guards and motel employees conspired to "teach Janet Chandler

874-551: The Conowingo Power Company service area from PECO. PECO's distribution line voltages are 2,400/4,160 volts wye and 7,620/13,200 volts wye. Subtransmission voltages are 34,500 volts and 69,000 volts. Transmission line voltages are 138,000 volts, 230,000 volts and 500,000 volts. The company is a member of the PJM Interconnection. As of 2012 PECO's peak electric load occurred on July 22, 2011 and

920-476: The County ordered an audit of the contract in 2005. That audit was completed in 2009 and came up with an amount of estimated overbillings. In response, G4S Wackenhut filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging, among other things, that the audit's findings were erroneous. In February 2010, the issue was resolved, and Miami-Dade County commissioners approved a $ 7.5 million settlement agreement with Wackenhut to resolve

966-770: The Courthouse. When G4S became aware the FBI was investigating Mateen, they did not dismiss Mateen but transferred him to the south guardhouse of the PGA Village , a gated community in Palm Beach County. Judges at two Treasure Coast courthouses that had been guarded by Mateen requested that G4S be replaced by sheriff's deputies. At $ 377,000 and $ 86,000 respectively, the G4S contracts for St. Lucie and Indian River were cheaper by margins of $ 200,000 and $ 60,000 than

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1012-590: The Earth Quaker Action Team began protesting PECO to demand that it expand the amount of solar energy that it buys, and to source solar power from North Philadelphia in order to create jobs. PECO purchases enough solar energy to power 2,000 residential households. Twice each year, in March and September, it submits those plans to the Pennsylvania's state regulators for approval. The utility runs

1058-589: The NRC. In 1999, PECO Nuclear eliminated their Organization Development positions as part of cost cutting initiative. Trouble arose again in September 2007, when former employee Kerry Beal videotaped Peach Bottom security guards sleeping on the job. Beal had previously tried to notify supervisors at Wackenhut Corp. and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission . He was eventually fired during the Exelon security transition,

1104-624: The St. Lucie County Courthouse in 2013, a co-worker said he had complained to superiors at G4S about Mateen's frequent violent, racist and homophobic tirades, but that the company ignored him. G4S denied having a record of those complaints. After Mateen claimed to his co-workers a family connection to Al Qaeda and said he was a member of Hezbollah, the county sheriff's office called in the Federal Bureau of Investigation . The St Lucie Sheriff's office "demanded" Mateen no longer provide security for

1150-616: The Wackenhut Corrections Centers in New York, retain the Wackenhut name despite no longer having any actual connection with the company. A dispute between the Wackenhut corporation and Miami-Dade Transit arose from allegations made by a former employee. Michelle Trimble claimed that G4S Wackenhut over-billed Miami-Dade County for work that had not been performed. As a result of the allegations of that lawsuit,

1196-495: The actual costs of procurement. According to Exelon SEC Form 10-k for the year 2012: nuclear energy supplied 53% of power supplied, fossils and renewables provided 12% of power supplied, and purchased power provided 35% of power supplied. PECO owns, maintains, and operates: PECO has a liquefied natural gas storage facility in West Conshohocken, PA . with capacity of 1,200,000,000 cubic feet (34,000,000 m ) and

1242-437: The bidding process through a third party for energy suppliers and wholesalers. PECO's sister company, Constellation, is the third largest developer in Pennsylvania of solar installations for commercial, industrial, government and customers, and its parent company, Exelon, has a portfolio of wind-generating power projects across the country. PECO currently generates 0.14% of its energy portfolio from solar energy, but, according to

1288-405: The company in 2005 and denies ever having met him. G4S said Mateen was not interviewed by a psychologist, but rather, a psychologist evaluated the results of a standard test used in job screenings, and his test was evaluated by the firm that bought Nudelman's practice: Headquarters for Psychological Evaluation, owned by Dr Joanne Bauling. G4S said this was a "clerical error." On September 10, 2016,

1334-409: The deputies. The PGA Village board voted unanimously to review a $ 1 million annual contract with G4S and consider other vendors after the sale of a resident's home was cancelled by a purchaser who learned that Mateen had patrolled the community. On June 22, Massachusetts Senator Kathleen O'Connor Ives called it "crazy and beyond ironic" in light of Mateen and other scandals to replace members of

1380-467: The dispute. The settlement deal had $ 3 million going to the county, $ 1.25 million for whistle-blower Trimble, whose lawsuit led the county to launch its own audit, and $ 3.25 million going to Trimble's attorneys. As part of the deal, Wackenhut was allowed to bid on future contracts and the county agreed not to use this case against it when considering Wackenhut's bids. In 1979 employees of Wackenhut Corporations gang-raped and murdered Janet Chandler. Her body

1426-506: The electric business, nearly 20 percent for gas, and the rest is common. The company pays about $ 510 million in local, state and federal income and other taxes annually. In the 1970s through the 1980s, community activist pressure contributed to the delayed opening of nuclear power plants at PECO's Limerick Generating Station and the temporary cancellation of the planned Limerick 2 nuclear power plant, Pennsylvania. Both Limerick 1 and Limerick 2 were built and producing power by 1990. In 2015,

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1472-464: The environmental activists group Earth Quaker Action Team, “...could generate up to 20% of their portfolio from solar.” Sourcing solar energy from rooftop solar panels “...would generate 70 jobs...” or “...could generate up to 4000 new jobs in Philadelphia.” Wackenhut G4S Secure Solutions ( USA ) is an American/British-based security services company, and a subsidiary of G4S plc . It

