NRC Rubberstamps Risky Reactor Restarts

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has recently approved some remarkably risky reactor restarts. NRC has approved a restart at Dominion's North Anna nuclear power plant in Mineral, Virginia, even though an August 23rd 5.8 magnitude earthquake, epicentered just 11 miles away, caused ground motion twice as strong as the twin reactor station was designed to withstand. NRC's restart approval for both North Anna reactors came even though one reactor was inadequately inspected, and the other almost not at all; many questions remain about the status of the reactors, the radioactive waste stored on-site, and even dams retaining cooling water vital to North Anna's safety. Beyond Nuclear and an environmental coalition have filed an emergency enforcement petition against the North Anna restart. Beyond Nuclear's Paul Gunter and Kevin Kamps, along with their environmental allies, just defended and supplemented the emergency enforcement petition before an NRC Petition Review Board on Dec. 12th.

Similarly, NRC has approved the restart of the Davis-Besse atomic reactor near Toledo, Ohio, despite significant cracking discovered in its secondary containment shield building. Beyond Nuclear and an environmental coalition has intervened against the 20 year license extension sought by FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company at Davis-Besse. U.S. Representative Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) has strongly questioned NRC's rush to restart Davis-Besse while so many basic questions about the cracking linger.

At both nuclear power plants, NRC has, effectively, said "Restart Now, Fix Later (If At All)."