Earthquake Readiness Of U.S. Nuclear Power Plants Unclear
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Heaven soon
Aug 30, 2011, 2:55:44 PM8/30/11
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Earthquake
Readiness Of U.S. Nuclear Power Plants Unclear
The question — what size earthquakes can U.S. nuclear power plants withstand — seems urgent in light of this week's surprising magnitude-5.8 quake on the East Coast. Alas, there's no simple answer and that worries industry critics. Earthquakes are routinely measured by magnitude, or energy released. But the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)requires the nation's 104 nuclear reactors to withstand a predicted level of ground motion, or acceleration — something called g-force. What does that mean, magnitude-wise? "I don't have what that translates into … unfortunately," NRC spokesman David McIntyre says. The agency released a statement Thursday to clarify its "earthquake measurements and design criteria," but it does not say what ground motion each reactor can handle. This muddiness heightens the concerns of industry critics, who have urged stricter safety rules after reactors at Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant nearly melted down due to a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami on March 11. "The Virginia earthquake is now our local 911 call to stop delaying the implementation of stricter safety standards," Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., wrote in a letter this week to the NRC
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www.heavensoon.com
The question — what size earthquakes can U.S. nuclear power plants withstand — seems urgent in light of this week's surprising magnitude-5.8 quake on the East Coast. Alas, there's no simple answer and that worries industry critics. Earthquakes are routinely measured by magnitude, or energy released. But the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)requires the nation's 104 nuclear reactors to withstand a predicted level of ground motion, or acceleration — something called g-force. What does that mean, magnitude-wise? "I don't have what that translates into … unfortunately," NRC spokesman David McIntyre says. The agency released a statement Thursday to clarify its "earthquake measurements and design criteria," but it does not say what ground motion each reactor can handle. This muddiness heightens the concerns of industry critics, who have urged stricter safety rules after reactors at Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant nearly melted down due to a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami on March 11. "The Virginia earthquake is now our local 911 call to stop delaying the implementation of stricter safety standards," Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., wrote in a letter this week to the NRC
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