Oak Ridge Today

Y-12 replacing old, high-risk water lines

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The sign at the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex is pictured above on Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Sixty-year-old water lines are being replaced at the Y-12 National Security Complex, and 27 of the old lines are identified as high-risk and a Top 10 threat.

Work to replace the pipes began in July 2022 and will continue in April 2023, according to an emailed response to questions provided by spokesperson Kathryn King. The water line replacements are scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2025 at a projected cost of $38.9 million. The old cast iron pipes will be replaced with new ductile iron pipes.

TVA: Power supply set record Friday

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The Tennessee Valley Authority’s Bull Run Fossil Plant is pictured above at the Clinch River in Claxton on Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Tennessee Valley Authority said it delivered a record amount of power on Friday and set a winter record for peak power demand.

TVA supplied 740 gigawatt-hours, or 740 million kilowatt-hours, during a 24-hour period on Friday, December 23. That’s more energy supplied than at any other time in its 89-year history, TVA said.

The cold also produced a winter record for peak power demand of 33,425 megawatts at 7 p.m. Central time, when the region-wide average temperature was 9 degrees, TVA said.

“Record-setting temperatures across the region continue to put intense pressure on the power system,” TVA said in a press release. “The Tennessee Valley Authority and local power companies (worked) around the clock in difficult conditions to meet this extreme demand.”

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TWRA tests birds after dead vultures reported

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A black vulture is pictured above perching on a tree between Edgemoor Road and Haw Ridge across from the Bull Run Fossil Plant on Thursday, Dec. 22, 2022. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has tested birds after black vultures were reported dead between Edgemoor Road and Haw Ridge, but the state agency does not have test results yet.

On Thursday, Oak Ridge Today counted at least a dozen dead birds in the brush and submerged near the shoreline along the concrete portion of the trail across from the Bull Run Fossil Plant. There were also at least four dozen live vultures perched nearby in trees close to the high-voltage power lines from Bull Run.

Oak Ridge wins two tourism awards

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Pictured above are, from left, Rebecca Williams and Barbara Ferrell of the Lavender Festival; Katy Watt, president of Explore Oak Ridge; and Mark Ezell, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Tourism at a recent awards ceremony. (Photo courtesy Explore Oak Ridge/City of Oak Ridge)

Oak Ridge has won two awards for promoting tourism in middle East Tennessee, an area that includes the Knoxville metropolitan area.

The Oak Ridge Lavender Festival was awarded the 2022 Best Annual Festival or Event Award, a press release said.

Explore Oak Ridge was awarded the Excellence in Tourism Award for Best Advertising or Marketing Campaign for the “Katie the Calutron Girl” marketing promotion.

The 2022 awards were presented by the Middle East Tennessee Tourism Council in a December 1 ceremony. The METTC promotes tourism activities and represents a 16-county region including Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Cooke, Grainger, Hamblen, Jefferson, Knox, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier, and Union counties.

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City offices closed for Christmas, New Year’s

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The Oak Ridge Municipal Building is pictured above on Tuesday evening, May 5, 2020. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

City of Oak Ridge offices will be closed for Christmas and New Year’s Day.

City administrative offices and Oak Ridge City Court will be closed from Friday, December 23, to Monday, December 26, for Christmas.

They will also be closed on Monday, January 2, for New Year’s Day.

Offices and the court will re-open on Tuesday, January 3, a press release said.

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Packard accused of filing false tax returns

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Russell Barker, who is now Anderson County sheriff, and the Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force executes search warrants at McGuire Used Books on Thursday afternoon, May 24, 2018. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Already charged with money laundering and retail crime, an Oak Ridge business manager has been accused by the state of filing false tax returns and not paying sales taxes.

John McGuire Packard, 38, was indicted on nine counts by the Anderson County Grand Jury in June. The indictment charged him with one count of evade/defeat use tax for each month from September 2017 to May 2018. Those are Class E felonies.

NRC will prepare environmental statement for nuclear fuel facility

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TRISO-X has proposed a nuclear fuel fabrication facility on 110 acres at Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo from TRISO-X environmental report to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Friday that it will prepare an environmental impact statement for a proposed nuclear fuel fabrication facility in Oak Ridge that could help power advanced reactors for electrical and chemical use, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The project could partially benefit from last year’s federal infrastructure law, specifically about $1.1 billion appropriated for a clean energy supply.

Man sentenced to 11 years for attempted rape with knife

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Michael C. Simonds

A 42-year-old man was sentenced to 11 years on Monday after being convicted of attempted aggravated rape in Anderson County during a jury trial in June.

It was the same sentence the prosecution had asked for, with the time to be served in prison.

Lawsuit filed by terminated employee who refused COVID-19 vaccine

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The Howard H. Baker Jr. United States Courthouse is pictured above in Knoxville on Jan. 19, 2020. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A lawsuit was filed this year against a federal contractor in Oak Ridge that terminated an employee after she refused to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

In her lawsuit, the former employee argued that it is illegal under state law to compel her to provide proof of vaccination if she objects to the vaccine.

ORAU Annual Giving Campaign exceeds $100,000 goal; More than $1 million raised in past 10 years benefits United Way and Community Shares nonprofit organizations

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Oak Ridge, Tenn. —ORAU exceeded its goal of raising $100,000 in donations as part of its internal annual giving campaign that benefits the United Way and Community Shares, making total donations more than $1 million for the past 10 years.

As part of the 2022 ORAU Annual Giving Campaign, a total of $117,747.50 was pledged. Employees donate via payroll deduction and could earmark their donation for United Way, Community Shares or both nonprofit organizations.

“ORAU has remained a strong pillar in the community for more than 75 years, and we encourage our employees to consider participating in our Annual Giving Campaign each year to help our less fortunate neighbors in need,” said ORAU President and CEO Andy Page. “We emphasize that each one of our employees has the power to positively impact the lives of those who need it in our communities near ORAU locations across the country and demonstrate the ORAU way – taking care of each other.”

ORAU, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, provides science, health and workforce solutions that address national priorities and serve the public interest. Through our specialized teams of experts and access to a consortium of more than 150 major Ph.D.-granting institutions, ORAU works with federal, state, local and commercial customers to provide innovative scientific and technical solutions and help advance their missions. ORAU manages the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Learn more about ORAU at www.orau.org.

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Safety board wants briefing on Y-12 uranium reactions

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The sign at the main entrance to the Y-12 National Security Complex is pictured above on Sunday, Aug. 6, 2017. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A federal safety board has asked for a report and briefing after 15 exothermic (heat-producing) reactions of uranium materials were reported at the Y-12 National Security Complex between 2016 and 2021.

The report and briefing have been requested by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, which wants a response from the National Nuclear Safety Administration. The NNSA is part of the U.S. Department of Energy and oversees the nation’s nuclear weapons work, including at Y-12.

Bond in murder case set at $1 million

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Nathan Newport

Bond for an Oliver Springs man accused of murdering his wife Monday morning was set at $1 million.

The bond order for Nathan Lee Newport, 60, was signed by new Anderson County General Sessions Court Judge Matthew Tuck on Tuesday.