1518-430: The firearms refresher courses he took each four years at G4S suggested more substantial training on his own, the company's inability to detect prior warning signals brought it under widespread scrutiny. Under Florida state law, for him to work as an armed guard the company was required either to make a full psychiatric evaluation of Mateen, or to administer a "validated written psychological test". The test administered

1564-604: The health and safety of the area. . Among the incidents cited by the NRC: security guards were overworked, one guard was found asleep on the job, 36,000 gallons of "mildly radioactive water" leaked into the Susquehanna River, PECO mislaid data on radioactive waste classification causing misclassification of a waste shipment, and a major fire occurred in the maintenance cage of the Unit 3 turbine building on March 4, 1987. Blame

1610-536: The largest combination utility in Pennsylvania , and has a franchise utility service area of 2,100 square miles (5,400 km ) with a population of 3.8 million people. PECO operates in southeastern Pennsylvania and provides electricity to about 1.6 million customers and natural gas to over 511,000 customers. The company's electric service area covers all of the city of Philadelphia and Delaware County ; most of Bucks , Chester , and Montgomery counties; and

1656-743: The murder of a British tourist at a rest stop in 1993, Florida contracted with Wackenhut to provide security at all state rest stops. G4S provides security to specific government and corporate sectors: energy, utilities, and chemical/petrochemical, financial institutions, hospitals and healthcare facilities, major corporations and the construction industry, ports and airports, residential communities, retail and commercial real estate and transit systems. Clients included GlaxoSmithKline and U.S. Customs and Border Protection . The Wackenhut Corporation provided armed security services for many nuclear power plants. In September 2007, its employees Kerry Beal and Paul A. Kennedy videotaped their fellow security guards at

1702-475: The southeastern corner of York County . The company's natural gas service area covers all of Delaware County; most of Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery counties; and a small portion of eastern Lancaster County . PECO formerly provided electricity to 35,000 customers in portions of Cecil and Harford counties in Maryland through subsidiary Conowingo Power Company . On June 19, 1995, Delmarva Power acquired

1748-673: The winter periods when cold temperatures create demand for heating. The company's highest gas sales occurred on January 17, 2000 and was 718 million cubic feet (20.3 million cubic metres ) of gas. Gas usage by residential customers is approximately half of PECO's total deliveries. The PECO transition period for the competitive electric generation market ended on Dec. 31, 2010, when caps on retail rates and competitive transition charges on customer bills ended. PECO electric rates had been capped for 12 years. PECO expects to purchase all of its wholesale electricity from competitive market sources subsequent to 2010 with retail customers charged

1794-605: Was 46,536, an increase of 7.2 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within 50 miles (80 km) was 5,526,343, an increase of 10.6 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Baltimore (36 miles to city center). Cities within 50 miles: In 1987, PECO was ordered by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to indefinitely shutdown Peach Bottom-2 and -3 on March 31 due to operator misconduct, corporate malfeasance, and blatant disregard for

1840-489: Was 8,983 megawatts (MWs) and its highest peak load in the winter season occurred on December 20, 2004 and was 6,838 MW. Residential electric usage makes up about 35 percent of PECO's total electric delivery and half of the annual electric revenue. PECO's electric sales tend to peak in the summer and winter seasons, driven by air conditioning and heating load respectively when extreme temperatures create greater demand. The company's natural gas sales are generally higher during

1886-565: Was found in a snowbank near the time of her death but her accusers were not found until three decades later when a student documentary on Janet Chandler prompted the police to re-open the case. Eventually, the police showed this to Robert Lynch who confessed to being a participant and named his co-conspirators. Wackenhut Corporations obtained a security contract in Holland, Michigan in the fall of 1978, and approximately seventy of defendant's out-of-town security guards took up temporary residence at

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1932-505: Was founded as The Wackenhut Corporation in 1954, in Coral Gables, Florida , by George Wackenhut and three partners (all former FBI agents). In 2002, the company was acquired for $ 570 million by Danish corporation Group 4 Falck (itself then merged to form British company G4S in 2004). In 2010, G4S Wackenhut changed its name to G4S Secure Solutions (USA) to reflect the new business model. The G4S Americas Region headquarters

1978-568: Was human blood on the walls. The breach and lack of security at the site at the time was blamed upon the absence of key Wackenhut personnel in the previous few weeks; the plant manager and chief operating officer had retired 12 days prior to the incident. On June 12, 2016, Omar Mateen, who worked at G4S from 2007 until his death, committed one of the largest mass shootings in United States history. Though Mateen's employment as an armed guard only slightly facilitated his access to firearms, and

2024-459: Was not simply placed on the operators. "Latent organizational weakness" was targeted by industry experts and regulators alike. INPO President Zack Pate came to the conclusion that "Major changes in the corporate culture at PECO are required." In September 1988, NRC Chairman Lando Zech told senior management officials of PECO, "Your operators certainly made mistakes, no question about that. Your corporate management problems are just as serious." Clearly,

2070-425: Was the updated Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2), a test used for job screenings and court cases requiring those subjected to it to agree or disagree with statements such as "My soul sometimes leaves my body" and "Once in a while I think of things too bad to talk about." Carol Nudelman, the psychologist listed on the character certification submitted by G4S to the state said she stopped working for

2116-480: Was unaware of Mateen's sealed and expunged juvenile arrest record for misdemeanor battery. Although they verified his employment they took Mateen at his word that he was fired as a Florida corrections trainee for failing to report due to a fever. He was actually dismissed for skipping classes, falling asleep in class, and asking two days after the Virginia Tech shooting if a classmate would tell if he brought

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