"With the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear plant catastrophe having arrived, and with the disaster at the Fukushima nuclear complex still unfolding and radioactivity continuing to spew from those plants some people are asking: can nuclear power be made safe?
The answer is no. Nuclear power can never be made safe." Karl Grossman in Common Dreams
"The 25th anniversary of Chernobyl and the continuing crisis at Fukushima -- both Level 7 nuclear disasters -- are clear reminders that standard evacuation zones cannot protect the public from a nuclear accident. Current NRC regulations stipulate a 10 mile evacuation zone around nuclear plants. This is clearly insufficient and 50 miles has been recommended."
This interactive map from Physicians for Social Responsibility shows how many people live within 10 and 50 miles of US nuclear reactors.
Beyond Nuclear on Press TV makes the case against continued reliance on nuclear power.
An April 2011 report by the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) finds, “Particularly tragic is the fate of the thousands of children who were born dead or died in infancy, who were born with malformations and hereditary diseases, or who are forced to live with diseases they would not have developed under normal circumstances.”
Nuclear power remains inherently dangerous to all life forever. The failure of its multiple barrier systems to contain timelessly harmful radiation in routine and cumulative contaminating radioactive releases to the land, air and water, by tragic nuclear accidents like Chernobyl and now Fukushima, or ultimately after decades, centuries and milliniuems, the inevitable release of toxic nuclear waste to the environment and upon succeeding generations demonstrate the monumental irresponsibility to continue the operation of nuclear power and the construction of new reactors.
"The water level at the No. 1 reactor has been raised to about 6 meters above the bottom of the containment vessel. That level is 3 meters below the bottom of the pressure vessel.
But TEPCO has been unable to verify the water levels at the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors, and suspect that water is leaking from the damaged containment vessels." Asahi
April 27, 2011