CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : A-Plant Removing Nuclear Fuel Rods

Workers at the closed Rancho Seco nuclear power plant are removing fuel rods in a delicate process that they expect to complete by the end of the week. The procedure involves removing the lid of the reactor vessel and using a special crane to lift 177 nuclear fuel rods made of enriched uranium out of the reactor vessel. The rods are being stored in 40 feet of water in a special containment building. Ratepayers of the Sacramento Municipal Utility District voted last June to permanently shut down the publicly owned electric plant after a 15-year history of costly operational problems.